Hi! If my cat has another litter, will existing 2 kittens in family (then would be about 7 mos.) attack new kittens?

purrfect mom

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Hi! . Kittens now are 4.5 mos. old. In part because, due to covid, it's taking so long to get a spay apptmt and in the meantime my cat has heat symptoms, I am wondering if I let her have 1 more litter, will the pre-existing kittens find the newly-hatched kittens and paw them/attack/interfere with them??
I just neutered 1 of the male kittens; the female kitten unspayed right now (vets I've talked to recommend doing @ 5-6 mos). Thanks!
 

lutece

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Why do you want her to have another litter?

It's preferable to spay female kittens by 4-5 months, both to prevent accidental pregnancy and reduce the risk of mammary cancer. Some older vets still believe it is best to spay between 6-9 months, but research supports spaying earlier. If you need help talking to your vet about the best time to spay, here is a web site about the new recommendations that was created by veterinarians and is supported by all major veterinary associations: Feline Fix by Five Months
 

Sarthur2

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Is the mother cat pregnant? If she has another litter you would need to separate her older kittens from the new litter as they can harm the little ones and push them off nipples during nursing.

It is time to get the older kittens spayed and neutered. If mom is newly pregnant she can still be spayed in the early stages of pregnancy.
 

cataholic07

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Get all cats/kittens fixed. You could not allow the older kittens anywhere near the kittens until 8 weeks old, some female cats will be quite aggressive towards other cats to protect their young kittens. Get mom fixed asap, and try to get the female kitten fixed no later then 5 months old.
 

di and bob

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The males are easier, but the females MUST be taken care of first. I have a side open carrier that is for my difficult cat, that will do anything to avoid it. Much easier. For the rest, I have the carrier propped gate up and open and literally lower the cat in, sometimes quieting them by holding their scruff with one hand, supporting them with the other. This is also easier than trying to push them in headfirst. My cat had kittens approx. 70 days apart. When she delivered the first litter did play with the kittens even carrying them, scared me to pieces! They even nursed side by side so you definitely have to watch and make sure the newborns are getting their share. Mama weaned the first litter early. If you can't get in to get your cat spayed, PLEASE lock her up! There are already enough homeless and unwanted kittens in the world, don't contribute to the suffering that is out there. The people who get your kittens are not you, they could end up in a shelter or even worse, thrown out on the street.
 
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purrfect mom

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Hi everyone who has replied thank you so! Vyger - I love the fact that you are taking care of all of these cats/kittens and ensuring that they go to good homes. It is really very difficult to deal with a cat in heat when appmt time even now still 2.5 weeks away. I get only a few hrs sleep per night.
We were closed due to Covid for sev'l mos. and when came online all backed up. Called a cat rescue organ. and they told me to go into a busy spay/neut (bc cd get same-day apptmts) and lent me a cage.
Background: my cat won't go into a carrier without my boyfriend and I both. my cat was semi-feral in the 1st place and she managed to get out of a locked standard carrier (the good kind) 3x while still inside when I 1st got her. I finally had to solicit donations of expensive soft-sided carriers, then both my b-friend and i had to be in the car when we 1st transported her (only 2 mi.) to see if she was chipped.
Fast fw to us trying to get her spayed. She wldn't go into the cage so we grabbed one of the kittens. person from cat rescue didn't tell me until we were en route that I would have to declare my pet cat a feral, which I couldn't do (bc untrue) after driving the 12 miles.
Next apptmt time (for an actual pet cat) was a full month later. But we had to substitute in male kitten (instead of spay mother) bc male was getting too int. in his sister (just over 4 mos).
In the meantime this place 12 miles away is not going to work for mother cat who was semi-feral. my boyfriend can't take another day off of work just to have her run under the bed. We need to go to the vet near us (also they are more time-flexible) - but best apptmt i cd get was over 1 mo away.
I've tried 4-5 diff. methods for reducing discomfort during heat: hemp oil, phermones, homeopathic drops that I dissolve in h20, acupressure: nada works. Vets have said they know nothing about birth contrtol pills despite fact that I've been able to research it easily. She is a gorgeous cat. If she has another litter I would spay her immediately after.
Current kittens 4.25 mos. old stopped nursing ages ago. My only ? is really how I ensure the safety of any new kittens with the current kittens (then would be 7 mos) around. Our house is really quite open and there isn't really any way to keep kittens out of places bc then the mother cat couldn't come and go. I apprec. Vyger's exp. because she/he has actually had the new litter with other cats in house besides mom.But I'm sure that others have multiple cats, so am wondering how they have kept litters safe?
Any thoughts?
 

lutece

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Are you saying that she has an appointment to get spayed in 2.5 weeks? Great!
 

lutece

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Really? This is what I'm reading:
It is really very difficult to deal with a cat in heat when appmt time even now still 2.5 weeks away.
I thought the "month" referred to how much of a delay there was when they originally made the appointment?
 

Furballsmom

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I dunno, I'm confused.

To the OP, if it's only a couple weeks or even a month, why can't you contain any intact male cats and keep them away from her?
 
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purrfect mom

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A quick shout out to Di and Bob, as well -- did the existing kittens seem to have any aggrression towards the new kittens?
I am also wondering re the aggression of mother cats that you mentioned bc as I discussed in a prev. post when male returned from vet from being neutered both other female kitten and female cat hissing at him. Now 2 kittens are friends again but mother cat seems to have it in for both kittens, particularly the female. I had noticed her hissing at the female kitten even before the male went to get neutered.
But it's not as if she hasn't been in heat of and on for a few months, now, and this hissing/growling towards kittens has just started.
So if she has a new litter will she full-out attack her own previous kittens or what is the exp. of others?
Also wanted to ensure Di/Bob and others that we found excellent homes for 3/5 litter and had more inquiries than cats for remaining 2; we just decided to keep them. One of homes took kittens to a vet check and vet said they were the calmest healthiest kittens they'd ever seen.
Am sure would find good homes again for a new litter if she has one. And one friend of friend had to wait 6 wks for one kitten from a shelter (and then she didn't even get to pick it herself) in their area post-covid. So it seems there are big reg'l diff. relating to abundance of kittens.
Also, I did a suvey of a few different vets and asked whether cats who had had multiple litters lived shorter lives than those who had been spayed right away. No difference; at least that's what they all said. Any thoughts re 7 mos. old kittens and a new litter? Thanks.
 

lutece

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I don't understand why you want her to have a new litter? It sounds like it is because her heat cycles are noisy and bothering you?
 
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purrfect mom

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ok, so when i made the apptmt it was over a mo. now it's 2.5 weeks. but i really don't think i can last that long. Our cat must have very very good hormones. I am not getting much sleep at all. Everything else is going by the wayside. Of course we are keeping her indoors, and I am not even sure how I would mate her safely as I don't want to just let her out, even though it worked out when she got out by accident. I suppose I would have to find someone with an indoor male who had been tested.
When the hissing started it occurred to me that a new litter might be in danger from existing kittens. I nor none of my friends have any exp. with this and this is why this site is so great. Am just trying to gather info.
 
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purrfect mom

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She is just a gorgeous cat; and, yes, then the heat thing would stop. After the next birthing cycle I would be able to make an advance spay apptmt bc covid wouldn't have just begun.
 

Sarthur2

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Is there no other vet that can spay her sooner? Or might a slot open up if an office has a cancellation?
 

lutece

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After the next birthing cycle I would be able to make an advance spay apptmt bc covid wouldn't have just begun.
You already have a spay appointment and 2.5 weeks is really pretty soon, even if it doesn't feel that way. You can do it!
 
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purrfect mom

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Also, I would love for her to be able to go outside in a catio (I bought her a harness for walks but then she got pregnant so I haven't used it). The sooner she gets out of the heat the sooner I can try to get her outside safely. I also want to spare her any additional discomfort from being in heat and not mating. thx
 

cataholic07

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Well problem is if you wanted her to have kittens you'd just have to let her outside which has its risks as she might not come back. Also you risk things like FELV and FIV with breeding. Not sure if you have your female kitten fixed but she will need to be fixed as well as she will be going into heat soon. Being in heat sucks, but once spayed she doesnt have to deal with it ever again. Please dont forget a female cat can go back into heat quite quickly after giving birth to kittens, some as soon as the kittens are a few weeks old. Many though at around 4 weeks old. But you couldn't spay her until the kittens are 8 weeks old. So you'd be dealing with her being in heat and have to wait weeks before she could get fixed anyways. Maybe see if you can get a sooner appointment, just call around to see who is open to spaying cats right now. Most should be now.
 
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