Mother Cat Eating Kittens

Dave226

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Hi I'm seeking information. My cat is being a dreadful mother she gave birth to three kittens out of which she has eaten one. She sits on the remainder like a hen you can hear them screaming underneath and plays them like toys at times. I am wondering if anyone has resolved these issues.

Cat rejecting kittens.jpg
 

talkingpeanut

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How old is your cat? How old are the kittens? Is mom in a quiet, dark space with the babies? She sounds very stressed.
 

di and bob

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She is obviously a young, inexperienced mother. I would make sure she has a wider area to lay out in, she may be having trouble when laying down after leaving. Make sure the blankets are flat, too many might mean the kittens could smother themselves. A low sided box with sides 4-5 inches high would be better so she could see where she jumps. As for eating the one baby, there was most likely something really wrong with the little one, or it had died,they will do this by instinct to keep predators away. Make sure she is in a quiet, secure place, do not let small children around at all right now, anything that makes her nervous could make her be distracted and she may unintentionally harm the kittens out of nervousness. Put her in a quiet corner or a closet with the door left open so she feels secure. After the kittens are stronger they will not let her sit on them, watch carefully now to make sure they they are eating fine and not being smothered. Give mom lots of kitten food, that is nutritious so she doesn't have to hunt for food, and make sure she drinks plenty of water, no milk products unless it is like kMR kitten formula, Etc. She should settle down after a couple of days, just don't make her too nervous by hovering. I know that is hard! New mothers have lost whole litters due to inexperience, but with your help, she should be fine, give her lots of love when she comes to you! All the luck and keep us posted!
 
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Dave226

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Cat was a stray so age unknown vet says she's less than five years, the kittens are about a day old now. Shes in a room on her own in a large box full of clothes, however after whats happened I feel compelled to keep going in the room to see whats going on.
 
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Dave226

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In comparison to what she was like when I first brought her home 7 months ago she is fairly trusting but not fully trusting she sleeps on the end of my bed other than that she likes to keep her self to herself. I've rediuced the height of oneside of her box and introduced another low sided box with a flat blanket but so far she prefers the original box. Some of her parenting skills are hard to watch
 
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Dave226

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No I'm not weighing them but that is still an option as they are only little over a day old. I am more concerned about her sitting on them totally oblivious of their distress calls. I am starting to wonder whether she is deaf. I've set up a baby monitor with a video feed so I can get in there when I hear them squeaking when she's sitting on them.
However Monday/ Friday she will be on her own for 6/8 hours per day.
 

di and bob

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I don't blame you for wanting to watch. You could throw a ball into a corner and see if she turns to look at the noise, don't let her see you throw it. I think she is trying to keep them warm, but had no idea how. Some cats seem mean to their babies, especially when cleaning, they will almost roughly hold them down, and flip them around. I have had many do that. But I have not had many, a few, that actually sat on their babies, not often any way. Can you come home during lunch and check on them?
 

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How are things going today with mom and babies? Has she settled in better yet?

Thank you for caring! :)
 
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Dave226

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She lets them feed at times but she keeips taking the kittens from the box with a single flat blanket to the orginal box of many clothes. I'm not sure if i should take the box away or will it just make things worse. (she still sits on them with a single blanket.)

So not to upset her the flash is off and the rooms only lite by a night light so the picture is poor The ginger blob in the picture is a kitten the other is completly underneath her. While I'm at work i'm going to give the baby monitor to a neighbour and she will come round if there's a problem.
 

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10009891

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My God!That is awful! I never heard of cats eating their kittens! That's horrible!!!!
 
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Dave226

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My God!That is awful! I never heard of cats eating their kittens! That's horrible!!!!
Wish I had never heard of it either. I'm now hand feeding the last kitten because sadly a couple of days ago another kitten was lost in a similar manner . After that I was pretty upset and took her to the vet to see if there was something physically wrong with her The vet visit was a total nightmare she had to be restrained in a crush cage and sedated so x-rays and blood works could be taken all of which turned out fine, so a complete waste of time
 

miagi's_mommy

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Yeah please get her spayed because she’ll likely do it again.
 
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Dave226

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Yeah please get her spayed because she’ll likely do it again.
She's actually got herself banned from the vets last Tuesday unless I pay for sedation first. I think we in the UK have wimpy vets, anyway I understand if I got her fixed now she would not mother the kitten and it's still hellpful under my supervision for her to lick the kitten and keep it at the right temperature and if she's in mood feed it I only allow this to happen in my presence
I use the stuff I got from the vet if she is not in the mood the vet milk goes down fairly well.
kitten240gram.jpg
 

Willowy

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anyway I understand if I got her fixed now she would not mother the kitten
Not necessarily; some cats have been spayed when their kittens were very young (some vets will take everything out if a c-section is required) and they'll still take care of the kittens. But regardless, it doesn't have to be done right now, just keep her indoors and away from intact male cats and have it done when the kitten is old enough. It needs to be done for her long-term health anyway.

If you can find a vet who deals with ferals they may not be so wimpy, lol. Or you can ask about sedation before you bring her in.
 
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