Concerned about boyfriend's cat

Hi, I'm really sorry if this is the wrong forum, I've been agonizing for the past 10 minutes over which forum to put this in

Oh, I should add that neither of us have any previous experience with any pets at all.

My boyfriend took in a stray cat about July of last year (named 'Puss Puss', as he's not very imaginative with names). She was small and thin, and not very trusting at first, but it wasn't long before she made his home her home. And not long before she gave birth to two kittens (a male called 'Black and a female called 'White', again, just for the sake of giving them a name). Back when this happened, I strongly advised he take all three of them to see a vet. The veternary clinic just 15 minutes walk from his house does free checkups, so money wasn't an issue. But he put it off until the kittens were re-homed. This annoyed me, but the kittens are happy now (he keeps touch with the new owners).

I wanted her to see a vet because I was concerned about her not eating well, and turning her nose up at good food (though she's eating ok now). Plus they know nothing of her history, it would be nice to have someone check her out to rule out any underlying problems.

But still he never took her. And she fell preggy again. This time, she only had one kitten (yesterday morning). Now I'm a bit more worried about her having such small litters. I'm worried that getting pregnant so soon again is also putting her under pressure. But my boyfriend is morally against spaying, he sees it as mutilation, also she's an outdoor cat, gets depressed if she can't go outside, so if she's spayed she might get picked on by other cats. But if she doesn't she'll just have more kittens. A dilema.

So, I asked him quite sternly why she hasn't been looked at by a vet, and he said it's transportation issues. He's positive she will not go in a crate, and I feel he's being too idealistic because he says that she will feel trapped in the crate and loose trust in him. He then says "should I take her wrapped in a towel?". Well, considering she hates being held for long, I think she'd just run away or try to claw herself out.

So, since he won't take her to a vet, does anyone know what could be the cause of her having small litters? Are there any options to prevent her from falling pregnant, and still allow her to roam outside without getting picked on? And does anyone know if there are any alternative transportation options, other than the use of a crate?

Thanks.

She wont like the crate no, but she WILL forgive you, Its just silly to think that she wouldnt, even the timid rescues forget this stuff in time. and also, she wont get bullied somehow in the neighourhood for being spayed, if anything she will be happier coz she wont be givin of the hormones that make the men pester her constantly.

Its just we read in a cat information book that spayed cats or infertile cats can be attacked by other cats.

Thanks I told him she wouldn't take it that badly, hopefully a second opinion will help change his mind.

As Rosie said, she will absolutely forget the crate experience in 20 minutes. When I caught my semi-feral pregnant kitty, things didn't go well the first time I tried to catch her, and she wouldn't get close to me again. Well, I drove to the grocery store, 5 minutes away, bought a cat litter box, drove back, called for her in the parking lot, and sure enough, she came trotting back over like I had never tried to stuff her into anything. 15 minutes and she had forgotten all about how mean I had been to her. That time I successfully shoved her in there.

And also, last night I, foolishly, attempted to wrap her up in a towel to take her temperature (note to self, never do that again)... she forgot all about it in less than 5 minutes and was loving me all over again. Cats have SHORT memories. Puss will forgive you for the carrier.

Also, the idea that the other cats will "pick on her" because she's spayed is ridiculous. Having an unspayed cat is very irresponsible unless you will make 100% certain she will be inside all of the time. There are far too many unwanted animals in the world already. And if she is having trouble keeping on weight, and is having such small litters, it sounds like her body isn't really healthy enough to be supporting these pregnancies. Is it really worth putting her health at risk to avoid an operation that she'll never even know she had?

She will have a very short life span having litter after litter. That's what they do in kitten/puppy mills - breed the animals to death - at EVERY heat cycle.

So your bf is doing no good by letting her litter after litter. And its not true about spayed/neutered cats being picked on. Its the personality of the cat - whether or not they are a dominate cat. Our spayed barn cat was queen of the place and she ran off males and females - she didn't take anything from anyone!

Cats can be bred while nursing kittens - this means pregnancy 3-4 times a year; maybe more. Your bf is more cruel by letting her live this way. Eventually she will die giving birth. Why put her thru this.

Spaying/neutering will make HEALTHIER cats - not hurt them.

As far as getting her in a crate to go to the vet and get spayed now, try some canned tuna in the carrier.

Thanks lots for the info . I'll try to convinve him to get her checked up on and spayed. I guess, whether she will be picked on or not, I can already see she's starting to suffer. It just hurts to see her stressed out a lot and he's not doing a thing about it. I wasn't sure if it was related to the frequency of her pregnancies, but now after reading everyone's posts, it probably is.

I must add, he has no intention on neglecting her. He spends a lot of time and money on her. Just I feel like he doesn't realise that by not letting her see a vet, he's hurting her.

GK is right, Puss Puss won't have a long, healthy, or happy life if she keeps getting pregnant. It's natural for cats to breed a lot and die young and malnourished. If she's only having 1 or 2 kittens that's probably a sign that her body can't sustain a full litter, and there's a good chance that her body won't be able to sustain her if she gets pregnant again, she could die, and I'm sure your bf doesn't want that.

We spay and neuter our cats so that they can live longer, healthier, and less stressful lives. I hope you can convince your bf to do the right thing by his cat

Originally Posted by Amoeba

my boyfriend is morally against spaying, he sees it as mutilation

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How does he see the yearly euthanasia of millions upon millions of unwanted cats and kittens resulting from the irresponsibility of owners to take simple measures to control their overpopulation?

Is the pet overpopulation problem as bad in Scotland as it is in the U.S.?

Even without that issue, the spaying is a great idea because of the health of the mother. Too many pregnancies wear her out and it also avoids the female cancers.

My pets are all spayed/neutered except for the most recent adoption that has 6 babies now. My oldest female puts all the other pets in their place, including the dog, and she is spayed.

There is almost nothing you can do to a cat that is more dangerous than letting her have kittens. Even the dangers of spaying, or vaccinations, or whatever, all of which DO have a certain risk factor. Having kittens is one of the most dangerous things a female cat can do, and fighting over females is the most dangerous thing unneutered male cats do.