Can littermates breed?

hissy

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 19, 2001
Messages
34,872
Purraise
76
Yes they can, and they shouldn't. I don't know how old these littermates are but a female reaches sexual maturity within 6 months, sometimes earlier, depending on the breed, and a male reaches full maturity between 9-12 months, but again, sometimes even earlier.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

vbocchino

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Oct 17, 2002
Messages
21
Purraise
0
Location
NY
Will they breed? I'm just curios really--my boyfriend asked me the same question & I thought it would be a great question to post here.
 

hissy

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 19, 2001
Messages
34,872
Purraise
76
They will breed- it is called in-breeding and it is not a good idea. Follow this link to see what happens when unchecked in-breeding occurs. I urge you that if your litter of kittens are 5 months old or older that you get them spayed and neutered

Stubs
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

vbocchino

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Oct 17, 2002
Messages
21
Purraise
0
Location
NY
That little fella is adorable!

I have 2 cats 1 male & 1 female they were both neutered/spayed at 6 months old.

Do littermates have the urge to mate with each other?
 

valanhb

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Mar 2, 2002
Messages
32,530
Purraise
100
Location
Lakewood (Denver suburb), Colorado
Cats don't differentiate each other as siblings or family members. They have the drive to mate, and if a sibling is available that's who they will mate with. It doesn't matter to the cat if they are related or not. When a female goes into heat she will mate with whatever male is there, a male will mate with any female who is receptive to him. They don't have the "morals" that we humans have regarding incest and inbreeding.
 

lorie d.

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Sep 2, 2001
Messages
7,253
Purraise
339
Location
Upper Midwest (SE MN)
A couple of years ago, my son visited a local farm where the barn cats were allowed to mate unchecked. My son said a lot of in-breeding was occuring, and many of the kittens had deformities involving their heads and faces.

I agree with Hissy, in-breeding isn't a good idea and should never be allowed
 

angelzoo

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 17, 2002
Messages
1,535
Purraise
2
Location
Maryland, USA
Asim started to try and mate with his sister when he was 4 months old (they both were 4 months). It was a big no no no! We got them box fixed.
Asim is already a polydactil, which I've also read that is caused by inbreeding, another genetic mutation.
 

mazspeed

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2003
Messages
58
Purraise
5
Location
Campbell Ca
They do this in the south, but it's frowned upon there as well
I just couldn't resist.

Cheers
Mike
 
Top