Is this kitten abuse?

rotobay

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Brief history: I took in a pregnant stray who had kittens last March. She was a dutiful, caring mother and very loving and protective of her kittens. We ended up keeping one of the kittens and the adult mama and both have now been spayed. So here's whats up:

Mama cat will often violently attack the kitten. The kitten is pretty big now, but mama is still much larger/heavier. These attacks occur randomly and for no apparent reason. For example, just now the mama cat was sitting looking out the back door. The kitten came up (like she always does) to look out the window with her mom. But mama turned around and attacked her. Other times when the kitten approaches, the mama will lick and groom her. There appears to be no rhyme of reason for these attacks.

Every time I witness it, I intervene and pick up the kitten...but I'm sure this happens when I'm not watching. Also,the kitten still tries to nurse on the mama. Sometimes mom will let her, other times she attacks. What should I do?
 

siobhan

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Sometimes when cats come home from the vet. other cats (even mothers) may not recognize them because of a feline's reliance on smell - they may think it is a new cat invading their territory. However, if this is something that occurs only from time to time and there were no probs upon return from the vet, it may just be that they are playing and it seems rough. If you think it is not, you might ask your vet about aggression and ask him or her to assess the situation. It is difficult to say without seeing the attack and I would not want you to provide advice that is incorrect.

Good luck!
 

mom of 4

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It may be the mother socializing her kitten, though I agree it is hard to tell without seeing it in person.

My vet told me that adults give kittens lots of leeway in their behavior. Then one day, they will reach the point where the adult will start correcting the behaviors. Zoey appeared to be very mean to Talley and Harper at times - hissing, biting, pinning them to the ground. It worried me at first, but I realized she wasn't really hurting them (no blood or missing body parts), but those kittens could cry! Zoey did manage to teach to control their claws and no biting.
Ans they are all great friends now.
 

goldenkitty45

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While some mothers will live with offspring fine, most will have problems on and off with the offspring sticking around. In the wild, the offspring leave - and we wind up forcing them to live with offspring.

I'm assuming both (mom and daughter) are spayed. If not, that is part of the problem. And females tend to get more territorial then males do, especially to another female.

Be sure you keep all cats nails trimmed and hopefully they will learn to live together.
 

cc12

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

While some mothers will live with offspring fine, most will have problems on and off with the offspring sticking around. In the wild, the offspring leave - and we wind up forcing them to live with offspring.

I'm assuming both (mom and daughter) are spayed. If not, that is part of the problem. And females tend to get more territorial then males do, especially to another female.

Be sure you keep all cats nails trimmed and hopefully they will learn to live together.
Maybe it is her way of pushing her child out of the nest. To encourage her daughter to leave.
 
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rotobay

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Well this attack behavior is still going on and I talked to the vet and you guys are right: she is kicking the kitten out of the nest. I feel horrible about this because the only reason we kept a kitten was because we thought the mama cat would be distressed if gave ALL of them away. For the longest time, mama and kitten would snuggle together and seemed to really love each other. Now the kitten is being jilted. It's awful to watch. She goes up to her mother all the time hoping for a different reaction....but the mother just visciously attacks her! Our poor little kitten now keeps trying to nurse on the dog!

I know it is just nature's way, but I feel so horrible about this!
 
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