Kitten with a kitten.

secret squirrel

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About a year ago we got a kitten who had been abandoned in a cardboard box, and was handed into the police station where my daughter works. She had been inspected by the RSPCA and we were told she was about 8 weeks old, when she came to live with us. She is called "Pickle"
To cut a long story short, before we had time to get her spayed, Pickle became pregnant and when she was around 6 months, she had her OWN kitten, who we called Lola.
Lola was born by emergency ceasarian and Pickle was spayed at the same time. Lola is now 7 months and has been spayed, so thankfully now more kittens.
Now, generally speaking , all my cats are on the slim side as we try not to over feed them and have all lived very long lives. The previous 3 were 16, 17 and 18 when they passed away. Pickle is 'plumper' than I would like even though she is fed the same as all the others. Could this be because she had a kitten BEFORE she was spayed? Lola is nice and slim but then again she is an adolescent and I would expect her to be so. Pickle isnt 'fat fat' but plumper than the others.
Also , Pickle and Lola dont seem to get on any more, either. Now I know, it doesnt follow that as mother and daughter that they would automatically, and some of it is parenting, by Pickle. As I speak, the pair of them are squabbling for space in the cat tree hammock,
, which will break any moment, as there isnt enough room for them both. Ah, Pickle won that one.
 

Willowy

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I haven't found that cats who have had a litter before being spayed are any more likely to get plump, or vice versa. It just seems to be dependent on their individual metabolism. If she was starved before you got her, that can sometimes have an effect. Or it might just be the way she is, she might just need less food than other cats.
 
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secret squirrel

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Fair point. Just wondered, that was all. She does like her food, but I dont want a fat cat. Maybe she digests it at a different speed, which is dependent on metabolism.
Never had a cat that had kittens, before. This particular case was rare because she was so young when she got pregnant.
Thankfully both mummy and baby are very healthy. Also thankfully, there was only one kitten, who got stuck in the breech position, hence the ceasarian.
They all get fed the same amount, but she seems plumper than the others. Maybe she will slim a bit when she is fully grown.
Both are very sweet natured. You may have a point about the starvation factor, because we dont know for sure how long she was in the box for, or if she was the smallest in her litter, but she is thriving now.
She WAS very tiny when she came and by size she did look about 8 weeks, at the time, but unless you have an actual birth date, its more difficult to assess true age. She may have been a couple of weeks older, but having had cats for so many years, I wouldnt say there was that much variation in the guess.
 

minka

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Originally Posted by Secret squirrel

They all get fed the same amount, but she seems plumper than the others. Maybe she will slim a bit when she is fully grown.
Unfortunately, cat's metabolisms only slow down more as they get older. I would try to get a handle on her weight now as when she is full grown it will only be harder.
 
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