Lots of questions...sorry

Ok, before I ask my question I should probably give you some background info on my cats. We got Angel from a friend of ours who could not take proper care of her. He thought that his roomates were caring for her, but all they would do was let her outside hoping she'd get hit by a car! Well, one day she ran off and was gone for TWO WEEKS! When she came back it was obvious that she was pregnant and had been in a fight. Our friend knew we loved her and gave her to us. Soon, she gave birth to four females, whom we named Sagwa (after my favorite cartoon), Sarobi (after Simba's mom in "The Lion King), Cringer (after the cat in the "Masters of the Universe" cartoon), and Dutchess (after the mom cat in "Aristocats"). Unfortunately, Dutchess was born with anencephally and a hole in her throat, and died within hours.

Anyway, the very day Sarobi opened her eyes for the first time, I was holding her. She automatically assumed that I was her mom and would no longer nurse off of Angel...I had to bottle feed her. Now, even at 2 years old, she is very clingy and acts more like a human than a cat. Here are my questions...

1. She refuses to use the litterbox, instead using the toilet...I guess because I do. But if she can't get to the toilet she goes on the floor. The other cats attack her if she even goes near the litterbox. Is there anyway to teach her to use the litterbox? Why do the other cats attack her when she tries?

2. Since she thinks that I'm mommy, she loves to get in the shower with me...and on Friday nights when I take a VERY much needed relaxing bath, she likes to get in there too. Would it be ok to shampoo her like once a month with the shampoo I use? I use a vegan, non-animal tested shampoo made by Beauty Without Cruelty.

3. She has major seperation anxiety when I'm not home. What can I do to make her feel better? If Zach (my fiance) tries to pick her up when I'm gone, she just howls and howls.

Now, some questions about Angel. About a year ago, because we were told that a nursing cat (yes, she kept nursing these kittens for over a year!!) could not get pregnant, we had not had a chance to get her spayed yet. Well,she went into heat while we were out of town and escaped from her caretaker. Subsequently, she gave birth to six kittens...all of whom died within a space of 24 hours. The vet said they died of what is the equivalent of rH incompatiablity in humans, and that there was no way to save them...basically Angel's milk was poison to them. Here are my questions on this subject...

1. Has anyone ever heard of this happening with cats?
2. How did Angel go into heat when we were told that nursing cats, like nursing moms, can't get pregnant?
3. Sometimes we'll catch her nursing Sagwa. Why is she doing this?

I'll try to answer some of your questions.

First, you may want to consider adding litter boxes to your house. I had a female that was attacked at a litter box (it's territorial) and when I added litter boxes, she was OK.

A female can go into heat when nursing, and typically they do when the kittens are about 8 weeks old. You should simply get her spayed if you haven't already done so.

And suckling between cats is comforting to them. Muddy and Koko were orphans and Koko still suckles on Muddy from time to time at a year old. Pinky (age 3-1/2) tried to suckle on Stumpy (both males).

I would agree that your cat needs to be spayed, especially in light of the death of so many of her kittens. If you love this cat then by spaying her you will prolong her life, and also save the life of unborn kittens that might not survive.

I would also add litter pans, and make sure that the pans are in different parts of the home. Make sure that there is seclusion (for privacy) and also a good escape route. If a cat is ambushed while following nature's call, they will stop using the litter pan altogether. Going on the floor is also sometimes a health issue for your cat. You should take her to the vet and have her checked out before she is spayed. Your vet can do this all in one day for you. I also would just let her enjoy the shower and not shampoo her. Cats do not need baths like we do everyday. They are fastidious about cleaning themselves. I have one fella that sits on the shower bar when I take a shower. He also is a bottle baby. He sits up over my head and will occassionally stick his paw up and spray me with water when it hits the stream. I have never even given him a bath- he takes his own with his tongue at least 6 times a day. Using human shampoo on cats is not a good idea. Most products can cause harm and by the time you find out, it could be to late.

She sounds like a highly anxious cat to me and I would investigate either a feliway room diffuser or a Bach Flower remedy to keep her calmer. AFTER I took her to the vet and got her spayed.

We got Angel fixed right after those six kittens died. It makes me mad though that we were told she couldn't get pregnant if she was nursing. I know that's true for human moms, but obviously its not for cat moms.

Sorry to hear about Angel's kittens I'm glad you got her spayed.

Incidentally- I DID get pregnant while I was nursing my daughter- so much for that theory

Originally posted by Melissa
Sorry to hear about Angel's kittens

I'm glad you got her spayed.

Incidentally- I DID get pregnant while I was nursing my daughter- so much for that theory

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It was the saddest thing ever! One of them died right in my arms. And then for days afterward Angel ran around the house calling for them, and she kept trying to mouth carry our other cats.

Originally posted by vinceneilsgirl
Subsequently, she gave birth to six kittens...all of whom died within a space of 24 hours.

The vet said they died of what is the equivalent of rH incompatiablity in humans, and that there was no way to save them...basically Angel's milk was poison to them. Here are my questions on this subject...

1. Has anyone heard of this happening with cats?

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I no longer have the magazine, but about two years ago there was a rather long article in a German cat magazine (target group: breeders) about blood types and the necessity of having both the queen and the sire blood-typed beforehand. There were a few tables and case studies, and apparently this txpe of thing does happen. Here's a pretty good explanation in English: http://www.netcat.org/symposium/blood-type.html

Humans can definitely get pregnant while nursing. The saying that they can't is NOT TRUE.