Hi - new to board - HELP:)

[ibasq]

Hi all - I am glad I found this forum.

OK - I hate to cut to the chase but I have a question. I have 6 cats - 1 is my momma cat LeeLee and the other 5 are her sibblings that I could not part with

from 2 different litters.

LeeLee just gave birth to 5 beautiful kittens - we just got thru labor together.. she did great!

Only problem is - when my husband and I walked out of the room - of course with new baby smell on us - one of the sibblings - Outcast (haha think it is the name???) began hissing at us and acting very aggressive - will not let us touch him at all.. which is so not like him.

What can we do - or should we do in this situation?

Thanks for any input

Thanks!
Gina

 

[cazx01]

maybe hes just getting used to you both

 

[blondiecat]

First of all let me say hi

and Congrats on the new additions to your home. Since he is acting aggressive towards you with the new babies smell on you, Don't let him in where the babies are. He may try to kill them.

 

[lorie d.]

Since he is acting aggressive towards you with the new babies smell on you, Don't let him in where the babies are. He may try to kill them.

I agree completely. I'm assuming Outcast is a tom who's reacting instinctively to the birth of the kittens, and he will most likely kill them if he's given the opportunity.

 

[valanhb]

I'll move this to the Behavior Forum for you.

I do hope that you will be getting the kitties spayed/neutered after this. Especially since they are siblings. Cats are not descriminate maters, and inbreeding could lead to very serious health compromised kittens (in addition to more kittens that you would possibly know what to do with!).

 

[ibasq]

Yes, I will be getting them spayed/neutered.

That was my first feeling -- even today he is still acting very aggressive -- even towards his mom -- especially towards his mom. Any idea why they react that way? The females seem fine. The other male is a little edgy -- but Outcast is just mad.

(reason for name: he was born Siamese, only one in the bunch... the rest of the litter all looked like mom. On top of that -- every time I looked in their basket he was laying on the other side completely away from where his siblings were all snuggled together.. hence OUTCAST!) hehe - just thought I would tell the story behind it.

I plan on keeping them separate in my bedroom.

With having 2 children (4/10) who could leave my door open by accident -- I think it might be a good idea to keep the kittens and mom in a large kennel and let mom in and out as needed -- just in case. I can't think of any better solution -- can anyone else?

Thanks again for the input - just want these babies to be safe.

Gina

 

[hissy]

For the time being, keep the other cats well away from the new family. There could be some consequences if you do not. Anytime you handle the new kittens, always wash your hands well before interacting with your others. I assume your cats were strays and they do not respond like cats raised in a breeders loving home, they just have different instincts when it comes to a new litter of kittens.

And I hate to make this post sound like a broken record, but please spay your female after these kittens are weaned. Be sure when you place the kittens into new homes that the owners also spay and neuter their adopted pet.

Oops- sorry, looked like you and I were posting at the same time. Thank you for understanding the importance of spay and neuter

You can also set up a baby gate vertical in the doorway, this protects the family and keeps your kids from going into the room.

 

[lorie d.]

Any idea why they react that way? The females seem fine. The other male is a little edgy -- but Outcast is just mad.

'
Maybe the other male fathered most or all of the kittens. This is just my opinion and I could be wrong, but I think the behavior you're seeing is your cats' showing their wilder nature.
Maybe this example will help explain Outcast's reaction to the kittens being born:

When an Africian lion first takes over a pride of liionesses he kills all the young cubs. Then when the lionesses go back into heat, he mates with them and passes on his own genes. Therefore, Outcast and a male lion both have the same reaction to newborns. Just my

 

[tnr1]

ibasq..may not be a bad idea to start spaying/neutering the ones that aren't the mom cat so that you don't have to worry about any other accidental births...the cage sounds like a good idea to keep the kittens safe.

Katie

 

[ibasq]

I wish I could say that this has all been helpful - but I have to feel a little on the defense.

They aren't strays - they were all born with me - Outkast is the brother NOT the father -

I was asking about behaviour - not asking about the importance of spayed/nueturing...

I know you all mean well - BUT - sorry.. it is just not what I was looking for.

I love all my cats and they are taken care of VERY well...

weird weird reaction - from you all...

Thanks anyway...

 

[hissy]

Sorry you feel that way. A lot of the times posters are posting at the same time and that's why you get repeated messages. Also a lot of our members are pro-active spay and neuter and this time of year is when we present it to newcomers, because of the overwhelming problems associated with NOT spaying and neutering.

Outcast is acting aggressive for several reasons. The new smells of the kittens have him on edge, and he knows that now there are more cats in his territory and although he doesn't have access to them, he does want them out of his way. Some male cats are very loving toward kittens, but the ones who are not, will do them harm, so you need to keep them separated. Again the baby gate will do the trick. Have a set of old clothes that you wear when you handle the kittens, and change and wash your hands and face prior to going out with the other cats. Outcast sounds like he is the head honcho and he is doing what is normal in a multi cat family especially if the cats are strays or ferals or offsprings of same.

 

[tnr1]

ibasq..I want to apologize...I didn't mean to imply you weren't taking excellent care of your cats...but when I read you had 6 siblings and one was pregnant...that concerned me. Didn't mean to jump to any conclusions...but I must admit...I'm a bit perplexed...is outcast one of the "kittens"?? Because in your first post...I thought perhaps he was the brother to momma cat. That may help me to better address your question (although I think Hissy's reply covered it pretty well).

Katie

 

[ibasq]

Originally Posted by hissy

Sorry you feel that way. A lot of the times posters are posting at the same time and that's why you get repeated messages. Also a lot of our members are pro-active spay and neuter and this time of year is when we present it to newcomers, because of the overwhelming problems associated with NOT spaying and neutering.

Outcast is acting aggressive for several reasons. The new smells of the kittens have him on edge, and he knows that now there are more cats in his territory and although he doesn't have access to them, he does want them out of his way. Some male cats are very loving toward kittens, but the ones who are not, will do them harm, so you need to keep them separated. Again the baby gate will do the trick. Have a set of old clothes that you wear when you handle the kittens, and change and wash your hands and face prior to going out with the other cats. Outcast sounds like he is the head honcho and he is doing what is normal in a multi cat family especially if the cats are strays or ferals or offsprings of same.

Thanks - this does help. But..one thing.. being pro-active about neutering is fine - and a great cause.. but if this is intended to be a community - it is really not that welcoming to be jumped on about having your cats neutered as soon as you become active on the boards or ask a simple question.

Oh well... thanks.

 

[ibasq]

Originally Posted by TNR1

ibasq..I want to apologize...I didn't mean to imply you weren't taking excellent care of your cats...but when I read you had 6 siblings and one was pregnant...that concerned me. Didn't mean to jump to any conclusions...but I must admit...I'm a bit perplexed...is outcast one of the "kittens"?? Because in your first post...I thought perhaps he was the brother to momma cat. That may help me to better address your question (although I think Hissy's reply covered it pretty well).

Katie

I have 6 cats.. one of which is the mother. The 5 are her kittens that I kept from her previous litter because I fell in love with them all.

Outkast is LeeLee's son (LeeLee is the momma cat).

Now LeeLee has just had another litter of 5 new babies.

LeeLee got pregnant because she got out one day -- not by one of her kittens.

Anyway -- I think I have an idea what is going on...

Bye

 

[tnr1]

ibasq..thanks for clarifying..because your first post wasn't that clear. I don't think anyone was rude to you. Outcast is reacting to Lee Lee's second set of kittens...and so...as a suggestion to help him...we have suggested you get Lee Lee fixed as soon as these kittens are weaned. A cat can get pregnant pretty frequently if she isn't spayed, so it may not be a bad idea to keep Lee Lee indoors until you can fix her.

Katie

P.S. I speak from experience as my 2 cats are actually the result of my friend's cat having had 5 litters of kittens....unlike yourself..she didn't keep any of them...but she kept having the "mom" cat accidentally get out. I'd prefer to spare you having to find homes for that many kittens.

 

[hissy]

ibasq I beg to respectfully differ with you. We are a community dedicated to cat welfare. One of the biggest issues faced is pet owners who do NOT want to spay and neuter their cats. Because of this every kitten season, we get people coming here with various problems resulting in either a surprise pregnancy, finding abandoned kittens, or having the mom cat die and being left with kittens and not knowing what to do.

There is no way we can't be over the top in our cause to stop this needless population growth from occurring however we can. Yes some of our members are zealots about it (myself included) because we first hand witness the suffering of health compromised kittens, or have had kittens die in our arms, or we volunteer at a kill shelter and watch in horror each year prior to kitten season starting when the older animals are killed to make room for what the shelter knows is coming, a flood of kittens.

No, we quite simply won't stop getting the word out about the importance of spaying and neutering. It is to important, and even included in our guidelines.