By nature, cats are very good mothers, even when they have their first litter. It is part of their natural feline instinct, so it is normal that they know how to take care of their puppies perfectly without the help of human hands.
However, there are times when the mother refuses to take care of one of her puppies or the entire litter, and you wonder why does my cat refuse their young? This situation can be desperate for those who have cats at home.
To help you understand this situation, our site offers you this article, where you will discover what factors may be motivating this situation.
Is my cat a bad mother?
Many people, when they notice that a cat has rejected her young, interpret it as a bad mother, that the cat does not want to take care of her litter on a whim or lack of love.
However, although felines are capable of developing a very deep affection, we must not forget that these are animals that govern their behavior according to instinct, and that there may be factors that lead a newly delivered cat to reject her litters. These factors have to do with:
- Litter He alth
- Maternal He alth
- Ability to care for puppies
- Stress
Problems with the he alth of one or more kittens
In animals the most important thing is the survival instinct,and felines are no exception. With this instinct, the mother is able to detect if any of the kittens, or even the entire litter (a rare case, but possible), has been born with an infection or disease.
When this happens, it is normal for the mother to refuse to waste care and milk on a litter that she thinks will not survive or, when it is just one of the kittens, she distances it from the rest so much to prevent it from spreading to the he althy litter as well as to administer their milk only for the kittens that are more likely to survive.
Maybe this sounds cruel to you, but this is the way the animal world works, you can't risk the he alth of an entire litter for a sick pup with little chance of living. However, as a human master you may be able to do something. If you suspect that the kitten that is rejected is sick, go to your veterinarian so that he can make a diagnosis and offer you some guidelines for feeding the newborn kitten rejected by his mother.
The mother's he alth
It is possible that the cat is sick or feels that she is about to die, either due to complications that occurred during delivery (some breeds may have problems during this phase), or because it suffers from something else. When this is the case, the cat will move away from the minima, both because of the discomfort she feels and to prevent them from catchingher illness.
If you see the weak or sick parent, it is essential that you go to the vet immediately to ensure the he alth of her, as well as that of the little ones.
Capacity to care for the litter
Although most cats have the instinct to take care of their litter, there are some cases where the cat doesn't know how to care for them, how to feed or clean them, so you will choose to abandon them.
If this happens, you can try to show her what she should do, bringing them closer to suckle or cleaning them up close to her so she can watch. You must have a lot of patience.
Also It may happen that the litter is very large (5 or 6 kittens more or less) and the cat feels that she cannot take care of all of them or that she does not have enough milk for so many puppies, so she will leave out the one that seems weaker to take care of those that are more likely to grow.
In these last two cases, the feline instinct tells the mother that she should bet on saving all the food, heat and space necessary only for the fittest kittens, even if that means letting the kittens die. the less strong.
Stress
The cat knows that she is going to give birth, so it is normal that before giving birth she tries to find a space that seems ideal to take care of her puppies, away from anything that could do them damage.
As it happens with humans, the last few days the feline will be a bit nervous, and if you start to overwhelm her with caresses, pampering and attention that she doesn't want, or if you try to change the place she has chosen as a nest, your stress levels may increase and you decide not to take care of the kittens when they hatch.
You must respect the nest he has chosen and place some blankets in the place so that he can be more comfortable. Consider moving only if you think the cat family might be at risk there, and allow your cat to get comfortable with the new place.
The ideal is to be aware of the mother but allowing her to be calm. Similarly, once the litter is born, it is not recommended to touch them a lot during the first weeks, because the smell of a stranger (even if it is her human owner) can make the cat reject the puppies. If so, you should find out how to care for newborn cats without a mother and go to a specialist to guide you in your doubts.
We hope these tips have helped you better understand this situation. If you notice that your cat rejects one of her kittens or her entire litter, don't hesitate to go to the vet immediately If the kittens are he althy, you must take responsibility to become their surrogate mother for the first few weeks.
