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Expert: - 3/13/2011


Question
Hi,
 I have just recently got two cats (about 4 weeks ago). A kitten who is 17 weeks old (female) and her Mother who is four years old. The couple that i got them off was insistent that i took them together.
 The kitten is very affectionate and loves her mum alot but the mother cat is not interested and does not like her kitten atall, she scratches, bites and hisses whenever she gets the oppurtunity. I can hear them fighting at night time.
Its even worrying now as ive found out the mother cat is pregnant again and im concerned that she will reject her litter ? or worse? is this a possibility? My vet advised m,e to get a diffuser to try and calm her down and its failed. I am out of ideas. what can i do? .
  Jennie.

Answer
You need to get the Mother spayed and the youngster too. She is doing what comes naturally when animals have an impending litter. But these are not wild animals, they are your pets. So the Momma cat needs to stop having litter after litter of kittens and then she will become more accepting of her own baby.

I raised 5 kittens and their Mom until death. They were fine together as I had Mom spayed as soon as the kittens were 6 weeks old. I also got her when she was pregnant but too far along to spay.

The diffuser isn't working probably because she is pregnant and her hormones are out of whack.

Otherwise you are going to have to separate the two or find a home for one of them.  

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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