Early sexual maturing in felines?

God and everyone here knows I'm no prude but I find threads about young pussy inappropriate....

I don't don't know the answer to your question, j00girl, but why the 6 un-fixed female cats? You're going to have a helluva lot of kittens on your hands soon (5 already!) if you don't have them neutered soon.

We keep them separate from the others - all but one are going to be fixed soon, it's just a matter of finding the time and money. The kittens are also not being kept - the person who was supposed to take them changed their mind, and we're currently working on finding homes where we know they'll be properly cared for.

I probably shouldn't say anything but don't you think there's something a bit off about having 11 unfixed cats in ones home?

You speak of the unfixed females going into heat, "one after the other". This could give a lustly little tomcat some erotic ideas.

Check with your vet--you may be able to get some discounted spaying rates.

Excellent advice, Noddy!
j00Girl, this will save you (& the cats!) a lot of heartache down the track. (Say nothing of $$$$$$!)

Yes, there is something 'a bit off', I suppose...they were too young to be fixed when we could have had it done, and then our house burned down - we're still trying to get into a new one. It should be built in a month, and that's when we can start bringing them in to the vet :-)

I was all set to harangue you about getting them fixed-- glad I didn't open my mouth before reading "house burned down." There's a legitimate excuse if I ever heard one! <grin>

Ask vets in the area to pretty pretty pleeease with sugar on top make some kind of arrangement to let you get the cats fixed now and make payments on the bill over time. My family found a vet who did this for us when we had a whole litter of kittens that had to be done at once. I think you'd be pretty likely to get some help with this, no one involved in animal care wants eleven unfixed cats running around!

Also consider taking up a collection in the area-- I mean, people are usually pretty willing to pitch in to help families who've had housefires.

Oh, and I'm pretty sure I've read that females can mature faster if there is a male cat around, so I bet it could happen the other way around too...I know females can go into heat at any time there is a male nearby-- cats are expert reproducers! Don't bet on beating them at this game... :wink:

cyphercat I am saving myself for you.

roland

Oh, Roland! Fancy meeting you here! <wink wink>

smootchy smootchy my pummy ummy umpkin.

A couple of things: there is evidence in mice that stress in the womb and around the time of birth can lead to accelerated development/maturation. May occur in cats also, who knows? This clearly isn't your big issue, though.


You might also consider contacting your largest local animal shelter about spay/neuter. A lot of larger shelters with in-house medical facilities offer low-cost spay/neuter services to "low income" individuals (read: anyone who can't or won't pay retail for the surgery). It's a money saver for them down the line.

Alright, I'll look into that Thank you.

BTW, had the parents ask their vet when they got their latest addition fixed, and he suggested it was a dominance issue - however, he only seems to do this to the little female kitten...so it still seems very strange. Any ideas on why he'd only want to 'dominate' her?

Kickycan is a man of many faces.

Would any of the adult females put up with his precocious amorous behavior?

I'm really not sure. We keep them separated, to avoid as many problems as possible.

This is an odd time of year to have that many cycling cats. They're seasonally polyestrus, most commonly in springtime. Are you by chance in the southern hemisphere?

No - Michigan, actually.

One of them is the sort that never goes out of heat...I believe she may be the reason the others keep cycling. She'll be the first to be fixed, tg.