How to become a cat breeder

4 Where cats are bred on a commercial basis the concerns about welfare and the conditions in which the cat and kittens are bred are the same as those which underpin the regulation of dog breeding. Unlike dogs, no licence is required to breed and sell cats.

Once enceinte, a cat’s gestation period is roughly 2 months, making it possible for her to birth as many as five litters a year. If your cat mistakenly slipped outside during heat, there are a few potential signs of pregnancy.

Your first requirement is a healthy female with no outstanding faults and typical of the breed, with a good temperament. Try to ensure that her sire and dam are healthy with a problem free breeding history. Next you will need a suitable stud cat within reasonable travelling distance.

Breeding Trouble

Inbreeding causes painful and life-threatening genetic defects in “purebred” dogs and cats, including crippling hip dysplasia, blindness, deafness, heart defects, skin problems, and epilepsy. Distorting animals for specific physical features also causes severe health problems.

Your cat should be 18 to 24 months old before you consider breeding her, and should be strong (i.e. healthy, and have a good body condition). Health checks: It is definitely required for you to do a full health check-up of your cat before you consider using them for cat breeding.

It is perfectly acceptable to breed related cat and register their offspring. Inbreeding is the breeding of closely related cats, such as father to daughter or mother to son.

Mating Instincts

Dogs and cats can and will mate with their siblings once they are sexually mature. Litter mates are not off limits to other dogs and cats, even though they are related. Pets have no concept of relatives so siblings and parents are just other animals to them.

It is a common misconception that kittens can be separated from their mothers as early as 8 weeks old. However, kittens separated at this time are still at risk for developmental, social, and health issues. Instead, kittens should remain with their mothers until they are 12-14 weeks old.

This may seem like a gruesome topic but in short, the answer is usually no – mother cats (or more correctly queens as they are known), do not eat their kittens. They do, however, commonly eat the placenta of their kittens and this is completely normal behaviour. She will not eat live healthy viable kittens.

A mother cat will NOT “reject” kittens that have been touched by humans. Kittens should only be removed from their nest if there is no evidence of a mother cat after several hours, or if the kittens seem to be in imminent danger or distress.

To show affection

For cats, licking is not only used as a grooming mechanism, but also to show affection. By licking you, other cats, or even other pets, your cat is creating a social bond. Many cats carry this behavior into their adult lives, licking their humans to pass along the same sentiment.

Between one and nine kittens will be born in a litter – most commonly four to six. First-time queens usually have a small litter size. When the birth is finished the mother will settle and allow the kittens to feed.

Symptoms of Birth Difficulties in Cats

Kittens should come down the birth canal 15 minutes to two hours apart. When the amniotic sac surrounding the kitten ruptures, birth of a kitten should take place within 30 minutes. There is cause for alarm if more than three hours pass between kittens.

Call a veterinarian immediately if any of the following symptoms occur. It can help save the life of the kitten as well as the mother. After 10 minutes of intense labor, the kitten became visible in the birth canal.

Kittens may be passed stillborn, either before their due date or on their due date. In some cases, a deceased fetus may become mummified within the uterus. Mummification occurs when the body creates a protective membrane around the fetus, allowing it to remain encased and walled-off within the uterus.

Keep the mother cat’s litter box, food, and water bowls close by. Make sure you are feeding her a high-quality canned kitten food, supplemented with KMR (Kitten Milk Replacement). These specially formulated foods ensure that a nursing, postpartum mother cat gets the nutrients she needs.

In many cats having their first litter, this first stage of labor can last up to thirty- six hours. In second stage labor, the uterine muscle begins stronger and more frequent contractions.