Kittens!
Our Mom LOVES kittens! but on Kitten Day we are supporting in our local area the Boundary Helping Hands Feline Rescue Society. They strive to improve the quality of life & reduce the increase in population of domestic cats while raising public awareness regarding responsible pet ownership.
Right now, in our area, there is a total over abundance of kittens! Covid adoption cats are being returned, cats are not being spayed or neutered and the local shelters are totally overwhelmed! Where are they ALL coming from!?!?
It is not only about how many cats a cat can have in a litter, but also about the number of litters it can give birth to per year, which, as we said before, can be between 2-3.
Based on the fact that the number of kittens a cat can have per litter, as mentioned earlier, is between 4 and 6. So, to get an approximate idea of how many kittens a cat can have per year, we have to multiply at least four kittens by two litters, which means that our cat can have eight kittens every year. In the highest case scenario, five kittens x three litters x three years could equal 15 kittens.
So, each female cat could give birth to between 8 and 15 kittens each breeding season from the beginning of her reproductive cycle until practically the end of her life. If we are not sure how many kittens a cat can have the first time, we should know that the number of kittens is the same as that of a cat in a second or subsequent pregnancy.
So we can calculate approximately how many kittens a cat can have in its whole life. To do this, we multiply the number of kittens we determined per year for each cat by the years of its life. Keep in mind that the average lifespan of a cat is between 12 and 14 years, and that female cats are usually fertile practically until the end of their lives.
So a single cat could give birth to between 96 and 210 kittens, and if not spayed, this number will increase exponentially with each new generation.
Many places and organizations now offer low cost or free Spay Neuter programs!
Kozmo wants all the lady cats to know
"My inner Kitten is ageless!"
Keep being AWESOME!
And all these numbers we need to add the fact that Cats do a lot of the incest thing because they have kittens with their own kittens and it makes even higher number of kittens my cousin started out with three kittens and then her kittens multiplied into 10 in a short period because the kittens the mom had the first year had kittens with the ones that mom had the second year. The spay programs work really well. My son works with the Ferrils in his neighborhood by getting them spayed hair it’s called snippet
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteVery good info! I do wish more folks would be aware of the folly of not speying their pets... Hugs and whiskeries, YAM-aunty xxx
The old saying "multiply faster 'n rabbits" says nothing compared to cats. As cats have little but illness and starvation to thin them out. I have not seen any baby rabbits in my yard this year at all. But I have heard the babies screaming in their agonizing death as the many feral cats here kill them for food and for sport. I am ashamed of people who adopt and then renege. If the actual pet adopted turns out to be difficult, that is one thing. But to just up and quite keeping it forever is disgusting. I'd better get off my soap box as I have not tried to trap and neuter all I see here. Kozmo, the girls will be purring over you today. Precious gives a wavy paw to your family. Lynn and Precious
ReplyDeleteLove the Nat'l kitten badge...adorable
ReplyDeleteand "my inner kitten is ageless"
Hugs Cecilia
I don't know what it will take to get people to spay and neuter their cats. I had an (EX) friend who wouldn't get her male cat neutered because her husband said it wasn't natural! When he started spraying indoors they made him live outside.
ReplyDeleteOona: "So many kittens! Oona is lucky that a mama cat brought her to Dada's cousin so that Mama and Dada could end up adopting her, but she knows many kittens are so much less fortunate. Do better by your cats, humans!"
ReplyDeleteWe fixed both of our kitties and we don't have to worry about that. It's up to us to make sure we do the responsible thing.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day and rest of the week.
Scritches all around, a smooch to Marvelous Marv and a big hug to mom. ♥
Kozmo, I hope your inner kitten is always present and in use.
ReplyDeleteThat's important information for everyone to know. We love kittens but wouldn't want to have to take care of as many cats as one cat could have in a lifetime.
ReplyDeleteI wish everyone would spay and neuter. Kozmo, you are handsome. XO
ReplyDeleteHappy Kitten Day from all of us! Chipper wore himself out celebrating today!
ReplyDeleteEvery shelter here does not adopt until spay/neuter has been done. It's essential and we hope eventually, it will make a difference.
ReplyDeleteYou are so right! We love kittens, too, but it makes us sad that there is a Kitten Season where way too many babies are born. Spaying and neutering is super important, for sure. Looking good, Kozmo! XO
ReplyDeleteThank you for this important post
ReplyDeleteSometimes the local all species rescue will help peeps traptheir ferals and get them 'fixed' to prevent that particular population from expanding....but there are still way too many kittens in shelters, not to mention all the adults. All of our 6 kitties, and the dogs too have been spayed/neutered.
ReplyDelete