|
Harriet~
I am not finding any references to "eating young" in any of my nutritional
reference books, so I am going to do this totally off the cuff, just using
logic. I don't have any cat breeding books, or specific books on siamese,
and that might be where your answer lies. If you have your own books, see if
you can find a mention in them, and if you have any other siamese breeder's
phone numbers, they might be of more help than I. It's possible that this is
common for the breed, I am not sure. A veterinarian might also be able to
answer your questions.
Okay, like I said, this is just pure logic, and perhaps faulty at that, but
here goes. Cats are more prey driven and are generally closer to their wild
brethren than dogs because they are more recently domesticated than dogs.
Several breeding problems can arise because of this. A highly prey driven
animal, (ie. I know this to be true of certain terrier breeds) sometimes see
first litters as prey. I am not sure if this is her first litter or not, or
how old she is, but I know that maternal instincts are not always fully
developed in young moms.
Also, if her mom had poor maternal instincts, this could affect her rearing
habits as well. Some cats and dogs will just never be good moms, and they
are eventually eliminated from the breeding program because of this. Having
to hand-rear litters is a pain, though at 3 weeks at least they have their
mom's first milk and a decent chance at survival and decent long-term health.
Being more wild, cats are particularly affected by certain things that most
dogs would take more in stride. If you have been reading my posts about the
Pottenger studies and the effects of nutrition on generations of pets (this
study is specifically about cats), then perhaps the cats is acting as it
would in the wild if adequate nutrition was not available to raise a healthy
litter. Survival of the fittest. Having a litter leaves females very
vulnerable in the wild, and it's better to terminate the litter than have
them endanger her as they get older and less controllable, if they have
little chance of survival anyway.
Being more wild, cats are also particularly affected by feelings of not being
able to protect their young. Siamese, from what I've been reading, tend to
be more aggressive toward other cats and in protecting their territory, and
are somewhat behaviorably unpredictable. Perhaps this particular mom needs
more privacy, more space to raise her young? Perhaps she feels confused and
threatened by your ever helpful or curious presence and interference?
I once had a cat when I was about 6 or 7 years old that would rather eat her
young than keep them in the box we provided for her. It was our closed linen
closet or nothing. She was practically feral when we took her in, so it
makes sense when you look at the world through their eyes. I'll never forget
it though. Perhaps this is what is going on here?
Anyway, those are just some ideas. I hope it helps and I hope you find out
the answer. Without knowing more about her, these are just stabs in the
dark, but maybe it will help you see where you can help her be a better mom
(by our standards, not hers--I'm sure she is doing what is perfectly correct
by her instincts).
Cat Donnelly
PurelyPets.com
|
Having problems with message search?
Fill out this form to ensure your group is one of the first to be migrated to the new message search system.
Send Email