Home

>

Cat

>

Health & Wellbeing

>

Should You Breed Your Cat?

Should You Breed Your Cat?

Updated On August 21st, 2000

Image profile

Reviewed By Petco’s Animal Care, Education and Compliance (ACE) Team

Overpopulation of dogs and cats in shelters and rescues is a major concern, therefore adding to this crisis should not be a decision that is taken lightly. Additionally, breeding a cat should not be undertaken without a thorough understanding of what is involved. Many people get into cat breeding thinking it would be fun to have a litter of kittens to play with. Often, consideration is not given to the need to have healthy kittens that will need to be placed in good homes. Properly caring for breeding animals; [care of the queen during pregnancy](https://www.petcoach.co/article/pregnancy-diagnosis-caring-for-a-pregnant-cat/), [queening](https://www.petcoach.co/article/queening-giving-birth-in-cats/), and [after delivery care of the kittens](https://www.petcoach.co/article/care-feeding-of-queens-kittens/) and [finding good homes for the kittens](https://www.petcoach.co/article/kitten-purchase-contracts-placing-kittens-in-a-new-home/) is a time-consuming and very expensive endeavor. Ask any top quality breeder, and they will tell you it takes a lot of dedication, money, and knowledge to do it right.

Cats do not need to have a litter to be fulfilled. [Spaying](https://www.petcoach.co/article/spaying-ovariohysterectomy-the-benefits-in-cats/) the female before her first heat cycle will eliminate the cycling, decrease her risk of mammary cancer as she ages, and eliminate the males coming around the house while she is in season. Even if she is used for breeding, after she has her last litter, consider spaying to prevent a future [pyometra](https://www.petcoach.co/article/pyometra-endometrial-hyperplasia-in-cats/).

On the male's side, using a pet for breeding is unwise. He will be more inclined to spray and fight. If [neutered](https://www.petcoach.co/article/benefits-of-neutering-castrating-male-cats-kittens/), he will be less inclined to do so. Two big benefits of neutering are the decrease in the smell of the urine and the decrease in the frequency of spraying.

No discussion on breeding is complete without mentioning pet population control and the hundreds of thousands of cats and kittens that are euthanized each year due to the lack of homes. Remember, breeding your cat adds to the problem. Do not breed unless you have healthy animals with excellent breed characteristics, and you are very committed to these kittens preferably for their lifetime. For each home you find for your kittens, there is a kitten at the shelter being euthanized.

How Old Should a Cat Be for Breeding?

A female cat should be allowed to attain her adult size before breeding. If bred early, she will put her energy into feeding the unborn/newborn kittens instead of finishing her growth. She will be between 18 and 24 months old before she is ready for breeding. Considering female cats can get pregnant as early as 4 months of age and up to 5 times per year, considerable effort will need to be taken to ensure your female cat is not accidentally bred until she is of the appropriate age.

A male should be 18 months of age and have the right genetics prior to being allowed to breed. This allows time to determine if he is healthy and suitable for breeding. Temperaments are passed to the offspring as are genetic diseases. As males can father litters as early as 6 months of age precautions must be taken to prevent unwanted litters, 

Before the breeding season begins, make an appointment for a physical exam, [vaccinations](https://www.petcoach.co/article/vaccines-vaccination-schedule-for-cats-kittens/), stool check for internal parasites, and any other necessary tests. Both parents should be tested for [FeLV](https://www.petcoach.co/article/feline-leukemia-virus-a-cause-of-immunodeficiency-in-cats/) and [FIV](https://www.petcoach.co/article/feline-immunodeficiency-virus-fiv-in-cats/) before each breeding. They should be healthy and free of [ear mites](https://www.petcoach.co/article/ear-mites-in-cats/), [fleas](https://www.petcoach.co/article/fleas-ticks/), and ringworm.

The cats should be tested for genetic conditions such as polycystic kidney disease, hip dysplasia, patellar luxations and heart disease. These tests should be done before breeding. Check with your veterinarian for other breed specific diseases that should be screened for before breeding.

The female cat should be at her ideal weight at this point. Those too heavy or too thin may have an increased difficulty conceiving, carrying the litter, and queening.

In addition to physical health, the personalities of the parents are also important, since they play a major role in determining the kittens' personalities. If the parents are easy-going and friendly, chances are good that the kittens will be also. If the parents are aggressive or fearful toward people and other animals, chances are good that the kittens will be also.

A Cat's Heat Cycle and When to Breed

Queens are seasonally polyestrous, which means they come into heat in certain seasons of the year, and they will cycle multiple times if they are not bred. They are also reflex ovulators, which means they need to be bred before they will ovulate. Cycling tends to occur most often in the spring and summer in outdoor cats. Cats kept indoors and exposed to artificial lights may cycle year-round.

The stages in a cat's estrus cycle are: anestrus, proestrous, estrus, interfollicular stage, and metestrus. Anestrus is typically seen in the short days of winter. The tom is not attracted to the queen, and vice versa.

Proestrus may last 1-2 days in some queens, but is not consistently seen. During this stage, she may 'call' the tom, roll, and rub on the ground. She will still not allow the tom by her. The bleeding seen in female dogs during proestrus is not seen in female cats. She may progress from proestrus to estrus in just a few hours.

Estrus lasts about a week, but may be longer or shorter. The queen should be taken to the tom for mating. During this time, the queen will allow the tom to approach her and mate. Mating may last 1-20 seconds. The tom must have an escape route such as a box or shelf to jump on after breeding the queen, as she often responds aggressively. Immediately after mating, she will frantically groom herself and not allow anyone near her for up to an hour. After that point, her receptive behavior and mating resumes. Three breedings a day for the first three days of estrus produced ovulation in 90% of the queens in a study. During estrus, the queen may allow more than one tom to mate with her; it is possible for a litter of kittens to have different fathers (superfecundation).

If she was not bred, she will enter an interfollicular stage (also known as interestrus). She shows no sign of reproductive activity during this stage. This stage may last about 1 week. She then goes into proestrus and estrus again. If she mated and ovulated but did not become pregnant, she goes through a metestrus stage that lasts about 5-7 weeks. During this stage, she does not show signs of reproductive activity.

If the mating was successful, she will go through an approximately 63-day pregnancy. Determine her due date by adding 63 days to each day breeding occurred. If her estrus cycle lasted for a week and she was bred every other day, her due date is over the course of a week also.

If a female aborts or loses her nursing kittens, she will return to estrus within 2-3 weeks. After having a litter, she will start cycling again by the time the kittens are 8 to 10 weeks old.

Vote icon

80Pet Parents found this article helpful

Related Questions

I have a cat that as a kitten was very ill. We got him from 7 months old. We knew he’d had cat flu prior to him coming here. He is now nearly 5 yrs old. He picks huge fights with our other cat. He keeps urinating and scratching at doors and windows around the house. We allow him to go out via the cat flap unlimited. What is happening to him

I'm glad to see that Pippin has been neutered because this eliminates that possibility of hormone-fueled behavioral changes and aggression. Behavioral changes in cats can occur at any point in time, and could be related to anxiety or stressful situations (even rearranging furniture or introducing new people to the home can be stressful to cats). Without a lot more information and observing Pippin's behaviors, I can't precisely tell you why these changes are occurring. It may be best to consult a veterinary behaviorist in your home so that they can observe everything firsthand. You can also try using calming pheromone collars or diffusers (Feliway is one example), and discussing the use of anxiety medication with Pippin's vet. I hope that all goes well!

Read More

Hi! My cat was recently diagnosed with diabetes. He’s taking insulin and taking antibiotics for a Uti. It’s been 4 weeks and he wobles when he’s walking. He can’t jump up on the bed like he used to.He’s blood sugar is 250 it’s better than it used to. I don’t understand why he’s so wobbly.

Cats can develop what's called diabetic neuropathy, where their hindlegs become progressively weak. The best thing to do is try to get his diabetes under control as quickly as possible. Here is a link describing the conditon: http://www.diabeticcatcare.com/DCCCOK/Neuropathy.htm

Read More

My senior cat has metastized cancer.17 yrs old. My vet gave her predizone1 and one half tabs a day.i wanted to know if i can just stop the meds.

Is there a reason you want to stop the prednisone? I would recommend not stopping it and if you feel it is better to stop the prednisone then I would recommend weaning off of the prednisone. I would discuss how to wean the prednisone with your veterinarian. Thank you for using Boop by Petco.

Read More

My 3 year old long haired tuxedo female pees just fine in the litter box, but she preferred to poop on the bathroom rug or on the carpet behind the sofa. Then, she will go weeks and everything is fine only start pooping outside the box again. I have 4 litter boxes and 3 cats. I clean all several times a day. She is the youngest. I've put wee wee pads down and she lifts them up and poops under them. Any ideas to help? Thanks!

A good first step, if you haven't already, is to rule out any health issues with your vet such as arthritis that may be causing the accidents. Secondly, making sure none of the other cats are bullying her away from the litter box may also alert you to any issues. Thirdly, a good enzymatic cleaner may help reduce the smell/discourage use of these areas in the future. That said, if you've done the above and the issue is still happening, it's probably time to call in a veterinary or animal behaviorist that can visit in person to see what may be going on. They may be able to check for stressors that could be causing the accidents where they are, look for issues with refusal to defecate in the box, or see if there is a cycle that is happening that is triggering this reaction. From there they may be able to set up a more tailored plan to help reduce the accidents and encourage use of the litter box at all times. If you're in the US, you can use this website to help find someone available in your area: https://www.dacvb.org/page/about

Read More

My 8yo Golden had a falsepregnancy w milk. Cabergoline has resolved it now. I hear conflicting opinions about spaying. She has never mated. Some say not spaying would cause pseudopregnancy recurrence+dangerous conditions like Mammary T. But UCDavis studies say spaying increases other aggressive cancer risks among GoldenRs. Also, vet thinks that her anemia that keeps coming back after prednisolone trtmnts *might* be due to Ovary cysts, suggests spaying. What's the right approach for her health?

Thank you for contacting Boop by Petco with your question about Lav. I've heard many owners quote the UC Davis study, and there are a number of things wrong with the study. Check out this article on it: https://humanepro.org/magazine/articles/deconstructing-spayneuter-debate Not spaying her can cause a pseudopregnancy reoccurrence, but it doesn't increase her risk of mammary tumors. That's already going to be 25% because she's had more than two heats. Keep in mind, 50% of mammary tumors in dogs are malignant. She is eight years old, so she is already at a higher risk of developing cancer simply because she is an older dog. She is also at risk of a pyometra, which is an infection of the uterus that is fatal without treatment. The treatment for a pyometra is spaying the dog, which is an emergency during a pyometra and can cost many thousands of dollars. In all honesty, it's best to spay her. It will keep her from developing a pyometra as well as a pseudopregnancy, and it will keep her from getting pregnant if she accidentally mates. Dogs over the age of six should never have puppies. In my opinion, it's best for her to health to get spayed asap. I hope this helps!

Read More

There seems to be two wounds underneath my cat’s ear. There is not one on the other side. Does it look like ringworm or caused by fleas? What can I use to help her? It was smaller a week ago.

Thank you for contacting Boop by Petco with your question about Tor and for providing pictures, they are very helpful. Yes, I see the two wounds, and they could be caused by her scratching at her ear. While that could be due to fleas, it may be she has an ear infection causing her to scratch at her ears. Continually scratching at them would cause the wounds to get bigger. This does need to be checked out by a vet, as if she does have an ear infection, it could be caused by ear mites, yeast, or bacteria. In addition, the ear drum needs to be visualized through an otoscope to make sure it's still intact before any medication is given. Ear problems can be considered an emergency as leaving them untreated can lead to hearing loss. Given that these wounds are getting bigger, I'd see if you can get her into her vet asap. I hope this helps!

Read More

image

Have a Vet Question?

Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.

Book Now

Filed Under

Sponsored