Cats usually tend to be creatures that are quite nonchalant and relaxed. They will not bother you unless their needs are not being met. Their needs are quite simple and easy to take care of as well, all they require is to give them food on time, and along with that, they get a comfortable spot in your house to sleep in. They will never attack you if they are not provoked, they will act as an excellent companion for you if you are someone who likes to maintain the peace of your home.
However, there are some scenarios in which the cat can get quite aggressive and irritable. If you keep bothering it and do not respect the animal’s boundaries, the cat will likely do something to defend itself. In a situation like that, you are most likely to get attacked and get hurt or clawed in a bad way. Suppose you do decide to keep a cat as a pet. It is your responsibility to make sure that the cat feels comfortable and happy in your home, and it does not feel any sort of threat from you or the members of your family.
Nature of Cats as Pets
Cats are generally quite relaxed, and they will not kill anything if they are not hungry. However, there are some circumstances in which the cat will kill even its kittens. This may seem outrageous to think about, but the fact of the matter is that it is a very common and natural thing to do for cats. There are situations in which the cat will end up eating what it gave birth to, and these situations usually tend to be quite dire and rare. They will not eat a healthy baby kitten for no good reason.
Reasons for Cats Eating Kittens
If the kitten is stillborn and is not moving a lot, the mother cat will end up recognizing that and acknowledging it. The real reason why exactly cats eat the stillborns is unknown because of the rare circumstances in which it happens. People have often assumed it’s because they simply see it as a piece of meat and nothing else. They see the kitten as food and food, alone. They see it as a source of protein, and they do not find it difficult to eat it. They might even like the taste of the kittens. It may also be to make sure that the kitten does not end up getting her other kittens sick as well; it is her way of removing the problem from her precious living babies entirely.
Mama cats tend to be extremely protective of their young, and it is their way of making sure that the babies are safe and sound, far away from any risk of underlying threat that may come with the birth of a stillborn. They are not too emotional when it comes to this, making it all the easier to devour the stillborn.
Another situation in which the cat will eat its kitten is if it feels that it is in circumstances that it may get attacked. If it feels that it is in a location that it will not be comfortable in, or if there are chances that the cat will get stressed in that specific area, it is always better to give the cat a more comfortable spot.
Otherwise, the cat will feel like it is at imminent risk, and there will be complications when giving birth. If it feels that the kitten might be harmed, it gobbles it up as a way of protecting it.
A cat may also eat its baby kitten if it feels that the kitten might be attacked by predators. This is the mother cat’s way of protecting her baby kitten the best that she can. This is why it is always a much better idea to make sure that the cat is in a safe space if the cat is about to give birth. Make sure that the cat is comfortable and that it also has a soft surface available to it when it is about to give birth.
There are many other reasons as to why a cat will eat her kittens, and oftentimes, it may be the natural way it is reacting to any given situation. However, there are always effects of what a cat eats on the cat’s body, and it is your responsibility to make sure that the cat is not eating something that may be harmful to it shortly. Apart from feeding your cat and giving it a place to rest, being aware and diligent of the cat’s habits are also quite necessary to make sure that the cat is thriving and healthy in the long term.
How You Can Stop Cats From Eating Kittens
Cats may eat their kittens, but whether or not that is healthy for the cat is a completely different question. However, it is well known in the community that it is not out of the ordinary for a cat to be eating its kittens. It is very common for the cat to do so, and there are little to no adverse effects on the body of the cat if it does decide to devour its little kittens. Make sure that the kitten is well fed, regardless. This is usually not a part of the cat’s diet, and it will not give the cat the energy that it needs to be active and thrive.
How You Can Stop the Stillborn Situation
You have to understand that taking care of the mama cat is quite important during its pregnancy. A lot of the time, there is a very strong reason as to why a kitten is born still, and it may sometimes be the owner’s negligence. If the cat was malnourished and weak, and it was still made to get pregnant, the likelihood of it going into harm’s way when it is pregnant is very high. In short, the cat is at high risk around this period.
You have to make sure that during the time in which your cat is pregnant, your cat is being fed more so than usual. You may be able to figure out how much you should be feeding your cat with the help of a little research. You should not be overfeeding the cat to a point where it becomes too heavy, and its body is unable to deal with losing weight. Your cat’s body needs to remain active and healthy to make sure that the little kittens come out healthy and safe, and your mama cat is not at risk.
Can Cats Die From Eating Kittens
You have to make sure that the cat stays in a location where it will not come across any sort of accident or mishap, which may end up risking the life of the cat as well as the kittens that are present inside the cat’s body. You have to maintain a healthy balance between feeding your cat enough that it gets the nutrition that it needs to not become weak. At the same time, it has enough nutrition that the baby kittens are getting enough and do not have to suffer from malnutrition inside the cat’s body.
All of these are methods and practices that you can adopt to reduce the chances of there being a stillborn kitten. You need to preserve as many lives as possible. There have been cases in which, when the cat lost its baby kitten, it ended up going through postpartum depression and stopped eating. Sooner or later, the cat was bound to become weak and unhealthy, and before you knew it, the cat’s condition had become quite close to being fatal. This is possibly the worst situation to be in with a pet, and you need to avoid that to the best of your abilities.
There are also many other effects that pregnancy may have on the cat’s body. It is always a better option to take your cat to the vet after the delivery. The ideal situation would be to take the cat to the vet when you think that it is in labor. Still, since that can be difficult to keep track of, the next best thing would be to get the cat checked up when it has delivered the kittens because there is a chance of complication with the uterine lining in regards to inflammation and such. If nothing at all, you can simply go for medicine and to ask how to alter the cat’s diet to the current needs of the cat. You may also get the kittens checked up to make sure everyone is healthy and out of harm’s way.
Conclusion
Taking care of a cat can be a difficult job during pregnancy. It can be quite different for people who have never even had pets before in their lives. The best way would be to do proper research to make sure that the method you are following is accurate and suitable for the needs of the cat.