Unspayed cat eating food for neutered cats

Because of the 'rhythm method', which was supposed to protect women from unwanted pregnancies, thousands of human babies have been born. The calendar is not, and has never been, a reliable method.

The only way to ensure an outdoor female cat doesn’t get pregnant is to have her spayed before she is 6 months old. And even for a cat that stays strictly indoors, spaying is a real comfort for both her and her owner, not to mention the high risk of mammary tumours in unspayed cats.

Just so you know, my Siamese’s mother got pregnant at 4 and a half months old. The breeder hadn't been careful enough. Honestly, it's just not good enough...

"I've been looking after the stray cats in my area for many years" blah blah blah.

You're not the only one.

You're talking a lot of rubbish for someone who claims to be against misinformation, @Yuna La Ficelle.

A female cat born in September will never have her first season in December. Their first heat is usually around 6 months old; it can very occasionally be earlier, but never under 4 months at the absolute minimum. And it can be much later, at 8 or 9 months, or even a year or more.

I didn't say "don't worry in winter, female cats can't have kittens," I specified "the vast majority," "generally," and "except for females living indoors in a well-heated home, who can also come into season in the middle of winter." At no point did I say that every single female cat without exception was unable to have kittens in the winter.

Anyway, if someone doesn't want their cat to have kittens, they get her spayed; they aren't going to keep her locked indoors for part of the year to make sure she doesn't get caught by a tom, and then let her out the rest of the year just because someone on the internet said that cats are in their off-season during that period!

What I was saying is, however, true for cats living in natural conditions, contrary to what you're claiming. The issue of a litter surviving in winter doesn't even come up for strays because no stray kittens are born between November and February, as the females are in a period of sexual rest between September and December inclusive.

Yes, I insist, whatever you might think or say, there really is a breeding season and an off-season for female cats. In natural conditions, they are only fertile during a certain part of the year for about 6 consecutive months (those 6 months being between January and September in our part of the world). And they can indeed come back into season 15 days after giving birth, but only as long as they are still within that breeding season.

I've been looking after strays in my local area for many years; the females have recently started coming into season again after a several-month break, just like every winter. I've never seen a stray female in heat between September and December inclusive, nor a single stray kitten born between November and February inclusive.

I hadn't seen your second post (it was on another page and since you can edit your posts if you've forgotten to add something, I didn't imagine you'd replied with two posts in a row), so I hadn't seen your link either.

I've had cats for over 40 years; I don't need a link explaining how it works to me, and especially not a link to a site that is by no means a reputable source and has zero credibility.

You want a link too? Here:

https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jvms/66/9/66_9_1129/_pdf

Look, I’ve shared a link to back up what I’m saying,

Let’s see yours! And try to avoid calling me an idiot if you can! I only said that about the vet because he didn't give the most obvious answer, which is that an unspayed female is in heat pretty much all the time. Dry food for neutered cats has nothing to do with it, and neither does the season. If a female kitten is born in September, she’ll have her first heat in late December or early January, even if it’s winter.

Also, no, unspayed cats are "fertile" constantly unless they’re pregnant, and even when nursing, they can go back into heat just 15 days after giving birth! And the irony of the whole thing is that I’m not actually against breeding.

I don’t encourage it either, but if someone asks for advice and they seem serious—for the sake of both the mum and the kittens—I’m the first to help out without judging.

However, I am against misinformation. Essentially, your message says "don't worry about winter, cats can't have kittens," and that's completely false, even for strays. Mind you, the survival rate for a winter litter is close to zero for stray kittens, not to mention the mum. You say your study shows there are no winter litters except for indoor cats, but that’s actually wrong; it’s just that winter litters don’t survive, and sometimes neither does the mother.

If anything, if there are fewer winter litters, it's not because they don't go into heat, but because cats stay tucked up warm with their owners and don't come across—or at least see fewer—other cats that could get them pregnant.

It’s not an opinion; it’s a proven fact. Studies have shown that (in our latitudes) the vast majority of heat cycles take place between January and June, and female cats generally don't go into season between October and December.

I don’t know about Siberia, but nature knows what it’s doing; it ensures that no kittens are born when it’s too cold for them to survive. That’s why most female cats stop coming into season around late September or early October—roughly two months (the approximate length of a pregnancy) before the winter cold hits—and start again around late January or early February, about two months before the warmer weather returns.

You also have to look at the context, because just before that, there was a poster who couldn't understand how her cat was pregnant even though she was feeding her dry food for neutered cats. Honestly, the whole thing was so unbelievable that the only possible response was to take the mickey a bit.

Female cats go 'into heat'—or are at least fertile—as long as they aren't pregnant. They can have up to four litters a year, which is why getting them spayed is essential.

Anyway, since I’m apparently an idiot, here’s a link that explains how it all works:

https://www.laviedeschats.com/chatte-non-sterilisee/

That way you’ll see it’s not just me saying it...

Lol,

That’s just your opinion, not the truth!

So, you’re saying cats in Iceland are only in heat for three months of the year, while those on the equator are in heat all year round?

What a load of rubbish! 😂

And you know what this "*****" has to say to you???

The only thing that was a bit moronic—but very cute nonetheless—was the actual topic, but at least it was funny!

Domestic cats are just like domestic rabbits; they don’t really have fixed mating seasons like their wild counterparts anymore. Most of the litters I’ve had at home were born in March or April, which means they were in heat in January, and yet those were outdoor cats (neutered now).

It really wasn’t worth digging up a post that’s over a year old just to say that, especially since the original poster didn't take offence even though I was being very cheeky, bordering on "out of order"... But there we go! 😂