When we have a cat that we have decided not to neuter, during one or even two times a year we will see how their behavior changes. Females will generally become much more affectionate, and males will tend to mark more and be a bit antisocial.
It is important to know these behaviors to understand how is heat in cats, which is what I'm going to tell you so that it will be much easier for you to know when your friend is in "those days" 🙂.
When do they reach sexual maturity?
Heat in cats can appear very early: in cats it will be from 6 months (in some, like one of my cats for example, it can even appear earlier: at 5 months), and in cats it will be from 7 months, maybe a little earlier but it is not usual. We will notice that its behavior changes during the spring, but if you live in a warm climate it is likely that your furry will go into heat in any season.
By the way, you should know that, in general, they have two periods of heat a year, but for example the Siamese can have up to 4. In any case, if you want your friend to have offspring, it is highly recommended to wait for the year to turn. of age, since although at 6-7 months their sexual organs have developed, their physical development is not over yet.
Phases of the rutting period
Three distinct phases are distinguished in the period:
- price: when the cat's sexual organs prepare for a possible pregnancy. It will be then when she is restless and very affectionate.
- Zeal: after approximately 5 days, the female will be very receptive. If mating did not occur, we would see him rub against the ground, cry, and do his best to leave the house to look for a male cat.
- Resting Time: which is when mating has not occurred. The cat relaxes and her reproductive system is at rest.
And what happens to the cat?
Males in the wild that are not castrated will look for a cat in heat, guided by their sense of smell, and also by their hearing, as the cats will "call" them. Once found, the females will adopt a characteristic posture: they will flex their front legs and turn their tail to the side.
In just two months approximately, between 1 and 10 kittens will be born and they will have to find a good home 🙂.
As I have already said in many comments, I have 9 cats, the mother and her children (3 are adopted from another cat I had).
The mother has Siamese features, or looking at the daughter, rather Balinese. Both very sexually active. The mother's periods of heat last almost longer than her periods of rest, and the daughter goes the same way.
The daughter with Balinese features, beautiful and very, very calm, with five months she was already in heat. Luckily this one, the daughter, does not meow, she only makes a very soft guttural "ru-ru", not like the mother who is noticed ...
Both are mounted by the 3 male children there are, with only five months! On the one hand, they "comfort" them and at least the mother does not "bother" them, but on the other hand, I don't know, it is not a question of the house looking like a cat brothel ...
The other 4 5-month-old females still do not show signs of heat.
The vet told me and re-said that it was not convenient to castrate the males until 8 months ... I hope that is correct ...
I made the "mistake" of letting my 2 cats breed to "satisfy" them thinking that later it would be easy, give the kittens, maybe I could keep one ...
But the reality is that in the end I could not give any. I have had no courage. They are so pretty… !!! And now as I want to keep them well, then to run with the cats, I say with the expenses.
And it is difficult to resist. Now I am writing, and the black and white, whom we call Yin-Yan, even if she is female, is around here, biting my chin so that I can caress it, playing with the necklace, trying to catch the freckles on the neck ... etc. not stop.
At last I have managed to curl up on the desk in my arms, at least I take a break from pushing it away so that I do not step on the keyboard ... or hunt the cursor on the screen. The other day one stepped on the PC button making me lose what I was about to finish
And still, we don't have a single one left over. 🙂
Hummmm what a more pleasant headrest pillow, relaxing and warm ... rru-rru rru-rru rru-rru
Yes 🙂. They are the best relaxer there is.
The 8 month thing… I don't know, I can tell you that I have always had my cats castrated at 6 months, whether they were female or male, and there has been no problem. I took Benji when he was 5 months old, because he started wanting to go abroad very soon. And… I love kittens, but sometimes you have to know when to stop. In my case, 3 is the perfect number. Well, and those from the feline colony, which are 6 and I recently saw a new one 🙂.
But boy, if they all get along well with each other, and the humans can take care of the expenses… great.
By the way, you forget about the free masseuse lol