Why Do Mother Cats Eat Their Own Pups? Prevention Methods Shared

As the saying goes, “a tiger will not eat its cubs”, meaning that even fierce tigers will love and care for their cubs. However, mother cats sometimes devour their cubs, which is often related to the so-called “cubophagy”.

  1. Litter-eating is a wild instinct in felines. Litter-eating behavior may occur when a mother cat feels insecure after giving birth or giving birth, or when she doubts that her cubs are her offspring.
  2. Some mother cats overindulge their cubs due to nervousness, and excessive licking may result in injury to the cubs, which are eventually devoured by the mother cat.
  3. Improper feeding during gestation, such as insufficient nutrition, lack of water or high ambient temperatures, may lead to extreme thirst in the mother cat, which may result in swallowing the cubs.
  4. If there are stillbirths or deaths shortly after birth, the mother cat may form the bad habit of eating the litter after swallowing it, which is more common in older female cats.
Why Do Mother Cats Eat Their Own Pups? Prevention Methods Shared

Ways to prevent mother cats from swallowing their cubs

To prevent litter-eating behavior of female cats, feeding management should be strengthened, especially before and after delivery, to ensure that female cats are provided with sufficient protein, vitamins and minerals. At the same time, provide a warm, dry, quiet and undisturbed environment for the mother cat to enhance her sense of security.

When giving birth, avoiding the approach of strangers, and the owner should not interfere at will, not touching the cubs directly with their hands, and preventing the cubs from being exposed to unpleasant odors, all help to prevent cannibalism.

For stillbirths or early deaths of pups after delivery, they should be removed in time without disturbing the mother cat to avoid swallowing. For female cats with a tendency to eat cubs, they should no longer be used for breeding purposes and should be considered for sterilization or elimination.

Original article by KPTer, if reproduced, please cite the source: https://www.kaipet.com/en/mother-cats-eat-pups-prevention-methods-shared

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