Cats will eat their kittens in extreme situations. If its offspring has little chance of survival or was stillborn, there’s a possibility the mother will eat it to avoid any other issues down the line. Most of the time, a cat will only live to protect its kittens.
There are times where a mother will eat a healthy offspring – but that hardly ever happens.
For a cat to eat its healthy kittens, there needs to be a predator around – and, when the mother senses her young, fragile offspring will be gruesomely killed, she proceeds to do what it feels it has to do to avoid the worst-case scenario.
Why do cats eat their kittens?
A cat will eat its kittens to protect itself and its other offspring. Cats eat their kittens if they are in severe danger or too sick to carry on – and the only reason they do that is to avoid catching the attention of predators looming around.
Simply put, a mother doesn’t have the strength nor the time to protect sick offspring and healthy offspring alike. That’s why she has a tough decision to make – either kill (and sometimes eat) the sick offspring or lose every single one of its kittens.
Sometimes, there are stillborn kittens, and the mother cat will eat them as well. This is a defense mechanism to avoid predators from luring in.
Will a mom cat kill her kittens?
It’s highly unlikely for a mom cat to kill her kittens for no reason at all. A mother cat could kill a kitten who has no chance of survival. If a predator is about to get them, she might kill them out of mercy.
There are cases where a mother kills her kittens in nature, but it hardly ever happens to house cats. Even in nature, it’s incredibly rare for that to happen.
Will a mom cat eat their kittens if they die?
When a mom cat has a stillborn, there are two possible scenarios: out in the wild, she may bury the dead kitten or she could also eat it if she has other kittens to attend to. House cats are quickly separated from their offspring for anything to happen.
Having a stillborn is a sad moment for every living creature, and when it comes to cats, it’s no different. A mother cat has to think about the rest of her kittens, though – and that’s why she may eat dead offspring – otherwise, the scent could bring trouble.
Does a cat eat their kittens if you touch them?
There’s no reason to believe a cat will kill their kittens if you touch them – especially if the mother cat knows your scent. Then again, it’s not recommended to touch kittens before they open their eyes unless there’s a reason to do so.
Giving birth is a stressful time for a cat. You need to avoid disturbing a mother cat and its kittens until they’ve settled in and can deal with what the world has to give them.
Even though a mother cat won’t kill their kittens if you touch them, it’s better if you don’t.
There are times where a mother will eat a healthy offspring – but that hardly ever happens.
For a cat to eat its healthy kittens, there needs to be a predator around – and, when the mother senses her young, fragile offspring will be gruesomely killed, she proceeds to do what it feels it has to do to avoid the worst-case scenario.