Hi

My cat gave birth to 3 healthy kittens 3 and a half weeks ago. She seemed to be doing really well and the kittens were thriving so yesterday i decided to start leaving a saucer of kitten formula milk outside their nest to encourage weaning. I had already (about 4 days previous) removed one side of the box so the kittens could have easy access in and out of the nesting box which mummy cat didnt seem to mind. The kittens became interested in the saucer and were coming in and out of the box regually. This evening, one kitten came out out the box and mummy cat, whom was laying just beside the box, started to swat him with her paw. I didnt intervine at first as i persumed she was playing but then she grabbed him like prey and began kicking his head with her back feet. I immidiantly interviened and put the kitten back in hisnest and put the side back on as he kept trying to get to his mummy but it was as if she was viewing him as prey! She got in the box with them and seemed to return to her usual mothering self. Does anyone know why she would have done this? I do handle the kittens but not away from the nest in her presence which she dosent seem to mind. She hasent tried moving the kittens so i dont think she isinsecure with were the nest is. She generally seems completly at ease with the kittens except for this one time. I want to remove the side of the box again as they are coming up four weeks but am worried too because of mummys behaviour when they get out of the nest.

Any advice would be really appriciated

Thanks

She was probably telling him off for wandering - sometimes the discipline can look a little rough. 3/4 weeks is very young to be allowed to wander out of the box - I'd keep them in a bit longer - and mum seems to agree.

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I find that my girl gets anxious about her kittens when they first start to venture out of the nest area and sometimes seems quite rough when handling them, sometimes dragging them back. After a few days she seems to accept that they are going to go out and settles down again.
Your cat may have been concerned for the kitten and was just telling it off but I think you did the right thing in taking the kitten away from her. Just keep a careful eye on her and the babies over the next few days.

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Thanks guys for the quick replys

She definatly seems herself again so maybe she was just telling him off. The kitten seems absoloutly fine so im thinking maybe keep the side of the box on for longer so they cant get out? They have ventured out further then what the kitten did today though before and she lays down and watches them purring. It just seemed odd that nothing out of the ordinary had happened to make her be quite that aggressive

Thanks

The rescue Mum was the same with her own kittens and the two rescued ginger kittens. Everytime the kittens wanted to or did go exploring in the birthing room, Mum was out of the box dragging them back. She could have won the "Best Kitten Carrier Award".

Kittens, now 16 weeks old, are much happier now Mum and one kitten re-homed. Our lounge/dining room now resembles the Silverstone race circuit, the way they tear around @ high speed.

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my nala she dont pick her kittens up but if they are behind her back she will roll over kick themup to her front paws grab them and flip them overto herfront it looks brutal but its how she moved them alsonow they are older if they start play fighting and it gets to rought she pins them down and bites them to tell them of

I wouldn't say she was beating the baby up, my missie has been doing this even when in the enclosure! I see it as a bit of roughening up, so as long as my babies haven't cried out then I don't intervene... I have even seen my Male itten doing this to his mum today they are only 4 weeks old!

I wouldn't worry about this at all. Even if you haven't noticed anything that would warrant a telling off, mum will have. It could be the way the kitten was carrying its tail, the way it was moving towards her, the fact that she'd given it signals to get back in the box and it hadn't listened... There's a myriad of reasons why that we just don't appreciate. My girl who is a Persian and the most even tempered cat I've met in a long time, beat one of her babies up when he was only 3 and a half weeks old, and I still don't know why. I didn't intervene though, and I'd suggest the same if the kitten isn't screaming. Mine whined a bit, but it was akin to the "Muuuuuum, I hate you!" that you get from an annoyed small child.

Hope this puts your mind at rest as it does seem terribly brutal. It's important for their socialisation though.