You look at your mother and presume, would you ever be able to forget this wonderful face? How your life would be after being away from your mother? I know every one of us has somewhere imagined this in our subconscious.
But, readers, when most of you looked at your cat and wondered the same? Did you find your answers, I bet you didn’t.
Today, I am bringing to you all such questions summed up just in this one article. Exciting right?
To answer the question, cat mother’ forget their kitten in approx 10 weeks. Yes, that’s much it is needed for a cat mother to remove her kittens from her memory lane.
I know this intrigued you to know more, without any further suspense, let’s find the crux of it.
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Does The Mother Cat Get Sad When Their Kittens Are Taken Away?
No matter when you have separated the mother and child duo but it still leaves a possibility for a mother to grieve.
Especially if you have taken away the kittens who weren’t weaned after around 10 to 12 weeks it Is going to leave a mother in a state of grief or will leave her sad. It is highly recommended that try to adopt a kitten only after their weaned period.
After that period, cats are less likely to remember their offspring. After a day or two, cats move away from their normal life cycle.
But a question might arise how to know that your cat is grieving?
Below I have mentioned the signs of grief.
When a cat yowls, searching around the house, a change in the food cycle is also a sign that your cat is in a state of denial. There can be behavioral changes too as suddenly an aloof cat starts to become clingy.
While there have been cases where the mother cats moved out of the grief in a few days whereas in some cases it’s been difficult. Try to consult the vet in such cases because there are high chances that it will scar your cat’s mental state or can make her recluse.
What Can I Do For My Cat When She Is Sad As Her Kittens Are Taken Away?
Healing is a difficult process. Healing is a growth process that happens gradually and distinctively for everyone.
Humans and cats possess the same traits during their grieving cycle. When you see your cat growing through some strange and ad behavior, don’t try to force her to act a certain way.
You can reassure her by being there, bringing her favorite toys, and giving her catnips and treats. Cuddling her whenever she seems disassociated can also work.
Sit with her when It’s her mealtime to encourage her. All of these can fasten your cat’s healing and denial process.
Also, read about how long can a mother cat be away from her newborn kittens
Do Mother Cats Remember Her Kittens?
Cats remember each other through the scent they leave on each other. Mother cats tend to forget their kittens in a short period after they are separated as that scent vanishes in that time frame.
Mother cats leave a certain scent on their kittens to retain them, but once the kitten gets out of the weaning period, and start eating solid food. They outgrow their mother’s scent and get unfurled in different scents.
Do Cats Miss Their Kitten When They Are Taken Away?
It’s uncommon for a mother cat to miss her kitten, while maybe instill some cases cats have shown depressive behavior.
Usually, mother cats start weaning their kittens at about 5- 6 weeks of age until they reach 13 weeks.
During that period cats teach their kittens to live independently without having to be around their mother.
It’s also likely that during this period mother’s car will growl and hiss her kitten away to depart them from her.
 In some cases, when mother cats have shown behavioral changes after the kitten was taken away, making it evident that they miss their offspring are when the kittens were moved away before the weaning period.
The denial phase can go longer in such an occurrence.
It will be interesting read about how to tell if a mother cat has abandoned her kittens
How To Take In A Kitten Whose Mother Has Abandoned Her?
It can be difficult to adopt or foster a kitten whose mother has abandoned her. But it’s your moral duty to take care of her and do the essential.
You might have wondered what can you do?
I am listing down how you can do so.
1. Analyze The Environment Around
Don’t use that the kitten has been abandoned, a mother cat is likely to leave behind her kittens whenever she has to feed herself or use the litter box. Stay there to make sure the kittens are safe. But once you feel your instinct is correct, then act accordingly.
2. Stable The Kitten
Before doing anything, make sure the kitten is warm and stable. Kittens cannot control their body temperature. Make sure the kitten is not hypothermic or hyperthermic.
Regulating their body temperature should be your first duty. A heating pad on low or a warm water bottle can come to the rescue in such a situation.
3. Stimulate Them To Go To The Bathroom
After bringing the kitten home, try to stimulate her in using the bathroom. Yes, cat mothers stimulate or lick their kittens to help them eliminate and urinate. You need to do so too. Remember it’s essential for a cat as hours of no elimination can damage their vital organs.
4. Bath Them
Feed them in lukewarm water as there is a possibility that they have any parasites attached to their furs that need to be washed out. all this time doing so, remember to reassure them of your presence.
It is interesting to know reason behind why mother cat sitting on kittens
Is It Cruel To Take Kittens Away From Their Mother?
No, it shouldn’t be put in the category of cruelty, as every cat has the right to get a nice surrounding and environment which could only be provided after they are adopted or given away.
Saying that I am also clearly stating that kittens are taken away before their weaning period has ended
can suffer from acute malnutrition.
Kittens that still depend on their mothers for food should also not be considered for adoption as it can scar both the mother and kittens to be precise.
This should be noted that mother cats themselves groom their kittens to grow independent after the infant and weaning period has ended. This is the time when both of them aren’t dependent on each other and can go without each other.
Consider adopting or fostering such a cat as it would be less cruel, newbie paw-rents.
Also, check out how long can newborn kittens live without their mother
Frequently Asked Questions
Why a cat forgets her kitten?
A cat is likely to forget her kittens because the relevance that they left on her kittens is not found now. Cats remember through scents when those signs are eradicated, it becomes difficult for a cat to differentiate.
My kittens are only 3 weeks, will they die?
Your cat does have the possibility to die due to a lack of nutrients. Nutrients at this time of their lives can only be provided by their mother. Ton act better, try feeding your kittens through formulas, and urgently consult a vet.
How to care for a grieving cat mother?
Make sure she feels secure around herself and not forced to accept things. Give her the food she likes to have, keep her surrounded with her favorite toys, take her on longer walks than usual, and most importantly be there with her, she grieves when she feels lonely. Try to fill that space for her.
Final Words
In today’s article, we came across most of the things about cats and kittens when they are departed from each other. It is very complex when we are a part or witnesses of such an occurrence.
If you are fostering, adopting, or just interested to know, then make sure that you never force kittens or any cat mama to get to terms with what just happened. Every process is different for everyone.Â
Lastly, I would rest my words by claiming that cats lead a different world, even after being a part of ours. Try to squeeze yourself in whenever something in her happens.
It a sign of great paw-rents my readers, come on, what are you waiting for, drop in comments when you were a part of something like this, and what you did? I will be glad to see you there.
I separated 4 kittens away from her mother she is a stray and I got the kittens adopted in pairs they were still drinking her milk and was eating solid food they were in the cold sleeping and I got new homes for them but I dont know I feel like I did something wrong for doing this to there mother I am worried.
Hello rose,
To answer your query, its important to know what is the age of kittens.
But as long as your intentions are good to protect them and you don’t see any big changes in behavior of kittens, you are doing nothing wrong.
Happy cat parenting.
My kittens are 7 weeks old and mama is done nursing them for sure cuz she is bringing in dead mice and headless rsts. So I say as soon as they start eating solid they can be taken away but I notice that if it is done a couple at a time she doesn’t seem to get sad