How Many Times Can A Cat Have Kittens In A Year

This means they can come on heat multiple times in a calendar year compared to dogs that are dioestrous and only come on heat twice per year.

How many times can a cat have kittens in a year. The size of the litter typically depends on the mother cat s experience and age. In fact cats like rabbits are efficient reproducers and heat cycles can occur every 14 to 21 days. First time moms usually have smaller litters ranging from 1 3 kittens but the cat s health age and breed can also play a part in the number of kittens that will be born. Cats are known as a polyoestrus species.

However a cat usually gives birth to 3 to 9 kittens on average there are between 4 and 6 kittens. Because the queen can have as many as three pregnancies a year and she can produce as many as six to twenty four babies it s best to have her spayed. Young first time mother cats typically have smaller litters than more seasoned queens. If allowed to mate freely an un spayed female kitty typically becomes pregnant up to three times per year according to the la animal shelter.

In order to know at what age can cats have kittens we need to analyze a cat s heat period. Once your cat reaches puberty she can go into heat at any time. This means that just one female kitty can produce between six and 24 kittens in a single year. This fact of nature can contribute to feral colonies of cats making the responsibility of spaying and neutering that much more important for pet owners.

In the span of a year a female cat can give birth to a staggering 5 litters of kittens. If this birthrate continued unchecked the poor lady will have given birth to around 180 kitties during her lifetime if not more because older cats don t necessarily become sterile and cats can live into their late teens without any. Female cats will generally continue to come on heat. Cats are seasonal polyestrous which means that in the months with the highest incidence of sunlight they can experience heat almost permanently.

Breeding cats are reflex or induced ovulators which means that the more often they breed the more eggs they produce. Male cats do not have a set heat period instead once they reach sexual maturity they are able to fertilize any female cat which they can detect is in heat. How often do cats come on heat. Although it should be noted that cats can come on heat and produce kittens at any time of the year if the situation is right.

The average mature cat can have 3 litters with a total of 12 kittens per year. The number of kittens a cat can have varies greatly depending on the breed of the animal and the number of heats they have gone into.