Conference misery::feline

    Sandy,
    
      I can tell you from experience, after about 3-4 months the mother
    wants nothing to do with the kittens.  After about 6 months (first
    heat?) the young male will try to mount mother, sister, aunt they don't
    care or have any morals.  I think the kittens will know mom for about a
    year after that it's just another cat competing for dads lap.  I am not
    sure how long kittens know each other if they came from the same
    litter. 
    
    Dennis

    
    re .0
    
    We had 2 males from the same litter for years (one of them died and
    we still have the other one). They slept together, they defended their
    property together, they got whiny when the other cat stayed away for
    too long (a couple of days). *But* they also fought for dominancy
    between themselves, not fiercely but one of them had to be the top cat.
    I don't know if they would behave the same way if they were from
    different families and put together during kittenhood. Also, my cats
    are neutered and well taken care of, the scenario is different in the
    wild.
    
    Eva

re .0
    
Don't tell my kitties they aren't social animals; you'll get an earful!  
Ronnie and Trudy are siblings a little over two years old and Tatoo is 
their foster mother.  They have a very special relationship.  Two years 
ago we adopted Tatoo.  She was approximately two years old and obviously 
battered.  Her fearful demeanor kept her from being adopted and I'm a 
sucker for a hard luck case, so....  She was pregnant when she was rescued 
by C.A.R.E. and her kittens were taken from her for adoption.  During her
four months with C.A.R.E. she fostered several kittens who were of course 
taken from her.

A month after we adopted her, we adopted two littermates and when we brought 
them home, Tatoo immediately adopted them too and treated them like they were 
her own.  She groomed them, slept with them and taught them to hunt toy mice.  
It was incredible.  (Our older cat had no interest in any of this and wished 
they'd all run away.)  The first time I took the twins to the vet, Tatoo was 
very anxious and I swear her reaction when I brought them back home was pure 
joy.  We adopted another small kitten about 3 weeks later and although the 
twins and Kelly get along very well, it isn't the same relationship that the 
littermates have.  Also, Tatoo didn't adopt Kelly; she just tolerates her.
Ronnie, Trudy and Tatoo often sleep together even in the heat of summer.  
They really do get a lot of comfort from one another.

On the other side of the coin, Sophie and Kelly both prefer sleeping with 
us -- maybe that makes us their littermates???  It sure feels like it some-
times, especially when my forehead gets a wash :-)

				SQ

    They are very definitely social animals,  I just said their mother
    doesn't want to mother them after a while.  They all get along great
    except when Max decides he's top cat not mom.
    
    Dennis
    
    and yes all males in my house are fixed except the baby who will be
    done as soon as he loses his baby teeth.

    But yet...I have two littermates who stayed very close until
    they were a year old and now they just tolerate each
    other.   There Mom (who lived up the street) took very good
    care of them until they were 4 months old and then she 
    became very nasty with them.  
    
    I believe in her case she became nasty because they lived outside
    and once she felt her kittens were old enough to defend themselves
    she started to ignore them.  THEN when she went back in heat...
    she wanted NOTHING to do with them.
    
    Sandy 

    Sandy,
    
       In my house the kittens ( idiots who don't mind) will try to nurse
    no matter what their age,  so mom gets nasty with them so won't nurse. 
    She still calls them to play but they look at her like she's crazy. 
    They seem to say why should I come near just to get beat on?  
    
    Dennis