Why a cat has different kittens in a litter

It is not uncommon to have kittens of different colors in a litter. These differences in colors and patterns come down to a few genes that determine what each kitten will look like.

Can a cat have kittens from different cats?

Yes, this is one of the characteristics of a cat's litter. If a cat has had mating with more than one cat during her heat, the kittens may have different fathers at birth.

In a cat, one of the factors that determines the number of kittens is the number of mating, hence the number of "daddies" may be different.

If your cat lives on the street, she may mate with different cats during her "run", and this is usually the case. So it turns out that the same cat has kittens of completely different colors. We have a cat named Mashka who lives in our country house, and she had different kittens in her litter, two red kittens, one like herself is gray with white, and another one looks like a Siamese cat who lives a few houses away.

A domestic cat is another matter. Here you can regulate her sex life and give her one cat, so you know that the kittens will be from him. This is usually done when the cat is a pedigree cat and not to spoil the breed bring the cat to the pedigree cat.

Yes, a cat can. Nature arranged it so that strong and healthy offspring appeared. A cat's ability to conceive lasts a certain amount of time, and all the "dads" can take part in procreation. And that's right. We had a Persian cat and it just so happened that the kittens had two daddies. And one was a noble, fluffy, smoky beauty, and the other was a redheaded, homeless bully. So, – from the first father, all the kittens were defective and unviable, but from the second – though mongrel, but very strong, strong and wonderful cats.

Yes, in terms of reproduction, there are tricks that cats can do as nature intended and which people cannot do, and it is for them, that is cats, that evolution allows to give birth to kittens from different fathers, and we people for example cannot do it physiologically. It just happens so because a cat, unlike a human woman, always mates with different cats during the heat period, and nature thereby gives to each of these cats to transfer its genes.

Why a cat has different kittens in a litter

Ever since high school biology lessons we know that an egg and a sperm are necessary for the birth of a new life. Accordingly, how many eggs will mature at future kitty cat by the time of heat, and so many kids she and please the owner. But the trick is that they mature not simultaneously, but one by one. Usually it is three, and later, a few days later, another three or even more will mature.

And if a pussy cat walking by itself and informing the neighborhood about its readiness for love games chooses not one but several applicants for the role of a future daddy, the chances are high that all of them will become dads in the near future. This is not at all uncommon in the free-range. There is even a chance that all kittens in a litter could be fathered by different cats.

A little science

So, the fertilization of one or more eggs within one ovulation period by sperm belonging to different males, is called superfecundation or, simply put, superfertilization.

Thus, kittens born in one litter can be either identical or identical twins. Future fluffballs can become parts of one cell, divided at an early stage-zygote, formed as a result of fertilization of an egg by sperm. In fact, such animals can be considered clones. Just like identical twin humans. Their genetic set is the same, hence the same color.

However, the different types of babies come from different zygotes, which are the result of fertilization by different fathers. As a result, different zygotes are formed, so different coloring is not excluded. Usually, a cat and a cat have different alleles, that is, forms of the same gene located on an identical section of the chromosome. It is these that determine the direction of this or that trait of future offspring. In this case, color. In each zygote, the alleles are mixed at random. That is, different combinations from mom and dad give different color variations.

If the kitty walks on its own, multicolored offspring are not uncommon. But, rather, the norm. Therefore, breeders of pedigree animals carefully guard purity. After all, the accidental or unsuitable daddy-cat can leave behind undesirable consequences, and the purity of kittens will be questioned. What is the most unexpected color of your cat's kittens?

Can a litter of kittens have more than one father?

Yes, in one litter a cat can have kittens from different fathers. This phenomenon is called superfecundation. A study of animal sexual behavior may explain why this happens. When a cat is in its sexual activity phase, cats from around the neighborhood rush to hear its shrieking meow and distinctive scent. They gather around the desired object and fight for the right of possession with wild howls. This is commonly called "catfighting. Eventually, one of them wins and mates with the cat.

The act itself lasts about five seconds, with ejaculation occurring in the first moment of copulation. After resting for about twenty minutes, they start all over again and repeat this process, on average, seven times. After that, the cat's ardor usually subsides.

Some cats develop a special strategy to attract one particular cat and reject other suitors while waiting for a favorite. But more often she lets a whole crowd of suitors mate with her one by one. This means that she is impregnated by a "cocktail" of sperm from a variety of cats, and it is impossible to find out who is really the daddy.

This sometimes results in a litter of kittens of all kinds, absolutely unlike anything else.which is mistaken by their owners for the discovery of a new "genetic variety". Although such diversity is just a product of sexual promiscuity of the mother cat.

This situation is mainly a phenomenon of domestic animals, because the territories of wild cats are too big for several dozens of them to run to one female at the moment of her sexual activity. In the city, however, the distance is much less, so that a sexually active cat can easily be found by a whole "hangout" of the most diverse admirers. Superfection would be even more common, but not all cats want to risk their own skin in a fight for the right of possession with a fat and healthy neighbor. On the other hand, if cats weren't so sexually "hungry," then superfeeding would come to naught at all. If the cat settled down, having coitus those seven times with one partner, she would then walk home quietly past all the others. But she stubbornly refuses monogamy, inviting more and more cats until her period of sexual activity comes to an end. If by that time all the adult cats have already moderated their ardor, even the young, "undersized" cats may risk to try a little.

Striped patterns

The striped cat gene is known as agouti (A) and dominates over non-agouti or solid cats (a). The wild-type gene that determines the color and pattern of the domestic coat is the brown striped color. All cats are striped, but in monochromatic cats the striped pattern is masked. Sometimes you can see "halos" on a clear day or in small kittens.

As if the genetics of coat color are not confusing enough, a litter of kittens may have more than one father, as the female will mate with more than one male during heat, if possible. This is called superfecundation.

Not surprisingly, kittens in a litter can have different coat colors among the dominant genes, modifier genes, white spots, and different fathers.

Determining the potential color of kittens will be used to minimize some knowledge of genetics, test mating and, with current advances, DNA tests to determine what color coat a cat has and whether it has recessive genes.

Can cat kittens have different fathers?

If the kittens in your cat's litter look like different breeds, you may wonder if they have different fathers. Although it sounds unlikely, it can happen because of a biological phenomenon called superfecundation.

To understand how this happens, you need to understand the cat's reproductive process. So, how can a female cat have litters with different fathers?

What is superfecundation?

Superfecundation means that two or more eggs have been fertilized in the same heat cycle. This can occur when the same pair mate several times during a cat's heat cycle. It is also possible that different fathers fertilize each egg, which is known as heteropaternal superfecundation.

The term "superfecundation" comes from Latin; super means "over" or "beyond." Fecund means fertile, so fecundation means fertilization. Thus, the term means "after the first fertilization.

The female produces several eggs, some of which are fertilized by the partner she is currently mating with. Shortly thereafter, she may mate with another partner to fertilize the remaining eggs. They are literally fertilized after the first fertilization.

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This is advantageous from an evolutionary standpoint. If the offspring from one parent prove to be non-viable, the offspring from the other parent will not be affected by the same genetic problem.

Superfetal reproduction in cats

To fully understand how superfertility works, you need to understand how cats mate.

Cats cannot have kittens at any convenient time. They are seasonally polyestrus, which means they are in heat. This is the period of time when a cat can ovulate (produce eggs that can then be fertilized).

Do cats mate with their siblings?

Cat siblings do mate with each other. Like all mammals, mating is a basic cat instinct.

When a female cat goes into estrus (heat), the male cat follows his instinct to pass on his genes. The chemistry of the cat's body will tell him when to mate and when is the right time for the female to reproduce. Therefore, cats will mate even if they are from the same litter.

However, this does not mean that inbreeding always happens naturally. A study published in the journal Brill examined female control of paternity during copulation. The researchers found that, in general, female cats avoid inbreeding with close relatives during copulation, but not with distant relatives.

If we consider feral cats isolated from other colonies, they have no choice but to breed with their siblings and other family members in order to maintain the colony. However, the report shows that feral cats prefer to seek mates from outside their direct bloodline if other cats are available.

Can sibling cats and sister cats have kittens?

Kittens can become sexually mature as early as 4 months of age. Female kittens can conceive around this age, and male kittens can impregnate a fertile female. This can be bad news if you have two cats from the same litter who have not been neutered.

If a female impregnates a kitten at 4 months of age, there is a good chance that the cat will be able to produce offspring at only 6 months of age. This is because a cat's gestation period is only 63 days. Experts believe that this is too short a time for a cat to produce its first litter.

Cats are also indiscriminate creatures. This means that a brother can mate with his sister because he does not recognize her as his family. Most of all, they are like playmates.

To prevent close-breeding, it's best to spay the sibling cat and the sister cat before they reach puberty. Or, if you are looking for a pair of cats to become pets, you can choose same-sex cats from the same litter. This way, you'll reduce the risk of siblings mating, but still provide them with playmates.

Can cats have kittens from multiple partners?

Yes, female cats can get pregnant from multiple cats. In fact, the number of fathers is not limited to two cats. A cat can have as many partners as there are kittens. For example, if your cat has 3 kittens, each kitten may have a different father. The process by which cats have kittens from multiple partners is called superfertilization.

In this case, kittens from the same father can look completely different. Toms carry dominant and recessive genes, changing everything from the color of a kitten's eyes to the length of their fur.

Female cats usually reach puberty by about 4 months of age and can have kittens as soon as they are in heat. You will be pleased to hear that male cats don't care if there are kittens from more than one father in a litter, as cats rarely stay with their parents.

How do cats give birth to kittens from different cats?

Although cats can get pregnant from more than one cat, this is considered rare. When a female cat mates with a male cat, semen enters the female cat's reproductive tract, allowing her to become pregnant.

During heat, the uterus may release multiple eggs. Cats ovulate differently than many mammals, including humans. Cats do not release an egg to prepare for fertilization. Instead, mating stimulates ovulation. This is known as induced ovulation.

Cats may mate with several cats over several days during heat, trying to find the best mate. Since it takes about 2 days for an egg to enter the uterus, a cat can become pregnant from multiple partners because two eggs can be fertilized by different sperm attached to the uterine reproductive tract.

As mentioned, this is a process called superfertilization. Cases of super-fertilization in humans have been recorded, but are extremely rare.

Why can a cat have kittens of different colors in the same litter, even though the father cat is the same?

All kittens born in one litter may be identical or fraternal twins. In the first case they originate from a single zygote cell. In fact, the kitten embryo at the earliest stage reproduces by division. However, human identical twins do the same. In the second case. kittens come from different zygotes.

Identical kittens are naturally occurring clones. Just like human ovine twins. They are genetically identical. That's why the color is the same.

But the identical twin babies can be different colors: they were formed from different zygotes, and different zygotes can be genetically different.. This includes color genes. More often than not, both the mother cat and the father cat have different alleles of genesresponsible for hair color, and in each zygote they are "shuffled around" in a random order.. Different combinations of genes from the same parents give different color variations.

Why does a cat have kittens of three different colors?

At one time, author Alixa, gave great answers on feline genetics. Very interesting and informative to read about them.
http://www.bolshoyvopros.ru/questions/1665153-pochemu-u-koshki-odin-glaz-goluboj-drugoj-zheltyj.html#answer5092414
http://www.bolshoyvopros.ru/questions/1637544-pochemu-u-beloj-koshki-i-serogo-kota-rodilsja-ryzhij-kotjonok.html#answer4993751
http://www.bolshoyvopros.ru/questions/1076024-mozhet-li-kot-imet-cherepahovuju-okrasku.html#answer3108938 – 7 years ago

The color of kittens depends directly on the color of the parents and grandparents! Even two black parents can give birth to different colored kittens. The genetics of cat colors is a very interesting thing!

For example a BLUE color cat, color carrier and carrier of chocolate and a WHITE cat, genetically red-links point carrier of chocolate and blue, can give birth to black, white, blue, chocolate, purple, black tortoiseshell, blue-cream, chocolate tortoises, Turtles tebbies,shoko tebbies,mauve tebbies,black tortoise tebbies,blue and cream tebbies,chocolate tortoise tebbies,blue point,choco point,lix point,blu-tortie point,choco-tortie point,lilix tortie point,blu-tortie tebbie point,choco-tortie tebbie point,lix-tortie tebbie point.

And all in all a blue mother and a white father! White color in general is a big mystery of genetics! White color is a lack of pigment, and in reality under the white is always genetically founded another color, and to determine what color cat "under white" can only be in the pedigree, or by kittens.

That's why there are pedigrees, to know what lines and colors stand for a particular animal and understand what to expect in children from such a parent))

Now I will try to add pictures to clearly explain the color, it is difficult to understand in terms of!

I will show you an example of British cats, because this breed is one of the most popular and almost all colors are allowed.