4 month old kittens, still nursing

Question
I have a pair of 4 month old male kittens who still nurse on a sporadic basis, and now polydactyl mama kitty is pregnant again.  I will be traveling for 3 weeks, starting from Dec 25 and want to leave them all together with daily visits for feeding and a little attention. Not sure when she is due but think it must be within a week or so max. The 4 month olds are indoor kitties, mom goes outside some, but not once she has her new babies. Do the older kittens pose a threat to their siblings-to-be?  Will mom adapt to staying inside if her kittens are inside with her?  Am I asking for a disaster here?  Would it be better to foster her out or would that be more stressful yet?

Answer
Sheri,

It would be stressful to foster her out. If I had to do any fostering, I would foster the two 4 month olds. You can get the mother cat an abortion and have her spayed at the same time now If you wanted to. That would save any problems all the way around. It also is not good for her health to have kittens so soon after the other litter. Kittens take a lot out of a mother and she needs time to build her system back up or she may end up looking like a bag of bones after another litter so soon. Aborting her is purely a personal decision.

The 4 month old kittens will nurse as long as mother lets them. I had one that was bigger than mom that still nursed! And the mother cat will keep producing milk as long as she is getting suckled on.

If the 4 month old kittens are in with the mother and new kittens they will shove the little ones away from the nipple so they can nurse which is NOT good for the newborns because they won't be able to get to a nipple.

Yes, the mother will adapt to staying inside with her babies as long as it is in a place where she feels comfortable and it is semi-secluded (like a closet). Let her choose where. She will move them if she doesn't like where the babies are.

I would say you have the makings of a mini-disaster. But ultimately how it works out is up to you and the decisions you end up making.

Carol