Nursing

Question
QUESTION: We have a 7month old kitten and her mother. We have a huge problem with the baby still nursing. We think that the mother is "dry" but that does not stop the baby. We have done everything the vet told us to including seperating them for 3 weeks straight. We thought that it was just a habit but she is still doing it. It is at random times and is not consistent. We got them spayed about 5 days ago and found she nursing yesterday. I know that it can cause the mother serious health problems if the baby continues. How do we stop her? The vet stated that we might have to get rid of one of them if it does not stop. To me that is not an option. There has to be something that we can do. We have even tried putting a sock around the mothers nipples, sprays but nothing works.

ANSWER: Heather,

Let them do it! There is nothing wrong with an older kitten nursing. It is comforting to the mother and to the kitten. When the mother gets tired of it or, doesn't want the kitten to do it anymore, she will stop him herself. She will produce milk as long as she is being nursed on.

There can be emotional problems with a kitten weaned TOO EARLY but I have never heard of any emotional or physical problems of a kitten nursing too long. In the wild, kittens nurse until they are at least 6 months old. I had a mother cat that still let her 'kitten' nurse when the 'kitten' was bigger than the mom!  She finally put an end to it.

I recently had a mother spayed and her kittens neutered and her kittens nursed too. It WON'T cause any serious health problems for the mom. A mother cat can now be spayed as soon as she delivers and she will still produce milk and be able to nurse her kittens. The only thing that can happen is if the mother has stitches the kitten could hook a claw in one and tear it. But even that is not serious because there is another set of stitches inside the cat, and she would heal OK.

The mother cat will be fine, and the kitten will be happy and well adjusted. She will either wean the baby herself, or the baby will outgrow it.

Tabbi

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Tabbi, So you have never heard of a mother cat getting
"mastitis"? I know I did not spell that right. My vet told
me that she could get an infection in her nipples from the
kitten nursing with full grown teeth and that the mother
could die from it. I dont know all the details other than
that. I just cant imagine it being such a big deal, like
you said if they were to be in the wild. What do you think?

Answer
Heather,

There are two types of Mastitis. Septic and Non-Septic.

Non-Septic Mastitis happens when a mother cat does not nurse (kittens die, etc.)or a nipple gets clogged. Their nipples get engorged with milk that isn't expressed and bacteria sets in from the milk going bad inside and the mother cat gets a serious and very painful infection. It can be life-threatening. That occurs more commonly when mothers are taken from the babies and they don't get medication to dry up their milk.

Septic Mastitis occurs when a nipple gets an injury from a kitten's teeth or claws and gets bacteria in the nipple. That usually occurs when there are a lot of young kittens that are fighting over a nipple and they use their claws and bite to hold on to the nipple so another kitten doesn't get it.

I wouldn't worry about that happening to your cat. It is not common. If the kitten was causing the mother cat pain she would growl at the kitten and kick it away. The kitten is NOT going to CHEW on the nipple, they nurse with their tongues around the nipple.

Cats are stubborn. The more you try to keep them from doing something, such as the nursing, the more they will continue to try. The kitten is not doing it for nourishment, he is doing it for the closeness and comfort he gets from mom. Mom is letting him for the same reason. Some cats are more 'needy' and affectionate than others. The last litter I fostered only one of four kittens continued to nurse after the others stopped, and usually it was before going to sleep.

You can try to distract the kitten when it starts to nurse. Open a can of cat food or get an interactive toy. A pet laser light is excellent for that. Divert the kitten's attention on nursing and get his mind on something else.

Also make sure you are giving the baby Kitten Chow for the first year. He needs the added vitamins, minerals, protein, etc. while he is growing.

If you still have concerns, I would call your local SPCA, or a couple of other veterinarin's offices and ask them their opinions. "It never hurts to ask".

Happy "Fur-Mom"'s day!

Tabbi