So I got pointed to this dude on Twitter who found that a pregnant cat had snuck into his home and given birth there. He ended up falling so in love that he decided to keep the entire family: mom and all four kittens (now grown).
This got me wondering: an entire cat “family” staying together like that is probably unheard of in “normal” circumstances. Behaviorally, are these guy’s cats (especially the kids) significantly different from the “average” cat for having lived with their siblings and mom their entire lives, or would they become so?
I don’t know exactly what you are asking, cat instincts are strong and dominate a lot of their behavior, and if he doesn’t get those cats fixed he’s going to see some of the worst aspects of cat’s instinctual behavior.
I have heard that it is bad to adopt dogs who are littermates, but it is perfectly fine to adopt cats who are littermates. I have done so and it is indeed quite fine. So I don’t think adding a couple more littermates would be a problem. That is a lot of cats though.
A huge part of domesticating animals is in shaping them to act very young for their entire lives.
My 2 are a brother/sister pair. Only problems I have I would have if I only had one cat.
Except:
They can one day be the ‘dynamic duo’ and the next day be the ‘troublesome two’
And let me tell you they will fight each other. Every 2 or 3 days we have the ‘let’s chase each other at 2am’ fun and games. I can’t imagine how that would be with 5 cats. Not good, I fear.
My granddaughter has a Siamese cat of the same parentage, different litter. He is a very sweet cat. Nothing like mine.
My husband fed a stray for years. One day, she brought all four kittens to him, and dropped them at his feet. He brought them all inside, and off to the vet we went. They were all fine. So, we kept them. The mother’s name is Todd. We thought she was a he. The kittens are Emma, Ronon, Carson, and Teyla. They are probably around 11 years old. Todd is probably around 15, or so. They’re spoiled rotten, and they each have their own, unique personality. They are all very friendly, and love to be petted, and held.
Barn cats routinely live in colonies made up of mothers/sister/aunts helping to raise each other’s kittens. I’ve known kittens who’d lost their mother to be raised partly by their older brothers.
It’s a myth that felis catus is normally solitary. Some cat species are. Domestic cats aren’t.