SEAL POINT SIAMESE CAT CLUB

FELINE BEHAVIOUR

"Behaviourist in residence"

Katie B Wade 

     BSc Hons (NAC EBQ FBQ)

                  Contact Katie for further information by clicking the icon

please ensure that you include

 "Breeders Forum query"

in the subject line of the email

Katie is a practising

Animal Behaviourist.

 Building on an ethos that

 detailed understanding of the

 science behind animal behaviour

 leads to happier, healthier,

breeding, Katie’s monthly column,

 will examine the science behind

 feline behavioural issues, 

A full lst of upcoming articles is

shown at the base of this page

Previous articles are available in

the Archive section of the site

Bad mothers - Can science help us direct maternal instinct?  

As an adaptive tool for survival, the cat will prioritise its daily activities to stay fit and healthy, depending on the situation that he or she is in. For the queen, if under an element of longer term stress, this prioritising may be detrimental to the healthy development of her offspring.

To help avoid the pitfalls of maternal rejection or even aggression, here is a brief understanding of the science behind such behaviours.

Acute v Chronic stress

We already understand that there is a huge difference between short term, acute stress, for example a cat fearful during firework night, and a longer term, more chronic form of stress, due to long-term restrictions to natural behaviour (For example, a lack of access to social company, see October 2009 article “Nervous Cats” for detail).

With short term stress, the adrenal glands secrete chemicals called adrenaline and nor adrenaline. As a result, blood flow and heart rate increases, and the body prepares for ‘FIGHT or FLIGHT’ to run away or fight for defense. This is a short term reaction, indeed a crucial element to survival. It is the longer term form of stress that drives abnormalities in responses[i].

When under threat for longer periods, specific areas of the brain stimulate the release of certain other chemicals. Cortisol is one of the chemicals associated with chronic stress levels, it has a significant effect on glucose metabolism, increasing blood flow and stimulating behavioural responsiveness.

Chemicals known as endogenous opiods are also released under such chronic circumstances, causing a rise in the inflammatory response and lowered immune functioning[ii].

Coping mechanisms

As this longer term stress is so detrimental to a cats’ health, it is important to work out a way to cope with the situation that they feel threatened in – in other words, the cat needs to change its behaviours in order to adapt

To adapt to a stressful situation, a cat will either …

1. Give up a normal behaviour to concentrate on something else - for example “Today it is more important for me to sleep than to play” or “Today I will stay vigilant rather than groom”  
2. Take on a new abnormal behaviour to cope with the physiological imbalances that chronic stress brings – for example grooming excessively.

As you are aware, rearing a litter can be extremely demanding for a queen. The information given so far should help you envisage how a queen may feel the need to give up certain maternal roles in order to concentrate on her own health. The view being that “If I abandon this litter I can keep my health and prepare for a more successful litter next time”[iii]

What can we do?

Although this is a very brief insight into this complex topic, I hope that it helps bring some science to a startling behaviour. In terms of how to prevent the issue arising with your queen, it would be a matter of;

1. Preparation

Not just nutritionally and medically preparing a female cat for breeding, but behaviourally.

So if you know your potential queen is marking (not to be confused with hormonal spraying, see November article “Spraying Queens” for detail) or performing any other potential stress-related behaviour such as over-grooming, aggression towards people, and importantly from or towards other cats of the household, for example, it is important to work through any issues with your local qualified behavioural consultant and veterinary surgeon before going forward with breeding.

1. Management

Maintaining as ‘natural’ an environment as possible is an essential part of keeping your cat healthy and relaxed at all stages.

The cat needs to have warm, soft bedding where they can lie flat out, obtaining their 18 hours sleep each day.

They have evolved to chew a variety of meats, small amounts at least 4/5 times each day.

They need hideaways and vantage points to avoid potential danger.

They are highly social; a queen would naturally be surrounded by a matri-linear social network.

If you can simply allow more natural behaviours, i.e. eating little and often throughout the day, having meat to tear at, increased nesting sites for all cats of the household, scratching posts and horizontal scratching surfaces, hideaways, look out posts, access to the outdoors (even if only a pen to allow secure access) you will have already made huge steps to reduce stress levels for all cats involved.

Please feel free to contact me for further reading suggestions, I am always happy to

help

The table below, taken froma previous article on stress reduction,  is included here as it

may be useful to refresh understanding of some basic principles of stress reduction.

---

References

[1]  Cannon, W. (1929) Bodily changes in pain, hunger, fear and rage.

New York

,

Appleton

[1]  Carlson, N. (1998) Physiology of Behaviour: Sixth Edition, Allyn and

Bacon, United States

[1]  Barnard, C. and Hurst J (1996) Welfare By Design: The NaturalSelection Of Welfare Criteria.AnimalWelfare. Vol.5. June 1996. pp 415-433

 

NB     Katie can be contacted directly by using the link at the top of this page

Upcoming articles

• June:   All about introductions

                 What should we be telling new owners about introducing a new kitten, to

                        avoid longer term problems. How do we make owners listen!

In July 2010,Katie will be attending the Breeders Forum and will be happy to discuss

 behavioural issues with visitors

and in the archive .....

 Spaying Queens

                  Can we really do anything to prevent soggy curtains and 

                         "annointed" toasters

 Making friends               

                  Understanding how social groups are formed, and how managing

                          groups effectively can improve life in multicat households

Nervous cats - nature or nurture

                  Why some kittens & cats react with fear, and others