The cycle of the Domestic Queen
wFemale cats generally exhibit their first season or oestrus at 6-9 months, but this does depend on light.Those that are born in summer often start cycling at first spring.
wKittens that are born in winter may not cycle until they are at least 12 months of age.
wQueens have multiple oestrus cycles each year. They are what is termed 'seasonally polyoestrus' which means that they typically cycle from February to September.
wOvulation is induced by mating and the interval between each oestrus cycle varies depending upon whether the queen has ovulated or fails to ovulate because there is not enough hormone release at mating.
wThe signs of oestrus or 'calling' are :
- continuous vocalization or crying
- rolling and rubbing against most objects
- in the presence of the male, the queen may show persistent treading of her hind feet, the tail swings to the side and she flattens her spine.
wOestrus lasts between 2 and 10 days. To the untrained owner, they perceive these signs to be signs of discomfort or pain and as a vet, I have been phoned up many times by distressed owners.
wSome queens may even start to spray by lifting their tail and releasing a fine spray of urine that may also smell slightly different.
wUnmated queens return to season or oestrus at intervals of 14-21 days. Queens that ovulate but do not become pregnant generally return to oestrus after approximately 45 days.
wDuring winter, there is essentially no hormone activity. In springtime, cyclical activity commences and, in the unmated queen, periods of sexual activity are interrupted by periods of her not being receptive.
w In the absence of mating, or when mating does not result in ovulation, the signs of oestrus decline and the queen enters a stage of being non-receptive. This period may last for between 3 and 14 days.
Pregnancy
wIf the queen is mated and ovulation is induced, she enters a phase of true pregnancy.
wEach mating results in a surge of the hormone LH and there appears to be a threshold value below which your queen will not be induced to ovulate. For this reason, your queen is much more likely to fall pregnant with multiple matings than with a single mating.
wOvulation is followed by an increase in the hormone progesterone and peak progesterone concentrations are reached about 1 month after mating and are maintained for the duration of the pregnancy.
wPregnancy is between 64 and 68 days.
wQueens will then often have a period with no cycling whilst they suckle their kittens. This is called lactational anoestrus.
Pseudopregnancy or false pregnancy
wNon fertile matings result in ovulation without conception.
w If you do not want kittens yet, I remember being taught how to mimic a mating and get your queen back into a phase of being non-receptive. A simple cotton bud is used and very gently twisted in the vagina of your receptive female. This requires a practiced hand and patience. Be aware though that not all queens stop calling after 'mating'.
wOvulation may also occur following stimulation of the vagina by vets following collection of a vaginal smear (we also use cotton buds for this test), the queen may self-induce the stimulation of her own perineum with licking or rubbing on objects; or it may just occur spontaneously in some queens.
wOvulation in this manner results in the production of the hormone progesterone in a very similar manner to early pregnancy. After about 40 days, these hormone levels decline and the queen normally returns to cyclical activity about 45 days after the previous oestrus.
wShould this false pregnancy occur late in the year ie autumn, the queen may not return cyclical activity but may enter a period of no cycling.
wI advise against the use of artificial hormones ie Ovarid to delay the heat of your queen. The side effects include the possibility of causing a womb infection or pyometra as well as the dangers of diabetes mellitus.
wRemember that a female cat can get pregnant from 2 or more different males at the same time. A queen releases her eggs (3 to 6 on average), about 24 hours after mating. Theoretically, all sperm that has entered her the past day can fertilise each egg. This is called superfecundity.
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