kitten development and mother-kitten relationship
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Professor of Ethology
Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences,
Norwegian University of Life Sciences,
NMBU, Ås, Norway
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
0
Behavioural development
•
Skin sense (tactile sense) and smell (olfactory sense) are ready at
birth.
•
Ears are open by 5 days, eyes by 9 days (with variation).
•
Relationship to mother is most important for the first weeks.
•
The kitten becomes more active by 3 weeks.
•
3–21 weeks: socialization and social play:
•
socialization: 3–12 weeks; most active 3–7 weeks
•
social play: learns effect of signals and social responses
–
learns with whom it can have social contact
–
humans must be included in socialization or the cat will
remain fearful towards them
–
varied human contact important
–
start: weeks 3–9; most active: weeks 9–14
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
1
Relationship to mother – mother’s
body posture
(Lawrence, 1981)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
2
Mother’s body posture – individual
variation and age of kittens
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
3
(Lawrence, 1981)
The mother – together with kittens
or alone
Mother with at least
one kitten
Mother alone on
a shelf, 0.5 m
above floor level
By 1 month, the
mother needs a
resting place away
from the kittens.
(Deag
et al
., 1987)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
4
The kitten – frequency on the shelf
(0.5 m above floor level)
Antall ganger
pr. 30 minutter
(Deag
et al.,
1987)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
5
Nursing – Who takes the initiative?
Antall ganger pr. 30
minutter
(Schneirla & Rosenblatt, 1961)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
6
Growth in relation to litter size
(Deag
et al
., 1987)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
7
More on cats’ behaviour and
welfare is found here
(in Norwegian)
www.braastad.info
– Braastad’s website on ethology, animal welfare,
cats and human–animal relationship
www.facebook.com/KattenAtferdVelferd
– Facebook (Meta) site for
the Norwegian cat book
www.etologi.no
– website for the Norwegian Association of
Ethologists
www.etologi-dyrevelferd.no
– w
ebsite on ethology and animal welfare for
secondary schools
www.animalpickings.com
– p
opular scientific website for the Research
Group on Ethology and Animal Environment at the Norwegian University of
Life Sciences
8
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
But we have our
secrets that no
ethologist yet knows
about.
9
The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
Thank you for
listening to Bjarne.
He believes that he
understands me.
HFX221 - 2019 - Bjarne O. Braastad, NMBU/IHA
This comprehensive resource explores the behavioral development of kittens, emphasizing the importance of the mother-kitten relationship in the early weeks. Topics covered include sensory development at birth, socialization phases, and the significance of human interaction for a well-adjusted cat. Various aspects such as mother's body posture, rest areas for the mother, and nursing initiation offer insights into nurturing a healthy bond between mother cats and their kittens.
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Presentation Transcript
The Cat Behaviour and Welfare 2. Birth and the kitten mother relationship Bjarne O. Braastad Professor of Ethology Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, NMBU, s, Norway The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad 0 Norwegian University of Life Sciences
Behavioural development Skin sense (tactile sense) and smell (olfactory sense) are ready at birth. Ears are open by 5 days, eyes by 9 days (with variation). Relationship to mother is most important for the first weeks. The kitten becomes more active by 3 weeks. 3 21 weeks: socialization and social play: socialization: 3 12 weeks; most active 3 7 weeks social play: learns effect of signals and social responses learns with whom it can have social contact humans must be included in socialization or the cat will remain fearful towards them varied human contact important start: weeks 3 9; most active: weeks 9 14 The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 1
Relationship to mother mothers body posture (Lawrence, 1981) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 2
Mothers body posture individual variation and age of kittens (Lawrence, 1981) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 3
The mother together with kittens or alone Mother with at least one kitten By 1 month, the mother needs a resting place away from the kittens. Mother alone on a shelf, 0.5 m above floor level (Deag et al., 1987) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 4
The kitten frequency on the shelf (0.5 m above floor level) Antall ganger pr. 30 minutter (Deag et al., 1987) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 5
Nursing Who takes the initiative? Antall ganger pr. 30 minutter (Schneirla & Rosenblatt, 1961) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 6
Growth in relation to litter size (Deag et al., 1987) The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 7
More on cats behaviour and welfare is found here (in Norwegian) www.braastad.info Braastad s website on ethology, animal welfare, cats and human animal relationship www.facebook.com/KattenAtferdVelferd Facebook (Meta) site for the Norwegian cat book www.etologi.no website for the Norwegian Association of Ethologists www.etologi-dyrevelferd.no website on ethology and animal welfare for secondary schools www.animalpickings.com popular scientific website for the Research Group on Ethology and Animal Environment at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 8
Thank you for listening to Bjarne. He believes that he understands me. But we have our secrets that no ethologist yet knows about. The Cat - Behaviour and Welfare - Bjarne O. Braastad Norwegian University of Life Sciences 9
