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Why is my female cat in heat but refusing to mate with the male?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My female cat (queen) is in heat but not cooperating with male cat (tom)

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Laura E. McRae

Veterinary Technician

Published on January 1st, 2015

The estrous cycle in cats has 4 stages: proestrus, estrus, interestrus, and anestrus. It is only in the second stage that the female is receptive to the male. This stage, estrus, typically lasts 4-6 days (up to 10). If your female is still in the first stage (proestrus) or has already passed out of the second stage of the cycle into the third stage (interestrus) she will not r be receptive to the male. If mating is attempted to early or late in the cycle, the queen will refuse to mate and often aggressively reject the male. A queen should be at least 12 to 18 months of age before a mating is attempted. At this age, she is physically and emotionally mature enough to successfully rear kittens. Breeding your cat is not a decision to make lightly. Spaying prevents unwanted pregnancies and eliminates the problems of cystic ovaries, false pregnancies, uterine infection, and irregular heat cycles. Spaying also reduces the frequency of mammary tumors. Female cats do not need a litter of kittens to be happy psychologically. Reputable breeders have their queens and toms health screened and genetically tested for deleterious health problems. As a breeder, you become responsible for the health of the queen throughout her pregnancy and kittening. You should be prepared to find high quality homes for each of the kittens and to take them back at any time, even years later should the need arise. Only if you are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to teh queen and all of her kittens should you consider breeding your queen.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 24th, 2018

    Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It depends on what stage of her heat cycle she is in. She is only going to be receptive to a male for around 4-6 days. If it is early in her cycle or too late she will not allow the male cat to mate. If your cats are both novices they may just need more time to figure things out. If they do not know each other well, the male doesn't normally live with her or if the female is not comfortable with the male she may need time to get to know him. The good thing is that cats come back in to heat quickly so you have time. Good luck!

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on April 13th, 2017

    If your queen is refusing to participate with Max, then she is no longer in heat. She could be receptive to him if she was in heat, and she would allow him to mate with her. Queens cycle fairly quickly this time of year, and she will be out of heat for around one to two weeks. I would keep them separate for a week, then see if she will be receptive to him after this week. I wouldn't put them together so she can get used to him. That's not needed for them to mate successfully, and it can lead to fights between them. Put him back with her in a week to see if she will allow him to mate.

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