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Why is my mama cat attacking her 8-week-old kittens now?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed

A stray cat started hanging around the house about 10 months ago and I started feeding her and now she lives in the garage with her two 8 week old kittens.Shes been really loving towards them I've never seen her aggressive toward them at all but this morning we found one dead and w believe mama did it and now Everytime the other kitten tries to come out from under the house she attacks it why is this happening?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jenna Beyer, DVM, MBA, cVMA

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

Published on May 2nd, 2019

The kittens should be weaned at 6-8 weeks. Not all animals are natural, nurturing mothers, and she may just not know how to make the kittens go away. I would recommend separating them. The kittens still need a safe environment and easy access to kitten food, but they no longer need mom for milk.

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