Understanding Kitten Season: Causes and Solutions

Kitten season to the average person probably sounds like a glorious time: constantly reoccurring piles and piles of little fluffs. In actuality, it’s an awful time:

• Shelters don’t have enough space to match the demand. And a place with lots of cats isn’t good for kittens’ fragile immune system. They rush to get as many kittens out and into foster care as possible.
• Rescues struggle to meet the demands of the public who find moms and babies and need help.
• Fosters try to figure out how they can fit just one more litter in their homes.

Above all, the problem is quantity. It’s literally impossible to help all the cats that need it. There’s not enough kennels or foster homes to accommodate all the cats that need help.

So, what causes kitten season? How can you help? Let’s dive in.

What Is Kitten Season?

Kitten season runs March-October and it’s when there are tons of kittens. What causes it?

For one thing, cats are seasonally polyestrous, having many cycles in a season. The two factors involved in this are longer days (12+ hours of light exposure) and warmer temperatures. These two factors stimulate the pineal gland to reduce melatonin production, which triggers reproductive hormones. The cat’s ovaries respond, producing estrogen, causing the cat to go into “estrus” aka heat.

Why does this happen? Survival of the fittest! Basically, kittens’ chance of survival is better in warmer months, which explains why this happened with cats biologically. Not only are warmer temperatures better for kittens, but there’s more available food (prey items).

What About Winter Kittens?

Although not the norm, cats can reproduce at any time of the year, it’s just less common. Reasons a cat will go into heat outside of kitten season include:

• Artificial lighting.
  • Indoors – With this in mind, unspayed females with 12-14 hours of artificial light exposure daily are more likely to go into heat.
  • Cities – Street lights have the same impact, making it more common to see winter kittens in urban areas.
• Some cats are less sensitive to seasonal changes because of genetics.
• Certain breeds are more likely to cycle year-round, like Siamese.
• Warmer climates with mild winters cause cats to go into heat.
• Young cats may have their first heat cycle in late fall or winter.

Why So Many Kittens?

There are many reasons why the number of kittens is so high. To put it plainly, cats’ bodies are perfectly designed to populate your neighborhood.

Induced Ovulation

In humans, pregnancy can only happen in the days after ovulation. A female’s body ovulates on a schedule, and it does not matter if a partner is present. Basically, it happens with or without the presence of sperm.

In cats, mating causes ovulation, called induced ovulation. Therefore, an egg is only released if sperm is present.

Frequent Cycles

Again, in humans, there is one ovulation every 28 days on average. On top of that, the egg can only be fertilized a few days before or after.

Cats go into heat for 4-10 days at a time. If they don’t get pregnant, they can go into heat every 2-3 weeks. To sum up, a healthy cat can have 8-12 cycles PER YEAR. That’s one cat.

Multiple Mates

The more times a cat mates, the more hormones increase, leading to the release of multiple eggs (not just one). Eggs can get fertilized by the same male cat or different cats. So yes, one litter can have multiple fathers (the fancy word is superfecundation). On average, cats release 3-7 eggs (which differs slightly from the average litter size detailed below).

Large Litters

The average size of a litter is 4-6 kittens. Generally, younger and older cats have smaller litters; whereas cats around 1-5 years have the largest, healthiest litters.

It’s also common to see very large litters in cities (where cat overpopulation is a big problem). Why? Because more possible suitors means more mating. More mating means more eggs released. More eggs means more kittens.

Nursing Kittens? No problem.

Obviously, you’d think nursing kittens would prevent a cat from going into heat. And you’d be wrong. Some queens go into heat as early as 2-3 weeks after giving birth, though it’s most common at 6-8 weeks. Yes, that’s while they’re still nursing their kittens.

Early Sexual Maturity

Surprisingly, cats can go into heat as early as four months old. At that age, they are still kittens themselves! To give you an idea, a four-month-old cat weighs around four pounds – like a half gallon of milk. Full grown cats are 12 months old (most breeds) and weigh 8-10 pounds.

Year-Round Breeding Indoors

When cats are exposed to the artificial light indoors, they can breed all the time.

Lack of Spaying/Neutering Access or Awareness

In reality, the average person doesn’t realize how prolific cats are at having kittens. It all starts with feeding just one stray cat. The only goal is to help that one cat. Before the caretaker knows it, they have a full blown colony of unfixed cats procreating. How will they ever afford or have time to fix all these cats?

Although this is not an uncommon scenario, and is just one example of what we see in the rescue community. People start with the best of intentions, and it gets out of hand quickly. They don’t know what to do or who to turn to.

Most shelters and rescues have programs to help people get cats fixed. The most popular program is TNR, trap, neuter, return. A cat is trapped, fixed, ear tipped, and returned to their outdoor home. Ever seen a cat with the tip of their ear missing? That’s an ear tip and it means they’ve TNRed or were a TNR candidate. (Most shelters/rescues will adopt friendly cats to be indoor cats. If the cat’s personality is unknown at surgery time, they’ll tip the cat’s ear. If they end up returning to the outdoors, it’s apparent they’ve been altered.)

Kitten Season Solutions

It’s raining kittens. So, now what do we do? We have to work together as a community to address it! That means us, the public, working with shelters and rescues. To begin, run a Google search to find shelters and rescues in your area.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the differences between shelters and rescues:

• Open intake shelters – Physical shelters with kennels. They must take everything that comes through the door regardless of capacity or resources. Usually government funded and in large cities. (In Philadelphia, ACCT Philly is the current open intake shelter.)
• Limited admission shelters – Physical shelters with kennels. Have a choice on what animals to accept into the shelter based on capacity and resources. (Examples in Philadelphia include PSPCA, PAWS and Brandywine Valley SPCA.)
• Rescues – Most often volunteer run. May or may not have a physical location. (Scroll to the bottom of this page to see a list of SOME rescues in the Philly area.)

Now let’s look at specific ways you can help.

Spay & Neuter

Spay or neuter all indoor and outdoor cats the earliest your vet allows. This usually varies from 2-5 months. If finances are a concern, there are nonprofit clinics that provide these services. Reach out to your local animal shelter or rescue groups in the area for advice. You can also run a Google search for nonprofit vet clinics in your city.

TNR: Trap, Neuter, Return

Stray cats outside? End the cycle. Contact a local animal shelter or rescue to find out if they can trap the cat or lend you trap. Many organizations have people dedicated to this work who can help. If they can’t physically help, they’ll guide you on how to trap the cat and where to get it fixed. Although a cat may be friendly and adoptable, they may get returned to live outside after alteration. Shelters and rescues may not have resources (open kennels and foster homes) to keep the cat because of all the kittens that need care (especially during kitten season).

Donate

Supplies

Kittens eat … a lot. They pee and poop … a lot. Reach out to shelters and rescues to see what they need for kitten season. (Be sure to ask if they’re having a kitten shower!) You can donate food or litter, or even just provide extra clean towels or sheets you don’t use. Organizations that take care of bottle babies always need formula, bottles, and heat discs. Many fosters also have Amazon Wish Lists. Items purchased off their list are mailed directly to the foster. As a foster myself, this is a HUGE help. And it’s not just the supplies – it’s emotionally uplifting to have people help.

Money

Taking care of kittens is expensive and the amount of kittens that need care during kitten season is astronomical. Basically, every kitten needs multiple booster vaccines, dewormer treatments, a microchip, and a spay/neuter surgery. Then, there are kittens (and mamas) who are sick, and need vet visits, diagnostic tests, and medications. And that doesn’t even cover basic needs: litter box, litter, bowls, puppy pads, food, etc. It sounds dramatic but literally every dollar you give to an organization helps. Many rescues and shelters have Five Dollar Fridays – just donate $5. It may seem small, but it makes a huge difference.

Volunteer During Kitten Season

In fact, even just showing up once a month to pet cats in cages, clean the floor, and restock shelves helps. Contact local rescues and shelters to find out what type of volunteer program they have. You usually can select a specific area you want to work in. Even just answering emails can be a huge help to a nonprofit organization. Or posting pics on their social media. Or working adoption events during kitten season. Have kids who want to get involved? Some organizations have junior volunteer programs.

Foster During Kitten Season

Ever considered giving a cat a temporary home? Then you should foster. Kittens of all ages need foster care. Once approved by an organization, you can foster available kittens. The shelter or rescue will provide vet care and supplies. You’ll do the caretaking (and snuggling!).

Kittens must stay in foster care until they can be fixed and adopted.

Space

Thankfully, kittens don’t take up a lot of space. A small room, bathroom, or even a playpen is enough for them to live temporarily!

How Old? Dealer’s Choice

The best part is, it’s your decision what age you want to take kittens.

Little ones seem like too much? Older kittens need foster care too!

Just want to do bottle babies (bless you)? That’s an option.

Want mom to do all the work? Foster a mom and babies.

How Long You’ll Foster

The simplest answer is you’ll foster until the kitten is fixed and finds a home.

The age a kitten gets altered varies based on the organization’s policy. The earliest kittens can be fixed are at 2 months/2 lbs. Others organizations may require the kitten to be 3-4 months/3-4 lbs.

Some kittens are big enough to get fixed when they come into an organization. In that case, you’ll just give them a home until someone adopts them. This is an easier fostering option because they don’t often need vet appointments (unless they get sick).

Fixed kittens are listed for adoption on adoption websites. Interested applicants apply and your organization will process applications, passing approved applicants to you. You’ll meet with potential adopters until you find the perfect fit!

Don’t know if you can commit to foster kittens for a few weeks? Some fosters only do a few days at a time, providing relief to stressed and overwhelmed fosters or a foster going on vacation. Other fosters only do overnights with bottle babies until a permanent foster is found. There are tons of different types.

Think about how you want to help. Then, reach out to an organization to see if they need what you have to offer. If your heart is open, most rescues are willing to take any extra help they can get.

Educate About Kitten Season

Know someone with an unaltered cat? Have a neighbor feeding a stray? Someone post on social about finding a mom and kittens? These are all opportunities to share what you know with others. The topic of spaying/neutering can be surprisingly polarizing for some. My suggestion is always to approach wanting to help and just have a conversation. Some people just don’t know they can affordably fix an outdoor cat. Or that they can borrow a trap from a shelter and sometimes get the cat fixed for free. If you have the opportunity to point someone in the right direction, that makes a difference.

This Kitten Season, Let’s Work Together