Ever worried about why your female cat gets irritatingly noisy when mating?
If you’re a cat owner, you’re already familiar with the disturbing howling sound of your female cat. When mating, cats make a similar sound.
Animals express their feelings by making different kinds of sounds, so it’s natural that cats would scream when they mate.
That’s why both male and female cats scream during mating, although more often than not, female cats tend to be louder and make more noises. Male cats scream in reaction to the female cat’s loud noise.
Let’s explore this subject further together, shall we?
A Word on Sexuality and Heat Cycle in Cats
Male cats reach sexual maturity between 9 to 12 months of age, later than female cats as they become sexually mature around 4 to 9 months of age.
Rarely, a female cat would start the heat cycle as early as four months of age. Once the cycle is initiated, it reoccurs every 2 to 3 weeks until she gets pregnant or spayed. Each heat period lasts from 5 to 7 days.
Most of the time, Cats in heat are easily recognizable as they become more affectionate, more vocal, and more physically active. They would scream louder and longer, groom, raise their tails more often, and roll.
Why Do Female Cats Scream When They Mate?
When the time for ovulation gets nearer, and the female cat becomes more ready to ovulate, she gets noisier in an attempt to call for Tomcats around.
The male cat’s reproductive organs are thorny as they are covered in tiny yet sharp and backward-pointed spines at their ends. They have around 120 to 150 barbs.
The male cats’ barbed reproductive organs are necessary to stimulate females to ovulate, as they trigger a neuroendocrine stimulus. Cats are induced ovulatory species, which means that they will only ovulate after mating.
The spines also prevent the penis from slipping, and they don’t cause bleeding or any harm to the female cat.
Pain from the action
Female cats scream as a natural response to the pain caused by the intercourse, especially if it’s the first time before starting the ovulation cycle.
Though it’s not harmful to the female cats, it’s still too painful to bear silently.
The removal of the male cat’s sexual organs is more hurtful, and it causes hormonal shock, to which the female cat sometimes responds by aggressing him.
Extra stimulation from the male cat
The female cat also screams when the male cat bites her neck, usually to prevent her from escaping. This gesture is fundamental during the mating process for cats.
It’s a physical expression of male dominance, but it’s also necessary as it helps stimulate hormones and ovulation in the female cat.
Female cats, more often than not, find extra stimulation uncomfortable, which explains why they sometimes can get unusually violent with male cats after mating, especially when they are not of the agitated type.
The mating may last from 1 to 2 minutes. When they are in heat, they can mate up to 50 times.
Also, female cats can mate with different male cats in one season, resulting in breeding kittens from different dads.
How Do Cats Act After Mating?
After it ends, the female cat may get strange and act uncontrollably. She may attack the male cat.
That’s why, usually, male cats instantly leave female cats, at least until they make it noticeable that they want to mate again. A female cat would be even more aggressive towards a male cat if he lingers around.
Typically, a female cat would trill again after mating, groom her private parts, and roll around. They may, however, display some strange behaviors.
Keep in mind that your cat would get all unpredictable after mating due to hormonal fluctuation, and some female cats can get aggressive even towards their owners, so be cautious!
It may take half an hour for female cats to mate again.
Male Cats Also Scream!
Male cats not only yowl in response to the female cat’s scream, but they have their own reasons too!
- Male cats usually yowl to voice their readiness to mate at night. Although male cats don’t experience heat cycles, they are affected by nearby female cats in heat. They may display similar behaviors such as intensified vocalizations, restlessness, and unusual affection to humans and other pets.
- Male cats may also scream to scare other male cats in the area.
- Furthermore, they experience pain in the process of mating.
Why Do Female Cats Roll Around After mating?
If you see your female cat restlessly rolling around after mating, don’t panic! It’s totally normal, and it will only last for about 10 minutes.
Faced with the tragic hormonal flow caused by mating, a female cat would roll around as a way to release the tension and excessive energy.
As it is purely driven by hormonal excess, only female cats tend to roll around after mating and not male cats.
Another reason may be an attempt to clean herself from the male cat’s scent so as to attract other male cats when ready again; otherwise, it’s unlikely that another male cat would court her.
Do Cats Stay in Heat After Mating?
Mating won’t stop a female’s cat heat cycle, at least not immediately. As long as the heat cycle continues, cats will stay in heat.
As ovulation takes place, they will move to the next stages of their hormonal cycle. It can take up to 7 days before a cat completely exits the heat cycle, and they won’t get calmer after mating once.
Generally, they need to mate many times before they start getting calmer. Once the heat cycle is over, it will be re-initiated after 2 or 3 weeks.
It is Important to Spay Your Cat
Fatal uterus infection, or pyometra, is common among female cats. The condition worsens quickly and should be cured immediately.
To keep your cat safe and prevent any fatal threat to her life, spaying her could be the only solution.
FAQ
Can a male cat mate with a female cat not in heat?
A female cat that is not in heat and not receptive will not allow the male cat to mount her.
How many times a day can cats mate?
The female may mate 10 to 20 times a day, especially on the first day of her heat cycle, and can do so with different male cats.
How do I know my cat was mating?
If you’re asking this question, you may have noticed bizarre behavior in your cat, or maybe you want to know what to expect from your cat and prepare yourself for an upcoming pregnancy.
An obvious sign is excessive grooming. In case she gets pregnant, she will no longer display signs of the heat cycle but rather of pregnancy like excessive vomiting and weight gain.
Does mating always lead to pregnancy?
Not always, but chances remain high. It takes from 20 to 50 hours for ovulation to take place after mating.
When it comes to the eggs, they remain liable to be fertilized for only one day, and the fertilization happens in the oviduct.
They then move to the uterus implanting in the uterine lining for 10 to 12 days. Pregnancy typically lasts 64-69 days.