Diet and breeding performance in cats

A conventional cat breeding colony with 70 queens (female cats) was studied during a 4 year period 1979-1982. During that time the fat content in the diet was increased from 15% to 27% of dry matter. An increase in the number of kittens per litter (from 4.5 to 5.5) and in the annual number of litters per queen (from 1.4 to 2.3) was found. In addition, the mortality decreased from over 20% to 9%. Bodyweight gain under the new diet was such that the males reached 2500 g in 4 months while the females showed this same weight at 5 months of age. Litter size and sex distribution as a function of queen age, litter interval and time of year are presented. It is concluded that husbandry and diet are factors which are of great importance in a cat breeding unit. It is shown that under our conditions it is possible to breed conventional cats with good results.