58 © T. Atkinson, 2018. Practical Feline Behaviour (T. Atkinson)

5 Kitten to Cat – Reproduction

and the Behavioural

Development of Kittens

Reproductive Behaviour of Tomcats

An unneutered, sexually mature male is known as a ‘tom’. A great deal of a tomcat’s

behaviour is designed to increase his opportunity to mate with as many females as

possible. Much of this behaviour can make an entire male a lot less desirable as a

household pet.

Aggression/fighting

Entire male cats will generally try to avoid each other but the presence of an in-oestrus

female can attract them to the same location. Fighting between entire males can be

frequent and intense, involving a lot of prolonged loud yowling, growling and shriek-

ing, escalating to actual fighting that often results in injury. The intensity of the

aggression may reduce the more often two male cats encounter each other, especially

if one wins the fights more often so that the other learns to back down and retreat

sooner. Directly after a fight the winner will normally spray mark and rub on nearby

inanimate objects far more than the loser.

Urine spraying

Although all cats, including neutered cats of both sexes, can and do urine mark,

spraying is a behaviour that is most commonly performed by entire males, especially

when they are close to or aware of a female in oestrus.

Spraying in entire cats is an important way that information regarding the sexual

status and physical fitness of the cat is passed on via olfactory communication to

potential mates and sexual rivals (see Chapter 3). This information is provided via

pheromones produced in the urogenital region and collected by the urine during spray

marking and also possibly by the chemical content of the urine, especially the chemical

compound felinine. The excretion of felinine is regulated by testosterone. Entire, sex-

ually mature male cats produce more felinine in their urine than females or castrated

males (Miyazaki et al., 2006). Felinine may also provide information about the fitness

of the depositor because it is biosynthesized from the amino acids cysteine and methio-

nine, both of which are found in meat, an essential part of a cat’s diet and so more

likely to be found in sufficient quantities in the system of a physically fit and successful

hunter (Hendriks et al., 1995).