FELINE REPRODUCTION
Cats are induced ovulators. Queens cycle seasonally, from mid-January to mid-October. Signs of heat in the cat include yowling, rubbing, lordosis (forequarters on the ground, hindquarters in the air) and increased affection. Queens that are not bred will show signs of heat for about one week every couple of weeks all summer long. Breeding is quick and accompanied by screaming and frantic rolling on the part of the female ("after-reaction"). Gestation length is about 65 days. Mammary conditions of the cat include mammary hypertrophy (progesterone-dependent, benign, resolves with ovariohysterectomy or withdrawal of exogenous progestogens) and mammary neoplasia (always malignant adenocarcinoma, very aggressive, treatment is surgical excision with wide borders). Calico or tortoiseshell male cats usually are infertile; orange and black both are carried on the X chromosome so any male cat that has both orange and black in its coat must have more than one X chromosome (Klinefelter's = XXY, chimera/mosaic = XX/XY or XY/XY).