This summer i found a mama cat and five kittens (strays) and decided to take care of them and try to find them homes. The kittens were born in July and Sept. 8th (after a move to another room) the mother cat started attacking the kittens. She was fine in the morning and out of the blue she wouldn't let them near her. I removed her and then tried again later but she just hissed and swatted and would go after them. The poor kittens (who had nursed earlier that morning) were scared and confused so I separated them for good and the kittens were abruptly weaned. Evidently it was too early? Because now the three female kittens suck on blankets like they are trying to nurse. This only happens once in awhile though I think it is a comfort thing. I thought this only happened with cats taken too soon from their mothers (I have a year old cat that still does this but I found her at 4 weeks old abandoned).

Monday night I took the kittens to my parents' house. They have been there before with no problem. I only took three of them because they were scheduled to be spayed/neutered. Two males one female. The female has always been a bit of a loner (she likes to sleep alone instead of cuddled with the rest and she doesn't demand attention like the others do) Well in the new environment (she traveled in a cage with her two brothers) she started acting like she had never seen her litter mates before. If one would approach her she would flip out and hiss and spit and growl. I have NEVER heard her hiss at anything before (I have four cats of my own that she is around every day and she has never hissed at any of them and will even let my 7yr old female groom her.) She's never hissed at any of her litter mates and plays with them frequently.

But for the last two days she will not let either of her brothers anywhere near her. They look very confused when she hisses at them and tries to attack them. They all had surgery yesterday (and were running around against the vet's orders and I was trying to control them to no avail) and they have to stay in the same room (away from the other cats) and she seems fine when she is in the room with them (I only heard her hiss once) but if I let them out into the rest of the house (and confine the other cats) she freaks out if either of her brothers gets too close to her.

Why?