Why would a mother cat eat her kittens?

A mother cat may eat her kittens because of her own nutritional deficiency – to replenish energy she eats the weakest kittens so she can survive and feed the others.

Second, some cats have weak maternal instinct and won’t care for the kittens after birth, even seeing them as rivals for food, leading to biting them to death. In addition, a nursing cat may be startled by outside stimulation and accidentally step on a kitten, then eat the body afterward.

Finally, a mother cat is sensitive after birth, and if she detects an unfamiliar smell on a kitten, she may eat it.