Question about cat pregnancy

PCros

Hi guys,

Well to cut a long story short we took in a stray cat/kitten (6mths old) 2 weeks ago and now we've found out shes pregnant.

So we went to the vet and he told us she could give birth within 2 weeks. So we've made a nesting box in the spare room for her, how long before birth will she start to use this?

Also any tips would be great.

Thanks in advance.

Call me Socket

Aw the poor thing, only 6 months? She's only a baby herself:(
Good on ye for taking her in....

She may never use the nesting box, cats tend to seek out warm, quiet, dark areas out of sight, like in the wardrobe or hotpress or behind the laundry basket, or even in it. Then again, she might use the box. Wherever she feels safe really.

A pregnant cat that I took in gave birth 2 days later- I had her confined to my bedroom so she wouldn't feel threatened by my other cats, and set up a birthing area for her in the ensuite.... but she decided my bed was more comfy! Once I realised she was in labour and didn't want to get off the bed I spread a fleece blanket on the bed to protect my duvet- she was quite happy with that. She had 5 little rugrats and I moved them to the ensuite when they were snoozing and she'd finished feeding and cleaning them.

So, in your shoes, I would have her spend time in the spare room so that it feels like home to her, safe, quiet & warm.... There's no guarantee she'll use it though. Is the box big? She'll need to do some moving around...the sides don't need to be high (not til the kittens are a couple of weeks old) and she won't want to jump over the side anyway to get in.
It might be an idea to put an old duvet or blanket in a corner and then build a kind of wall with some stuff around it and cover the top so it'll be like a den for her.

.

PCros

I know its hard to believe, shes just a baby too, hope she takes to the kittens and doesn't get bored.

Thanks for the info socket. The spare room is the best because she spends most of her time in our open plan kitchen/sitting room and I think it would be unsafe for kittens with wires and all around.

The box is about 3 times her size with a lip at the front so no kittens can roll out. Thing is if we confine her to the spare room around the time of labour I guess she'll have to use it.

Call me Socket

Well if she doesn't you can move the kittens into it a while after they're born (the mother will follow) Do put a duvet or towels and a couple of containers in there though- it'll give her some bit of a choice.
If you happen to be around for the birth- don't take any stillborns away from her. It's a common enough occurance for not all the litter to survive...let her handle it (she'll probably eat it, that's natural- leave her to it)

Please come back and let us know how things go? I know I'll be thinking of the poor mite over the next couple of weeks....

PinkTulips

also, be prepared for how messy it may get. there will be blood, waters, possibly poo and she may move around a fair bit spreading all this around with her. try not to panic, you'll be surprised at the effective clean up job she'll do afterwards!

also, read up a bit on cat birth beforehand so you know what's within normal parameters and when things are going wrong and you need to step in. for example the last time my cat gave birth she had trouble chewing through one of the cords... normally the mother will deal with all of that stuff but in this case she was swinging the poor kitten around by the cord trying to chew it through and there was a danger of her damaging the kitten as she was getting frustrated and cross so i had to step in and snip it with a sterile scissors.

never take the kittens to clean them or remove the placentas, she bonds with them by cleaning them and regains valuable nutrients lost through th birthing process by eating the placentas. if she gives birth somewhere unsuitable wait until everything is over and she's cleaned them up before gently moving the kittens, do it too soon and she may not react well.

go to your vet and get some kitten formula and syringes to have on standby, a very young cat is in real danger of abandoning her kittens, she's also in more danger of doing damage during the birth or becoming aggressive with them and seeing them as playthings.

she may use the nest you've provided or not, my cat decided on a drawer of the toy shelves in the playroom for her current litter but was perfectly happy to be moved back to her nest afterwards, one thing that might be wise though is confining her to the house from now until the birth as she may be caught short outside and end up giving birth in an unsuitable location.

good luck... bet you can't wait to meet the lo's

PCros

Thanks again for the help guys, I got that rspca cat manual its very good but kinda straight forward regarding the pregnancy.

...one last question though.

On the day of labour will she act any different, like besides the heavy panting 30 mins before hand is there anything else that gives it away, that shes about to give birth? Like an hour before hand will she just be a normal cat?

Thanks

Estella

Our cat did a lot of high pitched mewing about an hour before the birth, so watch out for that or any other type of restless behaviour. She soon found a quite spot and had the kitties, it all went smoothly, but there was about a 2/3 hour wait between the first and last kitten popping out.

PinkTulips

she may be aggressive for a few days beforehand, or she may be ridiculously affectionate.

she may become very restless, go to the litter box and unusual amount of times, traipse around the house checking out all the corners and comfy spots, miow and just generally seem in an odd humour.

or she may seem completely normal and you come down to find her and kittens in the nest in the morning

i've had both scenarios from the same cat so there really is no hard and fast rule...

PCros

Thanks for all your help.

Heres a pic of the little one....

PinkTulips

she's gorgeous, when was that taken?

PCros

Saturday morning just gone.

She waltzed in and lay on the bed like she owned it. Gas lil one.

PinkTulips

she's not too huge then, might only be a small litter. my cat is quite small too and 2 weeks before the birth she could barely walk anymore she was so swollen poor thing, she had 5.

with any luck she'll just have 1 or 2

she really is adorable, that coat looks lush!

PCros

Yeah you should of seen her when we took her in, skinny as anything and sticky patches on her fur. Shes grand now and filling out more on the shoulders.

Please God its only a small litter, I reckon she'll pop next week, hopefully on the weekend!

Call me Socket

She's a beautiful cat- looks quite happy there on the bed....ya think she might be testing it for birthing worthiness?!?!

PCros

Haha she better not, have a nesting box made for her in the kitchen/sitting room so she'll have to use that when we're not here otherwise we'll be watching her closely.

fiona stephanie

hi, my cat had kittens on paddys day last year! she was only just gone 1 year herself! but she done great!
a few things my cat done on the run up to the labour were... she was really affectionate, she is anyway but she literally wouldnt leave my side, she was curled up to me constantly for about 3 days before hand. then on the big day, i know this mite sound strange, but it sounded like she was actually talking to me! it wasnt like any meowing she had done before. and again, wanted to be on my lap constantly!!! then i noticed some mucus and i knew it was time!
i had set up a box also, but she refused to get in there, even when i placed her in there! so i set up a cushioned area with an old duvet cover ontop and she hopped on there nearly straight away, and that is were she had her kittens! afterwards i moved her and kittens in to the box, and she happily stayed there for about 2 weeks!:)
she had 3 kittens and after number 2 she was exhausted so when she had no,3 i had to step in with a clean towel and had to keep rubbing the kitten to get it breathing! i read up on it on the net before hand, but it was an experience i can tell you! one i wont be doing again in a hurry:D she was nuetered 6 weeks later!:p

PCros

Well she had 4 kittens (1 died, grey hair) this morning and shes doing fine for her age cant believe it she was playing around last nite just like a 7 month old should be doing!

Thanks again to all who posted their help and experience.

Oh she so far popped three grey dense short hairs blacks and one black & white. Regarding the dead one, some say I should leave it for her to eat but she seems to have put it away in a corner, how long should I leave it there, shes young so and doing really well, I dont want this to distract her.

Thanks

*Will update if more are born etc*

saviourgirl

Aw sorry to hear one died, they usually do have one or two still borns, depending on the size of the litter.

If she leaves the dead one for a few hours without doing anything then do take it away, she may get upset and stop contracting, not unusual for another one to pop out tommorrow morning if thats the case.

Best of luck!

HereticPrincess

Really sorry to hear about then kitten. She's a beautiful cat, looks just like my Ella!

PCros

Well here she is with her 3 babies, I'm pretty sure there is one more in there. I think shes just taking a break for awhile.

PCros

Well you were right saviourgirl she did pause giving birth and unfortunately gave birth to another stillborn during the night.

Aw well I hope it doesnt affect her too much.

saviourgirl

Aww sorry to hear that. She will be fine with her three babies!:)

Fletch123

PCros- what did you end up doing with the two still borns?

for still borns, but for the three beautiful kittens!

PCros

Buried them out the back, side by side. Aw.

Yeah she was getting upset yesterday with the first one being there so I decided to intervene.

Fletch123

Poor thing, well done for looking after her.

The kittens look soft and clean so looks like she did a good job getting all the goo off!

I'm a sucker for grey cats, you might be hearing from me in 8 weeks

PinkTulips

only just saw this pcros.... well done your cat

sorry two of them were lost but sadly it does happen, 3 might be more managable for such a young cat than 5 anyway.

they're stunning kittens, those greys are fabulous, i wonder did someone's persian tom escape

PCros

Or maybe a Blue Russian.....

Call me Socket

Gasp! They're gorgeous!!!
Those greys......sigh... heartmelt!

Sorry about the 2 stillborns, very sad...

PCros

Just another thing, today she seems to be playing with them in a rough kind of way, she will paw (without using claws) one until it starts whining and then she'll start licking it and then do it again.

Is this normal behaviour for a cat?

Call me Socket

It is yeah...she may be waking them to feed, or just double checking that everything's ok.... She's being a good mom, don't worry!

PCros

Heres two quick pics of the little critters......mother was eating at the time and didn't mind. The black and white moggy is a littler moaner while the two greys won't make a sound unless the mother sits on one!:D