Okay, my female cat is in the process of birthing a litter of kittens right this second. She had one previous litter of four kittens this last summer and she did fine raising and caring for those kittens. My question is this: She has already given birth to five kittens today and still appears to be in active labor, which means there is at least one or maybe more kittens left inside of her. I’ve heard of female cats having problems nursing and caring for litters larger than four or five. She is a pretty small cat anyway and I’m worried that she is not going to be able to handle nursing six or more kittens.
Maybe this belongs in General Questions. I don’t know. I could use some advice though.
She just birthed the sixth one and it is okay. She doesn’t seem to be having any problems birthing the kittens. I’m worried that she isn’t going to have enough milk to feed them all. I’m starting a new full time job next week and I’m not going to have the time to supplement feed six or more kittens.
Give her a chance; I understand your worries about her not being able to feed all of them, maybe, but cross that bridge when you get there. My friend’s cat had a litter of a 4 a short while ago, she was small enough that (after they grew a bit) they couldn’t all nurse at once, but they took turns, etc. If you feed her well, she should hopefully produce enough milk. I suggest Google for any further research!
Six is no problem–I had cats that had litters of eight and they were all okay. But for goodness sake, get that cat fixed! Unless you’re breeding the kittens for meat pies, of course.
BTW, Eve, I tried to take her in to get fixed when her first litter was about 11 weeks old. That’s when I found out it was too late; she was already pregnant. My male cat is now fixed and my female cat is never allowed outside around any other cats, so I’m not worried (well, not very worried) about any more litters. But I’m planning on getting her fixed anyway, just in case.
Should I attempt to supplement feed the kittens right away, or should I wait a few days and see how she handles it herself?
Wait a few days and let nature take over. She’s done this before, she knows what to do and how to do it. Only if you see perhaps a runt not getting to a nipple often enough should you try to supplement. Let her do this. Give it a few days before you rush off to the vet or to the pet store for kitten formula. Believe me, you do not want to go down that slippery kitten-feeding slope if you can help it. That’s a feeding EVERY TWO HOURS, day and night. If you have a job, and like to sleep at night… let mama cat feed her babies. She’ll be fine. Make sure there’s plenty of food and water available for Mama and leave 'em all alone. When she’s done nursing (about eight weeks), do not pass go, do not collect $200, take Mama cat to the vet and get her spayed asap. Cats get out.
They all seem to be eating okay, but she is a pretty small built cat and they are already fighting for space. I can only imagine what it is going to be like in a few weeks. Not to mention that I now have ten cats in my house. I like cats, but I think ten is pushing it a little bit.
Anyway, thank you for all of the advice. I also talked to our vet and she gave me a few tips on how to deal with this.
So, does anybody want a kitten in about six weeks?
I don’t envy having to find homes for 8 kittens but at least you are going to have so much fun until they are old enough! (Well, assuming you don’t have to go the feeding route – that’s a whole lot of work.) A roomful of kittens is good for hours and hours of entertainment.
One thing: kittens cannot relieve themselves for several weeks; the queen has to stimulate them to make them go and she then eats the urine and feces. Yes, sounds gross, but I guess the system works well. (Eating everything keeps the bed area clean.) If Momma Kitty is weak, she may not be able to do this for all 8 kits and you might have to help her, otherwise the kits will likely die. If this is news to you and/or you don’t know how to step in for the momma cat, post back and I’ll tell you what to do. Or, ask your vet. (Although I have found that a lot of vets don’t have much experience with fostering newborn kittens.)
Just wait until they are about 4 weeks old and really start playing! There’s nothing cuter than a bunch of roly-poly kittens all falling over each other.
Hey, Shadowfox, my sister was reading this over my shoulder and wants to know:
Will you be giving the kittens away?
If so, where do you live?
If you’re around Chicago, can she see pictures?
Because she might be interested in getting a kitten, provided Shan-cat doesn’t have a problem getting a roommate.
I had a cat once who got pregnant when she was 5 months old (still too young to spay in the thinking of the time) and still-birthed her litter. We took her to the vet where they got all the kittens out… 13 in all!! She’d have certainly died if she carried them to term. We think it was 13… we found a half-eaten one so I guess in theory there may have been more…eewww.
(1) Yes, I will be giving away the kittens. My landlord doesn’t know about the two cats I have. It would be kind of hard to hide eight more for an extended period of time.
(2 & 3) I’m living in SE Michigan, which is about a six hour drive to Chicago. But thanks for the interest.
I’ve never witnessed a kitten birth, but I thought they were born in thier own little sacks that the mother ripped, chewed, something-ed open/off them?
Oh Shadow…I wish I could have one of those kittens, after the holidays I am going to get another kitty. Yep, I decided it’s time to have another set of four paws to grace my home.
I was in 5th grade at the time so my memory isn’t exact, but I remember the half-eaten kitten pretty darn well… I don’t remember any sacks. I remember that we took her to the vet wrapped in a towel, and when we got there and unwrapped her, there were 2 or 3 kitten fetuses stuck to the towel. They were about 2 or 3 inches long and pink. Quite a long ways off from being full term.
The kittens are born in individual sacs. The mother licks and chews off the sacs and then licks the kittens vigorously to get them clean and to stimulate them. What Opal is talking about is something we went through with our cat’s first litter this last summer. She gave birth to five kittens, but the last one was a stillborn. She cleaned the sac off the kitten and then started vigorously licking the kitten, trying to revive it, I suppose. In fact, she licked the kitten so vigorously that its skin started to slough off the top of its head and you could actually see its brains. We removed the kitten from her and disposed of it. My mother-in-law told me at that time that mother cats have been known to eat their stillborn kittens. I guess dogs do it too sometimes.
for any further research!