Any cat people?

[Humblefish]

So, I've got a mama cat that I think is getting ready to go into labor. She's a stray, but my wife & I have been feeding her for the past year and trying to tame her. She mostly lives outside, but we keep her inside when it gets really cold. Anyway, she's been meowing like crazy all morning so I think it might be time to have her kittens (photos below).

We are preparing a "nest" aka bedding for her in case she decides to have her kittens indoors. But is there anything else we should be doing? TIA

 

[DMG Reef]

Supplying a warm, cozy bed is about all you can do for her. She may choose to hide outside to give birth depending on the level of trust she feels. Just prepare yourself mentally for an overload of cuteness in your life.

 

[Sailingeric]

My wife and I have 4 cats. One is like yours, Sophie, was a stray that adopted my wife before we met and had kittens, which we still one of her's kids. Sadly she has been having some health problems and not sure how much longer she will be around but she has had a good 17 year run.

 

[bblumberg]

Pay attention to how she is doing during labor. The kittens should come fairly quickly once she starts. If they don't, the birth canal may be too small and a vet visit will be required to save mom and some of.the kittens. I had this situation happen with a beloved cat some years ago. The vet managed to save her and one of.the kittens, but the other 2 didnt make it. Mom made it to 17 and the surviving kitten to 18.

 

[andrewkw]

Do you have any other animals?

I would keep her in a confined safe room if you think the babies are coming soon. Give her a box, blankets ect. The last thing you want is for her to have babies somewhere where you can't reach them like under your bed. Do not let her back out no matter how badly she wants out.

Feral cats took over my life for a while. I spent a couple of years training Sweetie Sr. and eventually I did have to kidnap her but she had her last litter inside, then we paid over $400 to have her spayed even though she was not our cat. She is now our cat and the best behaved indoor cat we have. Keep in mind this took years and when we used to look at her from the window she would run away.



You should be able to find a low cost spay program after she has the kittens. I just live in the middle of no where and it was not an option. I've caught 23 kittens in the 3+ years I've lived here and I'm happy to say 22 have gone on to find homes and live lives as indoor cats.

 

[Humblefish]

Thanks for input everyone, it is very appreciated. Do I need to put something like newspaper on top (to be thrown away later) or will she (mostly) clean up the mess??

We definitely plan on having her spayed after her kittens can be adopted. We've just now gotten to the point where she will let us handle her, and I'm confident we could put her in a pet carrier to bring to the vet.

 

[Humblefish]

We're ready!

Or Plan B:

 

[andrewkw]

You can use newspaper but blankets or old towels will be fine too. In fact I'd go as far as to recommend that if you don't have any throw away, get cheap ones at walmart. It's going to be several weeks before you will be able to get into the box and clean it / replace it. The mom will do a good job keeping things clean, but obviously not up to human standards.

Your girl sounds like shes already pretty well adjusted so she should be fine indoors until the kittens are born. Even if she has a desire to get out now that will pass as soon as the kittens are born. I use one of my bathrooms as a "cat qt room". While spilled water may leave some floor damage it's nothing compared to the scratch marks various kittens have left in there. Once they are born you probably won't be able to touch her and she may get a little grouchy. High quality food and access to water is important. It will be some time before the kittens can use a litter box but a room that is not carpeted is ideal and pine litter is better then clay for kittens.

You should plan on keeping them together a minimum of 6 weeks 8 weeks is probably better. I would also strongly suggest you ask people to make a donation to a local animal charity in exchange for a kitten. If it was someone I didn't know I would either ask them to do this, or give me money towards paying for the spay ect. This just ensures they are going to a home where value is placed on them. A free kitten may be loved for 20 years but they may be treated as a free kitten.

PS I'm very happy to give you some kind of animal health advice after all you've done for the fish community.

 

[piranhaman00]

Haha I love this! Good luck Mom!

I have two, Jessika and Romano. They get along sometimes.

 

[Humblefish]

PS I'm very happy to give you some kind of animal health advice after all you've done for the fish community.

I appreciate the advice! I'm a dog (and obviously fish) person. Cats are kinda outside of my wheelhouse. But my wife started feeding a stray and well, you know the rest .....

 

[will25u]

You know we're going to need pics of mama and babies, right? I have two cats, also. One is a stray, long haired orange kitty with horrible idiopathic cystitis (gets UTI's frequently), so he'd have died if we hadn't taken him in. He's on a ridiculous diet of fancy food, filtered water, and sometimes anxiety meds. The other was part of a litter of kittens found alongside I-5 outside of Olympia, WA. He's now 14 and the most beautiful purebred Ragdoll cat that I've ever seen.

 

[Humblefish]

Well, she ran out the door when we fed the other stray cats. Disappeared. Hopefully she either comes back or finds a safe place to have her kittens.

 

[andrewkw]

She will be back if you are her source of food. If by chance you don't get her back you should still consider trapping the kittens. That can't happen until they are 6-8 weeks old but you can bet the mom will bring the babies when they are ready for solid food.

If you want her to have the babies inside you can either get her back in with food or just grab her and close the door real quick - you will get scratched.

 

[hubcap]

As a self proclaimed dog lover, I also have a soft spot for cats.
But don't tell my wife, k?

 

[mfinn]

Put the bed in a closet where she can feel protected. If she has them out in the open, she will move them to a spot probably not very favorable to you. Like under your bed or a kids bed. Somewhere dark and quiet.


Opps, missed the post about her getting outside.
Cats have been having kittens outside since the beginning of time.
She should be just fine.
Maybe leave food outside?

 

[NowGlazeIT]

Put the lid on that kennel and place it outside by the door(or where the cat normally enters the home). Good luck good job!

 

[Humblefish]

Going into labor:

And now we have kittens!

 

[SPS_ONLY]

This is wonderful! My cat is always trying to catch my fish though.

 

[Wolf89]

Going into labor:

And now we have kittens!

Congrats on some kittens!

 

[User1]

So - the cat came back home? I may have have missed a post or two, sorry about that.

By the way I don't believe I said this before. If I understand correctly you took in a stray or started feed one? Then took it in due to seeing it was pregnant? Nobel of you and your family. Really, it is. Doesn't matter dog, cat, bird, or no lover. The fact you are helping makes a difference in the world. Not everyone does that.

All the best and also thanks for sharing. I can't speak for everyone but it is always good to see positive news / good stories / happy endings. Thank you.