Whoops...

waxlight

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Alright, put me in the silly/stupid/lazy category.

I originally adopted three kittens two years ago. I originally only wanted two, but I couldn't seperate them... (their mom was a barn cat, who got rolled over on by a cow, and therefore couldn't teach them how to be barn cats). I was a good child, and got the male (the other two are female), neutered.

Since then, I've been adopting/placing kittens that have been living around my grandfather's house (he's in the middle of a whole lot of farms) that have various problems, getting them the medical attention they need, and either keeping them or farming them out to my friends.

Well, I took in a stray male cat. Probably one of the most affectionate cats I know (he climbs in the shower with me so he can rub up against my legs). I incorrectly assumed when I brought him in, that the female cats hating him so much would keep them from getting pregnant...

Well, my obvious error has been pointed out to me. One of the female cats has turned up pregnant. I just figured this out tonight when I went to pet her stomach and.. wow, her stomach is huge and rigid, and her nipples are very prominate.

She will most definately be getting spayed (and the father will be getting snipped, as well) as soon as she can after she delivers. I'm curious what colors the babies will come out, as the male is a gray tiger striped, and the female is a brown/black tiger striped.

My question: I'm guessing she's about five weeks. I have six cats, total. I work Monday - Friday. What should I do to prepare when she gets closer to delivering? Should I start locking her in a room by herself (when I'm gone) when it gets close (obviously with food/water/towel lined box/etc).

Also, does anyone in the greater Michigan area want a kitten(s)? I'll keep them until I find good homes for them, but six cats is already too many! (That, and I'm young, single, with a mortgage, and I can only afford so many vet bills!) I'll even deliver them!

Thanks guys. This looks like a fun forum for just complaining or boasting, regardless
 

tnr1

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Originally Posted by waxlight

Alright, put me in the silly/stupid/lazy category.

I originally adopted three kittens two years ago. I originally only wanted two, but I couldn't seperate them... (their mom was a barn cat, who got rolled over on by a cow, and therefore couldn't teach them how to be barn cats). I was a good child, and got the male (the other two are female), neutered.

Since then, I've been adopting/placing kittens that have been living around my grandfather's house (he's in the middle of a whole lot of farms) that have various problems, getting them the medical attention they need, and either keeping them or farming them out to my friends.

Well, I took in a stray male cat. Probably one of the most affectionate cats I know (he climbs in the shower with me so he can rub up against my legs). I incorrectly assumed when I brought him in, that the female cats hating him so much would keep them from getting pregnant...

Well, my obvious error has been pointed out to me. One of the female cats has turned up pregnant. I just figured this out tonight when I went to pet her stomach and.. wow, her stomach is huge and rigid, and her nipples are very prominate.

She will most definately be getting spayed (and the father will be getting snipped, as well) as soon as she can after she delivers. I'm curious what colors the babies will come out, as the male is a gray tiger striped, and the female is a brown/black tiger striped.

My question: I'm guessing she's about five weeks. I have six cats, total. I work Monday - Friday. What should I do to prepare when she gets closer to delivering? Should I start locking her in a room by herself (when I'm gone) when it gets close (obviously with food/water/towel lined box/etc).

Also, does anyone in the greater Michigan area want a kitten(s)? I'll keep them until I find good homes for them, but six cats is already too many! (That, and I'm young, single, with a mortgage, and I can only afford so many vet bills!) I'll even deliver them!

Thanks guys. This looks like a fun forum for just complaining or boasting, regardless
Welcome to TCS waxlight. Actually, you have discovered something about cats that many people incorrectly assume...that an intact male cat and an intact female cat make decisions regarding having sex. For cats...it is simply hormonal and having any intact males around intact females will eventually lead to pregnancies. Right now....you need to get your female cat set up for her kittens. Our moderator Gaye has a wonderful link with information on what to expect.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80724

The other thing you need to do is get the male neutered and seperate him from any other "intact" females that you have. A neutered male can carry active sperm for up to a month following the procedure. So for now...he needs to be kept away from your females. All intact cats should be confined to indoors only status until they have been spayed/neutered.

Cats can become pregnant as early as 4 months of age and they do not need to 1. like the other cat or 2. be in heat to become pregnant...so if any of your other cats are intact, now is the time to get all the other spayed/neutered. If you need a low cost clinic, there is a link in my signature to a website that lists low cost clinics by state.

Let's make the only accidental litter in your home.

Katie

Since then, I've been adopting/placing kittens that have been living around my grandfather's house (he's in the middle of a whole lot of farms) that have various problems, getting them the medical attention they need, and either keeping them or farming them out to my friends.
I'd like to address this also....what we need to do is get the cats that are creating these kittens fixed. There are organizations in Michigan that you can contact.

http://www.alleycat.org/orgs.html#mi

Every cat that you spay allows kittens from the local shelters to adopt out more cats and kittens and reduce the euthanization rates.
 

momof3rugratz

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TNR gave you a great link to very important information. Make sure mom is feed a good kitten food and I recommend adding KMR. My cat had a big litter and the vet said that was like ensure tot he pregnant mom. I think it helps after the babies also with nursing. Is the mom starting to nest or anything. You can go get the male cat fixed know so that is one less cat to worry about. Especially since she can get pregnant after birth.
 

beandip

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Originally Posted by sparklepanties

Could i ask what is KMR? Do they sell this food in England?
It stands for Kitten Milk Replacer - it's a brand name (KMR). I believe it comes in powder or liquid form. I'm not sure if it's available in England, but I'm sure that something similar would be. It's NOT the same as the "treat" cat milk.
 

momof3rugratz

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Basically KMR is a brand here. I am sure in England there is something different but great for the same purpose. I hope I made since LOL.
 

xxtashaxx

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in england its called lactol milk replacer , but i have heard on some english forums of the kmr being mentuned so i think you can get some over here , but i dont know where. but most pet shops sell the lactol milk
 

goldenkitty45

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Colors of kits - this is an easy one (as far as color - not as far as sex).

Mom is a brown tabby (genetically black) and dad is a blue (grey) tabby. The kittens will be both colors. Unless the mom and dad are carrying any other kind of hidden (recessive) genes, then that's what you get. Brown or Blue tabbys.

However, since both can be male or female, you'll have a harder time sexing them
 
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waxlight

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Wow, you guys are helpful! And quick!

Dad has an appt on Monday to get snipped
I figure it's the whole 'fool me once' thing.

Controlling the cat population around my grandfathers....that's a bit more tricky. One, he doesn't feel the cats 'belong' to him, and two, he's of the old school 'let nature take it's course' sort of guy. I can (barely) get away with rescuing the cats that have obvious medical problems (I've gotten two long haired 'munchkins' this way - although I think it's less genetic, and more of a they were very malnurished as kittens), and I rescued then adopted out a kitten that had a horrible wound on it's neck. (Caution, ick factor: it had a VERY large maggot in it's neck. The vet said it was actually the only thing that kept it alive - because maggots only eat dead flesh, it kept the wound clean). That one is currently happily living in Chicago with a friend, and has been neutered. A coworker moved to New Zealand, and it was too cost-prohibitive to take her cat, so I took that one (long haired gray tortiseshell) - SWEETEST lap cat, but it didn't get along with the other cats, so my aunt and uncle happily took that one (the cat was declawed when it came to me, and they wanted a declawed cat... better than putting another cat through that, I guess). And then I have my three original barn kitties, and dad, who was a stray that a coworker took in, but he couldn't keep him, so - you guessed it - he ended up here
.

*looks at above paragraph* Sorry for the long, rambling post
I'm just excited that I can talk to people that like cats as much as I do! (and who don't look at me as if they're just waiting for me to turn into that crazy cat lady...)

I'm sure I'll have more questions as my girl progresses - thank you for being so helpful this far!
 

goldenkitty45

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Keep your male away from any unspayed females for about 6 weeks after neutereing - he still can get them pregnant - takes about a month to get all the hormones and sperm out of his system


As far as your grandfathers cats, I would do my best to take the females one by one and spay them as you can afford it. Perhaps you can get in contact with a rescue group and explain the situation - sometimes they have resources to help out in getting a group of cats spayed/neutered quickly.

With our barn cats we got them done one by one - females first. But we only had about 6-8 to do. We found out the "grandmother cat" was running off her daughters and either chasing them off the property or chasing them to the road to be killed! Didn't matter if they were spayed or not. She didn't like other females on the property.
 

lisasha3

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How sweet of you to help these little ones around your grandfathers and get them the medical attention they need. You are awesome!!!
I do agree with what a couple have said here. Either see if a local rescue can do a trap and spay or start slowly taking them in one by one. Bottom line is - it may cost you a little here and there now for a spay, but without them producing any more kits your medical bills on taking care of the injured/malnourished/ etc will definitely decrease.

Good for you!!!
 
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