I think my cat is pregnant

Hi Everyone,
I have spent the last couple of days neurotically wondering if my 2 year old orange tabby is pregnant.Bella spends a lot of time outdoors, mousing and chasing chickens and has spent nights outside as well, that is until she climbs the screens and asks to be let in!! I live in a small town in Colorado and I have never seen a tom cat around our home. However...Bella's nipples are much bigger than they usually are, and pinker too. She has definately gained weight around the belly and sides.(I'm glad I'm not the only one doing that! !)She is eating a lot, and sleeping a lot. She is also really loving lately, which isn't typically Bella. She's really independant. In fact, this is HER house, she just lets us live in it. I have tried to feel her belly for "lumps" but haven't felt anything (but I can't be 100% sure, sometimes a little flutter, maybe an occasional gas bubble?), although her belly does seem kind if firm.
What do you guys think?? I want this birthing experience for the kids to learn from and then we'll get her spayed immediately, along with the kitties.
I have a digital camera, I'm just not sure how to insert the image- any advice?

Maggie

Hi and welcome to TCS!

Try checking out this link. It will give you lots of iinformation to guide you through pregnancy and delivery.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74659

Here's a thread on how to post pictures

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14474

It is hard to say but you can almost bet on the fact that if she is intact and allowed access to roam free outdoors, she WILL get pregnant eventually. The only way to know for sure and to make sure there are no problems and everything, you will have to take her to the vet for a check up and he can confirm it. There are stray cats all over the place, feral one's you won't even see too often either. Plenty of oppertunities to become pregnant. I would have her tested for Feline Leukemia and Feline AIDS too in a couple of months. Intact tom cats are very high risk for carrying diseases like those and many others, along with fleas, lice, earmites, worms, etc.

I always tell people who want their kids to experience the miracle of birth to go to a shelter and experience the other side of it. When there are too many cats out there and they are euthanized because there are no homes and intact cats are allowed to mate. I know you are going to spay and neuter her and all the kittens, which is WONDERFUL and I am so happy to hear that you are going to do that. I wish more people had that attitude.

But from the other side of things, so many cats get euthanized daily because there is no room and no one wants them. Show your kids why they SHOULD NOT let their cats roam and breed. For that reason and the disease factor too which is such a huge fact that people don't think about. AND be prepared. Have an extra $500 or a credit card in case you need rush to the ER vet at 4am for a c-section. Be prepared to bottle feed them if the mother rejects them and you need to raise them and feed them every 2-4 hours, day and night and stimulate them to go to the bathroom.

So good luck. Please ask any questions you might have, we will help you along all you need. Make sure the momma is on a high quality kitten food constantly until the babies are seperated from her at 10-12 weeks old.

If she is pregnant, you need to keep her inside when she has the kittens (figure she's 3-4 weeks now if the nipples are pink). She should have them by middle of April - start keeping her inside all the time from the beginning of April.

And please get her spayed when the kittens are about 6-7 weeks old - do NOT let her back outside till she is spayed.

Oh, yeah, definitely keep her away from toms... poor cat, she could get pregnant again right away; and then she'd be trying to feed one set of kittens while growing another set--not a good situation for her or for either litter. Get her a nice place indoors, provide a nesting box, feed her kitten food (which is also good for pregnant cats--extra nutrition), and hope for the best. Keep the vet on speed-dial, just in case.

I agree--folks who want their kids to see kittens being born ought to foster a pregnant cat for a shelter. But since you've got kittens already, you might as well see it through, right?

Be aware you can actually get kittens spayed/neutered before they go to their new homes. Just as long as they weigh 2 lb., they can safely undergo the surgery; and small kittens generally bounce back nicely. Also, it's a great selling point for potential owners for the kittens; and a good reason to charge an adoption fee (which keeps unscrupulous or uncaring owners, or, worse, animal research labs, from getting your kittens).

One last thing: You simply must post pictures. We find momma-cat-and-kittens absolutely adorable!!

When you can post pictures. I think it is a 50/50 she is prego