Clueless about pregnant cats but I have one

sally j

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Thank you for the group forum.

I was sent here by Heidi Christensen on the Yahoo! Group For The Love of cats.

My name is Svetlana Sally Johnston but Sally j is OK :eek:)

I am a Weimaraner breeder but acquired a cat by default when my mum
moved in 2 years ago. Actually Mimmi was due to be put sleep by the
vet I take my Weis to and Meridith knew mum had just lost her gorgeous
Mickey and thought mum could give Mimmi a home. And of course I took
her home to mum.

10 days ago, with the help of a day shift worker, I brought home
Smokey. She had been dumped and had been around the factory for at
least 12 months that Monica knew of. She has at least one litter of 4
kitten which are almost as big as her. Monica and I shared the feeding
of them and housing; Monica fed them during the day and I fed them
during the night.

I couldn't stand the thought of Smokey staying there and having litter
after litter and after speaking to mum, i brought her home. I
suspected she was already pregnant but not certain as I know next to
nothing about cats even less about pregnant cats.

The day after bringing her home I took her to the vet to have her
checked and yes she was pregnant and although the vet said that some
folk actually de-sex pregnant cats, I wasn't so happy to do that. It
seemed a very extreme way top go.

The vet said she would have kittens in about 25 days. That would mean
around 3rd/4th April.

She is very sweet and very affectionate and I hope she will be after
she has the kittens

My problem is of course I am clueless what to expect, what I should
prepare for her, what I should be feeding her, how to recognise
problems, what to prepare for her to have her kittens in, just plain
clueless.

I would very much appreciate you help in making the birth process as
stress free as possible for Smokey and for mum and I.

FWIW, I did do some web surfing about feeding and all the sites I went
to said she needs to be fed with kitten food which I am doing. I give
her Purina One (she likes that one the most), and Advance (she eats it
but not her favourite), Smokey also gets kitten milk and she gets
Ultimates canned food, which she thinks is the bees knees :eek:)

Thank you once again for the forum.

Cheers
Sally J
 

sparklepanties

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Hi and welcome to the forum. Everyone here will make u feel welcome and at home and answer all questions u have. O.k well i'll try and give you some advice from my experience of pregnancy with my girl Dee Dee who gave birth 3 weeks ago tomorrow. Firstly and foremost get her onto a decent kitten food (wet/dry or both) which i can see you have done. Set up a few kittening boxes in quiet locations. Does she have a favourite room she likes to sleep in? Dee Dee always likes to sleep in my daughters bedroom as its upstairs, quiet and one of the warmest rooms in house. Always prepare more than one because you can almost count on the fact that she wont always like the one you put in the ideal place. Try and keep her in from now on if possible and if you really cant then make sure she is kept inside from the 7th week onwards. The last thing you want is her being spooked off or injured and then giving birth somewhere outside and you having no idea where. Really then for me there wasnt much else to do until you get nearer the birth date which is usually between 60 - 65 days. Dee Dee gave birth on around her 61st day. You'll know when she's near because she'll be nesting all over the place, behind the telly, in cupboards, the wardrobe etc. She might loose her appetite and sometimes become aggitated and hide away, or she might still eat like a horse and never want to leave your side on the day of the birth. I cant think of anything else i can say, i'm sure you'll get loads of advice as every birth is different. Good luck i hope my post helped a little!!
 
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sally j

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Originally Posted by sparklepanties

Set up a few kittening boxes in quiet locations.
How many should I set up? Two or three would be enough do you think? Mum was going to do this and actually leave the box closed with a cut out hole so Smokey can get in and out. Does that sound suitable or should the boxes have the tops off?

Originally Posted by sparklepanties

Does she have a favourite room she likes to sleep in?
Her favourite place is by the window in the lounge room on the floor. The sun is there most of the day and I think she enjoys it very much. The sleeping arrangements at night are; Mimmi (the spayed cat) is in her bed in the laundry, Smokey is in her bed in the bathroom and Zeta is on my bed. During the day Mimmi is outside (she loves the outdoors), Zeta is outside and Smokey has the run of the house.

Originally Posted by sparklepanties

Try and keep her in from now on if possible and if you really cant then make sure she is kept inside from the 7th week onwards.
Smokey has not been outside since I brought her home. Somewhere along the line I recall someone saying when you bring a cat home she needs to be kept inside for about a month so she learns that is her new home. However even when the month is up Smokey will still stay indoors until she has been spayed and that will be after her kittens have gone to their new homes.

Originally Posted by sparklepanties

. . . there wasnt much else to do until you get nearer the birth date which is usually between 60 - 65 days.
The date is a best guess by the vet when her checked her over last week because she was a dumped cat, no way of knowing with any certainty. However according to vets best guess Smokey should show signs of having her kittens around the 3rd/4th April. Timing is really great because I am on annual leave from 26th March to 10th April


Thanks bunches for all the information. You know I have bred Weis since 1983 but I am really quite nervous about Smokey having her babies.

Cheers
Sally j
 
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sally j

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Originally Posted by ScamperFarms

Sally I sent you a Pm
with some info.
Thank you.

Could you please tell me where to best try and get "KMR kitten milk supplement" ? I hope I can get it in Australia.

Cheers
Sally j
 

missymotus

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Hi Sally
I've seen Biolac Kitten milk replacer at the vet. Another brand is Divetelact
 
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sally j

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Originally Posted by missymotus

Hi Sally
I've seen Biolac Kitten milk replacer at the vet. Another brand is Divetelact
AHA!

Now I know what I am looking for.

Gee if I wasn't so nervous I think I would have worked it, LOL.

I have to say a BIG THANK YOU for this board. Just to be able to come here and share has been a big help and the information has been fantastic.

I do have a question about early age de-sexing.

I want to de-sex the kittens before they go to their new homes. I know this is done, mostly in the cat community but at what age?

I normally let puppies go to new homes between 8-12 weeks but they are not de-sexed.

How old should a kitten be before:
1) Going to a new home
2) getting de-sexed

What is the time frame between a) getting de-sexed, b) stitches out and c) going to new home please?

Cheers
Sally j
 

gayef

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Originally Posted by Sally j

AHA!

Now I know what I am looking for.

Gee if I wasn't so nervous I think I would have worked it, LOL.
You can also substitute goat's milk, which is normally readily available in your local grocery story.

I have to say a BIG THANK YOU for this board. Just to be able to come here and share has been a big help and the information has been fantastic.
Welcome to the site and Thank YOU for finding us and letting us assist you. We live for it, honestly. *grin* Of course, we do expect payment in the form of cute kitten pictures when the time comes. *smile*

I do have a question about early age de-sexing.

I want to de-sex the kittens before they go to their new homes. I know this is done, mostly in the cat community but at what age?
It varies among vets, but normally, I suggest 10 to 12 weeks of age. Talk with your vet or local spay/neuter clinic. They may be better able to assist you with this.


How old should a kitten be before:
1) Going to a new home
2) getting de-sexed
Kittens should remain with their mother until they are at least 10 to 12 weeks of age and they can be desexed at that time as well. Again, speak to your vet or local spay/neuter clinic for their policies.

What is the time frame between a) getting de-sexed, b) stitches out and c) going to new home please?
I would keep the males for at least 5 days to a week afterwards and the females until their stitches are removed. After that, the risk of infection or complication is drastically reduced and you shouldn't have any problems.
 

missymotus

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I know of a vet clinic in Frankston that does early desexing. My new kitten to be was done there last week.

I can PM you a list of others if you need
 
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sally j

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Originally Posted by missymotus

I know of a vet clinic in Frankston that does early desexing. My new kitten to be was done there last week.

I can PM you a list of others if you need
Yes please. Could you e-mail the list please to [email protected]

Cheers
Sally j
 
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sally j

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Originally Posted by gayef

You can also substitute goat's milk, which is normally readily available in your local grocery story.
Wonderful
I have seen it, yes.

Originally Posted by gayef

Welcome to the site and Thank YOU for finding us and letting us assist you. We live for it, honestly. *grin* Of course, we do expect payment in the form of cute kitten pictures when the time comes. *smile*
I have a digital camera on loan from a friend so I shall take some pics of Smokey in her pregnant glory and of course I shall take pics of her babies too. I shall just need help how to send them here but that won't be for a little while. I'll shout for help then


Originally Posted by gayef

Kittens should remain with their mother until they are at least 10 to 12 weeks of age and they can be desexed at that time as well.
Are mother cats like bitches in that hey begin their own weaning? Bitches begin actively rejecting their puppies from about 8-9 weeks of age. It can depend on the individual bitch. That was my signal to take her away from them.

Originally Posted by gayef

I would keep the males for at least 5 days to a week afterwards and the females until their stitches are removed. After that, the risk of infection or complication is drastically reduced and you shouldn't have any problems.
Very helpful thank you.

Cheers
Sally j
 
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