Is 6-7 months to young to be a kittyMom?

Hi- I recently took in a 6 month old kitten. She is now about 7 mos (according to the vet). She is totally healthy(has had shots, tests, etc), but I think she is pregnant and am weighing the options of letting her give birth (I can find homes for the kittens, though am not financially able to deal with problems if they arise), or doing a spay/ abort. I am figuring she is at least 5 weeks along by now. The most important thing for me is her health. I have a spare room for her to have, and I am totally into the time commitment of caring for them, I just wanted to know what everyones experiences were with such a young mother. She is on the small side, and I would hate to put her into any danger. Please give me advice, oh sage people of the kitties.
Thanks so much,
Susie

Honeslty I wouldn't take the chance. But I also spay abort as much as possible with the kitties I take in. But she is WAY too young, too small, too inexperienced... she has everything going against her. And the fact that you might not be able to afford vet care... this is a situation where you might need an emergency trip to the vet at 4am for a c-section or something. I wouldn't chance it.

On the other hand, everything could go just fine. It is a tough call. I wouldn't go through with it personally.

Thats pretty young she is still just a growing baby herself. And that fact that you did state you likely couldnt afford problems if they arised,and they very well could. I would spay/abort let her be a kitten.

I think this is a decision you should make after speaking with your vet to see if he/she is comfortable with doing a spay/abort at this term of the pregnancy. There are vets who won't do it past a certain stage so before you make any concrete decisions, check to see if spay/abort is actually an option for you. On the other side of that coin, check with local shelters to see if there is a low- or no-cost spay/neuter option and whether or not they have any restrictions on spaying pregnant queens. From what I understand, most of these places will spay a pregnant queen no matter where in the term of pregnancy she may be.

If you don't have the financial resources to cover an emergency, then I very respectfully submit that you may want to reconsider keeping this girl if you are forced to allow the pregnancy to continue. There are many rescues and shelters with foster programs available - these people have both the experience and the resources necessary to cover any eventuality. Perhaps you can allow one of them to see her through the pregnancy, then adopt her once she is spayed and the kittens are old enough to be away from her. Just something to think about.

Spay her is the best thing but it is your own personal choice when she is this far along. Since financially you said you can not do it if something arises is a great reason to. Also she is a baby herself and this litter might not make it..

She is much too young to have babies!!! It is like if a 10-12 year old girl had one! To have babies would be very hard on her-the cat I adopted a year ago had hers at around 10 months-this was tough on her. Yes, a difficult decision to make. But the little ones may not survive, and if they do, won't get proper training by their mom. And your kitty will be grateful to you.

Good luck,

Nathalie

I would opt for the spay, she is still a kitten, and might have no idea how to care for her newborns and let me tell you, bottle feeding is a lot of work!

Please let us know how things are please.

Nathalie - while being such a young mum does have the possibility of creating issues, it isn't set in stone it would - Sarah's Annie came to us at 8 months old with month old kittens and she was a good mum - she was so incredibly thin because of it though, bless her. That said, if the vet agrees, I personally would abort and spay, or if not, find a rescue who may be able to help, just in case she does have probs that you cant afford to pay for.

My Misty was about 7 months old when she got pregnant. She's adapted to motherhood very well though. She is a wonderful mom. She did abort an underdeveloped one, but besides that things went great. So not all cats r too young at that age.

But I was very worried bout her during the pregnancy, since she was so young. If it is an option for you, you might want to consider a spay/abort.

Its completly your choice. I would check with your vet to see what he thinks about it. If he suggests that you should abort than I would.

I think that I myself would abort the kittens, because I wouldn't want anything to happen my cat, especialy if its that young. It would be different if she was 1+.

What ever your decision know we are all here and willing to help with what we can

Originally Posted by momof3rugratz

What ever your decision know we are all here and willing to help with what we can

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ditto

Thanks so much, everybody. I called the vet, and I am going to take her in this week. They said if they feel kittens, they will squeeze her in ASAP for her spay (she has an appt for may 11th, I have a very busy and good vet!). I thank you for all the good advice and for caring so much about a stranger and a kitten!
~Susie

That is excellent news, fingers crossed for her, and good on you.

Tell us how things go... Poor thing, she's too young to be a mum.

may the 11th? if she is pregnant the kittens will have been born by then wouldnt they? sorry if i have got this wrong , but well done in trying to get her in for a spay.

Originally Posted by SusieinPhilly

Thanks so much, everybody. I called the vet, and I am going to take her in this week. They said if they feel kittens, they will squeeze her in ASAP for her spay (she has an appt for may 11th, I have a very busy and good vet!). I thank you for all the good advice and for caring so much about a stranger and a kitten!
~Susie

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Dont leave us We want you to sit and keep us up to date

It looks like you got loads of good advice and opinions, and that's good that you've been in contact with a vet, too. There's one thing I didn't see covered yet. I'm curious, when did she have her "shots" that you mentioned? By the time frames you gave, I assume she was already pregnant when she was vaccinated. Is that right? The feline distemper vaccine shouldn't be given during pregnancy, as it can harm the kittens. If you're going to spay/abort...then this info isn't really relevant, but I thought I would add that. Good luck.

Have't taken her in yet, my fiance just got a new job out of town and has the car...But I should have it all figured out this week. She was just newly pregnant when she had her shots, so thanks for that information. It is important. And to answer a ?, when I took her in for shots and the FIV and leukemia tests, I made the first spay appt I could get which was for May 11th. But, when I called the vet on Friday, they said they would squeeze her in sooner. I will keep you all updated on her progress! Thanks for all the good vibes!