Hi and help!!! scared Grandma to be!!

x~tracey~x

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Hi im new to this site i come across it looking for info on cat pregnancy.Ok here goes will try and make it short as poss!!.I took my 8 month old cat to the vets 2 weeks ago to be spayed (she had not shown any signs of being in heat!!) The vet examined her before they took her of and told me she was in fact 3-4 weeks pregnant after i recovered from shock!!(she has barely been out of my sight and not really allowed out!!) He talked me through the options which he explained in great detail in front of my first excited 6 yr old daughter and then very distraught crying daughter!!!.I basically went home stressed all day about it, decided next day to see another vet who was lovely and gave pooh bear(my daughter chose name!) a full examination and has reasured me she is in very good health and thinks she will cope with pregnancy fine.So we decided to go ahead but iv been stressing so much i feel so bad for letting this happen and just want to do right by her now,she is on diet recomended by the vet and im giving her kitten formula milk.Any advice is much appreciated especially if anyone has experiance with young mummy cats!! I also have 2 other cats and a greyhound who thinks she is pooh bears mummy,im dreading trying to seperate them all when its time as they are so close,HELP!!! p.s sorry for rambling!!!
 

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First welcome to TCS and congratulations on the upcoming litter. And mostly applause for taking her to the vet (for the unsuccessful spay) and for getting the second opinion.

I foster pregnant and nursing moms from our local no-kill shelter and had a seemingly young mother last year. She did fairly well with the pregnancy and delivery. She cried more than an older cat, but I imagine that was because she was smaller. Once the litter was born, she knew exactly what to do and was a very good mother.

Continue to feed her a higher-calorie diet and read up on what to expect and how to help (if needed) during delivery. There is a lot of good information here on the boards.

As for separating her from the rest of the pack... Each cat is different. Some want the exclusion and some need the reassurance of others. Watch her cues. But do confine her to one room when the time gets close as you dont want her having the kittens in the rafters or behind the refrigerator.

Looking forward to following her progress.
 
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x~tracey~x

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Thanks! still feel really silly for not noticing i have had cats for long enough to spot the signs.Im getting quite excited now though and pooh bear is very happy at the mo which makes me feel better.I have also found homes for about 7 kittens!! shes a very pretty tortie and the only new tom iv seen about is ginger,anyone have any ideas what colour the kittens could be? My sister works at the local cat rescue and has been checking her over for me,she thinks the kiitens are due in couple of weeks.Pooh is of course booked in to be spayed when her babies are old enough.
 

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Originally Posted by X~tracey~X

Thanks! still feel really silly for not noticing i have had cats for long enough to spot the signs.Im getting quite excited now though and pooh bear is very happy at the mo which makes me feel better.I have also found homes for about 7 kittens!! shes a very pretty tortie and the only new tom iv seen about is ginger,anyone have any ideas what colour the kittens could be? My sister works at the local cat rescue and has been checking her over for me,she thinks the kiitens are due in couple of weeks.Pooh is of course booked in to be spayed when her babies are old enough.
Ah ha! I am a self-proclaimed genetics freak!!!

If you have a female tortie, and red male, most of the kittens will be reds, you can get both red female and red males, but you can also get tortie females or black males. Or any of the dilute versions (blue or cream) of those colors if both of the parents carry the recessive dilution gene.

How much white does your girl have? Or the suspected tom? If they both have white, then you can get kittens with a lot of white. Or on the other hand, if they're both solid, then all the kittens will be solids. Without knowing the lineage (or who the father is) it really is a crap shoot, but in the meantime it's still fun to guess.

Have you felt the babies move yet??? Usually you have approx two weeks from the time you do.

Good luck and hope the wait is fast and stress-free!
 
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x~tracey~x

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Ahhhhhh brill!!! my girl is a dark tortie she does have one big ginger patch on her chest.And the suspected ginger tom (who looks a lot like my boy barnaby!!) is ginger and cream.Her mum was a tortie but had quite a lot more ginger and and cream ,as for poohs dad i have no idea.I hate waiting im very impatient!!.Have not felt kittens move yet the vet placed her at 3-4 weeks so she should be due in approx 2-3 weeks,her nipples have gone pink and shes looking fatter now.Still really playfull though!! And is tormenting my greyhound (martha!) as i type!
 

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Cats are pregnant for 9 weeks. When was her vet visit? If he placed her at 3-4 weeks, she has 5-6 weeks from that date.

If you havent felt or seen them move yet, I imagine you still have a while to go, but they are so lovey when they are pregnant that I so enjoy the wait while it lasts.

Our current foster, Twix, was WAY affectionate while preggo, and now that she has had the kittens, she is still semi-cuddly, but too occupied with the kittens to pay me more than a minutes notice.

I'd love to see pics of Pooh! We'll all be here waiting with you! Oh the agony!
 
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x~tracey~x

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I will try and get some pics of my gang on!! Pooh is mostly dark she almost looks brindle colour but she has big ginger blob on her chest and little cream splotches on her toes,my mum says she looks like a skunk cos she is smooth coated on her body but has a real fluffy long tail!!!we rescued her from some horrid people who were just breeding and breeding their poor cat they were getting rid of the kittens at 6 weeks!! my greyhound sort of addopted her!!.Then we have barnaby a beautifull 18 mnth ginger and cream tom hes a real mummys boy!!,and a 6yr old tortie female called Tibby she is very aloof!!! people dont realise we actually have her!!And we have martha a 8yr old rescue racing greyhound shes beautifull but not in looks!! poor thing had hard time and is covered in scars but is so gentle,oh and a rabbit willoughby.Poohs visit to the vets was 3 weeks this coming tues when he placed her at 3-4 weeks,she is still not showing that much though appart from when she stretches out then you can see shes pregnant.I know what you mean about being more friendly! shes actually coming to sit on my lap now which she has never done before.
 

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When Coco had her 1 Litter there was all xalico except one all Black Kitten. Coco is half Siamese but you can not tell. She is black and white and bred with a orange tabby. I just lost Stormy the Kitten I had kept last Dec at age 5. My new Kitten I got last nov is Black and White. Her Dad is a tabbey with a strange shaped face. Her Mom is a Calico. There was 2 tabbeys,one Black and my Oreo. It was worth the 2 hour drive to get her. Two of the Kitten have very long fur too. The Dad and Mom do not.
 
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x~tracey~x

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Sorry to hear about your loss.We lost one of our cats last nov he was a silver tabby half persian called Travis he was only a yr old its very hard to get over.I cant wait to see what poohs kittens look like! especially as it seems she may have ginger females.
 
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x~tracey~x

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Thank you will do.Shes worrying me a bit today she has been acting really oddly she keeps stretching out and has been spending most of day asleep in her nesting box i made for her,when shes not in her box shes been all over me and seems bit keen on biting today!! She isnt supposed to be due for couple of weeks yet should i be worried or is this normal? I have not done this before and am feeling very anxious and prob being paranoid!! If she looks at me weird im reading to much into it!!
 

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In addition to being very affectionate when pregnant, they are also very finicky! I notice what the mom cat likes one day, she doesnt the next... With our current foster, one day she would let me pet her stomach or feel them move and they next day she would bite me if I touched anything other then her head.

I guess I was crabby when I was at the end of my pregnancies too


If you havent felt the kittens move yet, then I imagine you still have at_least two weeks to go. Although... the kittens might be moving and you just dont realize that is what you are feeling. When you first start to feel them, imagine they are VERY tiny and their kicks are not very prominent. Look for the movement on mom's sides (her saddlebags) - not in her belly area. A cat's horns run along side her body. The initial kicks will be very faint and can be mistaken for stomach gurgles. I explain the feeling to my kids by running the tip of my finger gently along the palm of their hand. It is a very muffled feeling.

As the day approaches closer, you will probably notice her digging in the box you set up for her, not just sleeping in it.

Again - good luck - and dont worry about being paranoid... a lot of us have been there done that and understand how you're feeling.

Dont be afraid to ask away!
 
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x~tracey~x

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Yeah i felt lousy all through my pregnancy so sort of get where shes coming from!!! She is just behaving so confusingly!!! rolling around on fur purring giving the impresion she wants her belly rubed (have just had my hand bitten with blood drawn!!) and she so dosent want to!! But being lovely to my daughter!!!.I did notice her sides twitching earlier it looked like her nerves were all going on edge,almost like she has fleas she hasent of course!.Im also slightly concerned she has quite long fur on her belly this may sound silly but will this prevent any kittens from nursing
 

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I know how you feel. I haven't felt the kittens move, but I have seen her side moving just like you described it. My girl also has long hair on her belly, and although her nipples are pinkish, I haven't seen any type of swelling that indicates milk. If she wasn't so feral, I would take her to the vets and have her checked, but as she panics if anyone else is near her, I'll let her be. I just want to know for sure.
 
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x~tracey~x

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Thats hard! Iv not done all this before,im dreading being on my own with her late at night having kittens,getting behaviour problems with my tom cat aswell today,hes used to being the only one getting cuddles as pooh normally dosent like that!! Hes having what can only be described as temper tantrums and demanding to be carried everywhere!! and resorting to biting if i dont!
 

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My poor girl has to be in the same house with 3 dogs that would love to have her for a snack. (actually, my money is on my cat). I also haven't done this before. I do know the basics tho, so I'm hoping I don't mess things up too much..
 

marianjela

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Originally Posted by X~tracey~X

.Im also slightly concerned she has quite long fur on her belly this may sound silly but will this prevent any kittens from nursing
Not a silly question at all. The cat I am currently foster is long-haired and I did NOT trim the fur on her belly. The kittens arent having any trouble. That said some people do trim the fur, if the cat will allow it. The very first preggo mom I had, ended up getting mastitis after she delivered and the vets trimmed the fur on her tummy for me. If you do this - whatever you do - dont shave it bald! Just trim it low. I've read that some cats have razor sharp fur when it grows back in and can cause the cat pain.
 
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x~tracey~x

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Think i will leave the belly fur trim!! Her claws seem extra sharp at the mo and i dont think she will take kindly to me playing hairdresser! Have noticed today that her nipples do seem to be getting bigger and i can see them through her fur.
 
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