What symptoms did your cat show right before giving birth?

well my cat is always laying around and she has not made a nest or any thing but she is really fat her nipples are in larged but ill squeeze them and nothing comes out  think you.  

My pregnant cat is due any day now we're just playing the waiting game now she has been nesting like crazy and
Grooming herself a lot it would kinda be bad timing if she had them on the 4th of July while we have our BBQ and lighting fireworks so I hope she has them 2night

well said - on the program My Cat From Hell the statistics show that if you had 2 outdoor cats in your yard - in 7 years how many cats would you have?  420,000  true statistic.  I am fostering 4 kittens and finally caught the Mom who is pregnant again - her first litter kitties are about 15 weeks old - she is now inside and very affectionate - nipples are pinking up - should be within the week I think.  The problem with not fixing your animals is there are people out there that are just mean - they pick up kittens and puppies that are FOR FREE and use them as bait for dog fights - it happens all the time - it makes me sick - sick enough that I will again foster these up and coming kittens and get them fixed as well before adopting them out - and when I say adopting them out I mean full background screenings just like the human society does - the shelters are so overloaded with feral babies that they are having to put them to sleep because there are not enough fosters out there to help.  Please for the sake of the animals get your animals fixed and do not let them outside.  So many possibilities for them to get hurt or contract a deadly disease like leukemia or aides - I am sure being pet lovers you do not want to see them hurt or suffer.

Some people are on this board  are getting information on Strays that are having kittens in their back yard and no  shelter will take themI   I have called many in my area

  So we are not all breeding our cats some of us are trying to help strays that belong to no one, this one I first saw about two weeks ago.  BTW   all the strays around have been fixed  

so we don't know where she came from  but i am certainly going to help her!  So we don't need a lecture on cats having kittens.

janen said:

 
Some people are on this board  are getting information on Strays that are having kittens in their back yard and no  shelter will take themI   I have called many in my area

  So we are not all breeding our cats some of us are trying to help strays that belong to no one, this one I first saw about two weeks ago.  BTW   all the strays around have been fixed  

so we don't know where she came from  but i am certainly going to help her!  So we don't need a lecture on cats having kittens.

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A very good point janen. Unfortunately, this is a very old thread that went very off topic and so there are a ton of emotions going on here. 

The stance of this site is to always give quality advice without judgement, regardless of the circumstances under which the cat become pregnant. That said, it is also a pro spay and neuter community. Trying to achieve this balance what you see most often is some stellar advice followed by a reminder to spay and neuter the Queen and kittens when they become of age. 

You are also very right that people acquire kittens through all sorts of circumstances: some foster while others have a housecat that winds up pregnant despite their best efforts and intentions, and yet others have Queens choose them and show up on their porch with a heaving belly or babies in tow. The best way to minimize any tensions is to start one thread detailing your specific situation, and use it for all your follow up questions. Problems arise when people start using multiple threads and users can't read the backstory or the advice that has already been given. This leads to repetitious advice (especially advice to spay and neuter when it may not be applicable to the original poster) and lots of hurt feelings which is rarely anyone's intention. 

What has happened in this thread is many users have come here to give their stance on the subject, or talk about their situation without providing the backstory. It's just a cluster of opinions with very little context, and is not a typical thread for this site because of it. 

I would urge you to not use this thread as your basis for what the site is about, and to please start a new thread detailing your own situation if you need advice. Also, be sure you read through the rules carefully so you know what's going on. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/247178/pregnant-cats-kittens-forum-code-of-conduct-read-before-you-post . Following these simple tips can make your experience a very enjoyable one! 

Welcome to TCS! 

Tabby went into labor about 8 pm march 26,2013 and had buddy march 27,2013 at about 12 am. She was extremely clingy and i flipped out when her water broke because i thought she peed the bed then she started bleeding and she decided that she wanted me. When he came out i heard a ear rechied yowl and told her to shut it cause i thought she was just wanted attention ( i was asleep so dont get mad i always cuss and fight in my sleep so i would expect it if i got a ruied awakaning) i didnt know she was preg so i shot up when i heard a meow that didnt sound normal. Woke up my bf andthat how buddy came to be. I held him the first day within a few hours. Tabby came to me pregnant. She is a very trusting cat even with buddy when he was little ( he is almost 6 months)

I can see having strays fixed! They have no homes and don't need to multiply but some owners do want a bigger family and if they are well looked after , clean, fed , loved and spayed/ neutered then it is none of your business! My cat is also expecting and NO it was not my choice, she was a stray we took in about 1 month ago but we had no idea she was until a few weeks ago. She will be spayed and her kittens will have a nice home! After being adopted it will then be up to the owners to have them taken care of. Sometimes cats escape as well and its not the owners fault the cat got out. Don't be so judgmental , it's not like some of us are letting our cats out and laughing at the thought of them multiplying and having no homes , running rampid all over town! We here are all excited and happy to be adding to our family and plan to keep a few ourselves    the rest already have good homes even before birth!

Hey i do love kittens and yes it is heartbreaking when they get put down just make sure that you either are planing to keep them or have homes you know they will be safe

My story was easy now looking back on it. It was Dec 27th I was home and I was sick on a breathing mask do being a smoker. But I neversmoked in door or around my cats. So I haerd the crying of my cat in heat as I laid down resting on the couch. My cat ketp running out and into the room I was in. I finally got up the strength to go see what was going on with her. When I walked into the room I saw my male cat getting ready to mount het and she was moving into it. I knew I did not have the strength to stpp her then to run all over the house to stop her. It was taking all the engine I had to just get up and see what see going on. So when I started feeling better I made a apointment to see the vet. The said he did not feel swelling in the nipples but that it was likely do to what I saw. A few weeks went by and I started feeling swelling in the nipples. I made another apointment with the vet and told him my cats nipples are swelling. The vet again said it was likely but he did not feel anything. A few more weeks went by while I was thinking as I could not disclaim what I knew was going on with my cat. I finlly went to a different that vet said it was likely but they could not feel anything. Finlly at 6th 7th week the first vet said they felt something. So all their was to do at this point was wait till my cat had her babies. On the 68th day I woke up and checked to see were my cats where as I often did. I found the queen look at her in the dimmly lite room then went to open up my shades. Where my other female cat hissed at my queen cat. Thats when it hit me. I thought to my self my black and white cat only hisses like that to alert me when something is not right. So I was told that my queen cat had her babbies by my other female cat. I would not have known other wise I bypassed right by it.

5 days ago i took in a lost cat, i took her to the vets straight away, no mocrochip and a scan confirmed she was 6+ weeks pregnant, ive tried everything from notices in the area, facebook pages and lost cat sites to find her owner, she is extremely affectionate, but i dont know if this is because she is close to labour or she is just a friendly cat.. she doesnt seem to be nesting, but maybe thats because she doesnt know my house? ive set up a box and feeding her wet kitten food (alot of it) she was eating alot at first but now shes eating just a little bit and leaving it, shes more interested in me, coming for cuddles.. i know shes due soon but because i dont know this little girl, i dont know her behavior, i worry when i see posts on other forums about cats eating their babies or other problems during labour, ive set up a nesting room in my dining room as i have 2 small children and a husky (Storm has no problem with cats but this little kitty really doesnt like my dog so have to keep them seperate) im sleeping on the settee in the next room to her in the hope that im there if she needs me, but ive always been a deep sleeper so im worried i wont hear her.. anyone have clear signs of labour? or when the queen might go into labour? i have everything including powdered baby animal milk ready, just worried i wont be there when she needs me... also, she will be spayed as soon as possible after kittens are born..

Cats r pregnant fir 60-62 days. My stray was very affectionate and would cry when I left the room. That went on for two days. Then she started panting and you could see the
Muscles in her stomach contract the more the contractions the closer to labor. Best if luck. It is great you are doing this for her.

Lolabell i am a deap sleeper also but when she is in labor and has the kittens if it is her first litter ( or even not) she mostlikely will make a horrible yowel like mine did and im a heavy sleeper and she woke me up out of a dead sleep

Pregnancy is normally 66 days from first mating, but scanning is nothing like as accurate for predicting due date for cats as for humans.  If you can feel kittens moving she is in the last couple of weeks.

Cats cary hugely in signs of being ready to give birth, but a common one is looking a little bit thinner as their belly has dropped a bit and the kittens moved into place for delivery.  My own Oriental queen had just about no signs even a few hours before - no nesting, no sudden filling of her breasts, no restlessness, no nothing.

Make sure she has a couple of nests to choose from,  Are there places she can hide away?  My cat had hers under my sideboard tucked away in a hooded nest that was under it.  Then she moved them under the sofa.  Then into the inside of the cover on the radiator nest in my bedroom.  Then into a drawer under my bed.  Then into another drawer...  At that point they were almost 3 weeks old so I moved them all into my spare bedroom, where I had wanted her to give birth!

Cardboard boxes make excellent nests as you can throw them away, and you can also cut the side down when kittens are ready to toddle.

Mum also needs worming.  In the UK we can get Milbemax which is safe for pregnant & lactating queens.  Roundworm are the issue as they can become encysted (where a wormer doesn't kill them) and then emerge in late pregnancy when they cross from mother to kitten in her milk.  We don't bother testing for worms in the UK, we go straight ahead and treat.  Milbemax is very safe and effective, and Panacur is effective against roundworms and can be given to kittens too young for Milbemax.

http://www.vcahospitals.com/main/pe...animal-health/roundworm-infection-in-cats/336

thank you all for your comments she still hasnt given birth but shes 8+ weeks so i know shes due, shes started constantly craving attention, crying loudly (like barking) and laying on the floor with her bum in the air, still no nesting though.. ive got boxes all over the place but she isnt interested.. i will keep you updated..

Good luck - and for the record my Cat never nested - but was doing what you have described above and the next day had the kittens.  Very exciting.

my Mollie had no symptoms except for being in her nest for longer than 5 minutes.  I took a picture of her and hour before birth in her box, and she was behaving completely normally. she suddenly gave a huge screech and 1st kitten arrived 2 minutes later!

Are all vats really big when they only have 2?

Alley looked for a spot for weeks before but I made her one where she wouldnt be bothered too much and I could close the door. She jumped up on my bed at 6am , in between my legs and she was purring very loudly and I patted her. I could feel her belly contracting so I shined my cell phone light on her and I could see a sac popping out of her. I put a towel under her and my daughter and I carried her to her bed . We got to watch all 3 kittens be born but it took a few hours and the first was feet first with the sac broken , it wasnt until later I read it was dangerous to come feet first . But now we have what looks like this ...They are much bigger now with thier eyes open and a wiggly wobbly walk LOL!

wow sounds like an experience. my cat( whom i love so much) is pregnent im not sure for how long but i can feel the babies kicking(amaizing)it is her first litter soooo i have no idea what to expect, im excited and nervous i thnk she is farely close to giving birth. how do i know when she is in labour and what can i expect?

Hope the best