Is my cat about to abandon her kittens?!

foxymoron

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Hello all
I have some worries about my cat and am hoping you guys can help out. I'll give as much detail as possible.

I have a cat named Toodles. She is nearly 3 and has just given birth to her third and final litter of kittens.
Her first 2 litters were 4 in number and were very smooth births. She was an excellent mother and everyone was happy and healthy.
She was due to be spayed last month and although kept inside was discovered to be pregnant. We think maybe someone else inadvertently let her out as we have no other explanation. Anyway, she went into labour and i knew something wasn't right.
This time there was lots of blood and mucus at least 9 hours before kitten number 1 came along. A healthy boy. Then after another 6 hours she gave birth to a stillborn.
I waited with her until we could call a vet and her labour appeared to have stopped although i could feel one moving kitten inside her.
On taking her to the vet they said they would have to give her a c-section and that by a scan they could tell that the last kitten had no heartbeat.
Miraculously the last kitten actually survived!
Toodles coped well with the op and the vets did a fine job of the needle work.
The little surviving kitten is a girl. She had trouble latching on but with a little help over the first day has now got the ability to latch on and stay on.
Both gained about 30 g in the first day

However Toodles behaviour is skittish and I'm unsure of what to do.
She has had all of her litters in our kitchen but this time she is adamant that she wants to take the kittens to our bedroom and be on our bed.
I have tried to move her back twice to the kitchen without success, so i let her have her choice. However she only moves the little girl not the boy.
Also she seems not to be so attentive to the kittens and I'm finding she only gives them a good feed when I am there to pet her. She is very affectionate and seems to want a lot of attention and petting.
I am worried that she is abandoning these kittens.
Am I doing right by trying to encourage feeds?
I put the nesting bedding at the foot of my bed but this morning I woke to the baby girl next to me on the bed and Toodles elsewhere.
When she does feed she seems restless and keeps getting up. I'm guessing because she is in pain from the surgery??
As I said she has always been a very attentive mother so this behaviour is strange and worrying.
I would welcome any advice or tips on what to do with this situation so that these gorgeous little kittens live healthy and happy lives.
Thanks in advance
 
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foxymoron

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Ooh I forgot to mention!
That we kept a beautiful little boy from Toodles' last litter. He is now nearly 5 months old.
He is being very attentive to both mum and kittens. Sleeping next to them and cleaning them. He rarely wants to leave them but as he sometimes tries to play with them I don't let him near them at night or when I'm not around. It's just a bit too rough for my liking.
Toodles seems more than happy to have him around and has shown no aggressive behaviour to him whatsoever.
I'm just wondering if it's causing any harm to let him do as he's doing.
Thanks.
 

samgypsy

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Hello,
My cat's previous litter was a difficult one and she too had a C-Section. She gave birth to the first little girl naturally and couldnt get the others out. By the time the vets started the surgery the kitten that was in the birth canal did not make it, but they did get a little boy out. He was barely moving. The momma cat always moved the little girl and left the boy behind. She could sense that he was weak. He also had a hard time latching on. Everytime she moved the girl I would move the boy with her and kept tube feeding the boy. In a few days he got strong enough to latch on and she stopped leaving him behind. The mom also would not feed them as much as she should have. At about 2 weeks old, I had to start to syringe feed them, as might be your case. She would leave the kittens and stay away for longer periods of time. Too long for the age that the kittens were. I am not sure if it was the pain or not, but she just didnt want to be a mom. This litter she had all her kittens naturally and doesnt leave them for more than a few minutes at a time. Im thinking that maybe it is caused by the fact that they had surgeries. In the wild cats wouldnt have medical attention, so its kind of like we are tempering. Maybe the mother cats sense that those babies shouldnt have come and thats why they dont take care of them as well. Im not sure what the reasons are. But, make sure you have some syringes on hand and some KMR, wet kitten food, dry kitten food and maybe some nutrical on hand in case you need to supplement the kittens. If you need help with the exact amounts of the mixture and how to mix it let me know and I will post exact measurement and instructions. Good Luck!!!
 

goldenkitty45

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She may still have pain. Or the hard labor affected her mentally. Or something may be wrong with the surviving kittens that she can sense they may not live long (considering you had stillborn kittens).

I do hope that little 5 month old boy is neutered. If not, get him done now - kittens as young as 4 months have been known to breed and get pregnant. Do not put it past him to not fool around with mom - its possible that he can successfully breed his mother!
 

kai bengals

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My suggestion is to confine her and the kittens to a cage or a small room. At least for a week, so she settles in. Do not allow her the freedom to pick and choose locations for the kittens.
She needs to feel comfort in the same surroundings day after day, otherwise she will move the kittens to a location she feels good about, but you don't.
 
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