The story of a pregnant cat

Just thought I would make a thread to update regularly on my foster pregnant cat. (http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=211630)

So, Goupille is the name I chose for her (it's french and I just like the sound of it). It is probably just temporary since I will have to bring her back to the shelter when her babies are 8 weeks old (I think it's too young, so I will try to keep them longer before they are put to adoption).

She is doing fine and she eats more than when I first got her. Unfortunately, I am struggling to make her eat kitten food (I tried dry and wet food, but she wants nothing else than chicken).

I don't know how far along she is, but I will keep you posted on the progress of her pregnancy. For now, she has a round belly and I can see the little guys in there kicking and moving, so it shouldn't be much longer until the big day. She sleeps a lot, is very affectionnate and seems healthy although I find her too skinny. She is young and probably used to go oustide, wich might contribute to the small amount of fat on her body.

More tomorrow!
Marilou

Yeepee! She ate a lot of food today! And not any food: premium kitten food! Mission accomplished!
I am very happy and she seems to be doing really good.

I know, it's so exciting! Valentine's kittens! I think she is due before, because I have seen movements during the whole week now, so kittens will probably arrive in a week!! I hope everything goes well with your queen, keep me posted! What is her name?
I have to put some pictures on of mine while she is still pregnant

I am sure they will be adorable!

Goupille is doing great, she seems happy and she eats a lot now. But, still no kittens in sight! She spent some time in the boxe that I made her where I would like her to deliver her babies, so I guess she likes it.

You have a pregnant foster that is not pregnant?
That is strange! Was the pregnancy confirmed by a vet? What do her nipples look like?
But still, no matter what, fostering is great, isn't it?! You give a second chance to a lovely companion and you can never know what will happen!

Anybody else expecting kittens here?
And also, anybody could tell me when I am supposed to see milk discharge coming out of the nipples? I still haven't seen any...

Aw, that is so funny! I guess the people at your shelter are so busy, who can blame them for making mistake?! Although a pregnant cat and a male cat aren't exactly alike!
Teyah looks gorgeous.
What will you do with your not pregnant cat, will you keep her until you find a home for her?
As for Goupille, she is still pregnant and I am still really excited (I slept only 3 hours last night because she looked like she was more active and I thought maybe she was going to go into labor soon!)

I was first able to tempt her with chicken mixed with Prescription Diet Development formula (wet food) and pouring a bit of catnip on top of it. She now eats dry food, Royal Canin for kitten and I don't need to add anything to temps her. Her nausea are gone though, so it helps a lot that she doesn't feel like throwing up when she smells the food!

Still waiting for the kittens! She is laying at my side now and she is adorable, I think I am in love. She has the most silent purr I have ever heard. I can barely feel the vibrations when she purrs, but she shows it so much with her face and body when she is happy and wants to be pet.
I hope the delivery will go well.

Good, I hope she finds a nice home. I will try to find a home for every kittens and for Goupille before taking her back to the shelter. My goal is to have a home for all of them so that they stay at the shelter only for the time of the adoption procedure wich would be about 1 day at the vet for the vaccine and the spaying/neutering and then signing the paperwork. I will also try to keep them until they are 12 weeks old (they told me to bring them back at 8 weeks old! They would be so young :s ).

I tried to take pictures of Goupille, but there is not much natural light in the room so I had to use the flash, but I couldn't get a picture of her with her pretty green eyes open. I will try again today!

I have finally posted a few pictures of Goupille here: http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...98#post2818598

So, today is the big day!
So far, everything is doing quite good. I don't know if there are anymore kittens left to come, but she gave birth to 4 kittens in the last 3 hours. Unfortunately, one of the kittens (the third one) had a genetic disorder and was stillborn. His organs had grown outstide of his body and his spine was in a weird angle. It was a very sad moment. He was weighing only 74 grams, so I don't think he would have made it even without the genetic disorder. May he rest in peace.
The first kitten is a calico little girl. She arrived at 2:00pm and weights 122 grams. She seems strong and likes to vocalize! I had to cut her umbilical cord myself, I hope I did it right since it's my first time.
The second kitten came 10 minutes later. I am not sure, but I think it is a little boy. He is black with a bit of white on his nose and paws. He weights 113 grams. He seems healthy. I had to cut the cord again.
The third kitten came 30 minutes after #2. He was the stillborn. He was translucid. RIP little one. Then came a first placenta. (#1)
The fourth one was a suprise as he came an hour and 15 minutes later. I thought there were no more kittens left, because the mommy looked relaxed, so I put thre babies back with her, but then she had more contractions an hour later. I had to recut the cord because the mommy cut it too long. I am not sure of the sex of the kitten as I am not experienced enough. He (I will say he for the moment) is black and a big part of his face is white. He is the heavy one (128g) and likes to vocalize too. He came with another placenta. (#2)
A few minutes later another placenta arrived. (#3)
I am waiting for another placenta and maybe more kittens, who knows? She is nursing now and eveyone is very quiet as they are busy filling their little stomachs!
It is an awesome experience for me. I have never been this stressed in my life, but I didn't show it to reassure Goupille while she was in labor. She wouldn't deliver without me and tried following me when I went to prepare the heating pad!
I will keep you all posted.

So, finally there were no more kitens left to come!
The remaining 3 look super healthy, they are eating plenty and gaining weight fast! I am posting pics of them in a few minutes in the "fur pictures and videos" forum under the "pregnant foster" thread. They are so cute!
The moomy is doing great, she is eating and drinking and using the litterbox. She is taking real good care of the kittens, it is great to see.
Kailie, I am sorry your foster isn't pregnant, but at the same time I guess it is better this way: less kittens having to find a good home it this world.
I will certainly keep you posted and put many pics on.
I am blessed for having the chance to see Goupille give birth. I will never forget these moments.

So, a little update on the family!
The babies and the mommy are doing great. I found names for baby #1 (the female calico) and #2 (tiny black and white). They are respectively Eva and Zack. I am still thinking for baby #4. He is the one with the perfect little face, he will be so handsome when he grows up!
They are now almost 3 days old and they are 173g (Eva, #1), 164g (Zack, #2) and 172g (#3). They all gained between 44g (#3) and 51g (#1 and #2) since their birth, wich is great. #3 gained a bit less, but at this time, since it's been less than 72 hours, the fact that his brother and sister were born 2 hours before him can make a difference. I am keeping a close eye on all of them, but they seem healthy and strong. They should be loosing their umbilical cords today.
Goupille seems to have recovered very well from the delivery. She seems relaxed and happy. She is a good mother, as she stays all the time with her babies. Sometimes she will come out when she misses me or my fiance for a little pet on the head and then she goes back with her babies. She also takes the time to eat, drink and use the litterbox. Other than that, she is nursing, sleeping or cleaning the kids! She is an angel. I tell her she will never have to go through pregnancy again and that I will make sure she stays with me until I find a real good family for her. She is so tiny now that she is not pregnant anymore. I definitely have to make her gain some weight. I don't know what she was fed before I took her in, but it must not have been much.
That's it for today!

Hello! Just a quick update. The kittens are doing great and so is the mommy. She was really skinny when I took her in and it is hard for me to make her gain weight since she is nursing, but she is still a lot better than 2 weeks ago. The kittens on their side are gaining a lot of weight. They are only 7 days old and they've already double their birth size (Eva was 122g and is now 246g, Zack was 113g and is now 230g and Tim was 128 and is now 245g, so not yet double for him, but almost). I am very pleased by this. I am not taking any pictures of them for a little while, because their eyes should start opening soon and I am keeping the room too dark to take good pictures. In a week or two I should be able to take some pictures (they will still be dark, but not as much). They don't like when I weight them, they start crying loud instantly and Goupille doesn't like it either! But she lets me handle them even though she has that worried look on her face when they start crying.
So, that's it for now!

Yes she is on Royal Canin kitten food (dry). Should I give her wet food? I've tried both but she seems to prefer dry food than wet food. She eats good (about 2/3 of a cup daily). Do you think it is enough? From the look of her size, she certainly did not eat 1/4 of a cup before she got pregnant, she is way to small and skinny. She is certainly eating twice the amount of food she was before prgnancy (I don't think she was fed at all), but in her case, is it enough? When I took her in, she was skin and bones (and a big pregnancy belly). She was only 1 week and a half away from giving birth, so not much time for me to make her gain weight. She is such an angel, I just want the best for her. Bless her for going through pregnancy and now taking care of these babies. She will never have to go through this again.

Hello!
Just to tell everyone that the kittens are doing awesome! Mommy seems a bit bored though. She comes to me so I pet her everytime I enter the room and she sometimes try to escape from the room (it's a nice double room, so plenty of space if she needs it) but I can't let her since I have 2 cats of my own. Kitten's eyes are open now (although not wide open). They all weight around 290-300g. I can't wait to be able to put them in front of the window for natural light and take good pictures of them! I have to wait until their eyes are mature enough though, so another 2 weeks. I can already tell that Eve will be the loud one and Tim will be the easy one (you know, the one you can hold in your arms and he will stay all soft and happy?!). Zack is very quiet when he "mews" and he doesn't protest as much as his sister when I weight him! All 3 are growing beautifully. They havre more hair and look rounder, wich makes them look oh so cute!

Thank you!
Last few days I have been a bit worried about Tim (#3), because he did not gain enough weight during 3 days (5 grams a day instead of his usual 15g). He was his usual self, though, very vigorous, already trying to climb out of the nesting box. I bottle fed him during these days although he just did not seem hungry. Then he came back to normal and he grows fine now. They are all a bit more active and awake than before. They want to explore and boy, are they loud when they want their milk! Espcecially Eve and Tim. Eve doesn't like that much to explore. She is more easily scared than the boys. Zack is just awesome. He has this really quiet "mew" and most of the time he is just happy. If I take him out of the box, he will quietly explore a little and come back to me. All 3 are so adorable now that their eyes are open. They always look away vaguely because they don't see much and it looks as though they are big thinker! Lol
Mommy Goupille is gaining weight slowly and it is going to be so hard to let her go when it's time because I love her very much. She looks so young now that she is not pregnant, I wonder how old she is. Probably 1 year old top. I make sure she knows how to take care of her babies and she seems to be doing good although I think she doesn't lick them enough (the towel is not soiled often enough, so I will give her a hand with stimulating the kittens in the next days).
That's it for now! Pictures soon, in a week or so!