Please help me :(

My 6 yo cat Sasha has been pregnant since august 4. It was my son's birthday and he was begging me to allow this beautiful stray orange male tabby to stay with us. I was reluctant but it was his bday and I figured it couldn't do any harm. Well i didnt know it but my Sasha was in heat and even though the cat was only here for 2 days, he managed to get her pregnant and give her fleas all in that one meeting. Although I found all this out later. When we found out we were happy though because we had already wanted another cat anyway and I already knew a few people who wanted a kitten.

Well after a long wait she finally went into labor and gave birth to 1 strong healthy kitten yesterday oct 13 at around 7 am. It is now oct 14 9am and there are no more kittens. I can feel that there are still some lumps in her belly although it looks much smaller. Her cervix looks closed and isn't even leaking any discharge. She is eating and drinking and won't leave the kitten or the closet. She does not cry and doesn't look sick just a little tired. She's doing better today than yesterday. How bad is this? I read somewhere that if there are dead kittens inside they could cause an infection or they may get reabsorbed by the mother's body.

What do I do? I called the vet and they told me it would cost 400$ for a checkup X-ray and emergency spay. That's not even counting any flea medication. 1000$+ if I do a c section. I don't have the money and I am very worried about my cat. Could she be having interrupted labor? Can i induce her labor? Dystocia? Does anyone know any free or low cost vets? Or even something with a payment plan? How long can I wait? I can't have my Sasha die on me. I would be destroyed. what can I do? Please help. Any advice is appreciated. As for criticism, please don't, I feel bad as it is and anything u tell me I've already thought about. I never spayed her because she was strictly a house cat. Bad move. Lesson learned. I just don't want to lose my baby now

She really needs to be seen by the vet to be sure all is well.

Chill out until 36 hours after the first birth. Interrupted labour is common enough to be called natural in cats. Primary inertia, where the cat cannot give birth, is usually accompanied by a very vocal and distressed moggie. Make sure the cat does not feel stressed, as this will increase the inertia.

If nothing happens after about 36 hours then it's time to call the vet. The vast, vast majority of births do not need human or veterinary interference, they just need to be left in peace.

Thanks I'll try to relax but it's hard because I was hoping it would have gone normally. I'll keep u posted.

Originally Posted by Drmuneca

Thanks I'll try to relax but it's hard because I was hoping it would have gone normally. I'll keep u posted.

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Like I said it's so common that it IS normal for this to happen, so be brave and hang in there for a bit

Thanks I'll try to relax but it's hard because I was hoping it would have gone normally. I'll keep u posted.

I know nothing about pregnant cats because all of mine are spayed/neutered. I assume Gareth is correct and you can wait the 36 hours given that your cat is still acting okay.

HOWEVER, if it starts showing signs of distress, you absolutely have to take it to the vet! There is a finance option available to pet owners that really helps for large bills. You can read about it at www.carecredit.com. Usually they will give you 6-12 mos to pay a bill with no interest at all. Please check into them and get financial assistance if you need it.

That said, I have to say this: You chose not to spay your cat. Then, you chose to let a male stray around her (knowing she was not spayed). You chose to let her continue with the pregnancy. Now, YOU alone are responsible for this cat and for her well being. If money was an issue, then perhaps you should have thought of that before allowing her to become pregnant. I am not trying to be mean, but it is very irresponsible to allow a cat to get pregnant and then complain because it is going to cost quite a bit to take it to the vet!

Please, if you do nothing else, have this cat spayed once she has all of her kittens!

I agree with Gareth.
Seeing a vet is good if you want to be safe.

But as Gareth says, it is quite common kittens come many hours apart. And as long the mom seems contend and without any stress, the usual advice is you can wait. Forumists tell when they phone their vet they do usually get this advice too.
You must look out of course. Signs of distress, rising temperature, bleeding more than a rosy discharge...

Did you happened to see if the placenta, the mother cake come out? (the mom cat usually eats it, so if you didnt watched, you perhaps didnt saw).

IF you are sure the placenta did get out, so with a little luck this may be all.
Only one kitten isnt that unusual.
And forumsts tells often enough of a situation like yours:
Kittens com out, the mom seems contend, but there is still a clump inside.
Another kitten? Placenta left??
But nothing more happens - it was nothing. Probably the uterus naturally swollen and bigger than ususal...

As said, to be 100% a visit to vet is wise.
But in practice you can get very long with trying to take it easy, but watching out...
As long mom is contend etc.
The moment you see mom is not well, phone at once!

In the meantime, look after a good but cheaper vet. Sooner or later you must do the spay in any case. After it spay preferably the kittens too when they have enough age and weigh...

Good luck!

Isn't it possible for the vet to just feel her and see if there are kittens still? Just a vet visit can't be that expensive. I assume the fleas are gone? if not, it would be good to do some research here on the forum.

They can also do xrays to see skeletons.

But honestly, SO SO many times here, we hear of people thinking there are more kittens and it's just the uterus. Cats have a two-horned uterus I believe, and it can be pretty lumpy after giving birth.

Make sure she has lots of food and water and a litter box really near. If she becomes distressed...she does need to be rushed to the vet.

I think BlueRexBears analysis is accurate, to put it both frankly and bluntly.

I can add. Helping strays IS a praiseworthy, good deed.
He was with you 2 days, I hope you did helped him find a home or at least, a good shelter.?

I must tell: the usual rule of thumb is to isolate the rescued stray at least for some days. Deworm and defleasing them at least. See if they have any contagious sickedness (letting a vet check up is highly recomended too). Etc.
Homeless have almost always some worms, fleas, mites. Also the homeless who are essentially entirely healthy.
Firstly AFTER this isolation, etc - you let them met with the residents.


But as long you know better to the next time you help a stray - this was a cheap lesson.
It could get much worse...


Good luck!

If you have read through this section of the forum, you have probably seen many messages where people were sure there were more kittens. They were almost always wrong.

Cats are odd in they are "on demand" ovulators. Each time they mate, an egg is released. It's possible your cat mated only once and thus conceived only one kitten.

Do NOT use any flea medicine on the mother or kitten without the approval of a vet. It could seriously injure or kill the kitten.

If your Momma is eating and drinking and acting normal ... there is no need to fret. If she has babies in her that are dead, eventually she will either pass them or she will become noticably sick. First clue would be her not eating.
I have fostered for years. I had a momma cat deliver 3 kittens, wait three full days and deliver a fourth. All kittens were healthy. I did have one that gave birth to one, laboured heavily without passing a kitten. Took a 12 hour break and then gave birth to two more. One kitten did pass away within days..I believe he was the one that was stuck during deliver and had some sort of oxygen deprivation.
I recently had a momma cat abort her entire litter and it took three days for her to pass all the fetus'. I watched for any signs of sickness but she seemed fine and went on to be spayed.
If this is her first litter and the tom was there for a short time, then she may only have one. If so...aren't you lucky! Keep us posted!