Isabella's journey

So my dear Isabella was thought to have been sterile, the vet was almost adamant about it. So we opted not to spay her, why put her though it if she was not able to reproduce. Yeah with my history of rescue work I should have known better. Needless to say Isabella sneaked out of my house for the first time ever the night of December 4th, and I did not get her back till Dec 6th. She was trapped in an abandoned house next time mine, which has TONS of cats I try and trap as often as I can. So I called the vet, she was fine, no illness caught, no wounds etc. We started the watching game, waiting to see. By Christmas it was obvious, we were going to have babies! Bella is normally a very thin, sleek cat, we are talking run way model fit  . So when her teats started standing out from her fur I also started feeling little bubbles as my son likes to call them. The vet said to go by Dec 4th, based on that date she is 38 weeks and still not to fat. Most of my work with pregnant cats over the last 21 years as been in the later stages, with only one MAYBE two weeks left. So at least I can help her when it comes time to birth, I am just as a loss and in fascination at this part of the process. It's neat to feel the  "bubbles" flutter when she lets me rub her belly. She was always a super affectionate cat before pregnancy, I miss that, she can get mean now, actually biting you and growling cause she doesn't want to cuddle.

This is her belly at 34 days. When do you think she will REALLY balloon out? 

 

Hi and welcome!

How old is she?  As you were practically sure she was sterile...

I mean, it is not too late to spaying / abortion, without the surgery being very tricky. 

If she is 5+, abortion would be perhaps recommended.

Good luck!

She is around a year old, we think maybe April for birthday but its hard to say(she was a rescue) her adult fangs came in fast(at the end of may) so I thought she was more January, but she is one of those cats that stayed small, so the vet was saying early April for birthday. The vet says she should do ok giving birth and said maybe 4 babies were felt. She seems to be holding up well other than moody instead of loving, she is eating like a cow lol. We plan to keep two babies and the rest even if she has more than 4 have homes lined up. But we have housed 9 before, so I am up for the challenge(thank goodness for old mill homes and spacious room). It was the vet who convinced me that she was sterile given her age and the fact that we have wild male cats running around outside, he said she should have had her first heat in Sept or Oct. When both came and went he was positive she was sterile. My only wonder for her babies is if they will have the same condition she does, which is syndactyle. Both her brother and sister had it, the brother having 3 paws with it and the sister with 2, while Bella has all 4. I am guessing because of her small size she was just a "late bloomer" as far as heat cycle. My plan is to have her and all her babies fixed when she is done weaning them.  I just cant bring myself to spay her at 38 days especially after seeing what the fetus look like at this stage. Its my error and in the end my responsibility so even if they cant find homes by 12 weeks they are more than welcome to stay with me till they do or even if they don't. I have used this error in judgment to teach my friends that this is why I have always pushed them to fix their animals as soon as they can, cause you never know. Needless to say the vet she sees now is NOT the one who said "oh yeah, she is definitely sterile".

Oh and my avatar is her as a baby not now lol just encase someone wondered. That was taken the first day I had her, end of May. I really think she was born more in January. My 5 year old cat the rescue she came from said she was 9 weeks when we got her. During a visit to the vet she was double fanged, he told me if she had not been fanged he NEVER would have believed her only 5 months, so he said my guess of 6 weeks was closer than their guess of 9 weeks. And I honestly do not see how a two month of kitten would have adult fangs in.

She is so pretty, reminds me of my Sophie.  Is she a buff, cream color with white socks?  My cat just had kittens January 2nd, and I knew pretty early in the pregnancy like you did and the waiting is nerve racking.  I was expecting kittens around Christmas (I didn't know when she got pregnant) and she didn't have them until after the new year.  Sophie was a pretty small cat and she only started having a true pregnancy belly about 3 weeks or so before she delivered.  By the last week she was as big as a melon, I thought she would burst!  The vet said she delivered closer to 70 days gestation, my kittens came out super fuzzy and today they are only 10 days old and all but one of them have their eyes completely open at this point.  Check out my thread "Sophie's Pregnancy Log" there are some great answers to questions I had there, and pictures of my little fur balls.  Enjoy her being pregnant, though the wait can be crazy at times... Just watching her for signs of impeding labor had me crazy, go to figure in the end I definitely didn't have to look for signs, it was obvious when she was in labor.  

I wish you and your queen the best of luck and good vibes, and if you ever need someone to talk to about anything feel free to shoot me a message, all the pregnancy fun is still super fresh in my mind. LOL  

Ah, so if she isnt no oldie the pregnancy  and delivery should go entirely OK!  No real reason for abortion then!  

As as the kittens are welcome and you are sure of good homes for them.

Lets hope the vet did learned something of this. To declare somebody sterile who is merely young and a little late in development.  Not all kittens get fertile at 5 months, you know. for some it may take a year too.

Besides, the advice not to spay because she is sterile is bad.  Also sterile cats do have heats.  And going many heats without results is not very healthy either.

I would understand such a decision in a perhaps 10 year old female. But a one year??

If you mean, she didnt had heats at all?

 first. If she was a late developer, she wouldnt have.

second, some females have quiet heats, very hard to notice. 

But a tom would of course know.  Also some late spayed males could know.

Yeah I think she is a quiet heat cycle kitty. I had semi wondered in November because she went from very affectionate to extremely affectionate, I just have never run into a cat that is quiet till now. Jules I saw the thread on Sophie, to funny hehe.

Now let me ask yawl this, all 4 cats get 4 bowls filled with 1/3 cup twice a day, some days no food let in after, and some days there are (like tonight and I heard Bella chomping away in there, she is the only one with a bell on her collar). Should I be feeding her more now? Or keep her at the same feed? She is naturally lean so I wasnt sure.

She is doing well other wise, sleeps more often than not. Poor Jack (our youngest) he always snuggles with her etc, well now she hardly wants him around and will actually hiss and swat at him(which is odd cause she never hisses at anyone or swats).

This is a back view of her today, 39 days. I still can't believe we are almost to the end, seems like yesterday she got out and made me cry trying to find her for 2 days.

Oh and I think the 4 babies thing, nuh uh! I felt at least 3 walnuts on each side last night! 

Oh yeah, I made her a baby area, used my x-large kennel from back in the day(it housed a 180lb shepherd) I folded the side with the door in so it's open and draped blankets over top to make it dark and laid a thick blanket inside with a cat bed covered in catnip to entice her......she wont go in it! lol She lays on top, but not in, Loki my 10 year old yeah he sleeps in it. She has never been one to go in something, usually sleeps with me. So umm should I except she'll want to have them on my bed? ROFL

Yeah, it is high time to safeguard she gets good nourishing / more food. Especielly you are positiviely sure she does have at least 3 kittens, so it will not be a mini-litter.     What you will do depends on what you had given her up till now.

The standard and easiest is to give pregs  kitten food.   Perhaps also some extra calcium.  Say some youghurt or cheese if she likes it.

ShortKitty said:

This is a back view of her today, 39 days. I still can't believe we are almost to the end,

Click to expand...

You know of course it is about 25 days left? Perhaps even 30?  

    Pray it is better some day extra but not shorter.  Cat babies arent good at too short pregnancies.  Human babies are better at this.

StefanZ said:

You know of course it is about 25 days left? Perhaps even 30?  
    Pray it is better some day extra but not shorter.  Cat babies arent good at too short pregnancies.  Human babies are better at this.

Click to expand...

Oh I know but 40 days as of today is 40 days closer to the end lol. I honestly am thinking from what I felt that she may have closer to 6 than 3. So yeah cook longer the better.

Ok curious question. Bella's stomach still hasn't "popped" so maybe she isn't having as many babies as I thought. But what has me confused is she has gone from sleeping all the time to suddenly following me everywhere today, even hung out in the bathroom during my son's bath time(she has been avoiding us for at least 90% of the time, sleeping usually), she even came to cuddle with me, acting like the Bella she was before she got pregnant. What could be going on? I think I have felt the kittens move, little air bubble like feelings. She escaped Dec 4th, so she would be around 46 days. Any ideas?

Hormonal changes of sorts!  Pleasing herself into a friendly company, a friendly colony.

For homeless cats this stadium is very useful - it is now as many semiferals do please themselves into a friendly home... and thus find shelter and protection for themselves and later on, their babies.

So is my hypothesis.   

Good luck!

Going from the 4th Dec, she is due (65 days) on 7th Feb so she has just under 2 weeks to go.  She might get a lot larger in that two weeks.

I would always spay even if the cat is apparently sterile since (as you found out!) she might be a silent caller, and repeated calls are not good - they can lead to pyometria, and increase the chances of breast cancer.

Hope all goes well.  The FAB (www.fabcats.org) has lots of good information on cats having kittens, and suggest you find out now what your vets out-of-hours arrangements are.  If you have to go somewhere you haven't been before, take a daylight trip there.  Trying to find somewhere you've never been before when you are possibly panocky, at night, isn't easy.

Nice-looking cat and you will have tortie or ginger girls from her, and ginger boys, all with or without white.

Whelp Bella has been howling the last two days and very antsy. Her temp dropped under 100 a bit ago and she can only seem to sleep for 5-10 mins before she is moving to get comfy again. Called our after hours vet and they said she is in early signs of labor, could be 2-3 hours before she goes full blow or 2-3 days. :/ at 54 days at midnight I want her to hold out longer but what can you do. Nature makes these choices. Keep your fingers crossed for her.

whelp either she got preg by Jack before escaping or our babies will be semi premie(the vet said they may still survive). She has started to have discharge at the vulva and is crying out a lot. I just hope the babies make it

Any news on what happened???

Sorry havent posted. The babies were still born sadly. She's been very down since than, as we all have in the house, the other 3 cats are being very comforting to her

I'm so sorry - best wishes for Bella's quick recovery, and for the rest of your family.