sahas kittens due in 5 days!! any last advice for me?

nikkigrant99

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hi my kitty is due on 18th of april (roughly) according to vet. im just wanting to make sure i am prepared. has anyone got any last advice for me as this is the first time i have looked after a pregnant cat/ been at labour? any help would be much apreciated
 
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nikkigrant99

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HERES SOME RECENT PHOTOS OF SASHA!



 
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nikkigrant99

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also forgot to say she keeps choosing to lie under my bed, im worried she has chosen this as a nesting place. i have put a box in my room with covers in it and a box in her room and other covers and bedding in her room along with food and her litter box. how can i discourage her from goin under my bed to have kittens?
 

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Congrats!! I am in the same situation as you!! Ginger will have a litter one of these days (I am not sure the due date but she is at the end of her 8 or the beginning of her 9th week!) I am kind of nervous!

I read on a website that it's best to always keep towels a scissor and desenfectant with you when she is in labour... Just in case she doesnt eat the placenta and doesnt cut the ombelical cord! On the other hand though  my vet told me 99% of the times a cat only needs quiet and she ll be a perfect mom on her own. :)

As for the nesting... I dont really know.. My queen seems like any box is good for her.. we have at least 4 boxes around the house with towels in it and she uses one every 2 hours ahah :)

One thing I would like to ask you: Ginger hasn't produced milk yet , she has longer pink nipples and no fur around them but the mammary glands did not increase in size at all... Is that something it is supposed to happen after she gives birrth? I thought the first thing kittens do when they are born is eat.. 

Love from Italy!



 
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nikkigrant99

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aww she looks lovely, sounds like our kittys are in same stage as sashas glands havent increassed either but has long nipples with no hair around them as well so im guessing this is normal. they only start to produce milk a day or so before labour from what ive read on here. think they are like humans and the kittens stimulate them.

you are lucky with the nesting boxes sasha will go in them if im there in the room with her but not really fussed about them if im not. she just wants to be in same room as me. she was mating from the week of the 14th for few days (couldnt get her in and neighbours heard noises) so im not sure exactly her due date but vet took the 14th as her conception day so i think she still has a wee wait to go yet.

congrats to ginger as well!!!! cant wait to hear more updates about her x
 

orientalslave

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Make sure you have the out-of-hours details for your vet to hand.  You almost certainly won't need them, but the middle of the night is not the time to find out you don't have them.  Also check if you go to the same place.

Do you have a set of electonic scales, that weigh to 1g or 1/10 oz?  Weighing the kittens at about the same time each day is the best way of seeing if they are growing.  They should put on 10g per day or more for the first 2-3 weeks, though losing a little in the first day or two is normal.  If you weigh them, do write down the results - relying on memory is far too hard.

Otherwise, look after mum and she will look after the babies.  Feed her good-quality food, as much of it as she wants, and when they are ready the kittens will start trying it.  There should be no need to feed either mum of kittens milk of any kind unless you are having to hand-feed or topup any kittens, and that doesn't happen very often and if you end up in that situation you really need showing how to do it safely.  tiny kittens don't have a cough reflex so if you feed to fast or with the kitten in the wrong position it can go into their lungs.  :(

And have industrial quantities of cat litter on hand!

Also - CAMERA.  We love photos!
 
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nikkigrant99

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thank you oriental slave and dont worry you will be inendated with photos lol. ive got kitchen scales but they are not electronic so will need to get them. i have been using catsan litter and alot of it already sashas bowels are getting loose plus she eating loads of felix kitten food both dry and wet.

what disinfectant would you suggest in case i need the scissors?

at moment mummy kitty is very happy and i can feel kittens move, i keep checking as want to make sure they ok, and she not minding as long as i pet her loads at same time lol
 
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nikkigrant99

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One thing I would like to ask you: Ginger hasn't produced milk yet , she has longer pink nipples and no fur around them but the mammary glands did not increase in size at all... Is that something it is supposed to happen after she gives birrth? I thought the first thing kittens do when they are born is eat..
here is a photo of one of sashas nipples on her tummy it hasnt increased either



ALSO DOES ANYONE THINK I SHOULD CUT HER TUMMY FURR TO HELP KITTENS GET IN TO FEED? SHE GETS STRESSED IF I TRY TO BRUSH HER TUMMY AT MIN AND I REALLY DONT WANT TO STRESS HER IF I DONT HAVE TO.
 

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This might sound funny :) Since I can't find a lot of info on italian websites, i often search in English... with the consequence that I dont know exactly what some specific terms are :   tame iodine solution (Betadine) for antiseptic. That s what the website said (i dont know if the site is a professional one but the person who wrote it is a doctor. But still you can find anything on the web so I hope this one is reliable).

It also suggested to keep in hand some Q tips and blunt scissor. and dental floss in case you need to tie the umbelical cord...

Also I don't think you should shave her, I think the kittens will be fine... but I am no professional :) i am sure there is some one who knows way better than me and can tell you!

Is your furry beauty a specific breed of cat?

Love 
 

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I have never used sissors on a cord.  I wash my hands well (I have short fingernails) and tear it as far away from the kitten as I can.  And it's something I've not had to do very often.
 

orientalslave

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If you are in the UK then Argos is a happy hunting ground for scales.  I use them in the kitchen as well.  :)
 
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nikkigrant99

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thanks both of you, yea im in uk will go to argos today and pick up a set. no idea where to get the right antisseptic but i will pop into vets on mon see if they can either sell me some or suggest best one. i will pro use my nails as well but i have blunt scissors just incase, and have dental floss at the ready. she eating loads at minute and seems to have taken a growth spurt over the weekend. 

she is part maine coon/ common tabby. sasha purring away lying in the sun in kitchen at minute while im wrtiting this. she is lapping it all up along with all the attention little monkey. my daughter is treating her like royalty to make sure she is happy. and i must say im like that most of time she a spoiled little monkey. 

your cats are so cute beafly, love the photo of your two cuddling. is it just 2 you have or do you have more?
 

orientalslave

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If you tear the cord with your fingernails it hardly bleeds, so no need for dental floss and one less thing for the queen to (possibly) worry at.  It's when a cord is cut it tends to bleed, not when it's torn or bitten.
 
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nikkigrant99

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thank you i hope i dont need to do anything, but your advice is great just incase i do have to. also have you delt with long haired cats do you think i should cut the hair on her tummy so kittens can easily get to nipples?
 

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Thank you Nikki! we have 4 cats, a dog and 2 tortoises ahaah :D we have a big house with front and back yard and a garden. My dog is an ouside dog and my cats come in and out as they wish! I ll post some more pics soon!

She looks a loooot like a main coon, that s why I asked :D do you have any more cats?

Seems like Ginger likes to keep me waiting :D I think she still needs a few days to pop :D 

Can't wait to see pics of your litter!!! 

Love

B
 
thanks both of you, yea im in uk will go to argos today and pick up a set. no idea where to get the right antisseptic but i will pop into vets on mon see if they can either sell me some or suggest best one. i will pro use my nails as well but i have blunt scissors just incase, and have dental floss at the ready. she eating loads at minute and seems to have taken a growth spurt over the weekend. 

she is part maine coon/ common tabby. sasha purring away lying in the sun in kitchen at minute while im wrtiting this. she is lapping it all up along with all the attention little monkey. my daughter is treating her like royalty to make sure she is happy. and i must say im like that most of time she a spoiled little monkey. 

your cats are so cute beafly, love the photo of your two cuddling. is it just 2 you have or do you have more?
 
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nikkigrant99

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aw when was gingers expected due date again? cant wait to see pics of her litter! how many do you think she is having? i think sasha will pro have like 3 or 4. but i have 7 homes lined up :S

busy household then, we have just sasha and our girls (aged 1 and 3) we did have a hamster but she passed after 2 and half years :( )

sasha acts like a maine coon as well, my husband think she acts like a dog lol.

i keep checking and feeling if kittens moving just to see if they ok i swear im a nervous wreck for her lol its just the waiting game now they in the last week im trying to keep myself busy so im not checkin on her every 2 mins to see if she in labour. i dont think she will go early tho with it being her first litter. kittens are still quite active, but slowing down a little.
 
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nikkigrant99

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daddys came round to see if kittens are here yet, lol
 
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nikkigrant99

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ooh i think i may have spotted a little discharge from sasha, she wont let me close enough to check properly. and her mammary glands are swollen now so think she should have them this weekend. well i hope :D
 
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nikkigrant99

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still no sign of kittens :( 

sasha keeps sitting at back patio door looking out and the males that caught her are creeping about outside.

has anyone else had the males come back around ?

anyone else have any news?
 

orientalslave

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The males will always keep coming back to the scene of their conquests.  Personally I would borrow a trap and get them neutered.
 
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