Just a few questions

Hey guys... I just came across this site today while searching for some answers to my questions so i thought i should maybe get some friendly advice. I have a pregnant cat, Izzie, who i think is getting ready to pop. I know the last time she went into heat was around the 1st of March and she is getting pretty huge. I felt kittens kicking my hand today for the first time but i dont see them moving (my cat is a long haired black beauty though so i think all her fur might be whats preventing me from seeing them move). Does this mean shes close to having them? I have been doing a little research online but most people are saying they can be pregnant for anywhere from 57 to 73 days!! thats a huge time gap though so i was wondering if any of you knew of a better approx due date? Any help will be much appreciated! Thanks

Average is 65 days from first mating, less than 60 and the kittens don't do well, 70+ is usually too long.

If she first mated 1st Match then May 5th is her due date, so from May 1st to May 10th.

Hope you get her neutered when the kittens are weaned.  There are a lot of people here who work with rescues and see many healthy cats & kittens euthanased because there are no homes for them, so advice here is almost all pro-neutering - and pre-neutering before the cat has any kittens.

thanks.... we are most definitely getting her spayed as soon as possible. she is a completely indoor cat and we have no other cats so we werent in a huge hurry to get it done. this was her first heat cycle and she somehow managed to get outside but was back in within an hour. i thought we were safe but obviously not. getting her fixed is a first priority. i was just trying to get a good approximate due date cause i wanna be home with her if possible since she has never gone through any of this before. Im just being an over protective mom probably but im worried about her. thanks again though

thanks.... we are most definitely getting her spayed as soon as possible. she is a completely indoor cat and we have no other cats so we werent in a huge hurry to get it done. this was her first heat cycle and she somehow managed to get outside but was back in within an hour. i thought we were safe but obviously not. getting her fixed is a first priority. i was just trying to get a good approximate due date cause i wanna be home with her if possible since she has never gone through any of this before. Im just being an over protective mom probably but im worried about her. thanks again though

Cats in call are notorious for suddenly becoming mini-Houdinis.  Next time you get a female cat, get her neutered before she starts to call, or if the same thing happens get her spayed as soon as she comes out of call.  That would have been the smart move this time, since you didn't intend her to get pregnant.  Spaying not only prevents pregnancy, but it protects against breast cancer and pyometria.  The more times a cat calls without pregnancy the greater the risk of these two diseases.

It's good to know when she is due - look at all the people here with not the faintest idea.  Since she was only out for an hour you have a pretty good idea, but it's the day she got out from you add 65 to, not the day she started calling.  And yes, you need to be around when she has her kittens.  Cats normally don't have any problems but some want their paw held, and some need the vet Right Now.

She can be neutered once the kittens are weaned - a minimum of 8 weeks after birth.  But, she may come back into call and try to get out again before then so be very vigilent once she's had the kittens.

thanks again. i have actually already called a vet about when i could get her fixed and the vet told me to call back the week she has the kittens and we can then know when we need to set the appt for. I didnt know that she could get diseases from not getting her fixed and allowing her to go into heat so that definitely makes it an even higher priority. Not to mention when shes in heat and we refuse to let her out, her calling can be very loud and non stop so its defintely a must! Plus, being the animal lover i am, if i couldnt get the kittens adopted i would end up keeping them myself so we dont want anymore liters!! Hopefully everything works out with this one! Even though they were unplanned im getting to the point where im excited... kittens are probably the cutest thing in the world so once she has them we'll defintely enjoy them for the 8 weeks they are ours! Thanks for all your help though. i got the 5th marked on the calendar and we'll be watching her very closely!

8 weeks is far too young for rehoming, they need to stay with their mum for 12 weeks. Mum and bubs can be fixed at 10-11 weeks

As mentioned above she'll probably call during that time, my girls (registered breeder) tend to call when kittens are 4-6 weeks old

8 weeks is too young for rehoming? i was told 6 to 8 weeks so i figured i would give them the full 8 weeks with mom. do they need to stay with her longer? and if so whats the earliest i should start adopting them out?

Ideally 13 weeks and vaccinated.  6 weeks is far, far too young for going to new homes, but that's about the time when you can start letting prospective slaves visit.  Do talk to them first though - don't let them see the kittens until you are pretty sure they will be good slaves.  Have they had cats before?  What happened to them?  Will they be willing to pay for the kittens?  (feeding, litter, vaccinations all cost, so does early neutering if you can find a vet in your area that does it)  What other pets do they have?  Small children?  Where is their vet?  Can they afford vet care?  Indoor only?  Or do they have a back garden / yard they can catproof?  (see http://www.fabcats.org/owners/fencing/  and http://www.thecatshouse.com/, and also PM me)  Cats that are just indoor can get bored which can lead to all sorts of behavioural problems and also obseity. 

Try to get them to come out with all of this.  Ask leading questions and let them ramble on.

I'm sure other people have plenty more suggestions for doing your best to find good slaves.  And in my view, kittens are best if they can go in pairs.

12 weeks is when they should be adopted out. By that time they've got all the social skills, and also been vaccinated twice, microchipped and neutered. 

http://www.breedlist.com/faq/young.html

Where I am we fix kittens and adopt them out as soon as they hit 8 weeks and 2 pounds. In many states it is illegal to re-home or adopt kittens prior to 8 weeks. After the 8 week mark, it's mostly just important that they reach 2 pounds and are otherwise healthy before you do their surgeries. I think breeding standards are to keep them to an older age than shelter standards are.

When looking for potential adopters, I would either incorporate their surgery costs into your adoption costs and have them fixed before they leave your care or try to work it out so you take the kitten(s) to their vet and they pick them up from there. Otherwise, there is no guarantee the new owners will fix them. Good to incorporate their vaccination costs in there too! 

EB24 said:

I think breeding standards are to keep them to an older age than shelter standards are.

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Perhaps, since we want what's best for our kittens rather than shuttling them out the door once they've hit a weight target.

Kittens development doesn't change between purebred and moggies, and just because shelters let them go early doesn't make it right or best for the babies or future owners involved.

I don't disagree with you. My point is more that if a person is looking for a purebred kitten, they may be willing to wait a little longer. Unfortunately, the reality for cats that end up in shelters (purebred or not) is that people want the youngest, fluffiest one they can find. So, we have to make a choice between holding them past the tiny kitten stage, which admittedly is better for their development, or putting them up when their chances of adoption are higher. I have been in a room full of kittens that ranged from 8 weeks to 6 months, and people automatically gravitated toward the younger ones. Since it is within medical standards to spay and neuter at 8 weeks if the kitten is 2 pounds and otherwise healthy, that is the policy we go by. 

I always want what is best for my fosters and love them dearly, but one of the best things I can do for them is make sure they have the best chances of finding a home. This is also not something I have control over. Since I am with a shelter, the vet makes the choice of when to bring the kittens back, not me. It seems that you and Jenn have kittens of your own (i.e. their Mom is your cat) so you can choose to hold them for a longer period of time and be in contact with potential adopters and know that they are willing to wait. The way it works in my situation is once they go back and have their surgeries they go into the "kitten room" with all the other adoptable kittens (unless a home has been found for them beforehand, which doesn't happen often). Unfortunately, that makes it almost an adoption "competition" and the younger they are the better their odds. It sounds cruel, but it is just the reality when people have a cat that gets pregnant and choose to abandon them instead of being like Jenn and taking responsibility for it and doing the right thing. The best thing I can do is get my fosters as socialized as possible so they have the best chances, let them go and bring in the next group. There are 45 kittens currently in cages at the shelter desperately waiting for a spot in one of only four foster homes. My babies are 8 weeks, healthy, litterbox trained, on solid foods, and have great social skills. So yes, once they reach 2 pounds they will be going back so I can help the next litter who don't have a chance otherwise. 

Summation: it is in the kittens best interest to wait until 12 weeks, however, it is not unethical to fix and adopt them at 8 weeks and 2 pounds.