Concerned about cat pregnant with only one kitten...

I recently took in a stray cat who is pregnant. When I took her to the vet they did x-rays, and she only has one fetus, apparently healthy. THey said she looked to be about 60 days along (that was last tuesday, so today would be day 67). The vet and radiologist said that usually the concern with a single kitten is that they get too big for an easy delivery. In this case though, it appears that the kitten does not look too big and she should be able to deliver with no problem. I also just started volunteering with a rescue, and I was talking to one of the girls that runs the rescue about my situation. SHe is concerned because she said that if there is only one kitten the mother may not be able to produce enough milk. I have some KMR on hand, in case the kitten is otherwise healthy and the mom is not producing milk. Has anyone had a cat that successfully delivered and nursed one kitten? The vet said that while rare, it does happen and didnt seem to concerned. I am also worried that they are wrong about how far along she is and the kitten will continue to grow inside...we are at day 67 and while I can see the baby moving around and mom is nesting, there have been no signs of labor yet. Any advice welcome!

Singletons often aren't enough to keep the mum interested, sometimes it does work just no way to predict it.

I've only had one in my breeding and the mum began going into heat one week later and continued cycling every other week, she wouldn't care for the baby while in heat (unusual for her when she has a full litter being in heat makes no difference)
So he was mostly handraised with 2 hour feeds round the clock.

There's also the issue of keeping the little one warm, I don't use heat pads for health reasons so a little stuffed toy is often used as a 'litter mate' for bub to cuddle with

ETA: singletons often run late, closer to day 70 and labour can be longer often ending in a c-section.

I've had a cat that only gave birth to one kitten, and she was a great mother... I hope the same goes for your mama to be

Thanks for the replies guys! If the singleton is born healthy, I am thinking about calling rescues and offering momma services to orphaned kittens. Maybe that could ensure that she keeps her interest? (If she takes interest in the orphans)

*This is shan841, i must have created that username a long time ago and forgot, and I had left it logged in on my work computer. I will continue to post using this username only*

She had her kitten! She was only in labor for about 45 minutes, she woke me up and i could tell she wanted my reassurance. She was screaming bloody murder during the last few contractions, had me worried for a bit but everything went pretty smooth, the baby is nursing and seems big and strong. I havent weighed the baby yet, i wanted to let her nurse for a bit first. Im assuming it is a girl, she looks like a tortishell or calico? Im still confused about the difference. She is mostly black w/ orange throughout, and has an orange patch on half her face and some white on her legs and i think her face, i havent really had a good look at her face yet, she has been nursing the whole time. She was born around 5:30 am this morning, now i have to go to work will post some pics later!

In the UK we talk about torties and tortie & white cats, and that tells you what the difference between a tortoiseshell and a calico cat is.

Also torties tend fo have fairly finely mingled colours in their coats, tortie & white cat tend to have patches.

Hope all goes well and photos, now!

here is the only pic I got, I will get better ones tonight when I get home. She weighed 3 oz.

better pic

Oh my goodness! How cuuute!!

She is a pretty calico!!! Hopefully mom takes good care of her!

ClaraAdele said:

She is a pretty calico!!! Hopefully mom takes good care of her!

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Minnie is such a good mommy! She doesn't like to spend time away from the kitten, she eats and takes care of business as fast as she can so she can get back to baby. So far so good!

Can I ask, how big was she before she gave birth?  Did she look pregnant or was it hard to tell because of her having only 1 kitten in there?

What a sweet little Tortie girl.

Glad all is going well, hope it continues. 

HappyKitty said:

Can I ask, how big was she before she gave birth?  Did she look pregnant or was it hard to tell because of her having only 1 kitten in there?

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I actually thought she was pregnant from the moment i saw her. She was skinny, i could see her hip bones but she had a round belly and i felt her nipples when I pet her for the first time. After i took her in she gained noticable weight, as she filled in it wasnt so obvious that she was pregnant because her belly wasnt as promenent. She was only 3.5 kg the night i found her, i havent weighed her since. So at a healthy weight with one kitten it wasnt as obvious as cats with big litters, but you can tell.

The kitten was 3oz at birth, 2.5 last night and 3 this morning. Hopefully she steady gains weight from here on!

What a little beauty!

I had a foster once (Casey) who gave birth to a single kitten (Cousey). Casey was an amazing mom, very protective, but wonderful. We never had a single problem with her nursing or taking care of the kitten. The only problem I had was when she tore me to shreds after seeing one of my own cats outside the room. Antibiotics, dressings & a tetanus shot later, all was good!

Should I be concerned that I havent seen the baby nurse at all this morning? She has been sleeping a lot, I weighed her when I fed momma and she is back down to 2.5. I worry my scale is not very accurate, it is a human baby scale but only measures to the .5 oz. Am I just being a worry wort?

Kailie said:

What a little beauty!

I had a foster once (Casey) who gave birth to a single kitten (Cousey). Casey was an amazing mom, very protective, but wonderful. We never had a single problem with her nursing or taking care of the kitten. The only problem I had was when she tore me to shreds after seeing one of my own cats outside the room.

Antibiotics, dressings & a tetanus shot later, all was good!

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Ah, yes Minnie bit me a few days after I brought her home and I had to get antibiotics and a tetanus shot. (My arm is still sore from that shot!) But since I was there when she had the baby I think she fully trusts me now. She doesnt mind me being near her or the baby. She always purrrs the moment i touch her I do have to be careful because I have another cat as well, she hasnt seen him yet though because I assume that would upset her very much

who it is said:

Should I be concerned that I havent seen the baby nurse at all this morning? She has been sleeping a lot, I weighed her when I fed momma and she is back down to 2.5. I worry my scale is not very accurate, it is a human baby scale but only measures to the .5 oz. Am I just being a worry wort?

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I wouldn't worry yet if she is sleeping peacefully. If she starts crying and you don't see her nursing then there may be a problem. It's important that she be gaining weight but it doesn't seem like your scale is completely accurate (mine isn't either) so I judge based on how they are acting as well as if they are gaining. For the most accurate weight count, just weigh her once a day as close to the same time as possible. Being new to the world is hard, she may just need some extra rest. 

i,m not concerned about that. I have a 4 years old male cat. that came from a litter of 1, that was him My questions are how are thet different to whom did he cuddle ...

My cat had only one kitten, and she is a great mommy. the baby is healthy as can be and she has got plently of milk to supply it. singletons arnt common but it is usually if its the first pregnancy.. And like someone previously said, if its the first one its that rare. My cats mother was much the same, but the second time around pushed out like 9 or so. trust is very important, since i cat can sense routine behavior. For instant my cat likes to play and get petted...when she was delivering she ignored me for 3 days to make sure the baby was nursing and stable, but after that man, she jumped out of her box and wanted to be the same old cat, but everything the kitten called she ran to it to feed it and keep it warm, So your probably fine.

Cats feel depression and stuff like that when they are treated by their humans badly....but if comfy and loved they operate like great mommies even with one kitten, if you dont touch the newborn too much, but pet mommy anyway, she can ignore you but you dont ignore her and leave baby alone for a while till it can see on its own and stuff, but one kitten litters are not as rare as ppl think, it does happen alot. Just remember a cat has to know what love is to show it to her kitten, so a comfy mommy is a loving mommy, Good luck my friend..