I think my outside cat gave birth and isn't caring for them...

I have been caring for two outside cats for about 5 months now. I realized a few weeks ago that they weren't just really fat, but both were pregnant! I thought they were males. oops...lol. Well yesterday one of them (Mittens) was missing for about 8 hours which is unusual, and when she showed back up her stomach was smaller and her tail and but and back legs were kinda wet. She was starving so she ate and then cleaned herself, ate and cleaned herself...lol. But for the rest of the night she stayed by our front porch and never went back to her kittens. I am worried that the kittens didn't survive.

I should mention that there was another cat besides the 2 that walked into our house, so there are actually 3 total. We took her to the vet <the one that came inside> and by what the vet says they should all be about 7 months right now. They were all from the same litter.

Also after we realized that Mittens gave birth I immediately brought Bubba (the other pregnant one) inside because I had just set up our spare bedroom for them to go into to give birth anyway. I feel horrible that I didn't get Mittens in there in time...

What I need to know is what I should do for mittens. There are about 6 racoons that live in the woods right behind our house so I am worried anout the kittens safety if they did survive. I would like to move Mittens and the babies inside if I can. So how can I find them????

You can look for the kittens if you are familiar with the area where Mittens roams. But it's been more than a day and if she has abandoned them the chance that the kittens are alive is slim. 

But are you sure Mittens stayed all night by your porch? Look around your house. Mittens feels safe at your home so she could have given birth near your place. 

Agreed you just need to get out there and start looking. Also, watch her closely as she may lead you right to them. If they are alive then get a crate and get all of them inside ASAP. 

If in a few days you still can't find them you should bring Mittens inside anyway until she can be spayed. She can go into heat again right after giving birth so make sure she stays indoors until after her surgery! 

Seek on and try to fight on!  Delilah had now a somewhat similiar situation.  The kittens were alive and OK well after a couple of days, as they could suckle their mom themselves when their mom returned to them.  So with any luck, the kittens may still be alive and can be saved.

Good luck!

Hey everyone. Thanks for the advice. I spent most of my free time today trying to find them. She usually never goes any farther than the neighbors yard so i went over there and looked and all over my yard. I went as far as I could into the woods behind my house but found nothing. She was only out on the porch once when I went out there today. I checked her tummy and it was wet around her nipples, and I assume since she spent most of the day away they are ok for now. At about 4am when I went out to smoke she came running from the woods. So I assume that's where they are. I'm gonna start early again tomorrow and enlist my fiance to help cut back some of the limbs/vines so I can get farther back into the woods in the direction she came from.One more thing I noticed that worried me, she had some blood coming out of her when I saw her earlier. Should I be worried about that? She doesn't act like shes in pain. She ate and drank lots of water. Also, no kittens from Bubba yet... Should I be able to feel them moving?

It depends on how long its been since the babies wet born they can bleed for days after they have em...us for bubba is she far along and you usualy feel big knots b4 they start moving alot..

They can bleed for a few days after giving birth. If it looks dark or smells funny, she may have an infection and need to be seen by a vet.

Also, I had a similar situation in which a stray mama i've been trying to trap disappeared one day, came back the next obviously not pregnant anymore. I spent WEEKS following her, to no avail, and she spent most of her time outside our house laying around so I assumed they didn't make it. About 8 weeks after she disappeared I was sitting at my computer desk around midnight and heard the cat door flap. I turned and looked and there was mama kitty (I call her Muffin), inside our house. She'd never been inside before- she was very feral. She looked at me and ran back out so I thought nothing of it. 5 minutes later I heard the flap again, turned and looked to see Muffin disappearing out the cat door again and a little 8 week old tabby kitten sitting under my kitchen table, hissing and spitting. She then brought the other 3 in, one by one. Apparently she must've realized that we were the safest place for them to be now. I was so shocked she brought them inside considering how feral they were.

Any updates??

Hey Everyone!!!

Sorry it took so long to give an update. I've been super busy and was having no luck at all finding the kittens. Mittens would just wander around in the woods with us, never leading us to them. lol

Well then two days ago me and my fiance were out there looking and Mittens kept going by this one tree near where we were looking. So I pulled on some branches/vines attached to it to see if she would do anything, and she freaked and ran to it. She circled the tree and we were like huh? I don't know if we didn't notice the hole in the tree because its not that bright in the woods or what, but she climbed into this hole on the side of the tree towards the base of it. I can't believe we missed it all this time, there was even a tuft of her fur hanging on a piece of wood in the opening.

So I crawled in closer to the hole. (it was hard to even get close to) And there she was on her side down in there. I couldn't see the kittens or anything other than her head. But we were sooooo relieved. Anyway, she didn't come back out of the tree so after about twenty minutes we went inside and hoped she wouldn't move them. We went back out there yesterday morning to get them. I made up a cut in half soda carton with a cut up old sheet and in we went. My fiance pulled then out. Mittens just sat and watched until he got the first one out and she started pacing. So I took them inside and put them in the bathroom in our second bedroom.(Where Bubba is) And my fiance stayed out to make sure he got them all and catch Mittens.

Well you will never believe what I found in the second bedroom... Bubba was in the cat carrier I set up for her, in LABOR!!! I mean can you believe the timing. lol. Well my fiance carried Mittens in a few minuted later and put her in  the bathroom too. So Mittens is in the spare bathroom with her 4 babies.  And about five hours later Bubba was resting peacefully with her 4 babies. Both litters are all black like their mommas.

We were planning on just keeping both Bubba and Mittens in the spare bedroom together. Does anyone know if that is a good idea or not? I don't want them to be stressed or fight, but the bathroom is really small and I would rather Mittens had more room. Any ideas??

Thanks for reading my long post. lol
 

Omg..congrats so glad u found em looks like u have ur hands full..lol im not realy sure about em bein together id just watch n see if they handle it good....thats alot of hormones it could go either way; /////post pics!!

Wonderful you found the babies, and all is well there!   And Bubba had an succesful delivery she too!

If Mittens and Bubba are best friends, it may go OK to have them toghether.  but easiest and safest is to have them in each own place.

Try and weigh the kittens every day, at the same time. Use a scale kitchen/mail, measuring in grammes, easiest if electronic.  Doesnt need to be costly.

This a good way to detect oncoming problems.

Write up the results for every kitten.  If all kittens black, you must try and mark them somewhat.

Perhaps poison-free nail color on their nails...

Good luck!

StefanZ said:

If Mittens and Bubba are best friends, it may go OK to have them toghether.  but easiest and safest is to have them in each own place.

Write up the results for every kitten.  If all kittens black, you must try and mark them somewhat.

Perhaps poison-free nail color on their nails...

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I agree that if they are already close you can at least try to put them in the same room but for the first few days I would just leave Bubba where she is. They both need time to adjust (Bubba to her new babies and Mittens to having her kittens in a new location). If they are both doing alright in a little while then try moving Bubba into the spare room. Keep a close eye at first- if they don't like the proximity you need to be there to break up a fight and move Bubba back. But, oftentimes, Queens who each have a litter can be very buddy-buddy, even going as far as nursing for one another!

The only other big thing I would be concerned about is cross contamination as Mittens and her babies have been outdoors whereas Bubba and her's haven't been. Unless they are showing signs of illness it's not worth the stress of taking them all to the vet so it's just a gamble. Keeping them separated for a few days at first will also help with this- if any of Mittens babies are sick they will probably start exhibiting signs. 

I also agree that if they are too similar to tell apart then you need to ID them somehow. Nail polish is a good idea, as is using small hairbands or paper wristbands. If you use either of the latter be sure you check the makeshift collars everyday to be sure they aren't too tight or too loose and adjust as necessary. You just want something so you can keep an accurate record of each one's growth. Especially with so many don't try and rely on looks and feel! 

Congrats on finding the kittens and on Bubba's safe delivery! 

Thanks for the replies. I still have them separated. As was suggested, I am trying to wait a few days so Bubba and Mittens are comfortable. As of right now Mittens is in the spare bedroom's bathroom and every time I check on her (every few hours) she is laying behind the toilet with her babies laying on her/nursing. She purrs when I pet her but isn't getting up when I'm in there. One awesome thing is that she took to using the litterbox immediately. Thank gosh. And she is eating and drinking so I know she is up and about when I'm not in there at least. Yesterday afternoon I changed out the newspaper again in the carrier Bubba gave birth in and where she is still keeping her babies. I put an old towel in there this time and put a sweater over the top to make it darker. I read online that it can be a problem using towels because the baby kitties can get their little nails stuck, but I haven't seen a problem yet. I'm just unsure of what else to use. I have two can beds in the room with her too so she can move them if she wants. She doesn't seem to mind me picking them up which is good.I don't have a kitchen scale, so I need to go get one. I think I would be scared to put nail polish on them to mark them, so I may try the hairband. Would those tiny rubber bands work? They come in different colors so it would help to tell them apart. One thing I have noticed is that Bubba is sneezing and white snot comes out. Is that normal? It started right after she finished giving birth.I will post pictures soon. I misplaced my memory card for my camera so I'm hunting for it. As soon as I find it I'll be posting some pictures of the beautiful babies.

I wouldn't use rubber bands as they will be too rough on their sensitive skin should they rub at all. I have never used the hairband method but my friend that does says she starts with different colored kids hair ties. Then, as they get older and grow she increases the size to adult hair ties. I would think you could get them at any grocery store or Target/Walmart for pretty cheap. 

The biggest thing with using the bands is making sure they aren't too tight or too loose. You should be able to slide one finger in between it and the kittens neck. But, any looser than that and it will fall off to easily and is a choking hazard. So, make sure they fit right! 

Definitely get a scale in the next day or so, preferably one that weighs in grams. These are also pretty affordable (I got mine at Macy's for $20). Average daily gains should be 10-15g but some days there may be more or less and that's okay. If there is any weight loss you will want to call your vet. It could be a sign the kitten isn't getting enough to eat or of a possible infection/illness. 

Their nails can snag on towels but I use them as cage liners and have never really had a problem. Just keep an eye on it. If they do start snagging a lot than switch to an old blanket or sweatshirt. Fleece is always super popular and doesn't snag much so if possible try and use that material. Petco sells fleece cat blankets that I love for just a couple of bucks. It may be worth buying a couple to use on the top. You can put the towels underneath just to add more padding if you need to. 

As far as the snot: I would for sure give your vet a call. Since it's clear it's possible she just sneezes a lot or is allergic to something in the bathroom but I would err on the side of caution as it could also be an early indicator of an upper respiratory infection. It won't be fun if she has one and you end up with two sick cats and a ton of sick kittens!  While you're out stocking up you may want to grab some L-Lysene powder. It's an all natural supplement that boosts the immune system and is great to add to their wet food each day. If she does have a little URI the L-Lysene will help clear it up and help prevent the kittens from getting super sick (as she will pass it to them through her milk) but it is not a substitute for what the vet can do. She may need an antibiotic so give them a call and weigh if it's better to wait and see or haul them all in even though the kittens are so young. 

I wanted to post an update for everyone. I know it's been awhile but I've been SOOOOO busy.   To add to the craziness of having Mittens and Bubba and their 8 babies, Last week on Thursday one of my cats, DeeGee, went into labor and gave birth to 5 babies. I was shocked to say the least when we even found out she was pregnant. We had kept her and her brother seperated until he was neutered. And we have another cat we rescued that was neutered a few weeks before he was - but was also separated from her. So I assume somehow they got to each other while we were gone, though I still don't understand how...  

As for Mittens, they are doing great. They are all gaining weight daily and are up trying to walk around. This morning two of them were trying to clean themselves, it was sooooo cute!  Bubba is doing great and so are her babies. Their eyes are starting to open. And they are chubby little angels.

Most of the stress has been with DeeGee. She has always been really close to me. I found her and her littermates under my house when they were 3 weeks old and I had to bottle or rather dropper feed them. It was an experience though! It however did not prepare me for what I'm dealing with now! Deegee has one kitty who seems to have trouble feeding so I have been giving him supplemental feedings. At 3 days old four of them were 4oz. and the one that is having trouble was only 3 1/2oz. And she keeps moving thwm all over the place. She moved them 4 times yesterday!!! Once she put them in the kitchen cabinets. I want to put them in our bedroom and keep the door closed so its just her and her babies, but we keep it cold ( around 72 degrees) in there and I'm afraid they would get too cold and get sick or die. I read that they can't regulate their body temperature yet.

But all in all things are going okay. It's stressful and overwhelming but I am glad I am able to take care of them. We are gonna get the 3 of them spayed as soon as possible to prevent this from happening again. Here are some pictures of the kitties... DeGee is the white & black cat and her babies are mostly black&white too. Mittens is black  with a white spot on her chest and so are all 4 of her babies. And Bubba is black as well as all 4 of her babies.

SadieMaeKitty said:

I wanted to post an update for everyone. I know it's been awhile but I've been SOOOOO busy.   To add to the craziness of having Mittens and Bubba and their 8 babies, Last week on Thursday one of my cats, DeeGee, went into labor and gave birth to 5 babies. I was shocked to say the least when we even found out she was pregnant. We had kept her and her brother seperated until he was neutered. And we have another cat we rescued that was neutered a few weeks before he was - but was also separated from her. So I assume somehow they got to each other while we were gone, though I still don't understand how...

 

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Males can retain active sperm for several weeks after neutering. So, if you put them back together as soon as he was home from his surgery he likely wasn't quite firing blanks yet. It's an unfortunate reality that vets need to do a better job of warning people about!   

Hopefully you have plans to spay DeeGee as soon as her litter is weaned, and hopefully there are no more intact males in the house. All of these Queens can go back into heat at anytime and the last thing you need is those boys taking advantage! 

Glad to hear everyone else is doing well. Hopefully you can find good homes for all these kittens! 

Well that would have been nice to know about the males. grrrr. Our vet didn't say anything about males still being able to get a female pregnant. There are no more intact males in our house, thank gosh. And we intend to get all the cat mommies spayed as soon as they wean their babies. They all seem to still be doing good. But Bubba has one kitten that has some green stuff in it's eye and its sealed it shut. So I have to see how to get it off so he can see. And DeeGee is in our bedroom now but she still keeps moving her babies at least once a day. And she tends to take one and move it and leave the rest, or take all but one and I have to move it myself. I try to wait as long as I can stand the crying to move them myself but sometimes she doesn't go back for them. It's weird. I hope thats not a sign somethings wrong. She is so tiny and I worry that 5 kittens is too much for her. Should I worry that she is so small? Thank you.
 

It sounds like the baby may have the beginning of an eye infection/respiratory infection. Use a warm, damp washcloth to gently wipe the gunk away but keep a super close watch on this. If he does then they all will and will need an antibiotic. 

Frequent den moves are relatively common so that in and of itself is not super concerning. You may want to confine her to an even smaller area (like a bathroom or walk in closet) so she has even fewer choices. Make sure you are giving her a high calorie kitten food (both dry and wet) and are weighing her babies everyday. If they start losing it may be because they aren't getting enough to eat and you would need to consult with your vet. If push comes to shove at least you have several surrogates to choose from! 

Honestly, given how many Queens and kittens you have I would call around and try to find a vet who makes house calls. Each litter needs an independent evaluation as well as how they affect the group. For example, if one litter has an infection you risk all of the litters catching it. Having a vet come to the house would be really helpful as they can see the big picture and help you figure out ways to quarantine if necessary. IMO it would be a lot easier than making several trips down there.