HELP! My cat just attacked my dog! AND Preggo? or Not?

Okay so I'll give you the quick story of how this all came about.

I've had my kitty Princess since she was a kitten. Before having the chance to have her fixed (didn't want to stress her too much with a surgery since I was moving a LOT). However, before my last move at end of August...she broke her way through a screen window and took off for several days while she was in full blown heat. This was the first week of August and she was back by Aug 9th. She been sleeping and eating excessively and has never been so affectionate before. She's one of these independent cats that only allows affection on her terms. I've always been the only one she'll ever cuddle with. Yet...this used to be a once in a blue moon event. I mean...every few months. Since about a week after her return home...she has been seeking my attention almost daily. These last two days...she's is STUCK to me. Usually she's one to run away as soon as you breath the wrong way or shift positions in the slightest...Not anymore! lol

Now it would only make logical sense that if she was in full heat, ran away for nearly a week and came back completely sedated, affectionate, hungry and tired...that she likely successfully mated with a tom. She's always been extremely underweight too...but has recently put on weight and her coat has even become lighter in color and fluffier if that makes sense. I just don't see the pinking around her nipples. Seems to me that they have in fact actually become smaller and no longer elongated at all. Her belly is very firm though...but I can't be sure if she's carrying kittens (or maybe just one?)

Is it usual for a queen to only bulge out in the last few weeks?

NOW...with background out of the way...I have one other older female cat, Terra, who's fixed and a 2 yr old German Shepperd/Border Collie mix, Nikita (she's a small girl at about 50lbs). All my baby girls have ALWAYS gotten along except for just 30 mins ago! These last couple days Princess has been BEYOND stuck to me. Usually Nikita lies beside or behind me on the couch and cuddles next to me in bed. Well...Princess has joined the party and has been so desperate to be right on top of me that she was cuddling right up with my pup to do it. However...this was fine for hours...and out of the blue...Princess lashes out like a crazy cat going into full attack mode on Nikita...which in turn gets Terra (my other cat) into the mix because Nikita snapped back and tried to defend herself, so Terra thought she had to just defend everyone I guess. Of course, I managed to get my hand badly bit and thoroughly scratched I literally has to pull Princess off my dog and then scare Terra off from continuing her attempt at joining the attack. I put both cats in different rooms and let them have time to cool off.

So time passed and I let all my girls back together (with Nikita hiding safely right next to me). Shockingly, Princess ran right back to stand in front of Nikita and hiss and growl. It's been 10 mins since and everyone's quite for now...but seriously...what the heck happened here? They've all grown up together and I don't know what to make of this other than maybe Princess is really preggo despite lacking major physical pregnancy signs? Could it be that it's her first litter and because she's always been no more than 5-6lbs...she may only have one kitten?

Any feedback or similar experiences appreciated.

I don't like jealousy between my babies...but they've never hurt or attacked each other before. My pup now has several nasty cuts/scratches on her snout.

Thanks for reading...and thank you in advance for your feedback!

Princess is prob preggo. Otherwise its a false pregnancy, but with the hormones swalling like the same.

The  diagnosis hangs a little also on how experienced you are, how used to palpate you are.

Its about 7 weeks now, so you should be able to begin to feel kittens move now, if she is pregnant for real.

Hormones are swallowing, so moods can also change swiftly and sometimes violently.  We had examples when their beloved Mom got a good clawing swipe or two, not just a buddy dog or cat.

Nikitas joining the fray is not uncommon.

Separate them of time being, till you are sure they had calmed themselves.  Several hours at last.  After that, you may try and let them meet again, observing...

Take of course care about your own wounds. They get easy infected as you know. There are lotsa of bacteries in cats claws.

If Princess continues to seem easy upset, try with a Feliway diffuser.   Also soft, relaxing music may be useful. Harp music, or classical calming music are two good tips.

And  make sure Princess is not not stressed, as long as practically possible.

Some links which I did stole shamelessly from my collegues:

 One from this site:  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/pregnancy-and-delivery-in-cats

http://www.icatcare.org/advice/my-cat-having-kittens    ( This is a link to a group of articles on cat pregnancy, birth and kittens.   Read the ones on normal cat birth and on " when to wait and when to worry"  )  

 
http://www.cat-world.com.au/parturition-birth-in-cats

http://www.icatcare.org/advice-centre/cat-care/normal-cat-birth

Continue to ask and report!

Good luck!

Thanks for the reply. I haven't been able to feel any kittens...but I'm too fearful of harming them if I palpate to roughly. I haven't felt movement either...but she does have some flab under her belly and up to her chest. This is SO not normal for her. She usually has that unhealthy underweight look where you can feel ribs and bumps on her spine. No longer the case. I just start having my doubts since she's far enough along that I thought her nipples would be swollen bumps with loss of hair around them...and a bigger belly. I just wonder if anyone has had a small cat like I've described...that didn't have a proper belly or nursing nipples until the very end? I just want to be sure that she gets all the care a queen should get...but I also would like to know if is common false pregnancy stuff? I don't have the cash to throw away on a vet visit when I have so many doubts. BUT...the behavioral changes certainly leave me wondering. She would NO doubt be screaming and spraying these last 6 weeks or so if she wasn't pregnant I suspect?

ps. Nikita and Princess seem to be okay...there's been a hiss here or there...but they've gone back to peace so long as they keep their distance. I can NOT tell you how out of character this is for them!

I'm hoping this lets up. I can't keep Princess looked up all day in the bedroom crying...but every time I let her out...she runs to find Nikita and viciously attacks her. I mean...they've ALWAYS got along. I just don't want either of them getting hurt in the least. :

Sounds like spaying her would have been the least stressful thing for her in the long run...

I agree, she is probably preggo. Sounds like how I was when I was pregnant ;-) I would probably designate a room for her that is quite and w/o daily commotion. Set up a little nesting area for her and LOTS of good quality food, water, a cat tree...etc. Oh and why don't you take her to the vet to have her checked? In the meantime, ask him about how you can get her the nutrition she needs. I understand there are small kitties, but if you can feel her ribs well and also hip/spinal bones...she is way too thin.

Good Luck!

quiet*

If you know what date she got out, add 66 days and that's her due date.  She may well not show until the last 4 weeks or so especially if it's a small litter.  My Oriental had 6 good-size kittens and only started looking at all pregnant from a month before delivery.  It's obvious on Orientals as well due to their very short fur.  She was 3.3 kg (just over 7 pounds) before mating.

If you check her nipples then they are probably much larger than usual (look at your other cat for a comparison) and pink.  They change at about 2 1/2 to 3 weeks after mating.

She needs as much high-quality food as she will eat, and she needs worming.  You don't say what country you are in.  Here in the UK we can get Milbemax from the vets that is safe in pregnancy and during lactation, and is effective against both tapeworms and roundworms.  Any sign of fleas?  That needs dealing with as well.

And once she has her kittens, keep her in until she is spayed.  If you let her out she could have an accident leaving you having to try to hand-raise her kittens (not easy, high mortality) or she will get pregnant again and let me guess - you wouldn't spay a pregnant female.

For an unspayed cat to get out and NOT get pregnant would be extremely unlikely, and even more so if she was visibly in heat! But if something went wrong and the eggs didn't implant for some reason, she'd have a false pregnancy. She's pretty far along now---48 days at the earliest---so you'll know for sure fairly soon. If you want to know sooner, have the vet do an ultrasound or take a professional feel around.

Hormones (whether it's a false pregnancy or real, the hormones are the same) can make a cat very crazy, especially if she feels like her babies are in danger. You'll most likely have to keep the dog away from her until the kittens are in new homes.

Every kitty is different and she may not be following the rules about nipples :lol3:. And her baby belly might be hidden in her new chubbiness.

If no kittens show up in about 15-18 days, have her looked at by the vet to see if her hormones can be sorted out. And get her spayed as soon as you can manage it. . .as you've found out, a quick surgery is less stressful than pregnancy/birthing/raising babies!

We had an older cat that passed away last year that would attack any of the other cats and dogs big or small if they were getting to rowdy. The only way we were able to get her to stop was with a spray bottle which sucked but it was better than trying to break it up and everyone get hurt. If she's pregnant she might be this moody for the duration of the pregnancy though so as others have said separating her might be the best thing.

Try not to feel bad about keeping her in a room of her own for now. We took in a pregnant stray and had to keep her in two large attached dog kennels, then when the kittens became mobile we moved them into a tent which worked great. We finally moved her and her babies into our game room. Her kittens have been gone for a few days and we still have her in our game room until she gets fixed and then after until she heals. Safe in a small space is better than unsafe in a big space

Very best of luck to you and your little ones!