Demanding First Time Mama(Pre Labor)

monkeycatmom · Apr 17, 2015

My 2 year old Tortie is I believe in Pre Labor. I am an ER/ICU and Cardiology Veterinary Assistant by day. I have helped in the birth of MANY animals but today I am a nervous wreck as my beloved Monkey cat is about to give birth for the first time. She has taken to the Whelping box I have made her and everything is going smoothly so far. Her temperature has dropped to 99.5 and she has begun purring and pacing non stop and turning from her side to her tummy and the babies are moving like crazy. My question is in regards to whether I should be present. I have all the supplies I need and my workplace on speed dial should anything go wrong but I am apprehensive on whether or not to be in the room once it commences. the reason for this is when I go into the room to check on her she quickly comes out of her box and wants to be all over me and lie on either me or the floor and does not want to go back in her box. I am worried about delaying her progress by being a distraction. At what point should go in to check on her that wouldn't cause a disturbance? Or for anyone with experience whelping at home will my continuous presence keep her from giving birth in her box all together? At work we simply place Mom in a large kennel with lots of blankets and cover the door with a towel checking from time to time and intervening when necessary. Monkey however has scratched on the door a few times like she is signaling me to come in and acting as if she wants to go into labor on top of me. She has even gone as far as to rub all over the dogs and try to lead them into the room earlier. Should I stay away for a bit or sit in there with her and just go with the flow? I don't want her to go into labor on me or the tile floor when there is a soft comfortable box set up for her!

StefanZ · Apr 17, 2015

MonkeyCatMom said:
My 2 year old Tortie is I believe in Pre Labor. I am an ER/ICU and Cardiology Veterinary Assistant by day. I have helped in the birth of MANY animals but today I am a nervous wreck as my beloved Monkey cat is about to give birth for the first time. She has taken to the Whelping box I have made her and everything is going smoothly so far. Her temperature has dropped to 99.5 and she has begun purring and pacing non stop and turning from her side to her tummy and the babies are moving like crazy. My question is in regards to whether I should be present. I have all the supplies I need and my workplace on speed dial should anything go wrong but I am apprehensive on whether or not to be in the room once it commences. the reason for this is when I go into the room to check on her she quickly comes out of her box and wants to be all over me and lie on either me or the floor and does not want to go back in her box. I am worried about delaying her progress by being a distraction. At what point should go in to check on her that wouldn't cause a disturbance? Or for anyone with experience whelping at home will my continuous presence keep her from giving birth in her box all together? At work we simply place Mom in a large kennel with lots of blankets and cover the door with a towel checking from time to time and intervening when necessary. Monkey however has scratched on the door a few times like she is signaling me to come in and acting as if she wants to go into labor on top of me. She has even gone as far as to rub all over the dogs and try to lead them into the room earlier. Should I stay away for a bit or sit in there with her and just go with the flow? I don't want her to go into labor on me or the tile floor when there is a soft comfortable box set up for her!

Interesting. I suggest you lay down a blanket on the floor and let her do her things. She clearly wants you at her in her difficult moment. And its wise, as you surely know, there happens sometimes to be complications, and its just the owners presence and quick actions which saves the day...

Also, many moms are reluctanct to give birth in the nest itself - they dont want to soil it. They move into the nest afterwards.

The problem would be different, if she clearly showed she prefer to be alone - which happens too. But nay, she wants you to be there, and as you ARE able to be with her, obey her demand, please!

I will send you our usual links, although you surely know the contents already by heart.

Good luck!

Many of these links have been readied by our forumist Red Top Rescue:

We have a good collection of articles in the Cat Health section which you can access by scrolling up to the brown bar, clicking on Articles,and then choosing the Cat Health section and scrolling through the choices. To make this super easy for you, I am copying the links regarding birth, delivery and newborns for you here. After reading this information, let us know if you have any more questions. And good luck with your approaching new arrivals.

Birth, Delivery and Newborns

How to Tell if My Cat is Pregnant?

Cat Pregnancy

How Do I Know When My Cat Will Give Birth?

Pregnant Cat? What to Prepare For the Birth

Help! My Cat is Having Kittens!

Premature Kittens

Post-Birth Complications in Cats

And also:

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.kitten-rescue.com/
http://www.kittenrescue.org/index.php/cat-care/kitten-care-handbook/
http://www.hdw-inc.com/glop.htm

Fleece or flannel good to use in the bedding for kittens.

momto3cats · Apr 17, 2015

I would sit with her since she seems to want you there. You can encourage her to stay in the nest and reassure her that you're close by, or make her a place on the floor as StefanZ suggested. She might be calmer once she sees that you plan on staying.

monkeycatmom · Apr 17, 2015

Thanks guys for the input. I went back in and sat with her for awhile. I set a blanket on the floor in front of the whelping box and she came out and lied on it. Once she began grooming herself excessively I slowly got up and left the room. She is now resting on the blanket outside of the box. Luckily I have a door with glass windows into the room she is in so I can peek in there and check on her. In your experience how long is pre labor on average prior to the beginning of labor and contractions? Her breathing rate has increased and she appears very tired. I can still feel the babies moving a great deal. TIA for all of your help!

mwallace056 · Apr 19, 2015

monkeycatmom please update

monkeycatmom · Apr 20, 2015

Sorry I'm just now updating y'all! No kittens as of yet. I did take Monkey with me to work and got an X-ray and ultrasound. There are at least three kittens, pretty sure we saw a fourth. All were VERY active on the ultrasound and the heartbeats were nice and strong. Mama Monkey is very healthy. Vet thinks the reason she is showing signs of impending labor on and off is due to how active the babies are, and the fact that they are all turned into birthing position. This is causing Mama some discomfort which is why she is breathing more rapidly, being finicky about eating and already showing nesting behavior. Vet thinks they could come at anytime within the next week. Basically we are in the waiting game stage. Now we just keep her comfortable and let her do her thing! Will keep you guys updated and post pics as soon as they arrive! I can't wait to see what they look like!

Sarthur2 · Apr 21, 2015

Thanks for the update! Glad you took her in to get some answers. Now it's a waiting game. Looking forward to the update when kittens arrive!

Demanding First Time Mama(Pre Labor)

monkeycatmom

TCS Member

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StefanZ

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momto3cats

TCS Member

monkeycatmom

TCS Member

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mwallace056

TCS Member

monkeycatmom

TCS Member

Thread starter

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire

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