Questions about stray cat's kittens

My husband and I found a very loving stay cat a little over a month ago. After checking to make sure she was not a lost pet, we adopted her into our family and named her Belle.

Well it was soon discovered that little Belle (who I think is still a very young cat herself due to her small size) was growing a very rounded belly. We were planning on taking her to the vet the week before we determined she was due to get her checked out and some advice for the kittens. However, having never had kittens before, we misjudged when she was due and she had four healthy kittens exactly a week ago.

We have been able to find most of the information we need from the Internet (well and let's be honest, Belle is doing all the work right now) on how to best care for Belle and the babies. I found this site yesterday though, and I thought it would be a good place to ask some questions we have that we are not getting consistsant answers to from our online searching.

We have decided to keep one of the kittens as well as Belle, so we will need both cats spayed/neutered. We would also like to get as many shots as possible for all the cats. We are planning on adopting them out around 8-10 weeks and have already started finding homes.

What is the cheapest/most practical way to accomplish all this? I have not owned a cat or kitten in my adult life and have no idea what these kind of things cost. We don't have a spare few hundred dollars to spend on the kittens right now, so how can all this be done at a reasonable price? Could the kitten and Belle be spayed at the same time? Would they have to go in to get shots at a seperate times?

Thank you guys for any and all advice/ help you can offer, about the questions I posted or anything else you can think of!

Pregnant Belle the week before giving.birth (she is a very small cat, we are guessing she is barely older than a kitten herself)

After giving birth

Belle yesterday with her kittens.

All the kittens in a row

Most ASPCA's have low-cost spay and neuter clinics.  Some also give vaccinations.  You can check on-line to see what services are offered in your area.  Local rescues and shelters also offer vouchers for low cost spay and neuter.  Yes, you can get them speutered at the same time.

You should keep the kittens until at least 10 weeks old.  12 would be better.  This is when they learn their Kitten Manners from Mom. 

Belle can go into heat as early as a week after giving birth so you cannot let her out.  She can conceive while nursing.

You may want to consider keeping 2 of the kittens.  It's easier if they have a playmate.

Love the photos.

Thank you for your quick response

We are definitely not letting Belle out!! No more kittens will fit in this household! How soon can I get her spayed? My google searches have turned up several conflicting answers to that

I would absolutely love to keep two kittens but I had to fight really hard to get to keep one kitten so I don't think another is going to happen. We already have a dog and a pre-schooler and our house is not very large

You can spay Belle when the kittens are 8 weeks old.  You can spay/neuter the kittens when they reach 2 lbs which s/b around 8-10 weeks.  You'll need to check w/whoever is doing the surgery though because not all vets like to do it that early.

The two fair kittens are probably points.  You will see if they begin to darken up on the pointed places in about one week more..

handsome kitty I will check with a vet tomorrow then. Thanks!

StefanZ What is a point?

You should thank @sarthur2   that's her usual advice re: spaying.

A point is referencing the kittens coloring.

KaylaKittenMom said:

@Handsome Kitty I will check with a vet tomorrow then. Thanks!

@StefanZ What is a point?

Click to expand...

"siamese mix" so to speak.   A fair colored body, and darker at the points, like ears, a face masque, tail, paws, private parts in boys...

Well thank you Sarthur2 then too! I just wanted to know what to expect before calling the vet. Will all the kittens probably need shots at 6 weeks or is that something their new owners will do when they are adopted out?

And StefanZ that sounds absolutely adorable so I hope so!

Vaccines start at 8 weeks, and that is up to you to decide what services you want to give the kittens before re-homing them. First shots and worming are standard.

I think they get shots at 8 weeks, but again check w/the vet.

Would you consider spaying and neutering all the kittens and asking people to reimburse you?

We know all the future owners well so I could definitely ask them if it would be easier for us to take them and get them spayed/neutered when we take Belle and our kitten in. I will start looking for an inexpensive way to get them all shots and de-wormed at 8 weeks also. 

Now for a kind of random question. Is it normal for a kitten to open just one eye really well and the other be shut all day? Most of the kittens are starting to open their eyes, but the black one has had one eye wide open and one shut all day. There doesn't seem to be any discharge or leakage out of either eye. Is this normal?

Yes, it is normal for one eye to open before the other.

Ok good! They are all too cute right now. Giving them up is not going to be easy. I have a whole new found respect for those who foster animals.

I adopted mine but she was 6mths and 7 lbs when we got her.

I think it would be hard not to fall in love with any animal I was taking care of for an extended period of time and would have a difficult time giving it up when the time came.

Haha mamma cat Belle is taking a little break from the kittens and is getting very annoyed at me when I stop petting her to type.  

What a sweet mama.  She needs some pampering after taking care of kittens all day.

Come and play on the babbling thread.

Mamma cat Belle (a stray we took in the ended up being pregnant) has been having very runny, yellow diarrhea the last two days. I was hoping it was just something bad she had to eat since she seemed otherwise fine. Today, however, she has seemed a little lethargic and spent most of her time under the couch (which is very unusual for her). She has also started to ignore the kittens a little bit more. They turn three weeks old on Wednesday, so I am not sure if it is normal for her to be spending a lot more time away from them. When they started crying, she used to run over to them, but she didn't seem very receptive today. She still is nursing them every few hours and they mostly seem content and sleeping in a pile with little rounded bellys so I think they are getting enough food. But if they wake up and start making noise, she doesn't go over near as quick. She also has had a significant decrease in appetite the past day or two.

If she is still having diarrhea on Monday I am going to call our vet. Is there anything else I can do for her or the kittens? At what point do I need to take her to an emergency vet if things get worse this weekend?

You should give her some canned pumpkin to help with her diarrhea. It sounds like she's picked up a virus and is feeling puny. Let's hope it passes by Monday.

You need to make sure she stays hydrated. You can syringe clear pedialyte into her mouth. You can put some honey or karo syrup on her lips to lick off. This may pick her up a bit. She may drink tuna water if it's offered.

Also, boiled chicken and cooked rice may appeal to her and helps cats with upset tummies and diarrhea.

When cats don't feel well they tend to hide. It's really good that she is still nursing her babies when she feels ill. And at three weeks old most mama cats are still spending most of their time with their kittens. Yours isn't because she feels unwell.

Keep an eye on the kittens. If mom stops nursing they will need supplementing with kitten formula.

Let us know if mom is better tomorrow. Please do take her to an emergency vet if she gets worse before Monday.

Ok I will go get all the things you mentioned in the morning. I live in the country and no stores around here are open right now. I have offered her water several time to no avail. I don't like her being sick, I feel so bad for her (also it is really stressing me out).