We took in a stray now she's pregnant! - HELP!

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
I'll try and keep this as short as possible . . .
We started feeding this cat in July, it was living in the garden. It took months of time and patience to get her to even set foot in the house but once autumn kicked in and it started to rain in October she was happy to come in. She can't go upstairs and I'm not keen on putting a litter tray in our kitchen or living room so she goes out for toilet breaks and is out when we aren't here + all night.
We took her to the vets in December, she has no chip and the vet was confident that she had been spayed.
The vet was obviously wrong as she came into season last month and is now pregnant.
We have never had a cat before - let alone a pregnant one!! So any advice and links to genuine help would be much appreciated!
Kittens are due around 10th March. At the moment she is still going out at night but I can't imagine that lasting much longer.

Thank you! :)
 

red top rescue

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Dec 27, 2012
Messages
4,466
Purraise
1,486
Location
Acworth GA, USA
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

View media item 212113How 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
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
Yes, you'll need to give her a litter box in the house now so that she stays in all the time. It's neither safe nor healthy (parasites, viruses) for her to be pregnant and outside. Please ask questions as they come up! [emoji]128522[/emoji]
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
Good god . . . Some of that is terrifying! Think I'll just pass out and let her get on with it!

As soon as we realised that she was in season we worked out 'the date'. We weren't sure she was actually pregnant until last week when she started to get fat! - she was incredibly skinny and has been gaining weight steadily so it was hard to tell at first.
She is getting 300g of wet food a day (worked out from the tin!!) and at the moment as much dry food as she likes - although she wouldn't touch it pre-pregnancy.
That sounding alright?

Also I'm wondering do you calculate pregnancy from the beginning or end of a cats season? Or would you need to know the date of breeding?

Thank you!
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
You can do it either way, then it's plus or minus a few days on each side. Unless you know the exact dates a cat is bred, it becomes "she's due the week of ..."

You can give as much wet food as you like while she's pregnant and lactating. Kitten chow is the preferred dry food if you can get it, as it's high in calories and nutrients for moms and kittens.

They begin to show around week 5. Which week was her heat?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
I'd say January 7th was mid way through her season (took us that long to realise what was going on!!)
I read someplace else to feed her kitten food, I bought wet and dry versions. What kind of quantity regular v kitten food should I give?
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
I agree that you dated her well. It could be anytime after March 10th as well.

The amounts don't change from adult food to kitten food. I say give her as much of wet and dry as she wants, especially since she was a formerly skinny stray. They need to consume at least twice the normal amount of food while pregnant.
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
Ah, pictures! Yes, she is skinny! I see the slight bulge on the sides. [emoji]128522[/emoji]
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #10

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
Yea she is small, you can imagine how skinny she was in July! Although she seems fatter today than she did yesterday!!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #11

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
After reading more of the links and other threads on here I has a search for her nipples (strangest thing I've ever said!) they are bigger than they where before but they are still skin coloured. Is that normal? I've read that they should start turning pink after a few weeks and Abi is over half way now?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #13

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
Yea I'd say so, she's got her thicker winter coat so they are hard to find but definitely much Bigger
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
I wouldn't worry then! [emoji]128522[/emoji]
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #15

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
Ok thank you, I'll keep an eye on them :)

I'm going shopping for a litter box later, what kind is best? You guys have probably gone through trial and error over the years but I don't really have time for that!
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,984
Purraise
17,674
Location
Sunny Florida
I personally like the larger sized, covered boxes with the lid that comes off for cleaning. It gives my cats some privacy (though I remove the plastic door flap), and contains the odors and litter better than an open box. Bigger is also better in my opinion as it gives cats the room to maneuver, do their business, and cover.
 

handsome kitty

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 10, 2014
Messages
6,193
Purraise
1,062
Location
Newark CA
I also like the bigger boxes.  I have a few different sizes to fit in different places and the biggest is the favorite box.  The narrowest is used the least.

Cat litter is also a consideration.  If you are using a covered box look for unscented or fragrance free.    There are many cat litter reviews on this site. If you want to peruse them use the REVIEWS tab in the menu bar at the top of the page or search for a brand.    My cats prefer the unscented and I use large boxes which means I put a lot of litter in them.  It is  frustrating when I buy a litter I think is a good deal only to have the cats turn their noses up at it.  I have found that Arm and Hammers Unscented does a good job and is reasonably priced.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #18

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
The covered ones look great! Especially considering it will probably be in the kitchen :/ if everyone can learn to leave the bathroom doors open a little it can go in there but I doubt it!
I picked up some clumping type litter today, we'll give that a go. I'll order a box if I can't find one tomorrow.
Thank you all for your help!!
 

talkingpeanut

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
11,793
Purraise
3,600
My cat's box is in my living room.  It's covered, and no one ever realizes it's there.  I wouldn't worry!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #20

keiiy

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
Messages
41
Purraise
5
I just ordered this! Will be here on Tuesday.
What will the kittens need in the way of toilet facilities?
I'd imagine mum will sort them out for a while? But what about later on? . . . I don't think they will get into that contraption lol a basic tray?
 
Top