Help.. Worried

My cat adopted us, then we find out she is pregnant. Yesterday she gave birth to 4 kittens in my closet. I now have her and the kittens in a large rubber made tote. (with a blanket for them to lay on)
My question is, how do I tell if the mom cat is producing milk. Her nipples are red and sticking out but it doesn't look or feel like they have milk. The kittens do suckle on her but how can I tell if they are getting milk or just trying to get milk?

Mom cats produce colostrum the first day or two while full milk comes in. The colostrum is nourishing and provides immunity. Are the kittens latched and nursing frequently? If they are, and not mewing too much, they are getting food from mom. Are the "bags" around her nipples getting larger?

I see no bags around her nipples. Not puffy at all. But the kittens latch on and fall asleep and don't make much noise.

They are probably doing fine then. In the meantime, are you feeding mom as much wet food as she wants? Also offer her dry kitten chow 24/7, and plenty of fresh water. You can pick up a can of powdered KMR, which is kitten milk replacer, at a pet store. PetAg, Royal Canin, and GNC are good brands. Give mom a dish a day. If the kittens need supplementing you'll have it on hand. Buy a 1 or 2-mL syringe at a pharmacy in case you need it. The kittens will also drink it when they are weaning.

Also, the best way to know the kittens are gaining weight is to weigh them daily using a digital kitchen scale that weighs in tenths of ounces and/or grams. Weigh at the same time daily in front of mom so she does not get upset. Kittens should gain 6-10 grams a day.

I'll go to the store tomorrow for all that. My fiance gives mama a can of wet a day and she always has dry food out. I put more next to where she nurses them. She always has water out and I give Her a dish of milk in morning.

Should I get goats milk too?

Cats shouldn't be given cow milk, full fat goat milk is a much better option 

Please do not give cow's milk to your cat. Cats are lactose intolerant and cannot digest it well. It causes diarrhea. Give her either goat milk or the kitten formula instead. She should probably have wet food twice a day while nursing.

Ok. Thanks. No more cow milk.

Let us know the weights of the kittens tomorrow! [emoji]128522[/emoji][emoji]128149[/emoji]

I wanted to show you all Annabel and her kittens.

How sweet! The kittens look very healthy, and it looks like mama Annabel will have loads of milk! [emoji]128571[/emoji][emoji]128077[/emoji]

What a cute family! Her dinner plates look just fine to me. And just to mention, there's lactose-free milk at the grocery store if she will drink it.

Yes they are precious..
As for the milk.. I think I am going to get the stuff that was mentioned.
My fiance keeps laughing at me and calling me grandmom. He thinks it's "cute" that I worry. Lol

spam4jamz said:

I'll go to the store tomorrow for all that. My fiance gives mama a can of wet a day and she always has dry food out. I put more next to where she nurses them. She always has water out and I give Her a dish of milk in morning.

Click to expand...

In emergency you can probably borrow a scale from a neigbhour, so it goes quicker to start weighting them.

But they looks nicely big on the pic, and the poses are so nice and calm, Im sure they gets what they need at this moment.   but its always wise to  weight them everyday anyways, its a good radar to spot troubles.  Or be sure they are developing well.

Some cats do manage cows milk, but who wants to take any risks with a nursing momma??   Also, it seems raw cow milk is less dangerous than processed / pasturized cow milk.

Goats milk is safe, though,  raw goats milk is best (fresh or frozen), but even the pasteurized in bottles cartooned powdered is OK for cats.