i got my first pregnant foster last night!

she's a sweet little dilute tortie stray i've named lola. her belly is fairly big but there is no hair loss around her nipples, nipples are still very small, no kitten movement can be felt yet so i think i've got at least 2-3 weeks to go. she has a nice warm nest in a closet in a bedroom by herself (i have 6 very curious cats) everything she needs is near by. i have dry petag kmr, bottles, syringes. wet kitten food for mama plus some high quality grain free dry if she wants it. already have a heating pad if i need it and a digital scale.

i have no idea how old she is but she isn't a very big cat so i hope the delivery goes ok. i think she's pretty young though. our rescue will be spaying her when the babies are 8 weeks old. am i forgetting anything? i may have more questions!

It sounds like you are well prepared! Welcome to fostering [emoji]128512[/emoji]. We're here for any and all questions!

i've been fostering for a year but she's my first pregnant cat. i used to be a labor & delivery nurse so i think i'll be ok but cats are a bit different from humans!

i felt the babies moving for the first time this morning, very light little kicks and nudges. can't wait to have babies! do the mamas lick the hair off around their nipples or does it fall off naturally?

That's exciting! Mom cats usually lick most of it away by the time they give birth. [emoji]128522[/emoji]

1st baby arrived at 1pm, 2nd, a few minutes ago...the first looks exactly like mama, the 2nd is a really pretty auburn color. 

Congratulations - looking forward to hearing more. If you have time, of course.

Congrats!  Post some pictures when you get a chance.

we are up to 5 babies and i'm not sure she's done. i do have a question. it seems like she has urinated in her nest and some of the kittens are pretty wet (from urine)--how old do they have to be to give them a bath?. i changed the blankets really fast and mama didn't seem to mind me picking them up. i'm also babysitting my 2 y/o granddaughter so when my husband gets home i will weigh them. they look really little but all are moving all over the nest and squeaking. this was the very first one i took with my phone but now my storage is full so i'm taking more with my camera..

I would certainly not bath them. I've only had 2 litters and I'm no expert. So long as you change the bedding if it gets wet, and Mama is coping and the room is warm enough, there should be no problem. You may put Mama off her babies if you take them away and they come back smelling strange.

How exciting. Good luck.

It's more likely that the wetness you're seeing is from her waters breaking. Mom will clean and dry the kittens. They are much too young for a bath as a chill could kill them. You could possibly wipe them off with a damp warm cloth if you're really concerned. I think I would just change the bedding and leave them to mom if I were you.

baby#2:





baby #3 







 

i have no idea yet what sex they are but the orange one is tater tot, tater for short. not sure about the others yet..

i think she's done at 5. here are some better pictures:

A beautiful family! [emoji]128149[/emoji]

Gorgeous.

ellag said:

baby#2:

baby #3 

 

i have no idea yet what sex they are but the orange one is tater tot, tater for short. not sure about the others yet..

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Well the Tortie one (the one who looks like the mother) is almost certainly female.

It is extremely rare for male cats to be torties or calicos because in order for a cat to have Tortie or calico coloring, they must have 2 different genes that determine coloring, and since the gene for coat color is on the X chromosome, Torties and calicos must have 2 X chromosomes. Male cats who are torties or calicos have 3 sex chromosomes (XXY) and are extremely rare and are also infertile 99.9% of the time.

I just got my 1st foster pregnant cat! Is the " 8 week mark" the safest for spaying her

cindylousmitty said:

I just got my 1st foster pregnant cat! Is the " 8 week mark" the safest for spaying her

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Yes, its the most common.  The kittens are usually almost entirely weaned at this time.  In emergency, its possible to spay earlier, she can usually continue to nurse the kittens. But who want to experimentate, if its not absolutely necessary?

Congratulations on your new foster family! I also foster cats and just got my first pregnant foster cat a couple of weeks ago. Mine hasn't given birth yet though.

i forgot about that! i knew calicos were always girls (usually). well these little torties are now thelma and louise. one of the black kittens is salem so now i just have 1 black one to name so i need to figure out the sex...

i just got their weights at 24 hours old,

tater (orange)...4.2 oz

tortie #1 (thelma)...4.3 oz

tortie #2 who is really almost all gray now that i got a really good look at her (louise)...4.2 oz

black #1 (salem)...4.3 oz

black #2 ...4.0 oz

so everyone is very close!