My Cat Is Giving Birth!!

When I woke this morning at 6:30, we found our rescued pregnant stray (taken in a week before she ran out and got pregnant) in labor. At 7:07am, she delivered the first baby perfectly fine. The following kittens arrived in the same manner at 9:26,10:41,and 11:26am. Though Kiki (the queen) appeared tired with the fourth kitten, she has been taking care of all of them well. After she gave birth to the fourth kitten, on three separate occasions I thought I felt a kitten kicking inside of her. It has been five hours since the birth of baby 4, and she is not having any more visible contractions. Her breathing, behavior, and everything are all normal for her. She's her regular lovely self and as happy as ever. How long should I wait before calling the vet if I believe she still has another kitten left to deliver? I've heard that it can take up to 36 hours. What should I watch for? I want the best for our little purr machine Kiki and all of her babies. She will be fixed as soon as the kittens are weaned and the kittens to good homes that will hopefully have them fixed as well.

Basically, what is going on is not uncommon and as long as mom is acting normally, doesn't seem distressed, and is taking care of the kittens, there is no need for you to do anything right now- if there is another kitten it will most likely be delivered in its own time (but still relatively soon).

A delay of 24 hours or less is generally considered within the range of 'normal' (again, presuming that mom seems okay). If it goes much longer than that and you are pretty sure a kitten is still inside, I probably would at least call the vet to talk at that point, but occasionally there are delays that are still longer and everything does end up okay.

S basically, for now, just be patient, keep observing mom carefully, and good luck. Congrats on the healthy new arrivals.

Actually, it's possible the kitten could be born a few days later. It really depends on when the kitten was conceived. Moms can mate with different males all week long during the heat cycle. But I do agree that it will come soon. No worries as long as mom is not in distress. [emoji]128522[/emoji]

As they said, if she's not in any distress then it's okay. Could it have been her uterus having contractions and doing its post birth thing and not a kitten? I only ask because many have felt another, but mom was done. Either way, sounds like you're keeping an eye on everyone and all seems well! [emoji]128568[/emoji]

Krissy Marissy said:

As they said, if she's not in any distress then it's okay. Could it have been her uterus having contractions and doing its post birth thing and not a kitten? I only ask because many have felt another, but mom was done. Either way, sounds like you're keeping an eye on everyone and all seems well! [emoji]128568[/emoji]

Click to expand...

Yes, feeling the swollen uterus, and not being sure what it is is common.  We even had one forumist whom swore she felt a kitten moving.  But it  the mom was done, none was left.   It was probably she felt the bowels move because of gases....  With eating up of several placentas, I presume there may be a lively gase production.

It's been twenty-four hours since the birth of Kiki's last kitten (number 4) and she's doing great. All four are gaining weight and are adorable as heck! The boy already has an owner waiting to take him when he's old enough

That's so great! Mom and babies can all be fixed when the babies are 8 weeks old. Kittens should stay with mom until they are 10-12 weeks at least.

Good news! [emoji]128571[/emoji]

Kiki will be fixed when they are around eight weeks because I think you should avoid spaying IMMEDIATELY after giving birth (a week after) because I think the stresses of delivery and surgery are too close together, as well as I feel the kittens kneading would hurt the healing incision. She will be housed solely indoors until she is fixed, and then will have a permanent home with us. I plan on the kittens staying a minimum of 10 weeks as I feel 8 weeks is really too early.

Here's a picture of all four babies

No new mom should be spayed a week after giving birth. The norm is 8 weeks, or when the kittens wean. Kittens fare even better when they stay with mom for 12 weeks. Sounds like you've got a very good plan! [emoji]128522[/emoji]

That's what I figured... When I read that they "can be spayed one week after queening" my eyes bugged out. Who wants surgery a week after delivery? I thought it unnecessary, since she is not near any intact males.