1 yr old in first labor!! Pls stand by.. I'm terrified!

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

nansiludie said:
Ok, that's a good sign, in that case, keep a good watch on her, it could be due to this being her first litter.

3 kittens!! She's not nursing them though or keeping them warm. I'm so worried were going to have to hand rear them. We just helped her mother supplement feed her and her brothers less than a year ago. We will if we have to of course but I just hoped for an easy time this time!

handsome kitty · Apr 9, 2016

It's normal for the mother to not nurse until she has had all the kittens or is taking a break . Relax things are progressing well so far.

wendydelmo · Apr 9, 2016

hooray for 3 kittens! Maybe she's just not done having kittens yet?

catpack · Apr 9, 2016

KITTENS MUST STAY WARM
This is VERY important. Fix them a nest and get a hieating source. Either a heating pad set on low, a hot water bottle or a rice sock (sock filled with uncooked rice and microwaved for about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes.)

catpack · Apr 9, 2016

Agree, not to worry about her nursing. It sounds as if her labor/delivery is progressing quickly and she will likely nurse after she births all the kittens.

Just keep the babies warm.

krissy marissy · Apr 9, 2016

If she feels another coming soon she will not lay with them. You need to help keep them warm until she's finished.

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Handsome Kitty said:
Do you have a heating source you can use for the kittens while mom is giving birth. It's not good for them be get cold. Be sure to cover the heating source with a towel so the kitten are not directly on it. You can use a heating pad on low, hot water bottle or even a sock stuffed with raw rice microwaved for 5 minutes.

You can stop worrying about the vet. If she has had 2 kittens after the first was stuck, the crises has passed. Were two of the kittens sharing a sack?

Id say stop worrying about the vet, the only emergency vet in this hole of a town never called back. Been an hour now and I even said "EMERGENCY" on the message. The emergency service is a recording and they give you a number to text. The only other one is an hour away. AN HOUR! After this scare, we're moving!! About a heat source, I have her and the kittens in a 30 gallon tote with a blanket and heating pad. Thank you all so much!

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

CatPack said:
KITTENS MUST STAY WARM
This is VERY important. Fix them a nest and get a hieating source. Either a heating pad set on low, a hot water bottle or a rice sock (sock filled with uncooked rice and microwaved for about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes.)

We have a heating pad in there. She's and now 4 babies (you all were right, she wasn't done yet) are in a large storage tote with a thick blanket over it and a thick blanket under them. Now.. 5!!

yellowhouse · Apr 9, 2016

I'm following along here. Five!!! So exciting! We used a rice sock for warmth eventually, but our kittens were born Aug 20th so we didn't need anything for a while. I will say, it's the best that sock has ever smelled

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Wendydelmo said:
hooray for 3 kittens! Maybe she's just not done having kittens yet?

We have 5 now. Please God let that be all. We only have a home lined up for one and there's 3 strays outside I've been caring for for years now and nobody to help us! I've tried contacting rescue groups (hours away) and nobody ever responded. Didn't even answer me! We kept the 3 born from a stray that was pregnant a year ago (Lola.. Our birthing mommy) and her brothers. That makes us with 4 cats and a bird. I know I'm getting ahead of myself but homes are VERY important for them. Maybe the people here can help us? That's another day though. Right now, 5 healthy babies and a mommy that's healthy!! Yay!!

yellowhouse · Apr 9, 2016

Oh, I have no help at all. It sounds like you live in the country? We do, too - and of our current batch of 9 cats, only two were ones that we asked for. Last summer we had 4, then Hidey came around, got fatter, had 6 kittens, and we suddenly were up to 11. I managed to palm off two of them on cousins, but the other 4 and mama are still with us. My kids and husband won't let them go. Soooo... no help, just support if you end up with lots and lots. It has been quite fun watching them grow up, so there's that.

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Yellowhouse said:
I'm following along here. Five!!! So exciting! We used a rice sock for warmth eventually, but our kittens were born Aug 20th so we didn't need anything for a while. I will say, it's the best that sock has ever smelled

[emoji]128158[/emoji] Thanks for the support! I'm kinda new to this site and hope I don't miss replying to anyone! If I do, I hope they see this [emoji]128522[/emoji]

yellowhouse · Apr 9, 2016

No worries. People here are very helpful. Post pictures when you get a chance if you can!

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Yellowhouse said:
Oh, I have no help at all. It sounds like you live in the country? We do, too - and of our current batch of 9 cats, only two were ones that we asked for. Last summer we had 4, then Hidey came around, got fatter, had 6 kittens, and we suddenly were up to 11. I managed to palm off two of them on cousins, but the other 4 and mama are still with us. My kids and husband won't let them go. Soooo... no help, just support if you end up with lots and lots. It has been quite fun watching them grow up, so there's that.

I know how you feel. We have our 4 because we fell so deeply in love with them that there was just no way we could let them go!! We can't afford to keep any of these babies. Plus we only live in an apartment and it wouldn't be ideal space for them all. Technically we don't have enough space for the 4 we have and need to move! It's nearly impossible to find a place to rent that allows pets at all, much less 4 cats, a bird and 5 kittens! [emoji]128533[/emoji] Their mother, to find her a home we offered to buy food, litter and pay vet bills just to rehome her, we didn't have to but we were willing! I pray we find homes for them all!! At least 4! We can possibly swing keeping one more but we really need to find homes for all 5!! Thank you for your support and watching them grow up is the BEST isn't it? I have over 300 pics on my phone of their mommy and her brothers growing up. Cats are the greatest!!

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Yellowhouse said:
No worries. People here are very helpful. Post pictures when you get a chance if you can!

I sure will!! My head is busting right now though. Hubbs wanted to video the birth but I was just too shook up! I'll post pics tomorrow after everyone is rested and settled. Thank you all for all the [emoji]128571[/emoji] and support!

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

CatPack said:
Agree, not to worry about her nursing. It sounds as if her labor/delivery is progressing quickly and she will likely nurse after she births all the kittens.

Just keep the babies warm.

I have a question about nursing. She's had 6 now and she only has 4 nipples with milk. Will they take turns or what? Believe it or not, they all look exactly alike and I won't be able to keep track of who's eating and who's not this soon.

Cataria · Apr 9, 2016

Aw, what do they look like? On other threads, I've see the suggestion to mark an ear or armpit with permanent marker in order to keep track of which is which!

I don't want to answer your taking turn question since I'm not an expert, but two ways you can monitor whether they are all getting enough are weighing them or listening for a lot of squawking -- hungry kittens are loud! I think that sometimes the mothers will enforce turn-taking and sometimes it will just naturally happen when the kittens fight over a nipple and then fall asleep when they are full, but better to keep an eye on it to ensure everything is okay.

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

Cataria said:
Aw, what do they look like? On other threads, I've see the suggestion to mark an ear or armpit with permanent marker in order to keep track of which is which!

I don't want to answer your taking turn question since I'm not an expert, but two ways you can monitor whether they are all getting enough are weighing them or listening for a lot of squawking -- hungry kittens are loud! I think that sometimes the mothers will enforce turn-taking and sometimes it will just naturally happen when the kittens fight over a nipple and then fall asleep when they are full, but better to keep an eye on it to ensure everything is okay.

Thank you! I sure hope she gets more milk. There's 9 now!

catpack · Apr 9, 2016

You'll need to rotate the kittens, especially the first few days to make sure all get colostrum.

I would suspect that the rest of her milk will come in over the next 24 hours.

Kittens don't share nipples well. The strongest get the best nipples and the runt is left with the least favorable.

You need to weigh the kittens daily (around the same time each day.) A kitchen or postage scale works well. Something that weights in grams and ounces is preferred as grams are more accurate with newborns. Kittens should gain an average of 10 grams per day. If a kitten goes more than one day without gaining, then you'll need to supplement. Weight loss is not acceptable and means the kitten needs immediate intervention and possibly vet care.

bubblzmay · Apr 9, 2016

BubblzMay said:
I know how you feel. We have our 4 because we fell so deeply in love with them that there was just no way we could let them go!! We can't afford to keep any of these babies. Plus we only live in an apartment and it wouldn't be ideal space for them all. Technically we don't have enough space for the 4 we have and need to move! It's nearly impossible to find a place to rent that allows pets at all, much less 4 cats, a bird and 5 kittens! [emoji]128533[/emoji] Their mother, to find her a home we offered to buy food, litter and pay vet bills just to rehome her, we didn't have to but we were willing! I pray we find homes for them all!! At least 4! We can possibly swing keeping one more but we really need to find homes for all 5!! Thank you for your support and watching them grow up is the BEST isn't it? I have over 300 pics on my phone of their mommy and her brothers growing up. Cats are the greatest!!

Theres 9 now! I'm worried she won't have enough milk to feed them all! I'm having a total meltdown right now! Our crappy vet said 3!A week ago at that! (sigh)

1 yr old in first labor!! Pls stand by.. I'm terrified!

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