FIrst Time

rickd

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Hi. Last year moved to the country and adopted a feral kitten from a local farmer (neighbour). It's a little over a year old and of course, now it's having kittens. 

She has found a clever hiding spot that I can't get at. I know there are kittens in her hiding spot because I can hear them. Do cat's scream when giving birth? When I got home she came to see me meowing. Then she disappeared into her spot. When I went looking for her I could hear the kittens. I left her alone for a bit and she started yeowling and screaming. Is that normal? Should I let her be? I thought they were quiet when having kittens.

Any answer would be great.

Thanks,

Rick
 

red top rescue

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Some cats do scream when having kittens, and some do not.  I have had both kinds.  If she continues to scream, however, do find a way to get in there and helpher out.  She could have a kitten stuck and then she and the kitten might die, so It would be best if you could get her and the kittens and move them inside to a room of their own, perhaps put her and the babies in a closet, and the litter box and food and water in the room, and keep the door closed.  That would be the safest place for them, and you could watch her and make sure she is recovering properly.

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 some 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 mama cat and new arrivals.

Birth, Delivery and Newborns

View media item 212113
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
 
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rickd

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Many Thanks Red Top. 

Momma is doing fine and has started to visit people in the house for a few minutes. She wanted to go out this morning so I opened the door and she went out to roll around then scooted back in within 45 seconds. When she went out I scooped up the kittens and put them in a nice soft cathouse in a spare bedroom closet closer to us instead of the cold basement. It's a job trying to keep her from moving them. lol

 
 

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So glad you got to the babies and were able to bring them in, and that all seems well with mom.  Is there any way that you can keep her 100% inside until the babies are weaned?  Mom can get pregnant again within a week of delivery, which is just so hard on her body.  She may also not come back if she gets pregnant, which will leave you to raise the babies.  She will eventually settle if closed in the spare bedroom with her kittens.  

Thank you so much for caring for this family!
 
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rickd

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Ah... glad you told me. I'll close her in the room until her visit to the vet. 
 

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Another reason to keep her in is that if anything happened to her, you would have to bottle raise those beautiful babies.  It looks like they are going to be little fluff balls, one cream and one blue (grey).  Be sure to handle them a little every day so they will grow up knowing human smell and thus being domesticated.  Weighing them daily is a good idea.  Use a kitchen food scale or a postal scale.  They should gain a little every day.  If they don't gain weight, that's an indication of a problem, so it's a good way to discover problems before they get too serious.  Hopefully there will be no problems.  It sounds like mama was once a house kitty and is adjusting well.
 
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rickd

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Kittens are 3 weeks old and doing great. They're starting to wander in the spare room I have them in and the last few days she has been moving the kittens out of the room into the dining room on a non carpeted floor.

Is this her way of getting them "out in the world"? or should we continue to move them back into the room? At what point can we let them wander?

 
 

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The kittens should still be contained in one kitten proofed room for now. They're too small too have access to much more of the house.
 
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rickd

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Thank you. At what age can they be let loose on the household? lol
 

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It's up to you, because you'll need to kitten-proof and supervise initially, but it's safer after they are weaned and litter-trained, which is more like 5-6 weeks old. They'll still need litter boxes nearby though.

It sounds like she wants them near you guys. Maybe move them into your bedroom for now?
 

Sarthur2

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She wants to be around the family, and for her kittens to begin to socialize. My cat moved her babies from a spare bedroom into my bedroom when they were 3 weeks. You can move them now if you wish.
 

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Actually it's best to let the mom cat move them where she wants them.  Otherwise you get into a lot of back and forth with her hauling them somewhere and you hauling them back.  One thing I do suggest, however, is that pretty soon you should put tiny litter boxes in all the corners of whatever room they end up in, because once they start peeing and pooping on their own, they tend to seek out corners, and if they start going on the floor or carpet, that's a hard habit to break.  I have those little $1.98 boxes I got at WalMart, and I use sandbox sand when they are first learning to use a litter box (because they usually eat some of the litter and clumping litter is dangerous, it can cause obstruction, whereas sand is safe).  Once they are used to hunting for a litter box, you can slowly move them out of the corners, and then merge them with bigger litter boxes.  Kittens are like little kids, however, they don't plan ahead, and when they need to pee or poop, there is an urgency, so its best to have multiple boxes available to them!
 
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