Apologies if this doesn't go here, I am very new to this forum, thought it seems likely that it should. Anyway, we have a semi wild barn cat named Skitter (due to her skittish nature) and she is very pregnant. Two days ago, however, I pressed (very very gently) against her stomach and it did not seem as hard, and when I looked at her from the top she did not bulge out as she did before (though it was still definitely there). I am assuming this was her belly dropping as I checked her and she didn't show any signs of a early birth due to miscarried kittens (she has reabsorbed or miscarried another litter before, which I do not know). This night I was bringing her some leftover cat food and I felt her stomach again and swore I felt a contraction. She is also being strangely clingy, she is following me around all the time. Usually she will hiss or bit before letting me pet or feed her but tonight she was the opposite. Because she is continuously following me around she is currently outside of the barn (sleeping near her mate, who she is usually very affectionate towards and tonight the same stands) but I returned to the house and will go check on her soon (every half hour). She also fell asleep, though wakes up occasionally if she hears a noise or something. I would like to hear your opinion on this, is this labor or am I getting excited for nothing?
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Is she in labor?
- Thread starter aithusa
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Yes, but she doggedly follows me everywhere, so she won't stay put. She has rested in a comfortable area though whenever I sit down or something. If I stay in the birthing room she will sit near me and not the nest.
Don't worry, she has water though we just ran out of food with that last can so I'll have to get my mom to pick some more up tomorrow morning.
I would if I could, absolutely. However, I am not of job age, thus have no way of earning money for it (odd jobs can only do so much) and my family has a dogged "they're cats, it's natural" which means they will not pay for vet fees. We do have one employee feeding then everyday however, though he is too poor to pay for spaying himself. So I try and take care of them where I can.
Oh yes definitely. The barns have heating lamps if it gets cold in the winter too, though there is a heating system in place.
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A
aithusa
The moving around and licking herself are signs of labor, but it could still be hours.
Are you allowed to bring her in the house tonight?
Have your mom pick up a bag of kitten chow, along with wet food. Kitten chow has higher nutritional value that mama cat needs for nursing, along with wet food.
Give me your city and state and I'll locate a low-cost spay/neuter clinic for you for down the road.
The moving around and licking herself are signs of labor, but it could still be hours.
Are you allowed to bring her in the house tonight?
Have your mom pick up a bag of kitten chow, along with wet food. Kitten chow has higher nutritional value that mama cat needs for nursing, along with wet food.
Give me your city and state and I'll locate a low-cost spay/neuter clinic for you for down the road.
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I'm pretty sure it's gonna be a while, contractions are few and far between and haven't been bothering her because she's asleep at the moment.
Doubt it, but I'll check it out with my mom. And will do.
We are up in Illinois though the middle of nowhere so the closest town is Neoga. So Neoga. Illinois. Or Cumberland county. Illinois.
Ah as I was typing she woke up to give herself more abdomen licks... Aaand back to bed haha.
Alrighty, I'm in Florida and it's almost midnight, though I've been watching the opening ceremony for the Rio Olympics. I love it! It's like a trip through the "Small World" ride at Disney with all the colorful nations marching. They still need to light the torch, but I think I may need to go to bed.
Good luck with your kitty, and I'll look for an update from you tomorrow! We have other members who may be on during the night if you need help. And we have some excellent articles about pregnant cats and delivery if you want to read up. [emoji]128522[/emoji]
Good luck with your kitty, and I'll look for an update from you tomorrow! We have other members who may be on during the night if you need help. And we have some excellent articles about pregnant cats and delivery if you want to read up. [emoji]128522[/emoji]
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Still no kittens, I'm afraid. She seems to be acting pretty normal, but isn't any smaller. Makes me think I may have been mistaken about her labor. But I will co to i.e. monitoring her as you said these can last for ages.
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Yep, we bought some food!
Today I checked on her and I felt more contractions, much stronger this time and they seemed to be bothering her. I gave her some food and she took a very long time to decide if she wanted it, eventually ate most but left some (very little bit, mind you) so I think she's not very hungry. Which is a good thing, labor wise.
At the moment she is sitting on the floor. Her contractions feel a little like tremors of hiccups sort of in her lower abdomen. Not bothering her overly much but they do cause her a deal of discomfort. She remains clingy.
How is your cat doing today?
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Apologies for not responding! I was caught up in things. However, I think she may have (finally) left the first stage of contractions. Now, every three minutes she has easily felt ones that shake her stomach and happen every three minutes. She's licking her abdomen nonstop and can't stop moving around once they start. Kittens coming soon!
It certainly sounds like it! [emoji]128522[/emoji]
Any progress here?
