How to get mom & kittens to move to new box

My cat had her kittens early this morning... Husband and I were out (I had no idea she was this close to delivering). Even though we prepared a few spots for her to deliver in, she chose to do so under our bed. Obviously it is wet and bloody there now. I tried transferring the kittens and then her to a box, but she kept crawling right back under the bed to the same spot. I gave up and put the kittens back with her.

How can I get her to move herself and her family to the nice, clean box? It's well insulated and covered, so it's warm enough and dark enough. It is dangerous for her and the kittens to lay around on that soiled carpet?

While not dangerous, per se, it isn't a good idea. I like those extra-large dog crates myself ... they are not expensive (bought mine at Wal-Mart for less than $50 and if you don't needs yours again, you can easily sell it on eBay for at least what you have in it) and they work very well at containing Mom and babies until it is safe for them to venture out.

What I do is this: After Mom is finished cleaning and delivering, (usually on my bed *sigh*) I move the kittens to the clean nest in the dog crate. I offer Mom some fresh, clean water and some food if she wants it (normally she doesn't after eating the placentas) and then I put her in the crate with her babies. She begins to nurse them and settles right down as soon as I close the crate door. I drape a thick, warm blanket over the entire crate to keep it dim and warm. There isn't room for a litter box or food bowls in there so I check on Mom frequently throughout the day to allow her time to come out and use her litter and eat/drink. I keep the crate back in my bedroom with the lights very dim and one of those electric heater thingies closeby - but not TOO close by. They are away from the normal traffic and activities of my house, but still close enough that I can hear if Mom calls to me.

Very good advice from gayef!

I did the same gayef....I bought a small oscillating space heater from wal mart for like 25 bucks.......but make sure it's a long way away from them.....they recommend 3 feet, so I did 8.

it kind of depends on the cat too. When my kitten's momma had babies she birthed them in like a six inch space between the desk and the wall (sigh it was 4:00 am and we missed it ) but she let us move her and her babies into a box with a blanket in it. Some cats are just different and have diff temperments. She might not like it when you change the blankets too. You could also try putting her in a smaller room that isnt used much and closing the door if you didn't want to buy a big crate. Also if You have a really large open closet (I have one thats about two feet wide and four feet long) you can put her in there and close the door. Preferably a bedroom closet or something w/o shelves unless they are very high up.