mom cat ignoring kittens

i need some advice asap...my 9 month year old female cat Jill, had her kittens (3 of them) about 16 hours ago. She was doing fine, but now she just sits outside my bedroom door and meows...for about 2 hours now. Her kittens are in the basement and i'm worried about them getting to cold...it's about 60 degrees down there....My mom says to just leave her alone, and that she wants me....I put her in the box with them once and she kinda growled at them. I have another female and male, but they will stay outside in the garage for now.(there used to being out all the time) Is my mom right? She totally freaked on me, about how she's not bottle feeding them etc...And second. My mom has a pyscho Jack Russell. He growls and barks at all us family members except my mom...he has bitten all of us, plus visitors many times. He can't get into the basement (afraid of the stairs?) but he still sits at the railing on the first floor and whine's looking down the stairs. I'm worried he's gonna hurt these kittens. He attacks our male cat, but he's small for his size as it is, and Guido (the cat) just swats him....any advice would be greatly appreciated. And if i do have to bottle feed the kittens when do i start?

I would take the entire family to your vet....when mom ignores the kittens, most times there is a reason (they might be sick) and it's best to know now.

Katie

If the kittens have any chance of surviving, they need to be kept warm. A chill will kill kittens very quickly, and 60 degrees is COLD for them. Please see www.kitten-rescue.com for information on a rice heater that you can make to keep them warm.

I'll move this to Pregnant Cats & Newborn Kittens for more help.

I would bring your cat and kittens upstairs to a warm and quiet room, and shut your momcat in the room with the kittens. keep an eye on her to see if she is feeding them. She is pretty young and may just be overwhelmed from the stress and the pain she went through. But these kittens need warmth and they need food. If you have to step in you will need a special bottle feeder with an elongated tube- Walgreen's carries these behind the pharmacy counter. You will need KMR Kitten Replacement Milk and you will need to be the one to feed every two hours and stimulate the kittens as well. Hopefully mom will pitch in soon, but if not, you will have to or these babies will die. They need to be in at least 90 degrees so the rice heaters and the pet heating pads are a godsend. Do not use a human heating pad unless you bury it so far down in the blankets it has no way to burn them-

Good luck- and yes www.kitten-rescue.com was set up just for people in your situation. If you have specific questions please just ask, many members here raise orphan kittens and help with litters-

can you keep the mama cat and kittens in your room? she's very young and will be feeling overwhelmed by it all so might just want you close at hand and your support. when my cat gave birth she wanted me around her constantly for two whole days and i even had to keep her nest box on the bed!

please keep the dog away from the kittens, he will savage them if he gets the chance. its in his nature.

I've read on various sites that some cats want their owners accessible to them. Our cat Pepsi was like that, even though she's very skittish--even with us sometimes. We thought she'd be secretive, but while she was in labor she HAD to have someone with her at all times, and she's really been good about letting us be around the kittens.

Maybe your kitty is the same way. And yeah, 60 degrees is pretty cold for kittens. Just like human babies, they can't regulate their own temperature right away.