pregnant puss advice!

i recently took on an 11 month old queen. i already have 1 queen and 2 castrated toms. the queen was not spayed but i was told she had been an indoor cat. i had every intention on spaying her. i let her settle down for a few weeks in an enclosed area of the hosue where she can not escape. however i nwo belive she is actually pregnant and came to me pregnant as there is nto way she coudl of becoem pregnant whiel i have had her. she has nto had a heat since being here and also she has not been round any cats other than my 2 castrated toms and my queen.

her stomach has started to get rounder and her nipples are bigger and pink.
i phoned the lady who used to own her but she was nto intrested so i can only assume she was passing the buck when she passed her on to me.

i have decided that i am going to do everythign i cam for this cat and her impending kittens now. even keep all the kittens if i have to, that way at least i knwo they will have a good home and i have room for them.

however i have a few questions about the birthing and managing of kittens and i was wondering if anyoen coudl help?

firstly the new cat (molly) has taken a likeing to my bed room, so i have placed a box in there with soem vert bed, in a hiden place. the only problem i have is that soemtimes the other cats do enter my bedroom. at the moment molly dose not mind as she sleeps with my other cats , but what happens when she has her kittens?
are my other cats likely to interfeer and would my toms try and kill the kittens?
what if she decided she dosnt want to have her kittens where i have made a box for her and i end up having to serch the hosue for the kittens becasue she suddenly goes off and has them?
i also have 2 dogs, who are cat friendly but obviosuly could nto be trusted with young baby kittens as they will be so small and fragile, so i need to really make sure that molly has her kittens somewhere safe.

i thoguth about polacing her in a dog cage with a litter tray and a nesting box towards the end of her pregnany. however i understand that a queen can delay pregnany intill she is hapy with her birthing spot. i doubt she would be happy contained.

do i just let her get on with it and choose her own spot?
at 11 months and not a very big queen would she be likely to have more problems giving birth than an older queen?

once the kittens are born, when do i introduce a litter tray?
i knwo the queen teachs her kittens, however at present all my cats go to toilet out in the garden witch is escape proof. nothign can get in or out.
however i can let her kitten go out there becsue of the dogs and other cats?

hellllpp!

Originally Posted by pussygalore

i recently took on an 11 month old queen. i already have 1 queen and 2 castrated toms. the queen was not spayed but i was told she had been an indoor cat. i had every intention on spaying her. i let her settle down for a few weeks in an enclosed area of the hosue where she can not escape. however i nwo belive she is actually pregnant and came to me pregnant as there is nto way she coudl of becoem pregnant whiel i have had her. she has nto had a heat since being here and also she has not been round any cats other than my 2 castrated toms and my queen.

her stomach has started to get rounder and her nipples are bigger and pink.
i phoned the lady who used to own her but she was nto intrested so i can only assume she was passing the buck when she passed her on to me.

i have decided that i am going to do everythign i cam for this cat and her impending kittens now. even keep all the kittens if i have to, that way at least i knwo they will have a good home and i have room for them.

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First, allow me to say thank you for taking this girl on in her time of need. You are a good person to want to help her. I'll see if I can address your questions, one at a time ...

firstly the new cat (molly) has taken a likeing to my bed room, so i have placed a box in there with soem vert bed, in a hiden place. the only problem i have is that soemtimes the other cats do enter my bedroom. at the moment molly dose not mind as she sleeps with my other cats , but what happens when she has her kittens?
are my other cats likely to interfeer and would my toms try and kill the kittens?
what if she decided she dosnt want to have her kittens where i have made a box for her and i end up having to serch the hosue for the kittens becasue she suddenly goes off and has them?

Click to expand...

If Molly likes your bedroom and you can close it off from the rest of the house, then that sounds like a good place to start. When Molly delivers, you will want to keep your other pets away from her. She may become stressed and decide to either attack the other pets or move the babies to what she considers a safer place - this place may not be the best of places for YOU to have to care for kittens. As for the male cats, if they are neutered, it is likely that they will not hurt the babies, however, I still would not allow them access to them. It just isn't worth the risk.

If you can't close off your bedroom, then I like and recommend a large dog crate for both delivery and nesting. They come in very handy not only now, but as the kittens get older and start exploring ... and afterwards, you never know when you might need to temporarily confine a cat for whatever reason. You will want to place it in a warm, dimly lit corner away from drafts and cover it with a large blanket.

i thoguth about polacing her in a dog cage with a litter tray and a nesting box towards the end of her pregnany. however i understand that a queen can delay pregnany intill she is hapy with her birthing spot. i doubt she would be happy contained.

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I wouldn't confine her until the birth, I would just keep her in the bedroom with the door closed. Once she has had the babies, you can transfer all to the crate and confine her then if you need to.

do i just let her get on with it and choose her own spot?
at 11 months and not a very big queen would she be likely to have more problems giving birth than an older queen?

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She very well may choose her own spot, but if you limit her access to all areas of your home by confining her to one room where you have set up a couple of different birthing nests, she should choose one and be fine.

My own queen was 11 months old when she was first bred, she is also small and had no problems. Just start feeding her a good, high-quality kitten food in both canned and dry varieties and give her as much as she wants both before and after the birth. Don't overfeed, but let her have as much as she will eat.

once the kittens are born, when do i introduce a litter tray?
i knwo the queen teachs her kittens, however at present all my cats go to toilet out in the garden witch is escape proof. nothign can get in or out.
however i can let her kitten go out there becsue of the dogs and other cats?

Click to expand...

Kittens normally will start using the litter box sometime between 3 and 6 weeks of age. It isn't a good idea to let her go outside, even though your garden is escape-proof - bring in a litter box large enough for Momma and babies to use and keep it very clean. Use regular clay litter (not scooping) and wash the box thoroughly with hot water and bleach twice per week. If you must let the kittens outside, then do NOT do so until after they have had ALL of their kitten vaccines. The risk of illness is just too big for little immune systems still maturing ... you could end up with a lot of sick cats.

Gaye has already given you such great advise but I just wanted to add my thanks for taking this girl in at her time of need - your a wonderful person!! good luck with the impending birth, there is a wealth of information and knowledgable people on this forum that will be able to help you through it all should you need

Good luck!! looking forward to hearing about it all

I foster cats, and find that they like the dog crate. Just cover it with a large towel or blanket, so it is like a cave. Then put a good box on the bottom of the cage, with soft blankets or something for the nest. Remember after she gives birth, you will have a mess and need to change the material.

Then just leave the door to the cage open. Hopefully she will start sleeping in there before the birth, and claim it as her little spot. You can even start keeping the other animals out of the bedroom before the birth. When I don't have a foster cat, my cats love to play in my foster cat room. But they are never allowed in with a foster cat until after the kittens are raised. (I'm sure you won't need to keep yours apart that long...I always have preggers fosters who probably never had vaccinations, etc.)

Best of luck with your surprise litter. That was very dirty of her owner to palm her off pregnant! I'm glad she has a better home, now.

how aboout a litter tray?
should i put that in the crete as well?
does the queen clean up the kittens poo in the first few weeks?

Originally Posted by pussygalore

how aboout a litter tray?
should i put that in the crete as well?
does the queen clean up the kittens poo in the first few weeks?

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The queen stimualtes the kittens to pee and poo in the first weeks and cleans it up. I would pu in a litterbox for the queen to use if you are going to confine her. (but that seems like it would be a bit cramped). Otherwise, I would just put the litterbox nearby.