Introducing soon-to-be mommy Salem! (with pics)

sesheta · Jul 30, 2006

Hello everyone!
I just joined the forum and wanted to introduce myself and my beautiful Salem, soon to be mommy! Sorry for the long post, but I'm pretty excited!

Salem was found by one of my neighbors outside this past winter (which is brutal here in MontrÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]al!) cold, hungry, and horribly skinny. She couldn't keep the poor thing because she already had two male cats and a dog in her small apartment so I agreed to adopt her. I met her and fell in love right away. The moment I sat down with Salem she climbed up on my lap, curled up with her purr-motor running and happy paws on my stomach. I was hooked! Now Salem is a healthy, happy and VERY LOVED kitty.

I took her in to see the vet and get her first shots, they estimated she was around a year old. I couldn't get her spayed until we made sure everything else was a-okay and she was up to date on vaccinations. Well, about a week before her scheduled spay date she went into heat and bolted out the door while I was signing for a package. Now, we are expecting some little balls of fluff sometime in the next two weeks.

The kittens are getting super wiggly! I was laying on the bathroom floor with her earlier (the cool tiles feel good on her belly I think, she lays there all day with her legs straight out behind her and arms stretched above her head... see the picture!) rubbing her belly (which she loves) and the babies were doing some serious acrobats in there, pushing against my hand and just being all around active little tikes.

I already made up the laundry room as a kitty-nursery and everything is set to go once mother nature takes it's course. I can't stand the waiting! I'm on pins and needles!

I do have one question: Her nipples have been VERY large for several weeks now and they seem to be a bit crusty with black spots around the areolas and the tips are black as well, they look something like very bad black heads. Is this normal? She also seems to have one dud-nipple (for lack of a better term) which has not grown or changed at all. I'm guessing it's just skin pigmentation but I tend to be over-protective of my baby.

Here are some pictures of Salem, isn't she a beauty! I will post pictures of the little ones once they arrive as well.

missy'smomma · Jul 30, 2006

Welcome to TCS! What a sweet girl, she looks quite comfy stretched out like that

You are going to love this site, the group is very supportive and its nice to get advice from others that have been through this

tnr1 · Jul 30, 2006

Welcome to TCS...it never hurts to contact your vet regarding any concerns you have (like the issue with her nipples) that way you can feel certain that she does not need to have them seen.

One thing that is really important with regards to cats that have 'bolted' and became pregnant is that you need to place her in a room where she is at least 2 doors away from the outdoors. Cats do NOT need to be in heat to become pregnant and a cat that has given birth can become pregnant again as early as a week after giving birth. As exciting as this must be for you...we would like this to be Salem's only litter. This will mean that Salem will need to remain an indoors only cat until she has weaned the kittens and has been spayed.

Katie

sesheta · Jul 30, 2006

Katie
Oh I agree completely, like I said in my post she was very close to her scheduled date to be spayed when she got out. I had already set the date for her to be fixed as soon as was possible and she got out right before she was supposed to go in to the vet. I spoke with the vet afterwards and we have plans to take her in to be spayed as soon as the kittens are weaned (and until then I have explained to my boyfriend the rules about doors and windows to keep her inside.) Trust me, I was not pleased that it happened but now that it HAS I am excited to have the little ones around. I have volunteered at shelters and all my pets in the past have been rescues, I am a firm believer in spaying and neutering to help with the over-population of pets and the lack of homes for all of them. But sometimes accidents happen and we do the best we can when they do.

I'll be taking her in to get a check up and ask about the nipples this week. Thanks for the advice!

tnr1 · Jul 30, 2006

Oh I agree completely, like I said in my post she was very close to her scheduled date to be spayed when she got out.

I had a friend who had rescued a stray and had planned to have her spayed after her 1st pregnancy. Since this cat had lived outdoors..it was very wiley and was able to escape and get pregnant again. I would want you to avoid having the same experience as my friend did (she did have the cat spayed since the pregnancy was so close to the first one).

That is why I recommended having Salem confined in a room with 2 doors between herself and the outdoors.

Katie

beckiboo · Jul 30, 2006

She is very beautiful. I have to agree with Katie. I foster, and my Momma's are in a spare bedroom. That way if they sneak out, they only get into the hallway. Of course, since they don't know the way around the house, they would never make it outside!

Let us know what the vet says about the nipples. I have never heard of that before!

sesheta · Jul 30, 2006

Thanks! You know, I hadn't thought of keeping her in a separate room, but that's a really great idea. And since I already have a room made up as a kitten nursery of sorts, it would probably work quite well for her until she gets spayed. I have it furnished with litter, food, water, toys etc. so she should be quite content in there for a few weeks while she is nursing. You're right though, since she was a stray before I took her in she has a sneaky way of getting out when least expected. I wonder if there is any way to transition her into an indoor cat or if it's a lost cause since she spent a year outdoors already. Thoughts?

And I will certainly let you know what the vet says about her nipples!

Taylor

tnr1 · Jul 30, 2006

Originally Posted by Sesheta

Thanks! You know, I hadn't thought of keeping her in a separate room, but that's a really great idea. And since I already have a room made up as a kitten nursery of sorts, it would probably work quite well for her until she gets spayed. I have it furnished with litter, food, water, toys etc. so she should be quite content in there for a few weeks while she is nursing. You're right though, since she was a stray before I took her in she has a sneaky way of getting out when least expected. I wonder if there is any way to transition her into an indoor cat or if it's a lost cause since she spent a year outdoors already. Thoughts?

And I will certainly let you know what the vet says about her nipples!

Taylor

Hey Taylor...I definately think it is doable...but will probably be easier once she has been spayed and her hormones don't have quite a 'say' in her comings and goings.

Katie

sesheta · Jul 31, 2006

Well, according to the vet the babies and momma are doing great. He didn't have an answer for me about the nipples though, he said it's most likely nothing to worry about but to have the necessary equipment to feed the babies ourselves just in case there ARE complications with nursing, which we already planned on doing anyway.

Here is a picture of one of her nipples, they have looked like that for over a month already! You can't see the dryness, but they are also quite "crusty" I tried to use a little veggie oil to soften them up but Salem was NOT impressed and quite insistent on having none of that.

Katie, thanks for the help! hopefully everything will be just fine once the spay happens. I don't like the idea of her going outside in downtown MontrÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]al, just too dangerous for a wandering kitty.

Taylor

missy'smomma · Jul 31, 2006

Missy's nipples looked the same way and everyone is nursing just fine

I wonder if it is just a part of the pigment of their skin.

sesheta · Jul 31, 2006

Great! I'm so happy to hear that! Thank you

It's silly, I know I shouldn't get worried about every little thing, but I can be an over-protective kitty mom sometimes (my poor future human children, I can only imagine what they will go through! lol

)

Yeah, I think it's probably just skin pigmentation, they are black afterall, so it would make sense

Thanks again

tnr1 · Jul 31, 2006

Originally Posted by Sesheta

Katie, thanks for the help! hopefully everything will be just fine once the spay happens. I don't like the idea of her going outside in downtown MontrÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]al, just too dangerous for a wandering kitty.

Taylor

Taylor...keep us posted on your progress. I agree...the outdoors is no place for an intact kitty.

Katie

bluebells belly · Jul 31, 2006

Originally Posted by Sesheta

Hello everyone!
I just joined the forum and wanted to introduce myself and my beautiful Salem, soon to be mommy! Sorry for the long post, but I'm pretty excited!

Salem was found by one of my neighbors outside this past winter (which is brutal here in MontrÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]al!) cold, hungry, and horribly skinny. She couldn't keep the poor thing because she already had two male cats and a dog in her small apartment so I agreed to adopt her. I met her and fell in love right away. The moment I sat down with Salem she climbed up on my lap, curled up with her purr-motor running and happy paws on my stomach. I was hooked! Now Salem is a healthy, happy and VERY LOVED kitty.

I took her in to see the vet and get her first shots, they estimated she was around a year old. I couldn't get her spayed until we made sure everything else was a-okay and she was up to date on vaccinations. Well, about a week before her scheduled spay date she went into heat and bolted out the door while I was signing for a package. Now, we are expecting some little balls of fluff sometime in the next two weeks.

The kittens are getting super wiggly! I was laying on the bathroom floor with her earlier (the cool tiles feel good on her belly I think, she lays there all day with her legs straight out behind her and arms stretched above her head... see the picture!) rubbing her belly (which she loves) and the babies were doing some serious acrobats in there, pushing against my hand and just being all around active little tikes.

I already made up the laundry room as a kitty-nursery and everything is set to go once mother nature takes it's course. I can't stand the waiting! I'm on pins and needles!

I do have one question: Her nipples have been VERY large for several weeks now and they seem to be a bit crusty with black spots around the areolas and the tips are black as well, they look something like very bad black heads. Is this normal? She also seems to have one dud-nipple (for lack of a better term) which has not grown or changed at all. I'm guessing it's just skin pigmentation but I tend to be over-protective of my baby.

Here are some pictures of Salem, isn't she a beauty! I will post pictures of the little ones once they arrive as well.

Hi, I think my cat has about 2 weeks to go. When did you notice the kittens moving, i haven't noticed Bluebells belly move at all.

sesheta · Jul 31, 2006

I noticed it for the first time about three days ago but yesterday they were really kicking up a storm! It's not guaranteed that you will feel anything though (or so I have read) every litter is different after all! I look forward to reading more about you kitty as her pregnancy progresses!

ms_joshica · Aug 1, 2006

Welcome

and Congrats. My baby just had her kitties and by the time I noticed that SERIOUS movement she had a week to go. I noticed movement at 6 weeks but it wasn't truly strong until 7. I look forward to seeing more pics, esp. since I have a huge thing for dark/black cats. I love them

Introducing soon-to-be mommy Salem! (with pics)

sesheta

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missy'smomma

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tnr1

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sesheta

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tnr1

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beckiboo

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sesheta

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tnr1

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sesheta

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missy'smomma

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sesheta

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tnr1

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bluebells belly

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sesheta

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ms_joshica

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