Cleo and Becky

[mishirish]

Now that I bought my own house, one of the first things I did was volunteer to foster for a local cat rescue. I have two sisters right now - one definitely very pregnant and one who may be (I'm beginning to doubt it though, thankfully).

First is Cleo, the pregnant one. I started seeing kicks last Sunday so we probably have about another week to go yet, but she is already pretty huge.

I also have Becky, her sister, reportedly 8 months old. Thought she may be early into a pregnancy as well since they were both fairly skinny, except for Cleo's belly and Becky had a little pouch of a belly as well. But it's been over a week now and Becky's more proportionate (it may have been worms?). We're going to give her a couple weeks to make sure before scheduling a spay and listing her for adoption.

They get along famously.

Kicks are getting stronger. It's been over two years since I've had a momcat and litter to care for, but I think I'm ready for it.

 

[skewch]

Really gorgeous kitties you have there! And one very pregnant one as well! I am expecting too, only 10 more days to go!

I'm sure you'll do fine with the kittens and you'll love the whole experience

 

[esrandall2000]

What lovely color coordinated sisters!

 

[trouts mom]

Wow, do they ever look alike!

 

[kailie]

They are such beautiful girls!

You're doing a great thing...

Wishing Cleo all the best with her kittens.

 

[mishirish]

Spoke WAY too soon, she's having them now!!! First one is a tortie w/white (I assume female).

 

[StefanZ]

Holding thumbs!

 

[cutekittenkat]

Oh congrats! She's beautiful, can't wait to hear how it goes!

 

[stephanietx]

Oh wow! How exciting!

They're both lovely little girls. It would be wonderful if they could get adopted together.

 

[mishirish]

Okay you lot will have to help me with colors.

#1 Dilute (blue?) patched tabby female - 86g. Missing two toes on her hind foot. =(

#2 Dilute calico (???) female - 75g. Not sure if she's a patched tabby as well as I can't discern stripes in her dark spots although they may be there, and not positive she's tri-colored as she's mostly blue but I think I spot a cream spot or two. Posting two pics for opinions. First pic, I see a cream spot at the bottom of that large dark spot on her head, almost in the center of her head in the pic.

Also, her tail looks cream splotched?

#3 Red mackerel tabby with white male - 83g breach.

#4 Cream (with white?) male - 81g.

 

[mishirish]

Red and cream boys next to each other:

#5 Calico female - 57g. =(

#6 Cream and white male - 83g. I found him outside the kittening cage this morning, apparently Cleo birthed him in the bottom hidey hole of the cat house and left him there, placenta still attached. She finished cleaning him up as soon as I reunited them.

#7 Brown tabby male - 90g. Looks solid but may have white on his underside that's too pink for me to see yet.

And lastly (Phew!) #8 Black male with small white spot on his throat - 73g.

 

[mishirish]

All 8!

With their very content and purry mom:

I know their weights are low, but this is a pretty large litter. Is it common for large litters to be lower in weight? Do large litters do well? I'm worried for the calico girl.

 

[kailie]

Wow, that IS a large litter! What a beautiful bunch though, amazing!

Sending lots of vibes for all of them, but especially the little female. As heartbreaking as it may be, it is not uncommon to lose kittens in ANY litter let alone larger litters. Where there are so many babies, keep a close eye on them to make sure they are all being fed well or you may need to step in and help with some bottle/syringe feeding. I am really, REALLY hoping they all make it though!

 

[mawilouwl]

That's a large litter and the weight of the kittens are very low (all of them). Make sure they gain weight everyday. Weight them twice a day and help mommy with the feeding if they don't gain weight or if mommy looks too tired. For the small calico, make sure she is always warm. You might need a heating pad for pet. I pray that everything goes well.
You are doing a wonderful work taking care of Becky, Cleo and all of the babies.

I hope the other one is not pregnant too! That would be a lot of work!

 

[c1atsite]

Originally Posted by mishirish

I'm worried for the calico girl.

Me too. I barely noticed her in the upper left corner of the photo

- She's tiny compared to the others. ......and in the nursing photo I see she's being crowded out by her siblings. Great quality photos. I look forward to hearing more, especially about the little one.

 

[mawilouwl]

So, I have been doing some reading for your little underweight calico girl. A healhy newborn should be about 110g (4 ounces). Underweight kittens must be fed every hour. Do you know how to bottle feed a kitten? I will be really helpfull if you give her the food she needs. Be sure she doesn't get dehydrated. If is cold, you will need to warm her and possibly give her pedialyte before feeding her because digestion stops when the kitten is cold or dehydrated. Also, give a call to your vet and ask for advice if you have any concerns.
Again, best of luck and keep us posted please.

 

[skewch]

I had a litter of 8 kittens 1.5 years ago, all grew up fine. I did supplement a little here and there. Our little black one didn't nurse much at all the first day, and being the smallest may have some part in it. I made sure she got the supplements but all in all, they all grew up just fine.

I hope your little calico girl does ok. She does look quite small, but just give her extra of KMR just to be sure.

 

[StefanZ]

So far so good! Both the mom and you seems to have done like pros!

Weigh rather low as you say, but not extremely low. With a little luck they can made it. They are not looking premature either.
Although you must be prepared for extra feeding with kmr.
Preferably the KMR brand, although the RC for kittens is also good - and cheaper.

How is the aunt doing? Ie, is there a possibility for her to be an extra mom, cleaning, warming and such?


Good luck!

 

[StefanZ]

Right, the little calico must have extra attention from you if she shall have any chance. The advices you got are excellent (I suspect you yourself are aware of them - you are apparently good at this, taking weigh and photos and all. Weigh every day is important).

One tip for smallest sibling is to try to give it to mom when the others are sleeping. This way it can also get some attention and nursing form mom...

 

[cutekittenkat]

Wow, big litter!

They're all adorable, and so many colours! They are small, but as long as they gain weight, they should be fine. Since it'll be hard to let them all nurse at one, if you see some eating more than others, take them away for a few minutes and let the little ones nurse. As long as they consistantly grow, you shouldn't need to use KMR, though it could be good to have some in case.
The reason being that some mothers don't like it when their kittens are supplimented, and think that they are not needed.
Good luck with them all, and, as sad as it is, it isn't very uncommon for a kitten in a large litter to not make it

What my foster cat had a litter of 8 only 3 made it, but they were all very ill...
Keep us updated!