A cat showed up during a snowstorm a few weeks ago. I noticed she felt very "large" in the belly. I brought her in and quickly begged everyone I knew (and a few people I didn't know
) to take her off my hands.
Well, of course everyone gave the same reasons I had for not wanting to keep her......(no room, no time, no money) so here she is. She went to the vet, treated for earmites, URI, worms. The vet, being an overpriced backwoods farm vet gave her a quick feely and said "Y'up, I feel some lumps in thar. N'yuck n'yuck", cleaned out my bank account and sent me on my way. He couldn't give me a timeframe or anything. I didn't bother asking, as it would have probably hiked my bill another $50 had he been forced to break out his stethescope or anything "extra".
Anyway. That was two weeks and three days ago. Valentine's Day to be exact. Actually, the sweet man I married INSISTED her vet bill was my V-Day present.
He's lucky I was feeling forgiving, that day. I allowed him to live.
Today, her belly is H-U-G-E. It feels hard. She has claimed a rug that she wads up and lays on, as her bed (despite all the towels and blankets I've provided for her)
So, without an approximate date of "conception", how do I know when she's close? I am big on spay/neuter, and I haven't dealt with birthing kittens since I was 7 years old. Being closer to 30 than I'd like to be, that was long enough for me to forget.
Taking her temperature rectally is non-negotiably out of the question. She tore me UP at the vets office and made it perfectly clear we would NOT be doing that again. There is no way I could do it myself, and my husband and child would definitely *NOT* participate in such a thing knowing she will turn into devil cat from hell and scratch/bite them.....(buncha sissies)
If anyone has any words of wisdom for someone who doesn't have a CLUE, I'd be most appreciative.
So far I've got her a box, filled with blankets. She is confined to the bathroom, because my personal cats will not appreciate her presence in the rest of the house. It's a large, roomy, carpeted bathroom, and we do spend a lot of time with her. I'm feeding her kitten food for now. I'm embarassed to say I'm feeding junk brand (purina) because it's what I put out for the outside cats. (I can't afford to feed all the ferals and raccoons and whatever other wildlife shows up the high quality cat food) She gets wet foods twice a day. She seems to be drinking more water than is typical for a cat. Maybe she has a drinking problem. I dunno.
Don't hesitate to tell me if I'm doing something TOTALLY wrong. I'd rather know than continue to do it.
Thanks!
Well, of course everyone gave the same reasons I had for not wanting to keep her......(no room, no time, no money) so here she is. She went to the vet, treated for earmites, URI, worms. The vet, being an overpriced backwoods farm vet gave her a quick feely and said "Y'up, I feel some lumps in thar. N'yuck n'yuck", cleaned out my bank account and sent me on my way. He couldn't give me a timeframe or anything. I didn't bother asking, as it would have probably hiked my bill another $50 had he been forced to break out his stethescope or anything "extra".
Anyway. That was two weeks and three days ago. Valentine's Day to be exact. Actually, the sweet man I married INSISTED her vet bill was my V-Day present.
Today, her belly is H-U-G-E. It feels hard. She has claimed a rug that she wads up and lays on, as her bed (despite all the towels and blankets I've provided for her)
So, without an approximate date of "conception", how do I know when she's close? I am big on spay/neuter, and I haven't dealt with birthing kittens since I was 7 years old. Being closer to 30 than I'd like to be, that was long enough for me to forget.
Taking her temperature rectally is non-negotiably out of the question. She tore me UP at the vets office and made it perfectly clear we would NOT be doing that again. There is no way I could do it myself, and my husband and child would definitely *NOT* participate in such a thing knowing she will turn into devil cat from hell and scratch/bite them.....(buncha sissies)
If anyone has any words of wisdom for someone who doesn't have a CLUE, I'd be most appreciative.
So far I've got her a box, filled with blankets. She is confined to the bathroom, because my personal cats will not appreciate her presence in the rest of the house. It's a large, roomy, carpeted bathroom, and we do spend a lot of time with her. I'm feeding her kitten food for now. I'm embarassed to say I'm feeding junk brand (purina) because it's what I put out for the outside cats. (I can't afford to feed all the ferals and raccoons and whatever other wildlife shows up the high quality cat food) She gets wet foods twice a day. She seems to be drinking more water than is typical for a cat. Maybe she has a drinking problem. I dunno.
Don't hesitate to tell me if I'm doing something TOTALLY wrong. I'd rather know than continue to do it.
Thanks!