Is my cat going into labor???

[brigittesmomma]

Okay so first warnings is that this may be a little long but here it goes. I got my baby girl (Brigitte my cat) from a lady a while back who had said she is fixed....which obviously she isn't. I have no problem with having some little kittens but i wish i had been warned anyways. Well, Brigitte happened to get out of the house a while back (there are a lot of boy cats around where I live) and went missing for a good couple of weeks so i am not sure of how many weeks pregnant she is, but she definitely is preggers. She isn't huge but she is big compared to her normal size since she was a fairly small kitty. Also when i took her to the vet he said she isn't as big because there is only about 3 to 4 kittens in her womb and he also said he couldn't really tell me how far along she is (idk why not?). Well, since she woke up from her morning nap this morning she has been breathing fast and kinda heavy. She has also been more vocal then she normally is. Meowing isn't like her since she is typically a very calm kitty. I have researched and researched about labor signs and symptoms but I'm still having doubts as to weather she is in labor or not. I mean she is Meowing, breathing fast and heavy on and off, she has been following me around the house all day, and she seems to be more tired than the usual Brigitte. Sorry for the long post but i just want to give all the details possible. If anyone has any advice on weather she is in labor or not then please let me know! Thanks 

 

[tiger91]

Its sounds as though she is in early labour which can take hours. Do you have a nest made up for her? Keep an eyE on her and look out for any discharge, licking of her privates and belly area etc.

 

[brigittesmomma]

tiger91, she has been licking herself for a while now like on her stomach and everywhere else and i read that it was a sign that labor is near because she usually doesn't lick herslef often, not like she is now anyways lol. And yea I've had a nest made up for her for about a week now. It is a large cardboard box with a couple blankets and some towels on top so i can remover the towels after she has had them so they can be comfy nice and dry I even have her litter pan, plenty of food and water beside her nest. I'm so excited!

 

[brigittesmomma]

also she has been really aggressive when i go to pet her tummy lately. She used to love it now she just meows, hisses, and bites if i go anywhere near her lower half. And i haven't gotten the chance to see any discharge bc she either gets really mad if i try to look or she is constantly licking it away if there has been any lol. 

 

[handsome kitty]

It could still be a couple of days.   Welcome to the waiting game.

Things to look for and not always possible to see due to grooming are: Losing her mucus plug, water breaking - could be a dribble or a gush, she will be very affectionate and uncomfortable, dropping - kittens moving into the birth canal, she will look suddenly thinner.   She may lose her appetite and her bowels will void as her body prepares for the birth.

Have you read these articles?

 [article="31414"]Help My Cat Is Having Kittens​[/article]  

 [article="29720"]Pregnancy And Delivery In Cats​[/article]  

 [article="31379"]Pregnant Cat What To Prepare For The Birth​[/article]  

 

[brigittesmomma]

Handsome Kitty, yes i actually have read all of those articles haha! every word but i am still in question as to how soon she will deliver. I want to keep a close eye on her because she likes to wonder the house and i have a 4 month old baby girl in the room down the hall so i cant follow Brigitte around 24/7, otherwise i definitely would. She has looked a bit slimmer today, i noticed that earlier today and also she isn't eating as much as she was before(she was acting like a pig instead of a cat just the other day lol!). I am not sure if her mucus plug is gone because she is constantly licking her "area" and everywhere else so i wouldn't know even if she did loose it. Also last night i woke up to her meowing to go to the litter box (which is right across the room) and she isn't used to it being there so she sometimes forgets where it is and when she finally went to walk to it she went "number 2' before she even got to the box. Maybe she just didnt find it in time and could not hold it anymore? idk... But she is still breathing very fast on and off and it seems so be every couple of minutes, even when she is napping. Could that mean she is in early labor and having light contractions that i just cant see yet??? every time she starts to breath hard i check her tummy and it is pretty hard almost every time. Contractions or not...im not very sure as im new to this. This is only my 2d pregnant cat and the last one had problems with not knowing to lick the kittens so i had to stimulate them to breath with my hands. She was a first time mommy just like brigitte so i hope brig doesnt do like she did. Fingers crossed for some kittens here soon! If anyone else has any idea about this topic and what all information i have given please respond and let me know! 

 

[brigittesmomma]

Oh and also i forgot to mention that her little kittens have been very active in there. If i watch close enough i can see them slowly moving around. And another thing is i was wondering if anyone would have any idea how far along she is because the vet said he wasn't sure but he is new so idk. But i was wondering because i read that you can feel a cats babies move at around 7 weeks and i started feeling hers move for about a week now. So would that mean she is basically full term (8 or 9 weeks)? I will upload a pic tomorrow if anyone wants to see her for estimation of gestation.

 

[tiger91]

If she is 8 weeks it's too early for labour. Cat pregnancy is different to humans. My cat just had kittens 3 days early and they were born tiny at 70 grams and not expected to live as they were classed very premature.

 

[StefanZ]

If she is slimmer today, so she has prob "dropped".   About 3 days left?

Do you see kittes move as much as earlier, or significantly less?

As Tiger says, too early deliveries are dangerous for the kittens, much more than for humans.    But the exact lengh of pregnancy is in part individual, may also be part of the maternal lines...  So when some  delivery at day 67, others may deliver already on day 60.   We had even one forumite whom swore her breeding queen always delivered on day 58.   Which must be a record, but so did she witnessed.

But by this same reason, the vet couldnt predict any exact day. Its no exact science even for an experienced obstetrician.

 

[brigittesmomma]

I wasn't home yesterday but my husband said she looked skinny for about 2 days so it has been 2 days since they've dropped i think. And she is acting very strange. Like she went out in the hallway out of my room and just sat in the corner for a minute and wanted me to come (i knew because she kept running back into my room, meowing, then she ran back out in the hallway to that exact spot. Also I'm pretty sure she just lost her mucus plug. It was mostly clear with like some light pink in it. Was that her plug? and she is drinking a ton of water now. I've had to refill it 3 times within not even an hour. and she in licking her area a ton more now ever since her plug came out. Now she just wont stop meowing lol.

 

[brigittesmomma]

and the kittens are moving a lot more. Like i said if i watch for a second i can see them moving around (it takes a second to concentrate because she is a long hair cat). And I dont know if the kittens were moving like they are now before she came back home because i noticed she was pregnant the day she came back and the kittens have been moving since the first day she came home so im pretty sure they were doing that before she came back. So if the whole "you can feel a cats kittens move at 7 weeks gestation" (and they were moving for a while before she came home a week ago) then that would put her at around a little over 8 weeks exactly and she would deliver safely now because a cat pregnancy is anywhere from 60 to 73 days right? Give or take a few days. I just hope she delivers a bunch of healthy little kitties! 

 

[brigittesmomma]

We just called our old vet (who had to quit due to living circumstances- he lived too far away from work) and he said he is pretty sure she is in the first phase of labor and that if i felt the kittens move as prominently as they were moving when i first felt them then they were probably moving a good while before i found out. He said if that is the case then she is at around exactly 9 weeks if not a bit more he said (but just his educated guess which is usually right and has been in the past lol). He said if she keeps acting strange and doesn't go into the second phase for me to bring her to the nearest vet and have her looked at because she could be in distress or something else could be wrong and stopping her labor from progressing. Fingers crossed for an easy delivery and healthy kitties!!! 

 

[handsome kitty]

Many cats want their favorite person with them when they deliver.  Some have even waited for the person to get home from work before having the kittens.  It sounds like she wants you in the room with her for comfort.

Let us know when they arrive.  BTW we really like pictures.

 

[brigittesmomma]

Well, no babies yet. She is still breathing heavy every now and then so idk whats going on

 Yea i think she will want me there since she keeps following me around and get upset and meows every time i am out of her sight lol. I just took some pics and i will upload in just a few minutes. I will also update when she has them and post pics of the beautiful little kitties 

 

[brigittesmomma]

Here is my little baby girl Brigitte.

IMG_20160110_201211156.jpg

• brigittesmomma
• Jan 10, 2016

 

[brigittesmomma]

IMG_20160110_201315593.jpg

• brigittesmomma
• Jan 10, 2016

 

[brigittesmomma]

IMG_20160110_201151056.jpg

• brigittesmomma
• Jan 10, 2016

 

[brigittesmomma]

Her fur looks a little weird on the sides of her tummy and around her nipples because I had to trim it with scissors. She had soo much hair before and I had to trim it so her kittens could find her nipples better when they come.

 

[brigittesmomma]

Also it is still growing back from there the vet trimmed it in order to do the ultrasound

 

[DreamerRose]

Fix her a box with a clean towel in it. Put her in there and stand by for a while. She sounds like a nervous first-time mom. She needs your comforting presence at this time. You don't need to do any trimming of fur anywhere. She and the kittens will take care of that.

I once had an experienced pregnant mom cat who came to me and put her paw on my face. I said, "Is it your time?" She meowed, and I immediately fixed her a box with a towel, and she produced her first kitten within minutes. That's all Brigitte needs. A warm box and you.