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- Jul 25, 2018
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I started taming a very feral cat, who I’ve named Sally. I discovered that she was pregnant and managed to get her into my barn so she can’t run away during this important time. The barn is a really good place for her right now, I have 2 other barn cats (both fixed!), and they get along just fine. Sally loves running around exploring the barn.
However, I don’t think the barn is the best place for the kittens to be born. I have chickens, and other animals, that go in the barn every night. My hens like to go after small animals (mice, frogs) I don’t want them somehow getting to the tiny kittens. My barn also has a lot of small dark places that Sally could go into to have her babies. I want to make sure she has a nest where I can get to her is anything goes wrong.
My mother and I are going to fix up a milk house (it’s basically a shed) we have on our property. It needs a lot of repairs, but I’m hoping we can get it fixed up in time for little Sally cake. The only problem with using the milk house for Sally is that I will have to put her in a carrier to get from the barn to the milk house. I’m pretty sure she’s never been in a carrier before, I don’t know how she will react. Since she is still kind of feral, I’m thinking she might go crazy. Any tips on handling a pregnant cat, specifically, getting one into a carrier?
As of right now, the milk house isn’t done being fixed, so it’s not happening just yet, I want to be prepared though. If she does freak out in the carrier, could she hurt herself/ her kittens badly? Could it induce labor early if she gets extremely stressed? I don’t know exactly how far along she is, but she seems kind of big. (I’ll try to post pics of her later)
My biggest concern is taking her to the vet if things go wrong. Sally is terrified of other people, she acts completely feral. I am the only person she is okay with, she runs up to me and lets me rub her belly all the time. I’m guessing she’s like that because I’m the only person who tamed her. I know that she will lose her mind going to the vet, I don’t even know how they would handle such a wild cat.
Sally is very healthy (compared to my other cats I’ve rescued from my neglectful neighbor). Her fur is silky smooth, her eyes are clear, her ears are perfectly clean and don’t smell at all, and I don’t see any fleas in her fur. This is her first litter, since she looks really young, I’m guessing that she is about a year old. I read somewhere that young first time mother cats have a high chance for rejecting their litter, is that very true? I bought some basic kitten care supplies just in case.
I went out to give her food and snuggles last night, Sally cake laid down for some tummy rubs and I felt a very strong firm kitten leg kick! Then I felt a body or head move after that! Kitten movement usually marks 2 weeks to go right? We are planning on getting the milk house fixed up next week end (Sep 1-2). At that point she would be 1 week from delivery, is that too late to move her? I do have a large dog crate in the barn I can put her in, I just don't want to contain her in a crate. But I can't have her have full run of the barn when she goes into labor.
Sorry for the long post. Thank you so so much for any advice you guys have, Sally and I really appreciate it!
However, I don’t think the barn is the best place for the kittens to be born. I have chickens, and other animals, that go in the barn every night. My hens like to go after small animals (mice, frogs) I don’t want them somehow getting to the tiny kittens. My barn also has a lot of small dark places that Sally could go into to have her babies. I want to make sure she has a nest where I can get to her is anything goes wrong.
My mother and I are going to fix up a milk house (it’s basically a shed) we have on our property. It needs a lot of repairs, but I’m hoping we can get it fixed up in time for little Sally cake. The only problem with using the milk house for Sally is that I will have to put her in a carrier to get from the barn to the milk house. I’m pretty sure she’s never been in a carrier before, I don’t know how she will react. Since she is still kind of feral, I’m thinking she might go crazy. Any tips on handling a pregnant cat, specifically, getting one into a carrier?
As of right now, the milk house isn’t done being fixed, so it’s not happening just yet, I want to be prepared though. If she does freak out in the carrier, could she hurt herself/ her kittens badly? Could it induce labor early if she gets extremely stressed? I don’t know exactly how far along she is, but she seems kind of big. (I’ll try to post pics of her later)
My biggest concern is taking her to the vet if things go wrong. Sally is terrified of other people, she acts completely feral. I am the only person she is okay with, she runs up to me and lets me rub her belly all the time. I’m guessing she’s like that because I’m the only person who tamed her. I know that she will lose her mind going to the vet, I don’t even know how they would handle such a wild cat.
Sally is very healthy (compared to my other cats I’ve rescued from my neglectful neighbor). Her fur is silky smooth, her eyes are clear, her ears are perfectly clean and don’t smell at all, and I don’t see any fleas in her fur. This is her first litter, since she looks really young, I’m guessing that she is about a year old. I read somewhere that young first time mother cats have a high chance for rejecting their litter, is that very true? I bought some basic kitten care supplies just in case.
I went out to give her food and snuggles last night, Sally cake laid down for some tummy rubs and I felt a very strong firm kitten leg kick! Then I felt a body or head move after that! Kitten movement usually marks 2 weeks to go right? We are planning on getting the milk house fixed up next week end (Sep 1-2). At that point she would be 1 week from delivery, is that too late to move her? I do have a large dog crate in the barn I can put her in, I just don't want to contain her in a crate. But I can't have her have full run of the barn when she goes into labor.
Sorry for the long post. Thank you so so much for any advice you guys have, Sally and I really appreciate it!
