Premature And Stillborn

[Lulu5060]

My cat, Ying, we noticed was pregnant 2 weeks ago, and she started giving birth yesterday. I'm not sure at what time, but she gave us no signal and didn't go to the box we had prepared. She had disappeared outside for 3 days before. There were kittens 2 yesterday, both hairless, squished looking, and dead upon birth it seemed. I went to check on her earlier and found another, squished looking and hairless. I haven't found any sign of after birth so I worry there's another. It was over 24 hours between kitten 2 and kitten 3.
I just want to know the chance of there being one more that survives. I already called the vet about getting her fixed. They said give her time to recover first after this. We live in the woods and didn't find out about our neighbors getting an un-neutered male till it was too late. I already had a plan on giving the kittens to someone, so everything was in order.
I just want one kitten to survive because I'm going to have a breakdown if I have to pick up another kitten corpse. I'm 9 months pregnant and I can hardly stop thinking about the dead kittens.

 

[StefanZ]

Yes they were surely premature.
Yes there is a theoretical possibility there are more still inside. With a little luck they may be carried on to their normal healty delivery in their due time.

I hope she did ate the afterbirth and that is why you dont find it. Its the common.
BUT if the afterbirth is still inside it may get "sour"
Hope for the best but observe closely for any signs of fever pus bleedings...

Good luck!

 

[StefanZ]

L Lulu5060 see above

 

[di and bob]

She may have had an accident while outside and received a blow. My heart goes out to you, being pregnant yourself brings about fears of your own. There are too many factors that bring about premature delivery, they may have been all genetically defective.
Try not to dwell on their deaths, they are at peace now,and most likely died before they were even born. My heart goes out to you, I'll pray for you all.

 

[Lulu5060]

I'd like to give an update, just a few hours ago Ying had 2 more kittens. One is alive, furry and meowing. The other, I'm assuming is the last one came out half developed and wrapped in the placenta. It was dead. I'm very happy one lived though.
I just want to note this was her first litter, with a total of 5 kittens, and there were 6 days between kitten #3 and kitten #4.
Also, I need ways to get blood out of carpet. She decided to have them in random places, i.e. the baby's room and under our bed.

 

[di and bob]

Thank you so much for the update. I'm so happy one is alive, I pray everything goes well for him. Is mama taking care of him?
Blood can be removed easily with peroxide, but you have to make sure the dye in your carpet can handle it. Test a hidden spot first. Cat urine remover sprays are very effective on all organic stains, like blood and grass, I use it for a laundry pretreatment.
Once again, thank you, please try to send a photo when you can, and kiss those two for me!

 

[bklyn]

Happy to see one has survived!

I'm sorry to see the others didn't, and the stress it has caused you. We often see so many moms with large litters in shelters, it's easy to forget that pregnancy is not easy for cats, and many don't make it.

A couple of notes:

1. Don't let mom out anymore. She can get pregnant again very soon after birth. Keep her indoors until the kitten is weaned and she can be spayed.

2. Make sure to weigh the kitten daily. Because there's only one there's a higher risk of her not being able to produce enough milk, or getting bored since she's a first time mom. If his weight gain stalls, you will have to bottle feed him.

 

[Lulu5060]

The kitten, which we named Inigo(boy)/Indigo(girl), has been feeding really well. Ying seems to not want to leave kitten alone, and has only left to go to use the litter box once or just steps out of the box and watches them while she eats. I worry more about her suffocating the kitten. She's actually quite protective and cokes running as soon as kitten makes noise. She doesn't like my husband picking up kitten for long. (I've told him not too, and if he does to keep it in her sight.)
I've been trying to weigh the kitten, but it's so small. It is putting on some weight though, I notice a size difference. They're also very active. My scale is also a cheap one I got when I got married, since we weren't really prepared or expecting her to have kittens and especially didn't expect them premature.
We just saw the male cat that got her pregnant try to come down the road tonight, but she hasn't left the bathroom except for using the litterbox. We'll be getting her fixed when we can and getting kitten fixed, but I'm about to have my own baby and we're moving next month so things are a bit crazy right now.
I will try to post pictures of Mama and Baby.

 

[Lulu5060]

This is the kitten as of yesterday. Fur is filling out and putting on some weight, still very small though.

 

[StefanZ]

It would be nice if you could weigh, for sheer curiosity if nothing else. But as you with your own eyes see it is noticeably filling up and growing, its not totally necessary.
Main thing the kitten IS growing and thriwing as far as you can see. It means the kitten has indeed good practical chances for survival and growing into a healthy cat.
Especielly if momma is such a good caretaking momma.

The tom shouldnt be a real danger for the kitten even if he manages to come inside, as he knows the momma. But she may get impregnated anew, so beware. It doesnt take long for her to sneak out, if she is in heat and knows the tom is nearby.
And as he did come near back into the neighborhood, it hints she is in heat...

 

[rubysmama]

I'm so happy for your sake, and for Ying's sake, that one kitten survived. Sorry, though, that you had to find all the kittens that didn't make it. Please keep us updated on little Inigo/Indigo's progress.

 

[talkingpeanut]

You’ll want to take mom’s collar off, as baby can get stuck in it. She also needs to stay 100% inside and away from intact males, as you know.

Where are you moving? We can help you to find a low cost spay and neuter clinic in the area.

 

[Lulu5060]

I'm moving locally, Spay and Nutering cost $110 and needs an appointment at the best vet local vet. We actually live in a cabin in the woods, the Tom cat belong to my husband's cousin who lives a mile up the road. We're moving out of the woods, but there are 3 cats in the new neghiborhood that I know nothing about, so we'll be keeping her inside till she's fixed.

I've been trying to weigh Inigo/Indigo, and so far they've tipped the scale a little. Before it would move from 0, now it'll move to 20 g. Fur is soft amd he/she is surprisingly moblie, trying to climb around the box and up the blankets. I'm wondering when their eyes will open, since he was born Wednesday night and it's Saturday. If they don't open by Monday I'll take them to the vet.

Need advice on how to transport both Mom and Kitten, I don't want to cause them any distress. Ying hasn't ridden in a car since we brought her home.
Also, how or when should I introduce Kitten to our dog, Yogi? Yogi has been protective of Ying while she's been pregnant. He's a little over a year old and very playful. I want to slowly introduce them so that way he doesn't play too rough. He's keeping his distance right now, which makes me proud.

And, eveyone keeps telling me to feed Ying kitten food, but I don't know where to find any. I've been feeding her wet food to keep milk production high, but I figure mixing in kitten food and getting prepared for Inigo/Indigo to start weaning would be good.

 

[Sarthur2]

Eyes take 7 to 14 days to open. There’s no need to go to the vet right now. It’s best for mom and kitten to stay at home.

If you do need to transport mom and baby, a closed pet carrier lined with a soft blanket is safest.

Do not introduce your dog to the kitten until it’s 6-8 weeks old. It’s much too fragile and young right now.

Kitten food is not necessary for mom. Adult wet and dry food are fine. The kitten will not need soft foods for several more weeks.

 

[Willowy]

Any store that sells cat food should have kitten food. Purina ONE kitten food is usually available and I've had a lot of success with it. She doesn't NEED kitten food but it does give an extra boost of nutrition for nursing mamas.

 

[Lulu5060]

Update, Inigo/Indigo has a good milk belly going on, but I'm notice a lack of excrement. I can't smell anything or see anything, I wonder if Ying is cleaning is up. It's difficult for me to check.

 

[bklyn]

Ying takes care of cleaning up after her poop/pee, so don't worry about that. Great to hear she is appearing to gain weight!

 

[Lulu5060]

Update, Inigo/Indigo has a huge milk belly and put on 10g. Likes to bundle up in the blankets. Ying is cleaning like she should, I got the joy of seeing that. (3rd trimester nausae, yay!)
I noticed she like to just sit outside the box now, at least for short intervals, without running to her litterbox or eating. I figure she needs a break, but is that okay for Inigo/Indigo?
I also need a way to figure out the gender. We think it's a boy, but we're no experts. I hear there's a way to figure out at 4 weeks, but is there one for sooner?

 

[Willowy]

Newborns are usually fairly easy to tell. Post a pic and we'll see if we can figure it out!

 

[Sarthur2]

It’s normal for mom to take a break outside the nest.