When Will My Cat Have Her Babies? Should I Be Worried Yet?

[Carol Salazar]

Still no babies, they move around a lot or else I would be worried but it seems like everything is normal other than her having milk for a week now

My cat Momma Kitty finally had her kittens on March 31st at 5:30 am. But she had 8 kittens but one the last two were real small. I found one dead and and I tired to save the other one. I went and bought some cat replacement milk and a eye dropper. But to no avail. it was just to premature. But the 6 that are left are all healthy.

 

[mazie]

So sorry you lost 2, glad the other 6 are doing well Would love to see pictures of the new family!

 

[catsknowme]

Condolences on losing the 2 tinies. How is the little family doing? With 6 babies, you ought to monitor closely and have formula and nursers on stand-by. The gold standard
seems to be Breeders Edge formula and Miracle Nipple Minis (the best price I found was from the inventor's website SquirrelsandMore - $8.95 vs. $15.95 at Amazon Prime ). For economic reasons, I often use Goat-A-Lac or goat milk formula using the recipe at www.kitten-rescue .cm; fresh raw goat milk is great if you know a 4-Her or FFA student. KMR and Just Born are popular but I have had more trouble with diarrhea; I add electrolyte balancer such as 50/50 unflavored Pedialyte (or the recipe at kitten-rescue). I like 4paws real rubber nipples because they dont blister/irritate tender mouths like plastic & silicone tend to. And if you do not have good well water, I highly recommend bottled or filtered water as kittens' kidneys are very delicate.
Please keep us updated!

 

[Jordyn.jaye]

Mama had two healthy babies at the time, they are 8 days old now and one is growing great and is healthy (he weights almost 9 oz and his eyes are open now) however the other kitten I’m very concerned about. He seems to be fine and is eating good and not crying more than normal but his tummy never feels full, he hasn’t opened his eyes and he still weights 4 oz which was his weight the night he was born and visually looked half the size of the other. I’m very worried he might be a runt which is weird to me that with only 2 kittens she had a runt. I really don’t want to lose him, any advice?

 

[Jordyn.jaye]

Here they are, it’s hard to see but the grey one is the one I’m worried about, He also seems weaker and colder than the black one.

 

[Sarthur2]

You need to see that he stays warm at all times. Do you have a heating pad in the nest under a blanket?

You also need to supplement him several times a day starting now. He clearly needs help getting enough food to grow on.

 

[catsknowme]

Sarthur2 is absolutely right - the tiny needs extra assistance. He is probably technically younger than the sibling; cats ovulate after breeding so his conception occurred days after the older. Be sure the heat source is placed so that he can crawl off it; overheating and dehydration are dangerous just like hypothermia and hypoglycemia are. If you can get them, MiracleNipple minis are (according to my cat rescue friends) more readily accepted and cause less mouth & gum irritation (the inventor, Chris' Squirrels &More sells them at a better price than Amazon). For formula, I have had the best success with goat milk based ( as opposed to cow's milk whey based) formulas, both commercial & homemade(see www.kitten-rescue .com for good recipe - it is TCS' own member Hissy's site) and the cat rescues are also using Breeders Edge with excellent results. For bottles, I have preferred 4 Paws nursers with real rubber nipples - it is sad to see baby kittens refusing to suckle because of mouth irritation. Kitten Lady also has some excellent videos - she strongly promotes KMR; my experience with KMR and Just Born is more diarrhea in kittens but diluted powder form with goat milk added & frequency of feeding increased and pedialyte added, does help.
If the baby gets too week to eat, use white Karo corn syrup or honey or a sugar solution (unflavored glucose solution for diabetics works well ) on its gums and electrolyte replacer. Unflavored Pedialyte should be diluted 50/50 with filtered or good well water (municipally treated tap water usually has to many harsh, kidney-damaging chemical for neonates). For any sugar, I use mezcla or raw sugar - white sugar contains the bleach used for whitening.
And it doesnt hurt to gently stimulate for peeing/pooping; sometimes new mothers dont keep up with the task. Note the color of the urine - dark orange can mean not going often enough or not enough hydration.
Please keep us updated! Prayers and vibes that all is going well

 

[catsknowme]

I forgot to add that liquids including formula need to be gently heated to 98-100°. Cold formula will shut down digestion; same with cold body temperature. Do not ever heat formula directly in the microwave - it does not heat uniformly & can burn a baby's tender mouth - heat a cup of water & put the bottle in that or gently warm in a pan over low heat, stirring constantly with your finger.