# I don't know how far along my cat is



## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

Hello there, names Leo and I'm almost positive my cat is pregnant as she has progressively gotten bigger and she has become much more affectionate, I do have a male cat but he is only just about 4 months old now, I have found him mounting cleo (my first cat) a few times and from what I can see he's quite well developed. I've kept them separate since my suspicions arose, and cleo has continued to expand, what I can't figure out is how far along she is because I can feel movement and she has become a lot more restless over the past few days, her mammary glands have swollen a bit and she keeps licking her genitalia excessively, but if I count back at most two months the male was only 2 nearly three months old, he was a very active kitty and I think he matured really early but I don't know if that can happen does anyone have any Insight as everywhere I look tells me something different. The photo attached shows cleo about 5-6 days ago but she is bigger IRL just my camera isn't great.
Oh also they are both indoor cats so there isn't a chance that she became pregnant to a different tom.


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

How old is she? She doesn't look old.

I'd be surprised if he's impregnated her at 3-4 months of age, but it's not impossible. Are you 100% sure she hasn't been out at all? Not even escaped for a couple of hours?

I'd take her to the vet for an examination, and a scan if needed, to see if she is indeed pregnant.

If she isn't, you can get her spayed immediately. If she is pregnant, then you will have to decide whether or not to spay her and terminate the pregnancy (often the best option) or allow her to have a litter then spay her.

Get your boy neutered ASAP; at four months old he's more than old enough.


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## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

I'm positive I've tried to take her out before and she hated it, she just stays inside, I do want her to have a litter and I plan on getting her spayed after she's given birth but I was feeling around before and there is definitely something moving in there, also the tom, Sebastian, was given to me and I was told after he was sold to me that he was about 5 weeks, however he was quite big for 5 weeks and he has shown a lot of signs of maturity for at least as month, but as I said cleo has become really restless and is making weird growling sounds, but she is jumping up the curtains then behaving normal again


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## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

Oh also she's just older than 1 year and has been in heat quite a few times now, also her appetite has increased drastically.


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

As I said, take her to the vet for an examination. Hopefully she isn't pregnant and you can get her spayed quickly. And get Sebastian neutered now.


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## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

My vet doesn't deal with cat pregnancy but I'll try and find a good one elsewhere but if she isn't I won't be getting her spayed as I do want her to have a litter just wasn't expecting it to be this soon but I'm getting Sebastian spayed asap


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

Perkytornado said:


> My vet doesn't deal with cat pregnancy but I'll try and find a good one elsewhere but if she isn't I won't be getting her spayed as I do want her to have a litter just wasn't expecting it to be this soon but I'm getting Sebastian spayed asap


Is there a reason you want her to have a litter? Where will you find a male?

There is no need for her to have a litter before she is spayed. The RSPCA, Cats Protection, International Cat Care, PDSA, Blue Cross and literally all cat charities in the UK are doing their level best to discourage breeding and help people get their cats neutered, because they are overrun with kittens.

It's very hard for those of us who work with such kittens to see more being bred deliberately. And just as hard for those of us who have to put down cats who are unrehomeable because of the cat crisis in this country.

I hope you reconsider and spay your girl so you can enjoy her as a pet. Having kittens is risky.


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## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

I wish for her to have a litter because she is a beautiful cat, and I have homes prepared for them, I have checked them out, I know the people and I have birthed cats before, she will be spayed after her litter but I am a strong believer in allowing them to have at least one litter, but only if it is affordable and prepared for rehoming, which it is, I am not concerned for her I'm just looking for advice on telling how far along she is, just as I'm not fully sure of the date of conception


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

Sometimes I hate being part of the cat world. The cat charities are so desperate to stop this sort of breeding that they have been researching owner attitudes for years.

"Unplanned litters were more than twice as likely in households owning more than one cat and more than four times as likely if the owner mistakenly believed that a female cat should have a litter before being neutered, the responses showed. Men were more than twice as likely as women to hold this belief.

Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2013-12-poor-owner-knowledge-cat-sex.html#jCp"

The only way to know how far along she is, is via an ultrasound to age the fetuses. Please don't just let her out to mate when you breed her - local toms can carry FIV and cause injury.

Sorry, wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't try to talk you out of it.


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

If you need any more published, peer-reviewed evidence why having a litter isn't necessary before spaying (it's just an old wives' tale), just shout.


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## Perkytornado (Aug 22, 2017)

I'm aware it isn't necessarily I'm not allowing it for necessity I won't be letting her out it is the reason the next cat I bought was a male I understand your concerns but you needn't worry because I've over planned so each kitten definitely has a home, and the people who are taking them already wanted a kitten so at least they know the parents and owner


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Each of those people, if they really really wanted a cat could give a home to a cat or kitten in a rescue. Additionally pregnancy, delivery and lactation are not without risks (and associated vet bills) and each time she calls slightly increased her risk of breast cancer, and has a risk of pyometra. You are willfully exposing her to those risks for yourself. She doesn't know what kittens are let alone believe she should have a litter, and ALL cats are beautiful.


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## KittenEevee (May 19, 2017)

You only have to scroll through these pages of topics within this section to see how many complications can arise, how much stress it can put your cat under, health problems,infection and issues with cat and kittens and cats rejecting their litter, your cat could die and so can her kittens, kittens born still. Ive read some heart breaking posts. Is it really worth putting your cat under that amount of stress.
I wouldnt know because I got my cat spayed at 6 months and she seems healthier and happier and is still so loving and playful at 1 year old. Dont think its affected her not having a litter. I couldnt put her through that.


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## LinznMilly (Jun 24, 2011)

Perkytornado said:


> My vet doesn't deal with cat pregnancy but I'll try and find a good one elsewhere but if she isn't I won't be getting her spayed as I do want her to have a litter just wasn't expecting it to be this soon but I'm getting Sebastian spayed asap





Perkytornado said:


> I'm aware it isn't necessarily I'm not allowing it for necessity I won't be letting her out it is the reason the next cat I bought was a male I understand your concerns but you needn't worry because I've over planned so each kitten definitely has a home, and the people who are taking them already wanted a kitten so at least they know the parents and owner


So, you got your male cat specifically to mate with your female .... but you're getting him neutered asap....? 

That "I already have homes lined up for them" line doesn't wash, I'm afraid. We hear it all the time in dog breeding, and I imagine it's not that much different for the members of cat chat. It's one thing for a prospective kitten owner to say "I'll have a kitten", before the kittens are actually on the ground - quite another to follow through and take one home. Circumstances change, minds change, people who genuinely want a kitten decide they can't wait 8-12 weeks (plus gestation period), and go out and get a kitten from the woman down the road selling her kittens from "just one litter", or they go to rescue and adopt. Others say they'll have a kitten on the spur of the moment and then, after really thinking about it, decide they don't really want a kitten at all.

Can you/will you he willing to take back any cat bred by you at any point of its life, if its owner's circumstances change? What if any of these kittens are born disabled, in some way, or have genetic conditions? What if the new owners sue you for selling them (or giving them) a sick cat?

And it's not just "one litter".

Let's say your queen has 5 kittens - 3 females, and 2 males, and let's assume for a second that each kitten goes to a different owner.

Now let's say all 3 female owners have the same frame of mind that you have - "it's just one litter". That's 3 additional litters on the ground. Let's say these queens produce 3 kittens each, that's 9 kittens, plus your original 5 = 14.

And again, let's assume 5 of the 2nd generation owners have the same mind-frame. They produce 3 kittens, each, or 15 kittens (5×3=15). In total, that's 29 kittens on the ground, because of you - and by now, your own cat is still only 3 years old, if we assume that each new cat breeder wait a until their kitten is 1y/o.

Let's continue and assume 7 of these new owners have the same mind-frame that you do, and again, each produce 3 kittens. Add another 21 to the total (29+21=50).

By Generation 4, there are 50 kittens on the ground because you firmly believed "it's just 1 litter". That's a conservative figure, based on each owner believing the same as you "it's just one litter". That's not including the "oops" litters, or the owners who go and have a litter a year until their poor cats just can't do it anymore.

Over the lifetime of your queen, there would 100s of additional cats in the world, because of you. You are responsible for each and every one of their lives. Now, I doubt you have the time, energy or the room to take in any cat that can be traced back to you, at any point in its life. I daresay you'd also be unwilling to. How many of those 100s of cats that could potentially be on the ground, have breeders willing to take them back at any point of their lives? Chances are, not many, because they're all Backyard Breeders (or BYB). If, say, half of those potential kittens end up in rescue, there's still more than enough to completely fill one cat shelter.

But ... not your problem, right? Because all those additional litters aren't your litters. The fact that none of them can exist if you don't breed your cats, and actually do the decent thing by them and get them spayed/neutered, is irrelevant, of course.

(Of course, none of this is aimed at the ethical breeders of this forum, who do things differently).


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## QOTN (Jan 3, 2014)

Well, Leo, many people think that what they want is paramount especially when they are your age, but I hope you will start to think in a more mature way after the advice given to you from the members of this forum. If you can start by considering your cat's welfare above your own wishes, that is the first step to learning consideration for other people generally which is all part of growing up. Unfortunately, however much we may wish it, we cannot have what we want all the time.


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## Azura (Dec 18, 2014)

You have been given a lot of good advice. I would like to share my story with you. I am a breeder and one of my Siamese girls had her first litter a month ago. She went way overdue and ended up needing a c-section. Thankfully both she and the kittens lived, but it was not cheap! I paid $1200 and many other places quoted me $2000-$5000. I also was fortunate she accepted them, but if she hadn't I would have been bottle feeding around the clock for weeks. 

Are you prepared for a potential c-section, your girl dying in labor, the kittens dying or your girl rejecting them? If not, please don't take the risk. She will not miss not having kittens.


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## simplysardonic (Sep 1, 2009)

I can only echo what everyone else has said.

Please reconsider, there are literally thousands of cats of all ages, many of them pregnant or nursing, being dumped in rescue.

This thread is representative of just one cat rescue, apply this approximate to every rescue that takes in cats in the entire of the UK & you can see there's a serious problem:

https://www.petforums.co.uk/threads/over-40-pregnant-nursing-cats-already-i-wish-people-would-neuter-both-male-and-female-cats.449780/#post-1064880205
Please be a part of the solution & not this enormous problem & do the right thing by your cats by neutering them both.


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