# Advice on cat after giving birth please



## Mummyb (Jun 23, 2017)

Hi all, 

I'm new here and have just signed up for some advice and thought this would be the best place, my cat has given birth early hours of the morning she's doing a fantastic job and we have 5 healthy kittens I was just looking for a bit o advice...

Our girl is doing amazing and all seems well she's feeding nicely and all kittens and her seem happy, she has eaten however shes not yet left the kittens to toilet herself I've also noticed that she has a little bit of blood coming from her lady area (which I've read is normal like us) her anus also looks slightly swollen but then again I think mine would after having 5 babies! She doesn't seem in any pain but she's been purring all day I know people are probably wondering why I'm asking silly things but I know sometimes purring isn't always a sign of content I'm just wondering if this all seems normal? 

Any advice is greatly appreciated, thank you!


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## kelzcats (Aug 1, 2011)

She may be reluctant to leave the kittens at this time it is very early days yet. Some of my queens don't leave the nest for 24 hours sometimes maybe a bit longer, don't worry too much at this stage. Bleeding is normal for a few days sometimes a week, just keep an eye on her as long as the bleeding is not excessive, the odd drip from time to time is quite normal it shouldn't be flowing. Purring is fine. She may also pant for the first couple of days this is because the uterus is contracting back which can be quite painful at times. Did you count the placentas there should be one for each kitten?


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## Mummyb (Jun 23, 2017)

Kelzcats- Thank you so much for your reply and your helpful advise this makes me feel much more at ease, the bleeding doesn't seem a lot I just noticed a small amount and panicked as much as I'd read it's very normal I'll be keeping a close eye on her to make sure all is okay and it doesn't increase at all.

I'm glad the purring is normal she seems very content but I'm such a worrier so wanted to speak with some experts (you guys) for some advise, now this may sound very irresponsible but she actually self delivered during the night so I wasn't with her during delivery I'd been awaiting this day with baited breath with every intention of being there during delivery for any complications of course but she didn't make any sounds or rouse me for my attention I just woke this morning to find her huddled with her 5 babies in the nesting crate! So I wasn't able to check for all placentas as she had cleaned everything up.


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## Alexhannah (Apr 13, 2017)

Hi I am fairly new to this forum too. My cat had her 5 kittens 2 weeks ago and she was exactly the same as you are describing. She still purrs a lot when the kitten are having milk and there was only blood for the first 3 days. She didn't leave her kittens for the first 24 hours or so and then she had a massive poop. Just make sure that she always has quality kitten food and fresh water avalible and she should be fine


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## kelzcats (Aug 1, 2011)

The kittens will need to be weighed everyday and should gain 10 grams a day in the first week.
Is she a cat on the active register if she is then the breeder you purchased her from should have been your mentor? But I'm getting a feeling she isn't on the active register perhaps a moggie if she is you should have got her spayed before the age of 6 months. Queens and studs need health test etc before breeding can go ahead. Please get mummy cat and kittens vaccinated and spayed before the kittens leave at 13 weeks, don't let them leave any earlier as kittens learn everything from mum in these vital weeks. Make sure you feed the kittens and mum on a good quality kitten food and both mum and kittens need a strict worming program. Its quite costly rearing a litter of kitten up till the age of 13 weeks including spaying/nurturing and vaccinations.


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## Mummyb (Jun 23, 2017)

@Alexhannah Thank you very much for your reply, I'm glad to see someone else like me on here to  congratulations on the birth of your kittens also! I am so glad to hear that your cat was very similar to mine after her birth this makes me feel so much more at ease. She is still purring a lot whilst the kittens feed which I think is so cute, she is more or less back to her usual self now and like your cat after 24 hours she needed the toilet badly bless her, her bleeding as now also stopped so everything seems to be going really well and the kittens are stealing hearts of course as I'm sure so are yours 

@kelzcats Thank you again for your reply, I have been weighing the kittens daily since birth and they're gaining around 16 grams daily. Unfortunately my cat isn't on the active register and yes she is a moggie I do completely agree with you that yes she should have been spayed however she was my sisters cat to which I inherited once she was already pregnant she will be being spayed and this will be her only litter. Mum is fully vaccinated and kittens will also be I already have a package in place with my vet for when they're due however vets won't spay/neuter until the kittens are 6 months old. I have been advised by my vet of the costs etc which isn't a problem I just wanted some advise and knew that you guys on here know your stuff and I'm very grateful for the advise.


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## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

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@Mummyb - whereabouts are U located?
If in the UK, please see this list for early-desex vets, as *Fs can be in heat by 4-MO* & preggo b4 6-MO, which obviously does neither the child-mother nor her litter any favors. // Just like under-20-YO human females, underage F cats have problems with birth, the kits have troubles of their own, & complications can be both extremely expensive [in money] & / or devastating [emotionally, when kits or mums die].
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http://www.cats.org.uk/what-we-do/neutering/enr/menu-early-neutering
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there are close to 1,000 participating vets, i'm not sure if it's currently over 1K or just under, but one or t'other. // IOW, an early-desex vet should be within very-reasonable distance.
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The kits should *stay with mum *till they're 12-WO, that's 3-mos from date of birth, & they can be safely S/N anytime after they reach 0.9-kg or 2# in weight, assuming they have no infectious diseases nor malnutrition, congenital issues, etc.
Mum & kits should both be eating good quality kitten food, not "all ages" generic cat food, but kitten formula - it has more protein, more fat, & more calories per ounce, which mum needs to make milk & support her own nutrition, & the kittens need for growth.
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Any healthy kitten or pup can be safely neutered [either sex] from 2# / 0.9-kg upward, & vets who do such desex surgeries regularly have the expertise to make it extremely safe.
The sole risk to younger kits & pups is loss of body-heat, which is easily prevented - heated saline bags to prop the baby, or an emergency reflective blanket to send their own heat back to them plus insulation between the patient & the cold S/S table, etc. 
Pediatric desex [8 to 12-WO] is safer than pre-pubertal [3-mo to 5-mo], which is itself safer than pubertal desex [6-MO to 8-MO], which is safer than desex as an adult.
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Kits & pups do not need to fast for 12-hrs before surgery, are under GA for a very short period, bleed less, heal faster than older pups & kits, & SCAR less - which is not a cosmetic issue on the outside of the animal, it's a health issue on the inside of the animal - adhesions & other kinds of future potential problems are averted by simply neutering at a younger age.
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Because cats are so notorious as precocious breeders, it's imperative to get them S/N before they leave for their new homes - that prevents "accidental" pregnancies, whether sired or carried by the kittens that U bred.
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U, by the way, are now a breeder - as a breeder is anyone who cares for or owns a F nonhuman when she is pregnant & gives birth, whether U planned the breeding, the animal escaped while in heat, U inherited the F, U bought her, were given her, _______ . _*How*_ she got pregnant is not pertinent to whether or no U are a breeder - whether U've looked forward to this mating for a year or more with a carefully chosen sire, or she was bred by a visiting relative's intact M, or she got preg whilst living on the street, & U took her in already bulging - matters not. 
She whelped on yer watch; U are a breeder.
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GET HER SPAYED SOON - she can come back into estrus as soon as 10-days post birth, & may or may not *call*. // Kitten-heats are sneaky & she can come home after a 10-minute jail-break, carrying another litter that will be born in 63 to 65 days, so *Do Not Put It Off. * How old is the cat? -- She can be spayed anytime & continue to nurse her litter, a flank spay doesn't interfere with nursing at all, & a midline incision can be covered by a Onesie with small holes to allow the kits to get to the teats. 
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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

@Mummyb, well done for taking in your sisters cat and helping to raise these kittens.
It is considered quite 'old fashioned' for vets to insist on waiting till 6 months to neuter kittens these days and there is a national register of vets who are trained in more modern techniques which allow for far earlier neutering.
Neutering before rehoming is the only way to guarantee that kittens will not go on to breed and add to the sad problem of over-population.
http://www.kind.cats.org.uk/
Oh, and you do know that kitten pics are always welcome?????


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## QOTN (Jan 3, 2014)

At three days old, your kittens need their mother. Do not be frightened into asking the vet to spay her when she is feeding newborns. (I hope the vet would refuse but that is a different matter.) At the risk of sounding obvious, a spay is an operation requiring anaesthesia for which most vets wish a cat to be starved unless it is an emergency, not ideal for a nursing queen. Best practice would require them to keep her until they were sure she had recovered well from the procedure, also not ideal for kittens who need constant feeds. You only have to read some of the posts on here to see that a spay can be completely trouble free and sometimes it isn't. Don't risk it until the kittens are weaned. In my view, it is completely inappropriate unless there is an emergency. Pregnancy and lactation are the most stressful times for any mammal's body. Why add an unnecessary burden?

You cannot let the girl out while she has kittens so you will probably be aware if she is coming into call and can take steps to be extra careful she does not escape. Even if she did, you have several weeks afterwards in which to get her spayed so there is no need to be hasty. Let your girl enjoy her kittens and then if all goes according to plan, try to persuade your vet to neuter her and the kittens at the same time.


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

I completely agree with @QOTN, there is NO way I would have a nursing mum cat spayed until her kittens are starting to be weaned! The kittens need her with them 24/7 and her body does not need the added stress of an anaesthetic and major surgery on top of providing milk for her babies.


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## Mummyb (Jun 23, 2017)

@leashedForLife Thank you for all your information I am in the UK,
I will be keeping the kittens with me until they're at least 12 weeks old and so far they all look to be healthy so I hope this remains the case after their first vet check, I'll also speak with the vets and see what they say about N/S the kittens at the same time as mum once the kittens are fully weaned I personally (sorry if you don't agree) wouldn't have her spayed whilst she's feeding and while the kittens depend on her so much god forbid anything happened to her I'd never forgive myself and would then have 5 orphaned kittens I'd also worry that she would be in so much pain that she could turn on the kittens so unfortunately I will be waiting until they're all fully weaned before going ahead.
I guess your right I am now a breeder, I never thought of it that way! They've all stolen my heart and if I could I'd keep them all.
Mum is 18 months old and believe it or not was a house cat! She got very brave once and decided to go explore the big world (hence the pregnancy) I know she still should've been neutered if not for risk of pregnancy for health reasons but she was my sisters supposed house cat. Once again thanks for all the information 

@Paddypaws Thank you  after I agreed I was slightly worried about what I'd gotten myself into but thankfully all is going very well and I am now obsessed with these little fur balls!
I have been doing a lot of research recently and am now seeing that you're right it is quite old fashioned to wait until 6 months so I will speak with the vets again and see what they can do, if not I can always find another fully qualified vet that would be happy to do it younger.
Oh yes I haven't even uploaded any pictures! I will upload some from my phone soon but be warned they'll steal your heart!

@QOTN I completely agree with you and won't be spaying her whilst the kittens still solely depend on her, I have not even asked my vet but would also hope that they would't agree to be honest I don't think I would trust any vet that would agree to it, she's just had her kittens which I am sure is stressful enough for her as well as you say lactating and adjusting to having 5 babies I don't want to add any unnecessary stress, pain or recovery not to mention if the unthinkable happened I just don't think it's worth the risks.
I'll be making sure she doesn't get out not that she does but I know the babies are still so young but she hasn't yet tried to get out although I've made it practically impossible even if she did ha I'll keep her in until she's been spayed then she can explore the world again should she wish and will also speak with the vets about having the babies done at the same time. Thank you for your message 

@chillminx Thanks for your response I also very strongly agree with both yourself and @QOTN and won't even be thinking of having this done until the kittens are fully weaned I think the risks by far out way the pros on this one and hers and the kittens health are my main priority


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## Shrike (Jun 25, 2015)

Even the most house-bound house cat will be desperate to go out once they are in heat. She will very likely come back into heat before the kittens are weaned, so do be super careful and don't assume she has no interest in getting outside! Looking forward to seeing piccies of the little ones and their proud mum.


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

kelzcats said:


> The kittens will need to be weighed everyday and should gain 10 grams a day in the first week.
> 
> <snip>.


10g a day is an average, and kittens often gain more and sometimes less. A very small kitten may well not gain 10g/day, it can be useful to look at it as a percentage of the kitten's body weight rather than an absolute fixed number.

Excel or some other spreadsheet is perfect for recording your results, and you can create formulae and colour coded conditional formatting to show quickly the top & bottom gains.

It's been said already, but she MUST be kept in until she is spayed. Apart from her coming back into call, you don't want her going out and not coming back, which would leave you with a litter of tiny fragile kittens to look after and teach. However if you wait until the kittens are fully weaned as in not suckling at all they could be 6 months old! Once they are 12-13 weeks old they will be suckling very little. Also it rarely stops an established milk supply - I got my first cat neutered when her kittens were about 6-8 weeks old (sorry it was 20 years ago) and she carried right on as if nothing had happened.


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## ZoeM (Jul 16, 2015)

My unexpected stray adoptee went straight into heat when the kittens were about 7/8 weeks old. She drove me up the wall, going from door to door in an effort to persuade me to let her out. When the kittens were 15 weeks old and all in their new homes, she was returned to the original owner with strict instructions not to let her out and get her spayed as soon as possible. Four nights later she found her way back to my house in the middle of the night, and got booked in for spaying within the week!! She was not returned to the lady who took her in originally!


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