Help- the cat I rehomed on thursday is pregnant!

nothavingfun..

looby-loo wrote: »

I rehomed a cat through this site but I think I was lucky. She produced kittens 8 days later. They are hard work and should not be encouraged. And I was lucky she didn't need a vet. Quite expensive too as mum cat eats for three at least! I rehomed them to friends, two of whom offered a donation which went towards getting mum to the vet ASAP. She is now a happy health cat and here to stay!

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=773143

aww what a lovely thread! well done you for taking mummy kitty in :T

r.mac_2

Do not dispair about the cat if it turns out she is having kittens.

My parents are currently looking for a couple of kittens to give a good home to - there is actually a waiting list at all their local catteries and vets! Even for older cats! I would get her checked out and, if she is pg, ask the vet for advice on rehoming them - they may have some good contacts, have a waiting list themselves etc.

Good luck x

Kimberley

Please phone the CPL up and ask them for advice, you could be in need of help if she has a hard time giving birth. For the safety of the kittens and mum please do not wait.

They will advice you, even if they take the mum until the kittens are ready to leave her and then they give you the mum back spayed.

lowis

firstly, well done for being responsible and NOT giving her back. :beer: the previous owners are obviously lacking in any moral fibre. she does indeed sound very pregnant...is she licking the lumps / abdomen area alot?

most cats raise their kittens perfectly well, with need for little or no intervention from a human. just make sure you keep them in a safe, warm place and that mother cat gets the correct foods - i am sure Cats Protection or your local vet can advise on this.

i just rehomed a 'stray' pregnant cat with a friend, the pregnancy went smoothly, she gave birth all on her own (she was an expert, this was her 4th litter) and she raised the kittens perfectly...she was no bother at all, and neither were the kittens, my friend just let them get on with it, keeping a close eye on them incase they needed any vet care. all the kittens are homed now and mother has now been 'done'.

good luck!

loobylou2

One thing you could try doing after she has had the kittens is ask around friends/neighbours/colleagues etc to see if anybody would like/ wants a kitten. I got a kitten for my daughters 9th birthday not so long ago this way just by mentioning in the office that I was thinking of getting her one. One of my colleagues heard me say this and it turned out that her cat had given birth to a litter of 7 and that she was looking for homes for them so I was happy to help out and take one off her hands
!!!! Daughter was very happy too and the kitten is now known as the kamikaze cat as she's now 12 weeks old and really mischevious. Good luck!!!

blue_monkey_2

Not sure if you have been to the vets yet but we took on a stray that we found in the street. I took her to the vets with the same 'symptons' yours has after 3-4 days - and the vet confirmed she was pregnant.

We waited ages for the kittens but nothing happened. It turned out it was a phantom pregnancy beleive it or not, the vet reckons the stress of moving gave her the phantom pregnancy. I was quite disapoointed - but relived all the same!!

I would speak to the CPL as they may be able to find homes for them before they are ready to go if she is pregnant. It is not the end of the world but I would not be able to keep them all either so do not feel bad. They do not need a huge amount of looking after - mum does all of that - but maybe friends or family might know of people who want a kitten, at least you'll be able to keep tabs on them if that makes you feel better.

kiraroo

If you can actually feel the kittens by just touching the side of her body then she's over half way and the nipples are swollen by then. I also wouldn't touch her tummy too much and avoid picking her up. It's ok to lay your hand on her side but dont push inwards.

The vet will be able to confirm if she is pregnant but unlikely to be able to tell you much more on when she will give birth. I've fostered pregnant cats and kittens for about five years and the thing that amazes me the most about pregnant cats, is that no matter how pregnant and fat they look, they always manage to look more pregnant and fatter! You'll know when she is about to give birth and there is loads of information and advice online about it. If she is pregnant then I'll type out what kit i keep.

Also if she's pregnant then she'll be eating like a horse, give her an unlimited supply of cat food and kitten food too. It's not unusual for pregnant cats to eat their way through several tins of catfood a day or a box of sachets. Also expect her to get an upset tummy as the kittens will be pushing around on her digestive system.

Also contact your local cats protection, they should be able to help you rehome the kittens and if you ask them nicely then they should also give you a voucher to spay the mum. Although the vouchers are technically reserved for people on benefits they can make exceptions

mirrorimage0

blue_monkey wrote: »

Not sure if you have been to the vets yet but we took on a stray that we found in the street. I took her to the vets with the same 'symptons' yours has after 3-4 days - and the vet confirmed she was pregnant.

We waited ages for the kittens but nothing happened. It turned out it was a phantom pregnancy beleive it or not, the vet reckons the stress of moving gave her the phantom pregnancy. I was quite disapoointed - but relived all the same!!

r.

we had exactly the same thing after we took in a stray lol once we realised she wasnt ewe then booked her in to be speyed and then found out when she was on the operating table she had already been done so def no chance now of any kitties

HelzBelz

The previous owner might not have known about the pregnancy, when we took in a small 5 month(ish) old kitten, we didn't find out that she was over 5 weeks pregnant until the day we took her in to be done (she'd already been to the vets once for her 1st jab and about diarrhea) it depends on the type of cat, 6 years later Ziggy's still short and dumpy.

Make sure she has somewhere she can hide and a cardboard box she can make into a bit of a nest with some old towels and if she's started being hungry all the time hide anything she can get into that you don't want eating, Ziggy ate a full loaf of brown bread one night, opened a kitchen cupboard, got into the cat treats and ate a large bag of dried whitebait and spent most of the last week with her head in the 2kg bag of go-cat the DH kept leaving open.

walshc

Thanks all, just back from the vets- he reckons she is pregnant, but early stages- early enough to spay her without any ill effects. He also noted that it could be stress due to the move (as an earlier poster noted). I am going to get her spayed on thursday, I think there are enough unwanted cats in the world.

But thanks for all the great and caring posts above