Need help with a new mother cat....UPDATE!!!!!

[mum4jenn]

A little background...Our cat had 6 kittens back in March. She was an excellent mother. She was always with them and only took short rare breaks to eat and potty.We made an appointment with the Vet to have the male cat neutered(who we thought all along was a female but when kittens showed up...well we figured out he was a male!!! A few days before he was scheduled for the surgery he uhm...had an encounter with the female and yes she ended up pregnant again.Well...

She had the babies today and the best I can see she had 8 kittens. There might be 9 but I don't want to touch them so the mother won't move them. The problem is that ever since she had the last kitten she won't stay in there with her babies. She had them in our bedroom closet and if she sees us go into our bedroom or bathroom she will come and look to make sure we aren't hurting them but she will not stay with them to feed them.She is normally a very quiet cat but she is also walking around meowing.Another strange thing is that with her last litter we kept one of her kittens and he is 4 months old now. The mother cat has been trying to pick up her 4 month old kitten and carry him around by the neck. She has also grabbed him by the underneath of his neck.

Does any of this sound normal?????? I am so scared that they will all die.Or is there a possibility that there is something wrong with the kittens and that is why she seems to be rejecting them?It seems strange that there would be something wrong with all 8 though. Is this normal for behavior right after a cat gives birth??

We were never sure exactly when she had her first litter but when I found them she was taking care of them. Is there a possibility that her milk has not come in yet and that is the reason for the delay?
My dd is so upset. I tried to explain that there is a possibility that the kittens might die and her little heart is broken. There is no way we can bottle feed 8 kittens. I go back to work in one week when school gets back in session.

Can anyone out there help me???Any one experience anything like this before??

 

[Rajah]

I don't think that's normal at all for her to reject the entire litter. But at this time of night, I'm not sure what you can do to help.

At very least, tomorrow morning, call the vet the second they open!

If she doesn't stay with them, I think you may want to put a warm towel or something in with them to keep them warm?

 

[Banshee]

How long ago were they born? If there is any way possible try to keep her confined in your room with food and water and a litter box of course! Sometimes they will reject one or two kittens because something is wrong but it seems unlikely that something is wrong with all of them. If worse comes to worse you can bottle feed them with a milk replacer. But it would be great if they could nurse that way they can get the colostrum filled with momma's anti bodys!! When she goes by them really praise her!! Good luck with your baby's dont hesitate to call your vet either!! They would be more than happy to give you advice!

 

[Jenzebelle]

Does your vet have an emergency after hours number? Or is there a 24hr clinic in the area? I would give them a call.

good luck!

 

[Banshee]

If you really feel uncomfortable about it call your vet now most have an answering service or a message on their machine that will give you a number for a 24 hour service. We have an answering service... beign that it is for large animals, but we also have someone that covers while on vacation.

 

[DocRafiki]

Originally posted by mum4jenn

Does any of this sound normal??????

NO it does not sound normal for a person to NOT have their cats spayed, and then rather let them die than attempt to bottle feed them or seek vet care. That's a way to teach your kids responsibility.

 

[Jinxy23]

It really is best to have the vet come out and have a look. If the mum cat is unwell or has a temporary problem then the n the littens should only need a couple of days of hand feeding and she should take over. The only way to be able to help you cat and kittens is to know why she has rejected them. It can happen for so many reasons. In the meantime whilst waiting for the vet start feeding her kitten food as she needs the extra nutrition also if you have the tablets in the house worm her as cats are prone to getting worms after pregnancy and if she has got them then she may be feeling unwell.

Also it is very important that the kittens nurse within the first 2-6 hours following birth. This provides the antibodies which fight disease in the kitten for the first 6-8 weeks of life. These antibodies are ONLY absorbed during the first few hours of birth.
As it seesm that the kittens haven't been able to nurse straight away the vet will need to make sure the kittens are ok as they may be prone to infections.

If you really feel that you can't cope please give the kittens to a a animal shelter so that they can be hand reared.

 

[always quiet]

If the mommy doesn't take care of them, you could place them in a box that is on top of a heating pad. Fill it with papers on the bottom, then blankets for softness. Maybe a stuffed animal for comfort. They sell kitten milk replacement you could feed and use a small bottle available at pet stores. Maybe the mom will eventually return to her babies, but at least you know they'll be ok til she does. I know that's a lot of baby kitties to take care of. Wonder is she is just overwhelmed? If I had that many babies...I think I'd have shell shock! Please let us know how they are doing.

 

[mum4jenn]

Well...today she has been taking care of them!!! I am so glad!!! I think once I went to bed and the house was quiet she went in with them. Today she has not stayed with them all the time but she has gone in to feed them. We have been trying to praise her and pet her when she comes out to eat and she has stopped the meowing like she was doing last night.She has not tried to move them so at least she feels safe and comfortable right where they are.

For those of you who were concerned instead of critical ..THANK YOU. Sometimes letting nature take its course does work!!

 

[always quiet]

That's so great to hear!! Just think of how cute it's going to be when they all start getting around!! There's nothing sweeter than a kitten!

 

[Jinxy23]

mum4jenn, glad to hear she is nursing the kittens. I hope you didn't think I was being critical in my other post, If you did I apologise that wasn't how I meant to have sounded.

As I mentioned before if you feed her kitten food it will help keep her strength up and ensures she produces plenty of milk. Also worm her as soon as you can. As the kittens may not have had the antibodies they receive when they first nurse it would be wise to ask the vet to have a look at them. But they should be ok as long as you and your family wash your hands very thoroughly before and after going near them, also keep the male cat away as that will limit any chance of infection.

The fact that you said you were in the process of neutering the male cat before the 2nd pregnancy shows that you already know about the importance of this and are a responsible pet owner, accidents do happen in the cat and human world . Not meaning to interfere but once the kittens are completly weaned it would be wise to get the female cat spayed, not only to prevent any more kittens but as a health issue. Sorry I don't like to preach but I work for cat charity so I do like to make sure people do spay and neuter their pets.

Keeping fingers crossed for the mum and baby kittens If you need any further advice feel free to PM me or there is a very good cat message board called www.thecatsite.com. The people there are very friendly and are more than happy to help with any questions no matter how big or small.

 

[Rajah]

Great to hear, mum4jenn! I'd still call the vet and get advice on what to do if she stops taking care of them again, though.

(And ignore the one critical voice who SHOULD be more helpful rather than critical since she's giving people in her field a bad name. And she, theoretically, is most qualified to help but can't seem to do anything but criticize )

Keep us posted!!

 

[mum4jenn]

Thanks guys.Jinxy23 You were not the one being critical and I'm sorry if my post implied that I was refering to you.

I would have gotten the female spayed but she was still nursing at the time I made the appointment. I had to wait almost three weeks from the time I called until the time I could get him in and it was too late!!! I tried.I would have done this sooner but #1 I was trying to ait until they were 1 year old and # 2 we thought they were both female!!

 

[Jinxy23]

No problem Mum4Jenn

As for any comments made by others that were critical I would ignore them. Whilst I believe that it's important to educate people about spaying and neutering and caring their pet's it should be just that educaion. My opinion is that if animal charities for got angry at anyone who had to place pet's for adoption or seeked help then there would be a lot more animals dumped on the streets.

As a said glad mum and babies are doing well, you will soon have lot's of kitties running around your house

Must have been a huge shock for you to find out you had a male cat One of the cat's one of the fosters looked after was thought to be female until (well not to put it to crudely) she noticed that *something* had dropped down there. One of the cats I looked after was called Whatsit as she was very timid and no-one could get close to her to work out what sex she was for ages

My two cats are spayed but if they weren't I think I would be running over to check what equipment they had

 

[mum4jenn]

Shock was an understatement when Skittles had her first litter!!!! My dh was working night shift and I was up late packing for our WDW trip. Skittles very very seldom meows and for a couple of days she meowed when we walked into the bedroom. I thought that it was strange and maybe she was hurt or something and when I found her and those kittens I know I walked around for a good 30 minutes with my mouth hanging open!! (she never even got a tummy on her)I called my dh and asked him to guess what I found in the house and he thought a mouse or squirrel! When I told him kitttens he said "HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?????" She does not go outside and we thought "immaculent conception"!!! We even had some neighbors look at Tigger and they could not even tell that he was male!!! Well...it was obvious that he had to be male though!!!!We still laugh about that!!!

 

[Banshee]

Good Job! It was a big litter like one other poster said so she probably was worn out and it seems she had two litters close together. So she probably needed some time to adjust and the peace and quiet of the house only helps! That is the best thing for her to have a nice quiet spot to be with her babys less stress on her. Some of our broodmares are soooo private we have to put burlap up on the stall fronts or they wont deliver! We had one mare that I purposely kept in at her due date because she was like that and i was afraid she would deliver in the field. So we hand walked her and about 2 weeks after her due date I finally turned her out for a little while and not 10 minutes after I turned her out a groom came running yelling maggies had her baby!! I ran out and she did she was just lying there with a new baby!! So some animals like humans need time to adjust and have privacy! Good luck with those babys!