Your Cat Is Pregnant: Now What?

05/06/2015

Okey dokey, you have a pregnant cat on your hands. Hmm. What now?

First, don’t panic. A pregnant cat is a wonderful thing and you can deal with this. Here’s some information that will help you along the way.

Figuring It Out

No, we don’t mean figuring out how she got pregnant. It’s important at this stage to determine when it happened so you’ll be prepared for the big day. Sadly, there is no feline early pregnancy testing, so you’ll need to do some detective work.

Feline gestation typically runs anywhere from 63 to 69 days. So that gives you about two months to get prepared. If your cat is a Siamese, she could carry to 71 days, but any kitties born under the 60 day mark won’t have enough maturity to survive.

Symptoms

Cats can suffer from morning sickness like humans do so if you see her vomiting, listless and off her food, this could be why. As gestation continues, her belly will grow and nipples will become more pronounced and pink.

Care

Cats need pre-natal care just like humans do. Take her to the vet and make sure she’s pregnant as well as try to find out how many kittens are growing inside. And get advice from your vet as to what she needs nutritionally.

Equipment

Just before she’s due, construct a box where she can have her litter safely. Use soft towels or washable blankets and place the box somewhere she feels comfortable but that’s out of household traffic. But beware: Mittens may choose to have her litter in the back of your closet rather than the kittening box you so lovingly prepared. That’s fine. When the kittens are born, move them to the box.

When It’s Time

Mittens will probably do just fine without your help, but it’s a good idea to monitor her anyway just in case. If you see she’s straining and no kittens are emerging or her babies are more than two hours apart, time to call the vet. Have her checked out after she has had all the kittens.