Lactating mama cat without kittens

Question
I have assumed responsibility for my neighbors cat.  They gave away all of her kittens after barely 6 weeks and she is full of milk and miserable.  How can I help her?

Answer
Hi Kate,

Good for you taking care of her. You can do a few things. You can take her to the vet. He will give her a shot to dry her up. You can call a local rescue and see if they need a foster mom cat. Or you can just wait it out. She should dry up in a week or so.

Feed her a lower protein diet. This will help reduce the flow of milk. Also keep an eye on her nipples. If they seem to get red and engorged , (like they have an infection), you will need to take her to a vet. It may be Mastitis, an infection of the mammary glands. This is not too common though. Hope this helped. Good luck and take care. And don't forget to spay her once she dries up.

Ciao, Karen