empty sac

Question
My cat is pregnant and yesterday I noticed some blood around the house and at her cat dish. When I picked her up to check her she delivered an empty pink sac. She was still bleeding afterwards for about 3-4 hours then stopped. I looked around to see if maybe she delivered the kittens or thought maybe she was miscarrying, so looked for more sacs like the one she had delivered but couldn't find anything. and today she is running around and playing like normal. Could you please tell me what the sac could be and what might have happened?

Answer
Hi Jaime,

It sounds like the sac was probably an amniotic sac, which is a case that each kitten is enclosed in individually in the uterus. Kittens are generally born still in the sac, and the mother opens the sac to get the kitten breathing immediately after birth. Sometimes during labor, a sac can become separated from the kitten, and it will be delivered before the kitten (or after). This usually isn't a problem if the kitten is born shortly, but because it provides protection for both mom and baby in the uterus, it can lead to big problems if the kitten is not born right away.

It sounds like your cat had entered labor. Most of the time, when a cat goes into labor and then goes out of labor without delivering her babies (apparently), it suggests a problem with the delivery. I would suggest a vet visit to determine whether she still has kittens to deliver and whether it's safe to wait to see if she'll deliver them on her own. If all signs suggest she's full term and is in a position to deliver her kittens naturally, chances are the vet will want to induce labor with an injection of oxytocin. If there have been worse complications, she may need an emergency c-section and spay to save her life. Or, she may have miscarried and consumed any evidence.

I hope all goes well!

Jessica