Nursing Mother

Question
QUESTION: My outside cat had kittens about 4 weeks ago and everything was fine, but tragically a stray dog came along and found them and killed all the kittens. Is there anything I can do to help the mother cat with her swollen teats? I just want to ease her discomfort and pain if I can!

ANSWER: Hi Jen,

Sorry about what happened. That really is sad. There are three things you can do to help the mom. You can take her to your vet for an injection that will dry her up. You can call a cat rescue shelter and offer her as a surrogate mom. Or you can let nature take its course and she should dry up within the week.

I would then consider doing two things. Get her neutered and move her into the house. Here's a link that you should read about this.
http://www.littleshelter.com/library/cat_indoors.htm
And one on how to do it.
http://www.thenatureinus.com/2008/07/make-your-outdoor-cat-indoor-cat.html

Good luck with her whatever you decide.

Ciao, Karen


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: She was doing fine and the swelling was even going down, but today I went out and there was blood around two of the swollen teats? What happened and what should I do???

Answer
Hi Jen,

Clean the area. See where the blood is coming from. Are the teats hard and hot? Is the blood coming from the nipple? To be on the safe side a trip to your vet would be the right thing to do. She may have mastitis, a mammary infection. This needs a vet's treatment. If the blood is from scratches then just clean the area. Keep an eye on it to make sure the scratches don't get infected. I would have your vet check her out. It is your best bet. Good luck.

Ciao. Karen