after cat pregnancy

Question
Hi Jessica,

My little kitten is pregnant and has her babies dues in about 3-7 days. But today, she was just playing with me, and then i went inside to get some food.

I went outside and then she disappeared after 5 minutes. If she had her babies ouside, would she come back inside to eat or bring her youngs inside or will she leave them outside?

Thanx

Answer
Hi Jimmy.  If she had her babies outside, you are probably unlikely to see her much for a couple of days.  Cats who have their babies outdoors are very reluctant to stray far from their babies.  If she's hidden them in a bush just outside the house, she may come in for nibbles of food, but if she's gone farther than that, she may decide to search for food closer to the babies, especially if she's a skilled hunter.  Most cats resurface after several days, when they become a little more confident about leaving their babies.

But in any case, she is unlikely to bring the babies home with her when she comes to eat the first time around.  Moms typically move their litters every 2-7 days but don't usually bring them to their feeding spot (home) until the kittens are beginning to eat solid foods, around 4-5 weeks.  In some cases, moms will decide it's time to bring the babies indoors when the little ones start wandering too far out of their hidden nests, around 2-3 weeks old, and owners will find them around their doorsteps.

If your kitty comes back pregnant, I would recommend keeping her inside.  Since she has disappeared, it may indicate that she is searching for a place to deliver her babies outside, and that would be no good.

If your kitty comes back not pregnant, it would be best to keep your distance and try to follow her secretly to her babies.  Once the nest is found, take mom home and go right back for the babies (best not to take babies first, because if mom runs away outside and disappears while you do so, the babies are in trouble without her).  Mom won't reject the kittens because they've been touched, and it's actually strongly recommended that you handle the kittens each day from birth.  It will be safest for all to keep mom inside until the babies are vaccinated against contagious diseases.  Germs that mom comes in contact with outdoors can easily kill them.

Best wishes!

Jessica