pregnant kitten

Question
My friend has just acquired a stray pregnant kitten. We estimate she is about 9-10 months old. Not sure how far advanced her pregnancy is. Her belly is rounded but not solid yet. Her nipples are starting to swell with milk. Any ideas how long she has before she gives birth? Is there anything you recommend to give her extra apart from cat food? Also what is best to give her to help when she has had the kittens? I know what to do with a Bitch but not sure if the same rules apply for cats. I look forward to your reply.  Many thanks,
Sue

Answer
Hello Sue,

Thanks for your question.  If the kitten's nipples are just starting to swell, then she is around three weeks pregnant.  Pregnancy in cats lasts roughly 63 days or nine weeks.  A vet can accurately diagnose pregnancy with an ultrasound after around 28 days and can tell how many kittens are expected at around day 45 of pregnancy. Altogether, she should gain between 1kg and 2kg in weight and this will happen gradually over the course of the pregnancy, so the fact that you haven't seen much difference in weight yet is normal.

A pregnant cat must be fed a nourishing, well-balanced diet and you may need to increase the feeding during the last few weeks. You should be feeding the pregnant queen at a least 1/3 more than normal and this should be spread over 3 or 4 meals. This may cause problems if you have other cats as well as they may eat the extra food and the queen may not get as much as she should. You will find, however, that most cats will only eat as much as they want and they are not 'greedy' like dogs so the queen should get what she needs.

A healthy pregnant cat will remain active throughout the pregnancy and will continue to play as normal. Do be gentle with her when it comes to handling. It is advisable not to pick up a queen unless really necessary as she will probably not appreciate it. The major sign that something is wrong during pregnancy is vaginal bleeding, which is not normal and indicates a miscarriage.  Any sign of this should be reported to a vet immediately as it may be possible to save the kittens via a caesarean section, depending on the stage of pregnancy.

In the last couple of weeks of pregnancy, your friend should set up a bed for the cat in a quiet, dark corner.  She may find however that when it comes to giving birth, she will actually settle somewhere else in the house and choose to have the kittens there - cats choose funny places like wardrobes and drawers sometimes!  If this happens, she should not be moved as it is important for her to give birth where she feels comfortable.

Once the kittens arrive, you should aim to leave the mother and babies alone together for as much time as possible.  Do not handle the kittens for the first couple of weeks or try to move the litter unless the mother decides to move them herself.  Just keep an eye to ensure everyone is well, but aim to leave them alone to form a relationship.  It is important to start handling the kittens when they are between 2-6 weeks as this is the important stage for socialising them so that they become used to people.  Statistics show that kittens handled regularly by at least four people between the ages of two and six weeks are the most friendly and confident and the least neurotic and aggressive.

I hope this helps - if you need any further advice, please come back to me.

Take care and best of luck with those kittens!
Annie