lactating young mom

Question
Hi Teresa, I have a 1 year old cat that had kittens just a week ago the kittens died but my worries are for the mom now . She has such inlarge milk area that I was wondering if anything should be done to help her not be so full. Is there anything that can be done or a med to give her to help stop the milk from making and relax her. Thanks in advance Verona

Answer
Hi Verona, first off I would contact your local cat rescue and see if there are any orphan kittens that need a hand ! Many times these volunteers are hand raising kittens whose mom was hit by a car or killed ... and your cat could give these kittens a great start in life plus ease some of the work these volunteers take on.
The other option is to really cut down on her water intake. For example NO canned food or any food that has water in it. Also just put down water for her throughout the day but don't leave it handy for her all the time.
the injections you can get to dry out the milk have side effects and if she is already a week past the loss of the kittens she will be finished soon so not worth the risk.
You can also soak her in a warm bath. I just put mine in the kitchen sink with water up to their tummy and then give them a gentle rub across their tummy a couple of times to express some of the extra. You don't want to get too vigorous because that will cause the production of MORE milk.
Good luck, sorry about the loss of the babies. Teresa