cat milk

Question
My cat gave birth 12 weeks ago. She had six kittens, all were nursed by her until a week ago where they were given away to new homes. I have noticed one of her milk sacs is full of milk. Will it disperse or does she need to be milked?

Answer
Hi!

You need to reduce the cat's food and water intake to help dry up the milk. Applying warm compresses several times a day aids in milk drainage. You can manually express the milk too. Or the vet can give her a shot to dry up the milk.


If the nipple starts getting hot and swollen it can be the start of septic mastitis. It is a very painful condition that is considered a medical emergency. The nipple(s) gets blocked and inflamed and staph infection will set in which will make the cat very sick.

However you do it, get the milk out of the nipple as soon as you can. Hopefully her body will absorb the milk without much more than the reduced liquid intake and compresses. If she starts losing her appetite, gets lethargic, and the nipple becomes swollen and hot, get her to the vet right away.

Hopefully that won't happen and she will return to normal in a couple of days.

Carol