nursing cat may be preg

Question
QUESTION: can u help me, my cat has a litter of 4 they are 4 weeks old this thursday.my cat kept trying to get out the house i thought it was as she had been kept in for so long as she is an out door cat, i didnt realise they came into season straight away, she escaped until about 3am about 3 weeks,but tonight i felt her stomach after it looked bigger, all the signs over the past few weeks would suggest she may be preg,im really worried, is this dangerous for her,would she be able to look after 2 litters will it be to exsausting for her if she is pragnant

ANSWER: Dianne,

It is very common for cats to go into a "lactation" heat when their kittens are 1-4 weeks of age. Your vet can determine whether or not your queen is pregnant.

I would wean the kittens as quickly as possible and keep them away from her until she is ready to give birth.  At 4 weeks, they are ready!!!!!

You will need to keep her in, feed her up, and keep the present litter away from her, once weaned! You can hope for the best with the next litter.  Normally, the minimum wait between litters should be 3 months + 1 month for every kitten who nursed.  Clearly, she is pregnant too soon.

After this next litter is born and weaned, I would suggest having your female spayed!

Best regards... Norm.



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

QUESTION: thank you so much for your help,I'm a little worried about what u said though, does this mean the next litter may not survive? if im to keep the kittens away from mum once weaned should i let them go to their new homes a little early(before she goes into labour)or will it be better for the kittens to stay in the home they know until there 12 weeks? wont it be hard for mum to have her kittens taken away all at once if i am to keep them out of her way? i appreciate any help you can give me, thank you, dianne

Answer
Dianne,

Once they are weaned, mama will not be happy they are moved away from her, but the pregnancy will begin to take more of her time.

I would keep them in your house until they are 12 weeks, so they can get all their shots before going to their new homes.

Again, I would be in constant contact with your vet about the situation and make sure you get plenty of calcium supplement (powdered bone meal is good) into the mama.  You need to build her up for the second pregnancy.  The kittens should do OK, I would be more worried about the mama.

Have you had her to your vet yet?

Best regards... Norm.