the pre-labour cat

Question
my cat got pregnant sometime in late to early january. she was a former foster cat of mine, can you guess why i took her back? but what should i look for bahavior wise before she is going to deliver? is there anyhting that is going to just "say" hi human, im ready!!!! i also work 8 hours a day m-f, do i have to take time off form work? she is fat, and i do not think that her nipples are full of milk, they are um, how do you say it, "perky(?). but if i touch her belly she growls at me. so i try not to touch her belly too much. please help! i am so worried about Baracuda!!!!! she is young and this is going to be her first, and alst, litter. thank you so much!!!!!!!!!

Answer
Kinberly,

The problem is that there are no absolutely clear signs about when a cat is truly going into labor.  The books say that the body temperature drops just before labor, which is about as unhelpful as you can get.

The first thing to know is that the normal gestation is 65-67 days with a normal minimum being 63 days and a normal maximum being 69 days.  You start counting from the second day of breeding.

Milk can come in up to a week before kittening until just before the kittens are born.  The water can break a couple of hours before kittening up until just as the first kitten is being born.

There can be a discharge, mucousy and/or bloody up to a few days before the kittens are due.

Normally a day or two before kittening they tend to get very restless, exhibit nesting behavior, are in and out of the litter pan as the pressure grows.

A couple of days before birth, the kittens "drop" and they become hard knots in mama's belly.  You can usually see some movement.

The early stages of labor are really positioning contractions and can go on for a couple of days.  True birthing contractions (very obvious) usually take an hour to produce the first kitten.  Often kittens are born breech, so this is usually not a worry.  Once the first kitten is out, the rest usually follow pretty quickly.  However, every litter is different and the females will go at their own pace.

I don't like the growling when you touch her belly,  Have you considered having her to the vet for a pre-natal check up?

You say she is young.  How young is she?

Please keep me posted.

Best regards... Norm.