kitty labor

Question
my cat is in labor but she's been dripping blood for several hours and hasn't birthed a whole kitten (a tail is sticking out but that's it), this is her seccond litter and last time seemed to be much faster with much less bleeding. i'm nowhere near a vet and broke- is what's going on with her normal?

Answer
Stephen,

I'm hoping that by now all the kittens are delivered and mom and kittens are healthy and comfortable.  If not, a vet visit is your only choice.  At this point, her life, and the kittens', are in danger.

A cat should give birth within 45 minutes of hard pushing.  If a kitten is not delivered within that time, chances are there is some complication - a kitten is too big to deliver, the mother is too exhausted to push, contractions are not strong enough.  In these cases, labor-inducing drugs or a c-section will be necessary to save the mother's and the kittens' lives.