Cat Pregnancy and Preparation For Giving Birth

It is recommended to have your female cat checked by you veterinarian. A pregnant queen should stay as healthy as possible. No medication should be given during feline pregnancy, except in emergency.

Physical Changes

During the first 4-5 weeks of pregnancy, there are few noticeable changes. Weight gain and enlargement of the abdomen generally become noticeable after the fifth week. The increase, of course, varies with the size of the litter. The mammary glands may begin to enlarge during the fifth week, but typically no increase in size is noticed until the seventh week. Milk is normally present 1-2 days before delivery.

Behavioral Changes

During the last weeks of pregnancy, your cat may have difficulty finding a comfortable position and may seem restless. Many queens (female cats) seek seclusion. Occasionally the cat may soil the house because the heavy uterus is pressing the bladder or colon.

Pregnancy checklist

1. Do not even think of breeding from your cat unless you know you can find homes for the resulting litter.

2. Do not breed from your cat until she is emotionally as well as physically mature.

3. Ensure that your cat is well nourished during pregnancy, and especially after, during her period of milk production.

4. Test your cat and the proposed father, to ensure they are not carriers of viral diseases such as FIV or FeLV.

5. Do not let your cat "follow nature's course" and breed with a feral tom. Feral toms are excellent breeders. They are also the most likely source of life-threatening infections such as FIV, FeLV, and feline infectious peritonitis (FIP)

Nutrition

Good nutrition is essential to the health of both mother and kittens. It is nearly impossible to overfeed a pregnant cat, since she requires 2-4 times as much food as normal.

Harmful feeding practices include feeding raw egg whites, raw fish and exclusive meat or fish diets. Your doctor may prescribe a special diet or supplementation.

Many breeders advise to give her a vitamin plus mineral supplement. There is milk available with these supplements. To meet the needs of your queen and the little kitty's in her belly, you should also give her specially designed nutrition for kittens, pregnant and nursing felines.

An important point: start mixing your cat's regular food with kitten food. Also increase the number of meals. She should eat two times the amount she ate before feline pregnancy.

If your cat carries a large litter, she may have problems cleaning herself. Groom her regularly, and clean her anus with a soft cloth - if the cat allows you to.

Normally no restriction of exercise is required during the first 6-7 weeks. Your cat should be kept in the house during the last 2 weeks because she may attempt to have her kittens in an unsafe outside location.

Risks during pregnancy

The greatest risk to unborn kittens occurs during the first three weeks of development in the womb. Both drugs and infections might seriously impair healthy development. If, for example, the mother is exposed to feline infectious enteritis (FIE, or panleukopenia) at this time, the surviving kittens will be born with severe brain damage. Even exposure to live panleukopenia vaccine is dangerous. Cats should be vaccinated before they are pregnant, to increase the amount of passive protection they pass in the first milk to their kittens.

Never vaccinate pregnant cats to increase the level of inherited protection. Never vaccinate other cats in the household of a pregnant cat. Live vaccine virus can be shed by vaccinated cats and affect the pregnant cat's fetuses.

Pregnancy and hormones

During pregnancy, the production of progesterone rapidly increases, peaking at around the 35th day after conception. This induces the more serene disposition of pregnancy. At the same time, the belly starts becoming visibly more rotund. Pregnancy can be as short as 57 days or as long as 70 days, but a few days before birth the female becomes restless and searches out her chosen shelter.

She rearranges her bedding material and spends increasing amounts of time in her chosen nest. This impregnates the region with her own scent, something that will eventually help her kittens orient themselves toward home. As birth approaches, the mother loses her appetite and restlessly paces in the nest until contractions begin.

10 Tips To Help Pregnant Cats
1. Pregnant cats should stay indoors.	Don't expose an expecting kitty to danger. But there are more reasons. Some queens go into heat even during pregnancy. Cats are capable to be pregnant of two different litters at the same them. And of course, pregnant cats should not give birth in a cold place outside.
2. Give your kitty the right food.	It should be high on calcium and protein. Kitten food is specially designed to meet the need of pregnant and nursing felines. Vitamin supplements are recommended too.
3. Do not give any medication during pregnancy.	Pregnant cats should get medication only in emergency. The same goes for deworming products, or products against fleas. If she has worms or fleas, first consult your vet.
4. Make your cat a comfortable nest bed.	A box filled with newspaper usually does the trick. Put in a warm sheltered place, preferably a location your cat frequently visits. Make sure all is ready two weeks before birth.
5. Find a home for your kittens - before they are born.	It will give you peace of mind to know where the kittens will go. Finding a home for a kitty can be time consuming. You'll have more time for that before they are born.
6. Use non-clumping litter for her box.	Sometimes cats give birth in the litter box. If a kitten is delivered in clumping litter, the mother kitty might refuse to clean her newborn off as the clump is all over the sac. And the baby drowns in its own fluid.
7. Keep other cats away from her.	You have more than one kitty? Pregnant cats want privacy. She doesn't like the company of other cats during this period, even if she knows these cats very well.
8. Buy enough food for your kitty... and you.	You should have no reason to leave your kitty alone on the days before and after birth.
9. Check which vet is available.	Have a piece of paper with the phone number of the closest emergency veterinary clinic. If there's no such clinic in your area, find out which vet is available for emergency care. One phone call to a local vet is usually enough.
10. Get the right information about pregnant cats.	Only if you understand what you see and hear, you will be able to recognize complications. Plus... there are many problems you can solve yourself, if you know how. So, do not panic. Get the right information instead.