- Joined
- Apr 9, 2017
- Messages
- 24
- Purraise
- 25
So this'll be a long one. I'm not terribly good at being succinct.
We have a stray, feral cat in the neighborhood whom we've been taking care of. We've managed to catch him and neuter him with little issue but on March 27th when putting food out for him the sweetest stray cat came running for us. Most Gerald and strays won't come up to us like she did and she was purring right away.
We caught and quarantined her from our indoor cats without a problem and about a week later were able to get her in to see the vet. Turns out, surprise! She was a few weeks pregnant already. But as she was a stray, we weren't sure how far along she was and the vet wasn't able to provide us any details beyond "She's pregnant, here are your options."
In the time we caught her and took her to the vet she managed to gain quite a bit of weight. We assumed it was mostly due to her being fairly thin and finally getting regular feedings. After the pregnancy diagnosis, well, it made a bit more sense why she'd gained weight.
Now, two weeks later, the kittens are moving and have been for a little over a week now. We've kept her quarantined even though she's been tested and doesn't have FeLV or FIV, we didn't want to stress her with introducing her to the other cats until long after she gives birth.
Now, a bit about her:
I have never come across a stray that purrs so readily and is as friendly as she is. Even the vet and vet tech were both surprised with how unbothered she was being in a strange new place. We made sure to check for microchips and checked around the neighborhood to see if anyone was missing a cat, but no go. Behavior-wise, she's just the sweetest thing. She also appears really young. The tech and I both estimated her age between 8 months and 1.5yrs. Or older if she's just really small for her age.
I've never experienced a pregnant cat before--all mine were spayed shortly after I adopted or rescued them and I promise she will be as well once the kittens are old enough--but I can't find quality information about feline pregnancies. It either contradicts itself or other sites or describes behavior that she's had since day 1 of us meeting her. According to one site she's about eight weeks and another she's six weeks. It's confusing.
Right now she's round. Extremely friendly (that hasn't changed at all since the day we met her, still purring away as soon as she sees us), grooming and eating almost constantly. Her nipples are pink, I think, its hard to tell with her coloring and they feel almost swollen--kind of like a cat who just started nursing, my first cat after getting spayed actually nursed a rescue kitten I fostered and later adopted for awhile--but not quite as extreme.
She's still playful but has a hard time sitting still or getting comfortable anywhere but on soft surfaces like my couch cushions, a balled up blanket I leave in there for her (she can lay at weird angles on it. Perfect for her) and she's been moving her "blanket" (a red towel she's grown strangely attached to, I don't get it, she's weird) all over the spare room.
I guess what I'm trying to figure out is...any of you folks with more experience than me have any ideas about how far along she might be from that description? I know it isn't an exact science and I'm spending as much time with her as I can but we're in the middle of doing a few home repairs and upgrades for a refinance so my time is scheduled almost to the hour for the next couple weeks. From what I've read, I'm guessing sometime in the next two weeks is her due date. Maybe two and a half. I'm just trying not to be caught by surprise. Well, anymore than somehow adopting a pregnant stray with the personality of a cuddly teddy bear. Seriously she's weird.
Also. I can't find any information on what "nesting" behavior is beyond "affection, seeking warm, dark places, being restless" which she's been doing for over a week now.
One surprise--she does seem to like the birthing box I made up. As long as her red blanket is in there.
We have a stray, feral cat in the neighborhood whom we've been taking care of. We've managed to catch him and neuter him with little issue but on March 27th when putting food out for him the sweetest stray cat came running for us. Most Gerald and strays won't come up to us like she did and she was purring right away.
We caught and quarantined her from our indoor cats without a problem and about a week later were able to get her in to see the vet. Turns out, surprise! She was a few weeks pregnant already. But as she was a stray, we weren't sure how far along she was and the vet wasn't able to provide us any details beyond "She's pregnant, here are your options."
In the time we caught her and took her to the vet she managed to gain quite a bit of weight. We assumed it was mostly due to her being fairly thin and finally getting regular feedings. After the pregnancy diagnosis, well, it made a bit more sense why she'd gained weight.
Now, two weeks later, the kittens are moving and have been for a little over a week now. We've kept her quarantined even though she's been tested and doesn't have FeLV or FIV, we didn't want to stress her with introducing her to the other cats until long after she gives birth.
Now, a bit about her:
I have never come across a stray that purrs so readily and is as friendly as she is. Even the vet and vet tech were both surprised with how unbothered she was being in a strange new place. We made sure to check for microchips and checked around the neighborhood to see if anyone was missing a cat, but no go. Behavior-wise, she's just the sweetest thing. She also appears really young. The tech and I both estimated her age between 8 months and 1.5yrs. Or older if she's just really small for her age.
I've never experienced a pregnant cat before--all mine were spayed shortly after I adopted or rescued them and I promise she will be as well once the kittens are old enough--but I can't find quality information about feline pregnancies. It either contradicts itself or other sites or describes behavior that she's had since day 1 of us meeting her. According to one site she's about eight weeks and another she's six weeks. It's confusing.
Right now she's round. Extremely friendly (that hasn't changed at all since the day we met her, still purring away as soon as she sees us), grooming and eating almost constantly. Her nipples are pink, I think, its hard to tell with her coloring and they feel almost swollen--kind of like a cat who just started nursing, my first cat after getting spayed actually nursed a rescue kitten I fostered and later adopted for awhile--but not quite as extreme.
She's still playful but has a hard time sitting still or getting comfortable anywhere but on soft surfaces like my couch cushions, a balled up blanket I leave in there for her (she can lay at weird angles on it. Perfect for her) and she's been moving her "blanket" (a red towel she's grown strangely attached to, I don't get it, she's weird) all over the spare room.
I guess what I'm trying to figure out is...any of you folks with more experience than me have any ideas about how far along she might be from that description? I know it isn't an exact science and I'm spending as much time with her as I can but we're in the middle of doing a few home repairs and upgrades for a refinance so my time is scheduled almost to the hour for the next couple weeks. From what I've read, I'm guessing sometime in the next two weeks is her due date. Maybe two and a half. I'm just trying not to be caught by surprise. Well, anymore than somehow adopting a pregnant stray with the personality of a cuddly teddy bear. Seriously she's weird.
Also. I can't find any information on what "nesting" behavior is beyond "affection, seeking warm, dark places, being restless" which she's been doing for over a week now.
One surprise--she does seem to like the birthing box I made up. As long as her red blanket is in there.
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