Early Signs Of Pregnancy

[Calishell]

It has been a while since I have posted, couple years I believe and I apologize for that. The last time I posted was about a cat I saw thrown from a car that ended up being pregnant, and she was I'm late pregnancy. I still have her and she is spayed and doing well. I now have another dilemma, concerning another stray. I moved to a new place, a trailer park to be exact, and there are a lot of strays here that was abandoned when people moved out. Most have been caught, fixed, and released. I started putting food out for them. One of my strays that eats regularly here is a tortoise shell, so I knew she was a female when I saw here. She has tamed down a lot in the past 8 months while living here, she is the only one that doesnt run when I walk out the door and allows me to pet her. Last night, while play ok ng cards with my daughter, I heard scratching and meowing at my door. I opened the door thinking one of my cats wanted in and it was this stray. She walked in and said hi, but didnt stay in long before she wanted back out. While she was in i noticed her belly looking a little saggy. While petting her, I rubbed under her belly and her nipples are elongated. She allowed me to look at them and they are a pinkish color. I examined my female cats to compare the difference and my female cats nipples are small and pale, almost white. I am thinking there is a possibility she is pregnant, and I feel guilty over it even though she is a stray. What are the early signs of pregnancy? I can at least help her remain healthy during her pregnancy and provide a safe place for her if she is.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Bless you for this!

How To Tell If My Cat Is Pregnant?

How Do I Know When My Cat Will Give Birth?

 

[Calishell]

So, there is a good chance that she is pregnant as I have thought. I am slowly trying to get her comfortable with coming inside and staying. I was able to pick her up earlier today and bring her in, but she wanted outside almost right away. She just came to my door and meowed and she came in. I will be going out tomorrow and getting her some food. It has been a while since I have cared for a pregnant cat. She needs a high protein diet right? Like kitten food if I am thinking right

 

[Furballsmom]

Yes, kitten food would be great

 

[Calishell]

I would like to feed her inside since there are so many strays. She does tattle on them if they won't let her eat. She screams at me until I come to the door (I call her Banshee). Would wet kitten food or dry kitten food be better? Or maybe a mixture of both?

 

[Furballsmom]

I think both, but whatever she's happiest eating

 

[Talien]

I would go wet over dry if she'll eat it because of the high moisture content. Another option is to mix some dry with a bit of water if she won't eat the wet food.

 

[Calishell]

Anything else I should get for her? I have a bunch of old clothes to use as bedding. And she is a small cat and she isn't that old. I don't know how old exactly. She first started coming here as an older kitten, between the kitten and adult age. She should at least be a year old but she is still young and small. I am scared that her kittens may not make it. That happened to my other cat. Her kittens started dying one by one and by time they were 3 weeks old, the last one died. I don't know what happened, whether it was because of what happened to her while pregnant, or that the vet said she was barely a year old, or if it was just a fluke occurence. She never got pregnant again. I got her spayed as soon as it was safe to do so, so I don't know if it was just a fluke occurence or not

 

[Furballsmom]

This may help
Pregnant Cat? What To Prepare For The Birth

 

[She's a witch]

It has been a while since I have posted, couple years I believe and I apologize for that. The last time I posted was about a cat I saw thrown from a car that ended up being pregnant, and she was I'm late pregnancy. I still have her and she is spayed and doing well. I now have another dilemma, concerning another stray. I moved to a new place, a trailer park to be exact, and there are a lot of strays here that was abandoned when people moved out. Most have been caught, fixed, and released. I started putting food out for them. One of my strays that eats regularly here is a tortoise shell, so I knew she was a female when I saw here. She has tamed down a lot in the past 8 months while living here, she is the only one that doesnt run when I walk out the door and allows me to pet her. Last night, while play ok ng cards with my daughter, I heard scratching and meowing at my door. I opened the door thinking one of my cats wanted in and it was this stray. She walked in and said hi, but didnt stay in long before she wanted back out. While she was in i noticed her belly looking a little saggy. While petting her, I rubbed under her belly and her nipples are elongated. She allowed me to look at them and they are a pinkish color. I examined my female cats to compare the difference and my female cats nipples are small and pale, almost white. I am thinking there is a possibility she is pregnant, and I feel guilty over it even though she is a stray. What are the early signs of pregnancy? I can at least help her remain healthy during her pregnancy and provide a safe place for her if she is.

Hi Calishell, since the kitten season is approaching and it could be difficult to find good homes for the little ones, it would still be possible to spay her now if this is something you’d be willing to consider. It’s perfectly safe for her and frankly, the only way to minimize homeless cats’ suffering by stopping the endless cycle of cats having kittens, which in turn will have kittens etc. Not mentioning how expensive it is to raise kittens properly. Whatever you decide, thank you for taking care of her!

 

[Calishell]

I don't know exactly how far along she would be. She is a stray, weight gain isn't something I would notice as being odd since she is a stray and wasn't being fed properly and I haven't notice appetite changes, for the same reason. I know early pregnancy they will still spay. What I am worried about is that she has never came into my house before. I am scared that she is looking for somewhere to nest and may be further along then I think. She doesn't have a huge belly. All the articles I have read that talks about nesting is that it occurs a couple weeks before birth. I know how expensive it can be to raise kittens, I have raised quite a few of them (I have a huge soft spot for strays and have taken in numerous kittens and have hand raised them) It is a tough decision. I understand terminating the pregnancy and the reason behind it. I wish people wouldn't abandon their animals to begin with

 

[Calishell]

I am currently trying to find a vet service like planned pethood or angels of assissi that serves the area that I live in. They are low costs and will sometimes provide services free of charge when the animal in question is a stray

 

[Jcatbird]

Nesting is a big deal. Mom will be choosing a spot and start looking early on. Scouting the territory. If you decided you cannot Spay her then it is to her and your advantage to go ahead now and get her used to being indoors. The sooner the better. The longer you wait, the more stressful it will be for her later in the pregnancy. She needs time to adjust. You also need to be very aware what is going on with her daily. Watching her progress will tell you much more about her condition and any possible problems that might arise. Pregnancies in younger cats can be easy or can be a little more difficult. A first time Mom doen’s always understand to break open the sac for baby quickly or just how everything needs to go without a little guidance. Most cats are naturals at all of it but sometimes you get one that needs some help.
Mom may object to being kept inside at first but if you give her lots of choices of places to have babies that are safe and warm, she’ll settle. Carboard boxes are a favorite. Old towels, linens etc. are great things to line the boxes. She may want the box in any number of places. Some like closet floors, a dark corner near you, behind things and under things. Boxes upright and boxes on their side. Lol Just give her lots of options. I once provided wonderful places for a cat....... she had them inside the back of an amplifier! Later she moved them inside the bottom drawer on my dresses! They are very particular about what they view as the ,”perfect spot!”
Wet food is a good idea right now just to be sure she stays hydrated. Dry food is fine too as long as she gets a balanced diet. I tend to give extra treats of good food to pregnant Moms to boost their good food intake. You may find that Mom still likes to play too. Hormones are working and sometimes they get playful. I like to use a wand toy so I can control how much she exerts herself. No overdoing it.
The sooner you bring her in the better as far as her trusting you to know where the kittens are as well as allowing you to be around during delivery as well as handling the babies as soon as needed. If she trusts you to pick her up, she’s already looking to you with love, trust and as her guardian.
Whatever your decision about the kittens..... Yay! Thank you for helping her. You’re awesome!

 

[Calishell]

I am slowly getting her use to be inside. She is nervous inside, of course, and hides under my couch. I have made contact with someone at a Planned Pethood to see if they can check her out.

 

[Furballsmom]

Try low volume music, classical harp music might help to ease her a bit

 

[Calishell]

Does that really work?

 

[Furballsmom]

I've gotten quite a few replies that it actually does

 

[Calishell]

Okay I will have to try it. I half expected that to be sarcasm or something because that is all I am getting from whoever I am corresponding with at Planned Pethood. But I will save that rant

 

[Furballsmom]

Oh gosh, I'm so sorry...I hate it when people are like that, and it's SO unnecessary!

There's also an app called Relax My Cat and there's MusicForCats . com

 

[Calishell]

It's more of, they dont believe me she is a stray because it takes a person with some special certification to rehabilitate a stray and that I am just a pet owner who didnt have their animal fixed and now wanting them to do it under the pretense of it being a stray.