My cat just had kittens...IN MY BED! Can I move them?

[kawaiikitty]

My close friend found a stray cat about 6 weeks ago, and we decided to adopt her. She was hanging out by the elementary school and the local police took the cat to her, because she does volunteer work with a local rescue. We took her to the vet to get her vaccinations, etc. but it turned out that she was pregnant so we decided to wait until after she had the kittens to have her fixed. 

So we set up three separate nesting boxes around the house for her, all of which she has been in from time to time. But yesterday her appetite decreased and she was lethargic but cuddly, so I was expecting kittens today. She was spending a lot of time in our bed cuddling, and I joked, "what if she has her kittens on our bed?" Then at 6 in the morning we woke up to her letting out a howl, flipped on the light, and there she was on our bed beside us with the first kitten on its way out! 

So far we haven't touched the kittens. There are 5. I'm not certain that will be all of them, but it has been about 30 minutes since the last one and she has now settled down and is relaxing with them and purring. 

So my main question is, am I able to move the kittens? They obviously can't stay on our bed. Not only because we need to sleep there, but because they can wander off before they should be doing so easily if they aren't in a more enclosed space. 

Should I move the entire blanket with them? 

Also, am I really not supposed to touch the kittens at all for awhile? It seems to me that by choosing to have them in bed with us, she feels safe with us....and our scent is already all over the kittens simply by them being on our bed. But I don't want to risk causing any problems.

So far I have put a litter box and food/water in our bedroom for mama cat, and if I am able to move them then I will keep the box in our bedroom. 

Thanks for any help!

Oh, and we have two other cats. One if 17 years old and I"ve had her since she was just a kitten, and the other is nearly 3. The 3 year old has been hissing at our bedroom door already. Poor girl, she just warmed up to mama and now there are babies! Another reason I want to keep her in the bedroom, so that my unhappy cat can't get near the kittens.

Thanks again for any help!

 

[kawaiikitty]

here is mama kitty and her babies!

12510362_1552000968424899_195836898955738438_n.jpg

• kawaiikitty
• Jan 11, 2016

 

[rickr]

That is beautiful.  The mother looks so content.  And what a cute and diverse litter.  I'm sure you will receive lots of good advice.  

 

[zed xyzed]

that is such a sweet picture, thank you for saving them !! 

 

[rubysmama]

 
That is beautiful.  The mother looks so content.  And what a cute and diverse litter.  I'm sure you will receive lots of good advice.  

Mama really is the picture of contentment.   And the kittens are adorable. 

Sorry can't advise on moving the kitty family, but I'm sure you'll have advise from the site experts shortly.

 

[zed xyzed]

hoping @sarthur2  can advise 

 

[catpack]

You can certainly move the kittens to a safe location. And, with clean bedding. Though, there is always the possibility that mom may try and move them back. Just watch and see.

The rule about handling kittens...
Just keep it to a minimum, don't over handle. You'll need to pick them up to weigh them daily (a kitchen or gram scale works well for this) and just to check their overall wellbeing.

Keep a record of weights. If you see one is falling behind or the kittens are not gaining at least 10 grams per day, you'll need to step in and supplement.

I suspect all will go well and look forward to more updates!

 

[kawaiikitty]

Thanks everyone, she has been doing really well! But she just had a 6th kitten about 15 minutes ago, and I'm pretty sure I see a 7th in there moving around still. She is going to be very exhausted! Hopefully with so many kittens they are all able to get enough to eat, etc :/

 

[kawaiikitty]

Thank you! I won't relocate them until tonight though, most likely, so that she can rest for awhile with them all. So far she has had 6 kittens and it looks like there is going to be a 7th. Is that an amount that a mom cat can usually handle on her own? I will weigh them to make sure they're getting enough. Thank you for the advice!

 

[talkingpeanut]

There are going to be runts with a litter that big. That's why you will weigh them daily. If one or two are not gaining enough you will need to supplement a few times a day. Another option is to let them nurse with mom in shifts, giving the runts enough access.

 

[handsome kitty]

You can move them after she has had them all and has rested a bit.  She will be exhausted.  Have you offered her some water or food?  she may not be hungry assuming she has been eating the placentas.  If she ate more than 4 she could have diarrhea, so don't get too concerned. 

Seven kittens is a lot for a mom.  Weighing is the best option to see growth, watch for runts.  Weigh the kittens at the same time everyday.  There are some tricks to make sure everyone gets enough food.  One is to put the smaller kittens to her nipples when the bigger kittens are napping.  Sometimes the bigger ones knock the smaller ones off nipples.  You may want to get some KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) in case you need to supplement.  We recommend the powder instead of the premix.  Pet Ag, Royal Canin and GNC are good brands, avoid Hartz and Seargents.  You will also need a small (1 -2 ml) needleless syringe since nursing kittens will not take to a bottle.  You can also give mom a dish of KMR everyday.  She will need the extra nutrients.

Mom looks very happy.  Thank you for taking this stray in and caring for her.

 

[kawaiikitty]

There are going to be runts with a litter that big. That's why you will weigh them daily. If one or two are not gaining enough you will need to supplement a few times a day. Another option is to let them nurse with mom in shifts, giving the runts enough access.

 
You can move them after she has had them all and has rested a bit.  She will be exhausted.  Have you offered her some water or food?  she may not be hungry assuming she has been eating the placentas.  If she ate more than 4 she could have diarrhea, so don't get too concerned. 

Seven kittens is a lot for a mom.  Weighing is the best option to see growth, watch for runts.  Weigh the kittens at the same time everyday.  There are some tricks to make sure everyone gets enough food.  One is to put the smaller kittens to her nipples when the bigger kittens are napping.  Sometimes the bigger ones knock the smaller ones off nipples.  You may want to get some KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) in case you need to supplement.  We recommend the powder instead of the premix.  Pet Ag, Royal Canin and GNC are good brands, avoid Hartz and Seargents.  You will also need a small (1 -2 ml) needleless syringe since nursing kittens will not take to a bottle.  You can also give mom a dish of KMR everyday.  She will need the extra nutrients.

Mom looks very happy.  Thank you for taking this stray in and caring for her.

Thank you both! There are now EIGHT kittens  

The last kitten is definitely the runt, it's smaller than the other kittens and didn't immediately start to scoot around looking for milk after it was born. It laid there just crying for awhile, until I finally used a cloth to move it to a nipple. It doesn't seem to be feeding, though, just sleeping

 so my fiancee is currently out getting KMR and a small syringe to give to that one already. I have food on the bed right by her, and water beside the bed. She hasn't shown an interest yet, though. She's exhausted and she also ate all eight of the placentas. I'll update later

 

[talkingpeanut]

You don't need to wary of touching the kittens. Leave them with mom most of the time, but it's totally fine to move them to a nipple with your hand. As you said, she's familiar with your smell.

 

[zed xyzed]

you are doing amazing work, I hope you can get the little one to eat, sadly it will not last long if it doesn't. I hope you have them in a warm spot.

 

[handsome kitty]

Try to get the little one to latch onto a nipple.  The first few days mom produces colostrum which has antibodies the kittens need. 

WOW 8 kittens.  You are probably going to need to rotate them.  Four on and four in a box with heat source and switch them every hour or two so all get enough food.  You should also be prepared to help with potty duties.  Mom usually does this when she cleans them and eats it.  You can use a warm damp cloth, begin by gently rubbing the belly and then use downward strokes and tap above the anus.  The kittens will not use a litter box until they begin weaning sometime between 4 and 6 weeks old.

 

[kawaiikitty]

You don't need to wary of touching the kittens. Leave them with mom most of the time, but it's totally fine to move them to a nipple with your hand. As you said, she's familiar with your smell.

Ok thanks. I just wanted to be careful when they were fresh out the womb But I've started moving them to the nipple when I need to.

 
Try to get the little one to latch onto a nipple.  The first few days mom produces colostrum which has antibodies the kittens need. 

WOW 8 kittens.  You are probably going to need to rotate them.  Four on and four in a box with heat source and switch them every hour or two so all get enough food.  You should also be prepared to help with potty duties.  Mom usually does this when she cleans them and eats it.  You can use a warm damp cloth, begin by gently rubbing the belly and then use downward strokes and tap above the anus.  The kittens will not use a litter box until they begin weaning sometime between 4 and 6 weeks old.

It seems to be latching now. It's okay to rotate them like that? I was just wondering how long it's okay for mom to be away from them. She left the room and went to the water dish, she must not have noticed the one I put in the room with her. She stayed out there for a few minutes and I was worried and coaxed her back to the room with them. I was worried about them getting cold. I have a small heater in the room to keep them warm, but I'm also worried about them getting too warm! I have it on the lowest setting and not directly on them, since they're up against mom.  4 would be okay in a box with heat for an hour? 

I read about the potty thing. How often should I do that? 

 
you are doing amazing work, I hope you can get the little one to eat, sadly it will not last long if it doesn't. I hope you have them in a warm spot.

and thank you I've had cats my entire life, but I have never had newborn kittens before so I'm pretty anxious about everything! I do have a heater with them, as I said above

 

[kawaiikitty]

here's another look at the little ones, if anyone is interested

12400837_1552115438413452_8764534157961406535_n.jp

• kawaiikitty
• Jan 11, 2016

 

[zed xyzed]

http://www.kitten-rescue.com/cold_kitten.html​ 

http://pets.thenest.com/keep-newborn-baby-kittens-warm-8417.html

 

[StefanZ]

 
Ok thanks. I just wanted to be careful when they were fresh out the womb But I've started moving them to the nipple when I need to.

It seems to be latching now. It's okay to rotate them like that? I was just wondering how long it's okay for mom to be away from them. She left the room and went to the water dish, she must not have noticed the one I put in the room with her. She stayed out there for a few minutes and I was worried and coaxed her back to the room with them. I was worried about them getting cold. I have a small heater in the room to keep them warm, but I'm also worried about them getting too warm! I have it on the lowest setting and not directly on them, since they're up against mom.  4 would be okay in a box with heat for an hour? 

I read about the potty thing. How often should I do that? 

and thank you I've had cats my entire life, but I have never had newborn kittens before so I'm pretty anxious about everything! I do have a heater with them, as I said above

As you say, its important they dont get chilled.  Much depends on the natural temp in the room.  Being in with mom, they usually have enough warmth, unless its chilly.

But if mom wanders much, more than a couple of minutes - yes its a good idea to ensure there its warm...

In nature moms must find food, and often leave the kittens even several hours.  But of course, with such friends they really dont need no enemies.  Its no wonder these whom do survive, are tough above average...

 

[zed xyzed]

what a beautiful picture. Please let us know how they are doing, and how you are doing. It sounds like you might have a few sleepless nights