When is my cat going into labour?

[aydivirsa]

We were adopted by a young cat in mid August - 6.5 weeks ago. We put her out at night for the first few weeks, and about 3.5 weeks in we noticed her nipples pinking up. By mid Sep, we were confident she was pregnant - saddlebag belly, extra hungry, extra sleepy, mood swings, the works.

In the last 3 days, she's gotten even more rotund and looks pear shaped when she sits down. Her underbelly is pinkish and scarce on fur near her genitals. I can see the outline of a/some kitties moving around in her belly now. She goes to her litter box multiple times a day and strains but poops or pees only some of those times. Since yesterday, she's been extra vocal, going around the whole house and yelling at both of us and making different noises than her usual (they're chirping type noises or more high pitched meows now, and had more urgency). I had estimated she would give birth in mid Oct, but now I feel like my guess was off and she may be pretty close? It's just that we don't see any specific nesting behaviour (she's always been curious about every corner of the house), or any discharge, which I've been reading is a common indicator of pre-labour.

Basically, I have no clue. There's no nearby vet and getting her into a carrier is a nightmare. So I'm reliant on internet advice

Apologies in advance for the low light pictures! The belly-up pic is from a week ago.

 

[Sarthur2]

It could be anywhere from now till a couple more weeks since you don’t know when she mated. Just wait it out.

 

[aydivirsa]

It could be anywhere from now till a couple more weeks since you don’t know when she mated. Just wait it out.

I guess I'm just impatient for more fuzzballs! Thank you!

 

[aydivirsa]

An update - I noticed clear discharge yesterday, but wasn't sure it was from her vagina. Today I noticed residue of sticky brown discharge on her vaginal opening. Brown didn't sound like good news and it's midnight here, so I thought I would wait and somehow take her to a vet in the morning. But now she's been moaning and yowling, almost hissing, at us for the last hour while lying down in our bed - off and on every twenty minutes or so. I don't see any visible contractions... I really hope she's giving birth and not having a miscarriage.

HALP!

 

[Sarthur2]

It sounds like she is in labor. The discharge sounds normal. Stay with her and offer comfort in soothing tones.

As the contractions get closer she will eventually push out kittens. Keep us posted!

 

[aydivirsa]

It sounds like she is in labor. The discharge sounds normal. Stay with her and offer comfort in soothing tones.

As the contractions get closer she will eventually push out kittens. Keep us posted!

That's a big relief! I didn't notice anything different about her - no 'drop' or nesting behaviour, although she did eat very little today. I guess she had already planned on our bed being her comfort space...

But did it have to be on my most fluffy quilt!

 

[Sarthur2]

Switch your quilt out for something else or cover it with towels if you don’t want it ruined.

 

[aydivirsa]

Switch your quilt out for something else or cover it with towels if you don’t want it ruined.

Ah, I've tried spreading old towels and pillow covers around her butt, but she's not moving enough for me to tuck them underneath her!

 

[aydivirsa]

She's gone about 30 minutes with just quiet whimpering and more rapid breathing than usual. Should I be concerned that she's going to hyperventilate?

 

[aydivirsa]

Spoke too soon. She's back to groaning and yowling. And she's finally moved enough for me to get two towels under her!

 

[Sarthur2]

Poor gal. She’s in a lot of pain. Has she tried pushing yet?

Did you buy KMR? If so, give her a small dish to drink if she will. The calcium will help with her labor pains.

 

[aydivirsa]

Poor gal. She’s in a lot of pain. Has she tried pushing yet?

Did you buy KMR? If so, give her a small dish to drink if she will. The calcium will help with her labor pains.

She does seem to be in pain and scared, poor thing. It does feel like she's pushing when she groans (awkward comparison, but it sounds like bad constipation). No visible contractions though. I checked under her tail and it looks like she's not dilated much - nearly 2cm. Should I be tracking dilation?

I don't have KMR on hand Is cow milk a possible substitute? She's not a fan of milk even on a good day.

 

[Sarthur2]

No cow’s milk - cats cannot digest the lactose. No need to track dilation.

If she is actually pushing for an hour and nothing is happening, it’s time for a vet.

You say no contractions, so what is happening?

 

[aydivirsa]

It's been an hour since the last update. Since then, she's been grunting and moving a lot more. Some 10 minutes ago her backside was in my face and I saw something like a sac partly hanging out. Now I'm not sure if that's a sac or congealed discharge, and she's sat down flat on her belly such that I can't check any more. She's still growling and pushing though.

 

[aydivirsa]

30 minutes later: she took a break from our bed and hid behind our wardrobe for about 15 minutes - grunting and yowling all the way. I walked over to the next room and suddenly saw that she had followed me! Dripping a few drops of pinkish blood from her backside all the way to and back from the next room. The fur around her vagina has blood on it. I'm not sure what happened behind that wardrobe. Was this a mucus plug or first kitten?

I can't even go to check behind the wardrobe now because she's jumped back up on our bed and is snuggling next to me, still making her labour noises.

 

[Sarthur2]

You need to check behind the wardrobe to see what went on. I’m beginning to wonder if she is in distress and needs a vet or not.

A aydivirsa

 

[aydivirsa]

Agree, but it's difficult to do anything right now. That's a heavy wardrobe and I'm not risking anything by moving it. Any vet will only be available 3 hours from now, it's 5 AM here. Right now, I think all I can do is trust in mama cat.

 

[Sarthur2]

How did she get behind it? Can you see behind it with a flashlight?

Is she bleeding much?

 

[aydivirsa]

There is enough gap between the wall for her to get through. I can see her tail, the rest of her is under the wardrobe (there's a plate on the front end so I can't see underneath). I can only hear her breathing. She initially groaned a bit, but has been quiet for the last 5 minutes.

 

[Sarthur2]

It’s a shame she is back there and you can’t get to her. Is there a nesting box or cat carrier or closet available?

If she has not had kittens by the time your vet opens, I think you need to take her in right away. Things don’t seem quite right to me.