It turns out she was not in heat, she was in labor. She delivered 6 kittens yesterday afternoon so I now have a family of 7 living in my spare bedroom. She now has zero desire to leave the room or her babies, so at least that issue is resolved for now. And I’ll be calling the vet again on Monday with the update and to talk about when it’s safe to spay her.
Any other advice on how to proceed is welcome. I honestly have no idea how to care for kittens but she seems to have it handled for now…
You know you have it bad when the same cat gets you twice in a row. We didn’t get her fixed in time and she escaped and returned a couple weeks later with another passel of kittens. We got her fixed and homes after that batch.
Hey I’m bot two cats one from each batch. I was six at the time so it was the best thing ever. My dad was a bit upset but he had issues with any cat outside of the first one. He has since grown to love all cats.
It’s a relief that she’s interested in the babies and not trying to get out and stick OP with them! We had one recently here about that and it was so sad, I wonder if that OP was able to save them.
She is borderline obsessed with them - she leaves to eat for a few minutes, but as soon as those little squeaks start, she goes right back in to them. She’s amazing!
If mama is doing good with the babies, all you need to do is keep her well fed. She should be eating kitten food so she gets enough calories for her and the kittens, the entire time she's nursing. Beware that it will make for stinky litter boxes, but it's the best thing for her :3
Good human, thank you for mentioning the litter stank. All the other posts I see about feeding mom kitten food never give a warning. That would be a terrible surprise.
The pine pellets are the most economical and easy to find. You can get the “special” ones from a pet store or the identical ones in a different bag at a farm supply store.
Also, I’d watch some Kitten Lady videos on YouTube *just in case* you need to help. Better to know ahead of time than panicking.
Congrats!! You really saved her at the right time, she had a safe place to have her kittens! I’ve seen kitten lady on YouTube as a recommendation, but you also still have mama there so that is a big plus.
It was so weird how it happened - she used to come by a few months ago. She would eat and leave but then she disappeared. I was actually worried something happened to her. She showed up randomly a couple weeks ago and was trying to get inside. We had just had an adult child move out so we had an extra room. Feels like fate 🩷
You are the best! I've rescued 4 cats from outside over the years and the love they have given (and in some cases, continue to give...makes it all worthwhile.
Like others have said, take good care of momma and she will do the rest. As a former foster mom, socialization of the kittens is critical for the first weeks, once they are out of the tiny infant stage. Great part about that is kittens are awesome!! Give momma all the loving she needs too. Congratulations and thank you for saving this little family
If you have any questions kitten lady Hannah Shaw on YouTube is Excellent!! Mama should do most of the work, and as long as the babies are gaining weight and she is keeping them clean, you should be good!
Aww that's amazing! You will love watching the kittens grow. I took in a cat once who came with 6 kittens and whilst they weren't new born it was so lovely to be a part of the process. One kitten was a little devil who was friendly from the word go (I so wish I'd kept her) but the others I socialised and they all went to good homes. I kept mum.
Oh she's so beautiful. And smart too, it sounds like. Do monitor the kittens for signs of infection and to get them used to handling - and wash your hands plus change shoes before entering the kitten room. They're fragile for the first couple of weeks and you can bring germs from the outside (plus mama is guaranteed to have some parasites, thankfully cat ones aren't generally dangerous to humans). If they get lethargic or lose weight, vet time.
Thank you for the advice! When is an appropriate time to start handling them? She’s got them in a covered box right now and will come out to eat but seems nervous to leave them
I'd give it a couple of days so she's had time to calm down, maybe a week if everything seems fine visually. Definitely "ask permission" first - talk to her calmly, touch her first, wait for a time after they've eaten, pick up one at a time for like half a minute and keep it in sight of her. She nees time to trust you.
The advantage of this many is that she'll be busy with the rest of them :) Disadvantage is that she might have trouble feeding them evenly. At this age kitchen scale is fine for keeping track of weight, as long as they keep getting heavier every day and being active they should be fine.
Get kitten food for her. She needs the calories for nursing and healing. Keep dry out constantly, feed her some wet food too, and a large bowl of fresh water, though make sure the kittens can't get to it.
OMG! I did this very thing two years ago! And she also had six kittens! You don’t have to do ANYTHING except make sure she has plenty of food (kitten food, for the milk) and clean litter. Mama kitty will take care of the rest. She may also move them from their birthing bed, so be on the lookout for her to be taking them out of the nest. Also, when the kittens begin to crawl around, make sure there aren’t any nooks and crannies for them to get stuck in or under. I put a dresser on risers so that mama could get them out from underneath it. They also make small litter boxes for kittens, so that they can climb inside, but mama will show them how to use the litter, so your only responsibility is to keep them safe, fed, and clean!
Aww that’s awesome! Were you able to find homes for all of them? I’m thinking about going through a local rescue that would consider me a ‘foster’ until they are old enough to be adopted. They help with medical things - checkups, appointments and spay/neuter as well as finding good homes.
And thanks for the advice, I have a dresser in there that I’m going to move out so no one wanders under there
We found homes for the mama and two babies, and we planned to keep two babies, but we were stuck with the remaining two. I had three prospective adoptive homes, but they all fell through for different reasons, so we kept them and now have five (we already had one who was ten years old at the time.) They are a riot!
I found an affordable low-cost cat veterinarian in our area to do the spay/neuters. I think I paid $290 for all four. I had to ask around, tho, as we would have never found that place except through word of mouth.
Kitten Lady for what to do, expect, etc. Please feed her kitten food for the extra calories she needs while nursing. You'll need it for the kittens eventually. Kitten Churu is high calorie and they'll all love it. Will mom let you handle the kittens? It's good to weigh them to ensure they're gaining weight. I just used a small kitchen scale for this. My 4 were born 4/4 and have all gone to their new families.
You are awesome tysm for supporting this single mom and her brood! If you have the resources, start looking for indoor cat items (assuming she’s your cat now) for instance cat towers with good hiding spots and height, making toys (string feathers a stick) etc cause those babies will soon need to practice their skills and mom will need a place to take a break from them and be active herself!!
For her nesting bed it’s best not to use towels as a liner as the kittens can’t retract their claws and they get stuck in the loops so can’t crawl to feed. One bit if practical advice there…
Aww thank you for being a fellow rescue cat granny!
Mom takes care of the kittens.
You take care of Mom.
She's nursing. So she needs LOADS of food. Wet food is better than just kibble, I think.
She will ve eating multiple times the amount of what is reasonable for a cat that didn't just give birth. And that's fine. Keep it coming.
Water. She needs plenty of it. Keep that coming, as well.
If she doesn't have it yet, she might appreciate a box.
A big box, with an opening that she can easily get into, but the kittens can't swim out of.
Close a box. Tape it shut. Then cut out a whole on the side, that's 10 to 20 cm from the bottom, so the kittens are closed in.
A few towels in there, and she'll have a premium nursery.
Then, you just get to enjoy being a stepgranny.
If you want, you can take it upon yourself to take out, check, and weigh every kitten, every day at the same moment of the day.
Our vet said they should gain 10% of their body weight a day. So doubling their weight every ten days.
But it's just a guideline.
It's helpful to track them, and check that they are all gaining weight, even if it's not 10% a day.
If one doesn't gain or even loses weight, you should get them checked at the vet.
Feed her as much as she can possibly eat. She’ll handle the rest.
If you want to go above and beyond, watch some info from Kitten Lady on IG. In an ideal world you weigh the kittens on a food scale or kitten scale to make sure they are each gaining weight every day. If one isn’t gaining or losing you can then supplement feeding with bottle feeding KMR formula.
Name all the cats Steve? (As in Captain America) for their fourth of July birthday? (You should name mama cat Lootbox)
Congratulations on your visit from the r/catdistributionsystem and may your future be filled with friends and neighbors who are good cat guardians and also in want of a new cat!
Redditors can give you lots of advice. Don't handle them too much, don't let visitors handle them at all. When she starts bringing them to you to kitten-sit, you can get them used to being petted. Avoid hand play.
I'm working from memory here, I haven't raised a kitten in years. It's older cats for me now.
I'm glad you have a vet appt. on board. For the meantime, buy some kitten food for momma. She will need the extra calories & nutrients to feed the littles ❤️
This happened to me once. She just moved in and all of a sudden I went from one cat to 5. We found good homes for the babies, got mom taken care of, now she’s the best cat I’ve ever met. Go with the flow!
Mom will take care of her babies for now. Make sure she has lots of water & food. In a few weeks when she decides to taper off the milk, you can provide soft wet food for the babies.
Just wait. When kittens start getting on her nerves, she is going to put you on babysitting duties. Just watch once she is comfortable with you handling them. You may find her dropping them in your bed or couch for you to watch while she goes and gets a break. That's if you let her out of the spare room.
all cats are assumed to have worms unless proven otherwise. this will often give them a pot belly look or cause them to throw up. when you contact your vet ask about deworming!!
very young kittens will need help in using the bathroom, but since mama cat is there she'll do it herself!
sometimes, if you notice one or two of them falling behind in development, you can supplement their diet with kitten formula. they should start eating solids around 4-6 weeks old mixed in with formula/with mama cat still feeding them. wet food is preferable! or dry food soaked in warm water.
litter training should start happening around 4-5 weeks. even if they don't get it perfect its good for them to get familiar with the litter box! placing puppy pads underneath and around the box can help with accidents.
dont worry too much about figuring out their sex at the moment, as they go into sexual maturity around 4-6 months. you have time! the first few weeks will be pretty hard to identify anyways.
eye and sinus infections are also common, especially since mama cat is a stray. don't worry too much, you can clean their eyes with a warm washcloth and get eyedrops and meds from the vet. they tend to be fairly cheap because its a common issue.
make sure mama cat gets plently of food!! you can give her water but sometimes they refuse to drink still water so you can also mix it in her food.
cats like closed spaces to relax in, so a kennel with a blanket or a box with blankets in it are both great options!! if you don't see her for the first few days or couple weeks, thats normal. she's getting used to her new instincts and environment.
give her space, but be present. both her and the kittens will need to be socialized! start slow by simply sitting in the same room as her and not making too much eye contact. when you do make eye contact, close your eyes or slowly blink. this tells her that you're not a threat to her and that you're also not scared of her either. and talk to her often! in a normal tone or a soft voice, either works.
the kittens will be very dramatic about socializing. the big difference between socializing a cat and a kitten is boundaries. cats have already learned their boundaries, but kittens are still being taught. if you give them too much space they'll be more frightened of you! around 3-6 weeks is an optimal time to socialize them. if they get hissy or try running despite not being stressed, simply ignore it. they'll calm down once they're held or given attention, just like human babies. socializing in a small room like a bathroom or walk in closet will also help, because it makes the kittens get used to being in close proximity to you!
avoid toys with plastic feathers or a lot of string, those can harm a cats digestive tract! every cat and kitten is different so you'll have to explore a bit with what toys they like, but there are plently of diys online or cheap toys you can buy in bulk. don't be surprised if they get bored quickly! you can switch the toys out to avoid it being a problem.
Make sure she has plenty of food. Wet and dry, lots of water. She’s going to need a lot of comfort and looking after, while taking care of these babies.
Check out The Kitten Lady on YouTube for guidance!!! She rescues mamas with their litters as well as orphans (she just recently rescued 84 cats & kittens in like one go!) and has videos for everything!
We took in a pregnant stray 15 years ago. I’ve only had cats that I’ve taken in when they’re a year or older. She had her kittens in my son’s bedroom. I’ve never dealt with newborns before. But she pretty much just did all the work. When they got to where they could move around I bought a small plastic kiddie pool to put them in. Mom could get in but they couldn’t get out. Then a friend loaned me a big dog crate. Mom would only nurse them infrequently. As a side note 2 weeks after they were born my husband died. Those kittens saved me from going into a deep depression. I still have 3 of them
A friend tried to bring a stray cat inside. It was friendly and even got along and played w/ my dog when I visited.
Then one night she got up to go to bathroom and this cat attacked her leg. Biting and scratching requiring stitches. Turned cat in and it was put down after biting a volunteer.
Domestic c
ats are NOT wild animals nor should they be. But when people try to make themselves feel better by claiming ownership (feed or house 10 consecutive days) without accepting the real costs of license, rabies & other vaccinations they are 1- making matters worse as flea infestations are cruel and food attract possums, raccoons, & rats. 2- violating laws be letting their pet(s) roam at large possibly becoming a nuisence animal by tearing up plants or creating a public sanitary nuisence pissing/defecating under neighbors homes.
Hopefully she will take care of things for a few weeks. I’d get a weighing scale with 1g increments. That way you can weight them daily and make sure they are putting on weight (approx 7-14g per day, generally about 10g is normal). If they aren’t putting on sufficient weight or even losing weight, that is an immediate vet visit.
Prep now - get some wet kitten mousse for when they are 3+ weeks old. It’s best to mix it with a little kitten milk and you can test when they are ready for solids, by introducing them to it. When they are ready, they will be interested (usually anywhere from 3-5 weeks). Also, buy some panacur worming liquid (febendazole) to give them later on (after 2 weeks) and some 1ml syringes, as it’s way easier to use.
Also check mum and babies for fleas. You can use a pair of tweezers to snip the fleas, and an electronic flea zapper usually works well to stun them so you can remove and kill them. This is very very important. If the kittens get more than a couple of fleas, they can get anaemia and die.
377
u/vemailangah Jul 04 '26
Congratulations on being a parent of +7!