Is your cat expecting a little furry family? Congratulations and much fun during this exciting time! Arm yourself with knowledge about what you need to know regarding expectant cats and how you can support your soon-to-be cat mother until the day of delivery.
© sharafmaksumov / stock.adobe.com
A suddenly larger belly is a sign that your cat might be pregnant.
If you have purposely decided to mate your cat, you’re probably eager to see the first visible changes just days after pairing. However, patience is required as it takes some time. Only after about 15 to 18 days do the teats of your cat slowly swell and turn pink.
By the fifth week, your cat’s belly finally seems thicker as she now needs to nourish not only herself but also the kittens in her womb with vital nutrients, leading to increased food consumption. Generally, it’s possible for your cat to gain up to two kilograms in weight during pregnancy.
Like humans, cats can experience nausea during pregnancy, which is why they may vomit more often.
Cat owners may also notice behavioural changes in the expectant cat mother during the course of pregnancy. She may crave more petting and follow one around constantly. Other pregnant cats, on the other hand, seek solitude and would rather not be touched.
Mood swings and a swollen belly are clues that your cat might be pregnant, but they’re not definite proof. To be certain that the mating was successful, a vet will need to examine your cat more closely.
A reliable proof by ultrasound examination is possible from about the third week of pregnancy. The ultrasound machine displays the fetuses’ heartbeat on a separate screen.
Around 40 days into the pregnancy, a vet can estimate the number of kittens using an X-ray image. However, this is only successful if no large fetus is obscuring the view of the others.
X-ray examinations also help assess the health of the fetuses and the cat mother, allowing the vet to exclude issues such as air pockets (emphysema) or malformations.
© Ermolaev Alexandr / stock.adobe.com
Cats become sexually mature at the age of four to twelve months depending on their breed. Since they go into heat approximately every two to three weeks, unlike dogs, they can even have up to three litters per year.
If your cat is pregnant, she typically gives birth after about 64 to 69 days. On average, the cat birth takes place after 66 days.
Pregnancy depletes your cat’s energy. Hence, during this life phase, she especially requires a lot of attention and care. To ensure your pregnant cat experiences as little stress as possible and the unborn kittens are healthy, consider the following tips:
Suitable cat food is also available in the zooplus online shop.
© LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS / stock.adobe.com
Pregnancy in cats usually proceeds without major complications. However, there are instances where things don’t go as planned. Sometimes pregnant cats may refuse to eat, or they may have slimy to bloody discharge from their vaginal openings. In these cases, it’s best to consult your vet as a precaution.
In any case, always inform your vet that your cat is pregnant before any therapy. Certain medications can negatively affect your pet’s pregnancy and harm the unborn kittens.
Even if your cat is pregnant, she can still simultaneously become impregnated by another tomcat. This is because mating can spontaneously trigger ovulation. Often, the offspring from the second heat are less developed or even die in the womb. Therefore, it’s crucial to keep your pregnant cat away from intact male cats for the first three weeks after fertilisation.
At the Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen I was extensively trained as a veterinarian and was able to gain experience in various fields such as small animal, large animal and exotic animal medicine as well as pharmacology, pathology and food hygiene. Since then, I have been working not only as a veterinary author, but also on my scientifically driven dissertation. My goal is to better protect animals from pathogenic bacterial organisms in the future. Besides my veterinary knowledge, I also share my own experiences as a happy dog owner and can thus understand and enlighten fears and problems as well as other important questions about animal health.
Are you concerned about your ageing cat's lack of response to its name? Or are you startled by your cat's inability to locate its food bowl? Allow us to explain how you can identify early signs of senility in your cat and enable it to lead a lengthy and robust life.
It’s not just the right type of litter tray that will make your cat happy, but also the right type of cat litter. The best litters are ones that are very absorbent and ideally neutralise odours too, but finding the perfect cat litter can be no easy task with so many varieties on offer from natural clumping litter made of clay, non-clumping litter, litter made of wood or silica.
Coconut oil is very popular among cat owners as it provides natural protection from ticks and other parasites. In addition, this on-trend product is said to have numerous benefits. We will give you tips and information on how and when coconut oil can be a practical alternative to conventional remedies.
