The gestation period for cats is usually around 9 weeks and a pregnant cat begins to show physical and behavioral changes soon after conception. By knowing how to recognize these variations, you can tell if your feline friend is actually expecting puppies. Of course, to know for sure you have to take her to the vet. If you are not a professional breeder, you should consider having your cat neutered, as the overpopulation of these animals is becoming a real social problem and often the only solution that remains is euthanasia of the surplus specimens they cannot find. a family that adopts them.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Recognizing the Signs of Fertility
Step 1. Determine if your cat is fertile
If she has recently gone through the heat phase, she may be pregnant.
- Females of these felines become sexually active when the days begin to lengthen and the weather becomes milder, usually between spring and autumn.
- A cat generally begins the estrus cycle (goes into heat) when temperatures become milder and when she reaches about 80% of her adult weight. This means that it can go into heat as early as the fourth month of age, although this is rare.
Step 2. Check its behavior towards males
When a cat goes into heat, she begins to exhibit clear behavioral changes to try to attract the male; these attitudes last for 4 or 6 days.
- Shortly before going into heat, the cat begins to show signs of restlessness, becomes more affectionate, begins to make slight meows and shows more appetite.
- During the estrus begins to meow often and insistently, also emitting loud noises of call, moreover it tends to lose the appetite.
- At this stage it becomes much more affectionate towards people, begins to wander around people's legs and tends to lift its butt by openly exposing the sexual organs, moving the tail to the side and dragging itself on the front legs.
Step 3. Be aware of the consequences of estrus
If your cat is indeed in heat, know that the consequences can go far beyond her strange behaviors: she could get pregnant!
- If you've come to the conclusion that your feline friend has recently gone into heat, pregnancy is a real possibility.
- Once the estrus is over, the cat enters the phase that is called "diestrus" and which lasts about 8-10 days, during which her unusual behaviors are reduced. After this period, however, the cat goes back into heat and will continue to return for the entire period between April and September.
- If you want to prevent your cat from continuing to heat up or inadvertently get pregnant, you need to have her sterilized as soon as the procedure becomes safe for her health.
Part 2 of 3: The Signs of Pregnancy
Step 1. See if your nipples are getting bigger
Around the fifteenth to eighteenth day of pregnancy, the nipples begin to turn pinker and swollen.
- The breasts also swell, from which a little milky liquid begins to come out.
- Keep in mind, however, that nipples can also swell during estrus, so you can't take this as a unique sign of pregnancy.
Step 2. Look at the silhouette of the cat
If you look sideways at a pregnant cat, you will notice that it has a slightly arched back and a rounded and protruding abdomen.
- Many cats manifest this body shape in the late stages of pregnancy.
- If your feline friend is just fat, then she will be "chubby" in all parts of her body, including her neck and paws, not just her abdominal level.
Step 3. See if the cat tries to set up a burrow
A few days before giving birth, the expectant mother will start looking for a safe hiding place to prepare for the arrival of the baby.
- She may spend a lot of time in a quiet place, such as inside the closet, or stockpiling clothes and other fabrics to make a soft nest for newborn kittens.
- If you notice this type of behavior and haven't realized before that your cat is pregnant, then you should take her to the vet as soon as possible for a prenatal checkup.
Part 3 of 3: Caring for the Pregnant Cat
Step 1. If you think your cat is expecting puppies, you should take her to the vet
The doctor will confirm your suspicions and give you advice on how to best take care of the cat. He will tell you how to treat her and prepare for the birth.
- Let the vet feel the cat's abdomen. an experienced doctor is able to feel the embryos by touch as early as the seventeenth or twenty-fifth day of pregnancy.
- Let your doctor do this, as your clumsy attempt to mimic it could lead to a miscarriage.
Step 2. Ask to have the cat undergo an ultrasound
If the vet is unsure even after palpation, he may perform an ultrasound to determine the "interesting state" of the animal. If so, this test also allows you to count the number of fetuses.
Thanks to ultrasound, the doctor can identify the fetal heartbeat as early as the twentieth day of pregnancy
Step 3. Request an X-ray
At forty-five days of gestation, the skeletons of the kittens are visible on X-rays and in this way you can be sure of their presence and their number.
- The vet usually proceeds with two x-rays to get an overview of the abdomen and count the kittens; in addition, these tests also allow him to identify any problems.
- The x-ray is not dangerous for the cat or for the kittens.
- It is a better tool than ultrasound for counting the number of kittens, even if it is not 100% accurate.
Step 4. Do not subject your cat to vaccinations, worm treatments or drug therapies while she is pregnant
Vaccines, in particular, can be dangerous, both for the health of the cat and the puppies.
Before giving her any medications, including worms, ask your vet for advice. Do this for puppies too, once they are born
Step 5. Increase your calorie intake in the last few weeks before giving birth
You will notice that as the delivery date approaches, the cat tends to eat more and gain weight.
This is because puppies develop rapidly in the last third of gestation; offer your cat puppy food, which is generally higher in calories and gives her all the energy she needs
Step 6. In the last few weeks before giving birth, avoid letting the expectant mother go out
As labor approaches, it is best to keep her safe at home to prevent her from finding a "nest" outside to give birth.
- It would be advisable for you to prepare a den or a box for her inside the house. Put it in a warm, dry, quiet room and fill it with newspaper, a cloth, or a clean blanket.
- Place the food bowl, water bowl and litter box nearby and encourage your cat to sleep in this box in the days leading up to the birth of the puppies.
Warnings
- Millions of stray cats are euthanized each year due to their overpopulation. Have your cat neutered to avoid contributing to this problem. Do this before she reaches 5 or 6 months of age so you don't run the risk of getting pregnant.
- Some vets offer to "abort" or spay a pregnant cat. Some doctors advise against this practice beyond a certain stage of gestation, while others do it at any week of pregnancy.
- Cats do not usually suffer from morning sickness; for this reason, if your cat is vomiting often and does not seem healthy, you should take her to the vet.
