Page 86 - Complete Cat Care: How To Keep Your Cat Healthy and Happy

Queening and postnatal care

Producing kittens—queening—is something most cats experience without
difficulty. Your role is simply to keep a close watch while staying as
unobtrusive as possible. Always contact a vet if problems arise.

of her kittening box. However, that encases the kitten in the
queens sometimes change their uterus—appears at the vaginal
Checklist minds at the last minute as to opening. A few more contractions
where they want to give birth, so propel the kitten out into the
■ Telephone number of make sure your cat cannot take world. The final stage of labor
veterinary practice herself off to a hidden corner. expels the placenta (afterbirth); a
■ Clean towels During the first stage of labor, separate placenta will be expelled
■ Newspaper which can last up to 6 hours, after each kitten.
■ Trash bags regular contractions gradually The rest of the kittens will be
■ Latex gloves open the cervix (neck of the born at varying intervals. They
■ Disinfectant that is safe uterus). The queen will pant and may arrive within minutes of each
84 for use with cats
perhaps purr, but she should not other, although at some births
seem unduly distressed. A clear there can be a time lag of an hour
vaginal discharge often appears.
or two between deliveries.
Breeding Giving birth stage of labor, she begins to you only need to monitor the
With a normal labor and birth,
As the queen enters the second
When the time for giving birth
to her kittens is near, a queen
contraction to push a kitten
disturbing the queen by hovering
usually becomes restless and may strain, or “bear down,” with each situation, without interfering or
ignore all offers of food. Once through the birth canal. Within over her too closely. It is necessary
her contractions begin, she will about 30 minutes, a grayish to take action if the second stage
probably head for the security bubble—which is the membrane of labor continues for more than
about 2 hours without producing
First wash any kittens; there is an abnormally
As soon as a kitten is born, the long interval between each
mother licks it clean, using her delivery; contractions cease but
tongue vigorously to remove the
surrounding membrane and you suspect that not all the kittens
stimulate the kitten’s breathing. are born; or a kitten becomes
stuck in the birth canal. Never
try to resolve birthing problems
yourself. If the queen appears
to be in difficulties, call the vet
immediately to ask for advice.

After the birth
In most cases, the queen, even
if it is her first litter, knows what
to do and wastes no time in dealing
with each kitten in turn. She will
lick the kitten all over, to remove
the birth fluids and surrounding
membrane and to stimulate
breathing. She will also bite
through the umbilical cord that

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