How do you know when cats are finished having kittens?

[TakingBackSunday]

Hi all,

As the title suggests how do you know when a cat has finished having kittens?

Sat down for my tea and my beloved cat popped out a still born kitten, didn't even know she was pregnant.

Well apparently when I was away one weekend she got through the kitchen window and returned before I came home so DH didn't bother to tell me.

I know I'm irresponsible but she's an indoor ragdoll cat so didn't have had any urgency really (idiot) but I just need help with making sure she's okay now

She's being very affectionate, following me everywhere but not much else

Not sure I agree cats can have a fulfilled life indoors unless very old. My neighbours have ragdolls and they are always outdoors and patrol / own the street. I recently let my 12 month old kittens/ cats out and I was so nervous, but it has enriched their lives so much.

Blimey OP I don't want to pile on but kittens are normally neutered at 6 months. I've always let mine go on a couple of months longer, but 3 years old!!! That's a bit much really

Anyway hope she's okay

Each to their own - there's arguments for both for and against.

My cats wouldn't last very long if I let them out unfortunately, two of them aren't particularly interested but we can look at putting a cattery in the garden so they can go out safely but it'll probably just be this one as the other two won't.

@selffellatingouroborosofhate "as an autistic adult" is irrelevant. As you well know autism is a spectrum.

If you read the thread, she didn't want the sofa - she wanted some food.

@selffellatingouroborosofhate she's chasing the other cats, playing, eating and grooming herself as normal.

Not showing any signs of distress, so no reason to believe she's self soothing.

You've never seen a rescue advertise a cat for an indoor only home. Really?

My cats were very traumatised when they were rescued and it took a couple of months with a fosterer to get them comfortable and trusting of her. They are still very jumpy and scared of everything, but they do trust me and DH now. They would not do well outside.

It's totally depends on the cat and the situation, blanket judgements are not helpful.

Some cats are perfectly happy inside. I have my window open all day, my cat loves sitting on it with his head out but couldn't care less about going out
He will sit next to me if I go in the garden but that's only because he wants to be with me

Cats don't like food near where they sleep. It attracts predators and they don't want predators coming near them when they are sleeping because they are vulnerable.

Again, you don't understand cats.

I agree with you, unfortunately it's been one thing after another and was put on the back burner as she was an indoor cat.

My other cats were neutered within that period, some even less as wasn't a kitten.

She will be neutered this week.

They won’t spay her so soon after giving birth. Usually they wait about six weeks. Ive been there

@selffellatingouroborosofhate it wasn't near her bed?

It was at the other side of the room like google suggested - she had access to food, water and litter.

Some people really are desperate to pile on. It's not helpful to the cat if you all bully OP off the thread!

Why won't they spay her? I've seen cats get spayed with kittens still inside them.

Actually I suppose it's not pleasant straight after, I'll book her in asap then if they won't do it this week.

I'm sorry @Sakura7, my comment never meant to come across as a blanket judgement. I am worried though that cats, who are predators, are being cooped up in homes and not allowed to be what they are. I totally admire you for adopting animals, rather than buying, but it seems we are taking away their natural ability through continuously breeding - something which I think should be banned immediately.

Yes, it is. But we are talking one night of the kids being disrupted because the cat has had a stillborn kitten and may still be in labour. We took in a stray that turned out to be pregnant and she delivered number one, then ate breakfast and used the litter tray before birthing two and three.

If there's another one in there, she might want the sofa again when she's ready to birth it.

@TakingBackSunday 2 of them are ragdolls and it's not recommended to let them out and one of them has no interest and is scared of wind, the other was a stray for years, was attacked.
I'm sure there's plenty of people on here who have indoor cats.

I think it's an awful and horrible thing to breed cats which are "not recommended to be let out".

Normal cats love to be outdoors, and enjoy the sun and other weather such as windy days.

Yes, there are plenty of indoor cats, mostly in the USA. This doesn't mean it's right. Also in the USA it's still legal, in numerous states, to declaw cats. This is a cruel practice prohibited across the UK.

Fair. I'm guessing that her food isn't in the usual place that she eats? Mine won't eat if I move his food.

Very true. A family remember adopted a cat from a rescue center in America and they had to agree prior to adopting to never let the cat outside. When we visited the cat was very happy, never tried to escape outside (doors could be left open and cat was not interested in going out).

My non pedigree cat refuses to go outside. I can leave every door and window open and he wouldn’t even attempt it. He’s perfectly content in his little world and perfectly ‘normal’.

@selffellatingouroborosofhate I wouldn't have been able to stay with her if the children had a melt down, I juggled it the best I could - the sofa is free and open for her now and she isn't interested. Sometimes if it's not safe for a cat to give birth where they want, you have to move them (according to google) and I made her nesting area as comfortable, warm, dark and loving as I could, turns out she just wanted to eat anyway and wasn't interested.

@RogueFemale I'm not breeding my cats but I'll look at getting a cattery installed. They'll have the option then to go out safety if they want to (two of them won't, ones actually scared of wind).

@selffellatingouroborosofhate - Yes her food was somewhere different because I wanted her to have access to them if she was in labour but you're right, maybe that's why she wanted to eat downstairs.

There's not been anymore signs of labour, she seems back to her normal self.

I'll stay downstairs with her tonight to make sure we're okay and then get her to the vets tomorrow and spayed asap.

(I've learnt my lesson, it wasn't very nice handling a still born kitten or not knowing if my cat was okay).

My car was like that! He loved his head outside, but v much preferred his body indoors.

You seem to be getting a lot of grief here and it's unwarranted in my opinion.

Some of the pp sound too perfect to be true.

Just keep a watch over her and as you say, vets in morning.

One of our cats had a night on the town by mistake. She ended up having three, two were stillborn, but the third was revived by mouth to mouth resuscitation by my DP. Which was really above and beyond I thought!

It was a bit stressy overnight but the actual births were fine and she just got on with it very calmly. Which was most unlike her as she was quite highly strung! She wasn't particularly enthusiastic about her kitten though, not a natural mother!

My sons ragdoll goes wild if she can't go out. She loves hunting mice. She doesn't go far though. All the children at the nearby school who pass the house stop to stroke her. She loves playing fetch indoors.

They're very loving cats.