The tinest kitten puddle.

February 11, 2009 7:39 AM

Follow up to last week's question: My rescue foster cat just had her litter of kittens. I have questions, obviously.

6 hours or so ago, my sweetheart foster cat gave birth. I think there's 6 of them -- they're all black, so when they're in a pile, it's hard to tell exactly. I had 6 counted, but it looked like she might have one more and I needed to get some sleep. If she had it and it's in the pile, I have no idea. It wasn't the easiest delivery, but in the end it looks like all are curled up with mom, eating and jostling for position. Momma's napping intermittently.

First question: How soon can I move momma cat and the litter? I have a bigger, better box for them in a better location, one that isn't layered with the icky bloody towel they're currently on. Momma cat trusts me, so getting her kittens from her isn't a problem. I just don't want to handle the newborns more than I already have, and I don't want to stress anybody out.

Two: In the bottom of the pile somewhere is a kitten with a really long umbilical cord. (Mom cut it, there's just several inches attached to the kitten) It cant be good -- it's either going to dry to the towel and get the kitten stuck, or get wrapped around something bad. Can I cut it?

Three: How do I know if the kittens are getting enough food? There's intermittent crying, but it's impossible to tell which kitten is the culprit. Also -- any idea how I can identify 6 seemingly identical kittens? I thought of nail polish, but I don't want momma cat licking that...

And finally: If any don't make it, what am I supposed to with the the bodies? I don't want to just throw them in the dumpster...

Sorry for all the questions. Basically, I'm just looking for new-litter advice from anybody who has been there or know about these things!

posted by cgg to pets & animals (13 comments total)

Tiniest, obviously. D'oh!
posted by cgg at 7:40 AM on February 11

As far as ID -- I've seen people use different colors of ribbon, rickrack, etc. tied around the neck to identify puppies and kittens in a litter.

The other questions -- I'd call the rescue organization you got her from. They've dealt with all this before.

This video has some good, reassuring general info. Worth 1:20 of your time. Mostly it boils down to, the mother knows what she's doing so get out of her way. (Did you know the mama cat is called a queen? I did not!)

Also -- can haz kitteh fotos?
posted by dogrose at 8:27 AM on February 11

Come on, yes, photos of tiny kittens! Please! If I lived near you I'd come take a photo myself!

The video that dogrose linked is a good start; the same guy (he's dressed as a veterinarian, but one doesn't want to assume things) has put up this video on taking care of a nursing mother cat; the nursing mother cat I've seen was so skinny and seemed really tired (she was near feral), so if it were me, I'd be buying her all kinds of yummy food and taking good care of her.

Here's another video on moving newborn kittens.

That guy is awesome! Thank you, white coat guy!
posted by amtho at 8:52 AM on February 11

Please don't tie anything to them. Momcat has enough to deal with. In "our" litter we had one kitten who was pretty small and we thought she had trouble finding a nipple. We helped her a bit a few times, but really, everything was fine. If you have a nice clean box, put it nearby and let momcat decide whether she wants it. I agree with dogrose about just leaving her alone as much as you can. Things that you think are gross (well-used towel) might be comforting to a little kitten who uses smell more than sight to find mom. (I am not a vet, but when there is a sunbeam I think I might be part cat.)
posted by fritley at 8:53 AM on February 11

Seconding don't tie anything to them. Mom may not be keen on that. You could use scissors to trim a different type of spot on to each kitten, in different places for ID.

If one kitten seems to be pushed out of the way, weak, etc.-probably not getting enough food.

You can probably cut the cord back (not flush with the skin) to a reasonable length.

I moved the kittens that my stray had right after she was done. She didn't seem too upset. Just as long as it is a quiet and undisturbed place.

In the event of a fatality, I would bury it in the backyard. Or your vet may be willing to dispose of the body for free since it is small and would not take up much space (the clinic I worked at did that).

Feel free to email with any other questions.
posted by bolognius maximus at 9:50 AM on February 11

Yeah, you have to resist your urge to be the mommy here, it sounds like you're trying to micro-manage them. They don't need your help, umbilical cord, dirty towel or not. Just buy food for the...queen...and set it out.
posted by rhizome at 9:55 AM on February 11

Yes, sorry -- I should've clarified. fritley's right that you shouldn't loop anything around them now; you're not handling them yet so it's not critical to ID them. Check with your rescue folks about when/if collars are safe or other IDing ideas.

And yeah, a stinky towel is a good towel when you're a blind kitten.
posted by dogrose at 9:57 AM on February 11

Nthing what everyone else says about leaving Momma alone for a while. If you're too involved she may decide to move the kittens right away and I guarantee it won't be into a nice clean box but somewhere you really don't want her like under the couch or in one of your drawers. If the dirty towel (and at least it's a towel; mine decided to have hers on a vintage 1950s dress that I really adored) bothers her, she'll move herself; you could try having a few possible places set up but she will probably pickily refuse them and find her own space. She is likely to move them in a couple of days anyway, actually - the two or three times I've been directly involved in kittening cats they have all done that, so let her take the initiative.

Also I just found this veterinary blog and while I haven't explored the forums, it seems to have a lot of interesting and useful info, so you might want to give them a try as well.
posted by mygothlaundry at 10:12 AM on February 11 [1 favorite]

Nthing just leave them alone and let Mama take care of things. There's no need to ID the kittens right now; in about a week they'll start developing some markings and such and won't look so identical. If you move Mom and the kittens, chances are she'll just move them somewhere else. (We've had a couple of rescues that had a litter; Mr. Adams had made a nice cozy nesting box for the first one, but she had them on a blouse of mine on the closet floor instead. When we moved the group to the box, an hour later they were gone; followed the tiny mews and found Mom and the kids in the bathroom cuddled up behind the commode. Give her as much privacy as possible; peek in too many times at the babies and she'll get uneasy and move them all.

Don't try to assist feeding the kittens or clean them up or anything, just make sure the mother has plenty of food and water. You can put an extra dish of her food near the "nursery," but also leave her regular dishes in their usual place. She'll want to get up and around after a while and eat and use her litter box. The kittens will be fine by themselves, even if they cry. Mom will sometimes seem a bit indifferent to their cries (I expected her to go running to them at their first squeaks), but she can tell the difference between "we're hungry, we want to be cuddled" and "Help! We're in danger!"cries.
posted by Oriole Adams at 10:13 AM on February 11 [1 favorite]

It's fine to trim a cord that's a couple of inches long so it won't have a chance of getting stuck in a towel loop. Just switch out the towel when she's taking a break.

I've always snorgled the babbies from day one as long as the mom was cool with it.
posted by auntbunny at 11:11 AM on February 11

sorry- I meant to say if mom likes the location, just switch out the towel when she's taking a break.
posted by auntbunny at 11:13 AM on February 11

Cats have been having litters for how many thousands of years? Without your help? Back off. Be humble. Observe. Admire the beauty of what your queen hath wrought, and what she does. Give her respect, food, and water. Strive to remember that they are her kittens, not yours.
posted by exphysicist345 at 5:29 PM on February 12

Wow, white coat guy is awesome. And yes, I'm squelching the urge to micromanage. It's hard, but mommy cat is doing an awesome job so far. So far I haven't handled the little guys except to swap out the towel while mommy was eating, and she had no problems with me doing it.

I'm a geek, so I've also set up the obligatory kitten cam here, if anybody's interested.
posted by cgg at 1:54 PM on February 13