The owners of the mustachioed and striped creatures, as a rule, themselves have to take birth with their pets. The only exception is delivery with complications, when the animal is required to be delivered to the veterinary clinic. And if a pregnant cat is in the house, the owners have a lot of questions, in particular, how to give birth to cats, how to help the animal, in which cases a doctor’s consultation is needed.
Do not panic, usually the animals do fine on their own, you only need to provide comfortable conditions and be near to support the woman in labor and to help if necessary. But you still need to prepare.
Pregnancy in cats lasts, as a rule, 60-71 days. At least a week before delivery, you need to prepare a house for the future mother. A large cardboard box, for example, from under the TV, is suitable. Its bottom needs to be covered with a clean cloth folded in several layers; newspapers can also be placed under the cloth. One of the walls of the box should be lower than the others so that subsequently the cat-mother could leave the “nest”, but high enough so that the cubs could not climb over it.
Find a suitable place for the box, it should not stand in the aisle, it is better if it is the corner of the room. A week or two before birth, your pet should begin to settle down in his house.
Shortly before birth, the animal may increase appetite, and activity, on the contrary, decreases. Immediately before giving birth, cats begin to behave uneasily. A woman in labor can rush about the room, rake her bedding, scrape the floor, while the animal can tremble and puff. Try to calm the expectant mother with persuasion and affection. If it happens that she does not want to settle in her house, do not force her, this can not be done. Just put the litter in the place that it chooses. Later kittens you can transfer to a prepared box.
Then, as a rule, the second stage of the process begins. Just now, knowledge about how cats give birth will come in handy for you, at least be prepared to help. Fighting begins at the woman in labor, at this time the cervix opens, water flows. You should not be afraid of her behavior, if a cat gives birth for the first time, she can howl, take an unnatural position. You can easily find out about the beginning of the effort by the noticeable tension of the abdominal wall.
The kitten appears in a liquid-filled bag. The cat instinctively tears the shell with his teeth, gnaws the cord and immediately begins to lick the baby. This stimulates his breathing. But if the bubble did not burst, and the cat-mother did not break it, you need to carefully pierce it in the area of the kitten’s nose and remove it. Cut the umbilical cord with scissors (sterile).
If the baby does not show signs of life, use your finger to clean the mouth of mucus, intensively (but gently) rub the kitten with a towel, shake it (like a thermometer) and put it on mom. Kittens may squeak during this procedure, but this is just a good sign. If breathing does not appear, massage the back of the baby's neck, continue these measures with short breaks until the newborn cleans.
If suddenly the kitten is stuck, that is, it only appears halfway, grab the body with a clean handkerchief, wait for the effort and pull it slightly, swinging from side to side. But note, you can’t pull the legs. If a head appears and the body is stuck, pull the baby by the scruff. Wash the newborn with a towel and lay it to mom.
Owners often ask how many kittens a cat gives birth. There is no definite answer, a lot depends on the breed, on what kind of birth. Pedigree cats usually produce 3-5 kittens for the first time, but there are rare exceptions when up to 9 babies are born. As soon as you notice that your pet has started trying again, put the first kitten in the box and get ready to take the next one.
It may happen that during or after childbirth the help of a veterinarian is needed. You should be prepared to take the cat to the clinic if necessary. First of all, a doctor’s consultation is needed if attempts continue without result for more than half an hour, this happens if the calf is too large. If after delivery the animal rushes about and worries for more than half an hour, also consult your veterinarian.
Now that you theoretically know how cats give birth, in practice it will be much easier to master the role of an obstetrician.