You’ve been ready patiently to your cat to have her kittens, and now the time has come! However you’ve by no means overseen a kitten delivery or cared for a cat mother and her new child infants, so you might be doubtless questioning what you must do. You’ve come to the proper place — listed here are seven vital suggestions to bear in mind.
The 7 Vital Issues to Do When Your Cat Simply Had Kittens
1. Set up a Secure House
Be certain your cat and her kittens are settled in a protected house, the place the environment is quiet and freed from stress. If attainable, put mama and her infants in a kennel or “nesting field,” which may simply be a basket or cardboard field crammed with cozy bedding. It will confine the infants to 1 house that they’ll’t simply get out of so it’s simpler for his or her mom to seek out them and deal with their wants.
Select an area in your house that doesn’t see a lot foot site visitors all through the day, corresponding to a spare bed room or massive walk-in closet. The house must be freed from commotion, like children enjoying in order to not spook mama or make her really feel like she should go into “protecting” mode to maintain her infants protected.
2. Maintain the House Heat and Dry
Wherever your cat is caring for her infants, the house must be saved as dry and heat as attainable. Mama will do job of protecting her infants heat herself, however the extra assist she has, the simpler her vital job shall be. If attainable, arrange and run a dehumidifier within the house to make sure that no further moisture is current that would trigger respiratory sicknesses within the newborns. If the house is chilly sufficient that you should put on a sweater to remain comfy, run an area heater to heat issues up.
3. Maintain Different Pets Away From the House
It may be robust to understand how one other pet will react to new child kittens, even when they’re usually pleasant and docile. Different animals can stress out the mom and make her really feel defensive of her infants. Due to this fact, it’s a good suggestion to maintain all different pets away from mama and her kittens till the infants are sufficiently old to roam round the home and look after their very own wants.
You’ll be able to simply do that by protecting the door closed to the room the place your cat and her newborns reside in. If this isn’t attainable, arrange a child gate to create a barrier between the kittens and another pets in your family. At all times make certain no pets can get to the infants if you are away from your house and unable to oversee.
4. Make Meals, Water, and a Litter Field Readily Accessible
Make life simple in your mama cat by placing her litter field and meals and water bowls subsequent to the nesting space the place she is caring for her infants. She is going to need to be close to her newborns as a lot as attainable, so she would possibly ignore her personal wants. If she will be able to rapidly seize a chunk to eat, drink water, and use the lavatory close to the place she’s caring for her infants, she shall be extra prone to keep on prime of her wants and be certain that she’s consuming sufficient to feed her infants with out shedding pounds or changing into sick herself.
5. Make Illness Prevention a Precedence
New child kittens are nonetheless growing their immune techniques, so it will be important that you just — or anybody else who goes close to them — don’t expose them to any germs. To keep away from the prospect of illness improvement, make certain your arms are totally washed earlier than going close to or dealing with the kittens.
For anybody who goes close to the kittens, their arms ought to at all times be washed and sanitized, even when they haven’t been doing something moreover sitting on the sofa watching tv.
6. Deal with the Kittens Usually
As soon as the kittens have opened their eyes and are transferring round their nesting space simply, which may be as quickly as a few days or so long as a few weeks, you can begin dealing with them. This manner, they become socialized and accustomed to being around other people. Dealing with the kittens will assist be certain that they don’t seem to be afraid of individuals when they’re prepared for brand spanking new houses or to be built-in into your personal family.
To deal with the kittens, gently decide them up one by one, and calmly pet and cuddle them. Converse softly to them so that they don’t develop into spooked through the interplay. While you’re completed dealing with a kitten, put them again the place they have been to allow them to resume their common actions. Be certain mama sees the whole lot that you just’re doing so she stays trustful of your intentions.
7. Know When to Name Your Veterinarian
If the whole lot goes nicely, you received’t must see a veterinarian till your cat’s kittens are about 2 weeks outdated. At that time, the vet will assist you to monitor the kittens’ weight and different development milestones to make sure good well being as they age. Nevertheless, if one thing goes improper, you must contact your vet instantly. Name should you discover any of the next indicators:
- One or more kittens are not eating.
- A number of kittens are usually not transferring round as a lot because the others.
- A number of kittens do not make any noises whereas awake.
- Mama is ignoring a number of kittens.
- Mama appears torpid or sick.
- Mama’s nipples look swollen, irritated, or bruised.
Conclusion
Watching a brand new mama cat take care of her newborn kittens is an thrilling expertise, but it surely additionally comes with an excessive amount of duty. Your cat ought to be capable to deal with a lot of the duties, however you have to be there as a backup simply in case one thing goes improper. The ideas outlined right here ought to assist you make sure that your cat’s newborns develop up comfortable, wholesome, and protected.
Featured Picture Credit score: Esin Deniz, Shutterstock