How to understand that a cat gave birth to all kittens

Most breeders during delivery with a pet can’t understand if all the babies were born by a cat? This is necessary so that there are no complications of subsequently pathological delivery. If the birth did not end successfully, in this case, the birth of all kittens, then this can cause the death of the animal or a complete loss of reproductive function.

How long does a cat have to give birth?

The duration of labor in representatives of the feline family depends on many individual factors. These include:

• physiological characteristics of a particular breed;
• how many times lambing has already occurred;
• animal health status;
• cat age;
• hormone balance in the body;
• in what conditions the pet is kept, its nutrition.

Most often, the normal birth of a progeny in a cat lasts from 12 to 36 hours. With their duration, the period of preparation, labor and the birth of kittens is taken into account. Kittens come to the world in turn. The interval between their birth can be from 30 minutes to an hour or more. There are situations when it can be several days.

Cats have a physiological feature, due to which, after the birth of a kitten, contractions cease for a while, which allows the animal to regain strength and begin to give birth to the next babies with renewed vigor.

How to find out about the completion of labor?

Within normal limits, the end of labor in a cat is characterized by the following symptoms:

1. After about an hour has passed since the last kitten was born, the stomach became soft.
2. A cat can leave kittens.
3. When all the babies are born, the cat may be interested in food or water.
4. The breathing becomes even, and the heartbeat is calm.
5. A newly minted mother begins to deal with born offspring, actively caring for babies.

To feel the area of ​​the abdomen, the cat needs to be careful enough, without making efforts with both hands, with movements in the direction of the ribs. This must be done after at least half an hour from the moment of the birth of the last kitten.

Calmness of a cat does not always mean that the birth process has already ended. Most animals do not change their behavior during childbirth and after their termination. If there is any doubt about whether there are no unborn babies left - you need to seek the advice of a specialist.

Symptoms of unfinished labor

Determining the owner that there are still kittens in the cat’s stomach is extremely important for preventing the development of postpartum complications. A baby who remains in the womb can cause a cat to die. If he is inanimate, then a few days later decomposition will begin, and the cat will suffer severe intoxication. In another case, he can mummify and not cause significant harm to the mother’s life, but in this case her reproductive abilities will suffer. That is why it is so important to clarify whether there are unborn kittens left in the cat’s stomach.

If there is a suspicion that not all babies were born, you need to carefully monitor the animal. There are a number of characteristic signs that indicate incomplete delivery:

1. The cat continues to behave as during childbirth.
2. A newly made mother does not show the necessary care for kittens, does not feed them, does not engage in licking.
3. She is in no hurry to replenish her strength with water or food.
4. During palpation of the abdomen, seals are felt inside it, it is hard or tense. There is no feeling that there is nothing there.
5. After 24 hours after giving birth, the temperature of the cat does not fall below 39 degrees.
6. After 48 hours after delivery, blood is released from the birth canal, most often with an unpleasant odor.

All the above signs suggest that not all kittens were born. In such a situation, an important decision would be to immediately seek qualified help. In the clinic, an internal examination of the animal and abdominal palpation are carried out, followed by an ultrasound examination, which will confirm or refute the assumption.

What can be done?

Since incomplete delivery can lead to tragic consequences, action is required immediately. Under the assumption that the kitten remained in the cat’s womb, more than 24 hours have passed since the end of the birth, urgent measures must be taken.

The use of oxytocin positively affects the end of labor and helps cleanse the uterus from postpartum secretions. After the necessary result is obtained, a repeated diagnosis is carried out in order to clarify whether there are still any kittens in the cat in the uterus.

When providing obstetrics to a cat, the owner needs to be vigilant and attentive, to know the basic features of the physiological structure of cats. This will make it possible to understand whether the process is completed in full or in the stomach of a tailed pet there is still a kitten. If the end of labor is in doubt, you should immediately seek qualified help from a special institution. Timely measures taken will make it possible to preserve the reproductive function of the cat, and in some cases its life.

Video: how to find out that the cat began to give birth