Expert: Jessica - 7/22/2010

Question
QUESTION: hi Jessica, my mother cat lately meows a lot to us and she also make "emm..enn.." sound. we thought she wants something but have no idea what she wants. i enlarged the play area for het and the kittens, with bedding and a conner for litter box. the picture should show you how it looks like. i thought she may wants a litter box around so that she can teach the kittens, but she still make the sounds after i place it near them. then i tried to feed her in side the play area, the kittens all seemed interested, but none of them tried the kitten food. i dont know if i missed something? is it becuz the kittens bite her and make her hurt when she nurse them? her nipples look a little red, but i dont think its swollen. do you have any ideas?

ANSWER: Hi Lavie,

That play area looks great!

Do you think the mother could be in heat again?  In case you aren't familiar, "heat", or estrus, is the time when a cat can become pregnant.  During this time, you will usually notice behaviors like meowing excessively, making chirping noises, being very affectionate, rolling on the floor, or lying on the floor with her rump raised.  Most times, mothers won't go into heat until their kittens are eating solid food and they're nursing much less.  But some mothers go into heat as soon as a couple days after they deliver their litter.

I'm not sure if the mother goes outdoors at all, but if so and you think she could be in heat, keep her inside for now.  She could become pregnant, and this will be dangerous for her and her nursing kittens, as well as her unborn litter.

If you don't think she's in heat, it's very possible that she may be feeling some anxiety.  Cats go through hormonal changes during pregnancy and nursing, just as humans do, and they can feel restless and anxious as their bodies adjust to these fluctuations.  I can't seem to find anything missing from the things you've provided, so I would just try to be patient with her and provide her with lots of love and attention.  See if she might enjoy being brushed or petted with a grooming mitt for a while.  She might even like some interactive playtime with a ribbon or a laser pointer.

Kittens can get a bit rough when they nurse, especially as they grow more teeth.  This usually happens as the kittens get a little older, though, and mom will start to kick the babies away if they are getting too rough to stand.  Keep an eye on the mammary area.  A little bit of redness can be expected, but if it looks purple at all or develops red lines or swelling, it's a sign of infection, and she should see a vet.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: yea` i think she is in heat. i wanted to mention that in the last question. i think she was in heat again 3 days after she delivered. we kept her inside all the time since she hasnt got fixed yet and she's still nursing. she used to jump off from out bacolny, and now she like to sit by the glass door and look outside. is there anything i could do? should i put some water and kitten can food in the play area for kittens just in case they are not fed enough? they are 24 days now.

Answer
There's not too much you can do for mom.  For the kittens, it would be okay to put some food in their area, but I wouldn't put any dry food in there.  Only canned food, or some kitten formula in a saucer would be okay.  I had a little one, 5 weeks old, choke on some dry food once.  He coughed it out after a few seconds, which was lucky, but it scared me enough that I can never recommend that anyone feed dry food to young ones anymore.