Expert: Jessica - 9/6/2010

Question
Hi Jessica,

My cat was formerly an outdoor cat.  When she became pregnant for the second time, my husband and I decided to bring her inside for the most part.  This past Saturday she delivered 3 kittens.  All went as it should have.  What I am concerned about is the size of the babies (rather small) in relation to what her size was the day before the birth.

For a good part of yesterday morning, she called for me and acted as if she might be having another kitten.  She was behaving as she had the previous day - cleaning, restless, squatting, and yet no other kittens.  There is a place on her side that feels like it could be another kitten.  Eventually she settled down and spent the day with her new litter.  However, today, she is spotting a little blood.  Should I be concerned enough to take her to the vet?

Thank you,

Michelle

Answer
Hi Michelle,

In short, yes.  It's possible that she has delivered all of her kittens, and things are just fine.  It's normal for cats to have bleeding for several days after delivery.  When they lie down, the blood often pools inside the vagina, and when they stand, the gathered blood can drain out.  At these times, it can seem like they are bleeding quite a bit.  So the bleeding part may be normal.  Contractions can continue for 24-48 hours after delivery, and these can make the muscles feel quite hard, resembling a fetus.  I've mistaken them for unborn kittens myself.  This is not to rule out excessive bleeding or unborn kittens, however.

The part that worries me most is that she was still squatting as though she felt she had more kittens to deliver, and my experience that complicated deliveries seem more common than we think.  You may potentially get to the vet and have the vet tell you that she's in fine shape, there are no babies palpable in the uterus, and you can go home with peace of mind.  In my opinion, it would be worth the appromixately $50.  I would estimate that I had jumped the gun in only about 10% of the cases where I had a hunch something may have gone wrong.  In the rest, something had, indeed, gone wrong, and I was glad I sought veterinary attention.  In one of the cases, I acted quickly enough to save the mother's life, but too late to save the babies'.

So my final thoughts are that if you are wondering if you should be concerned, that is enough in itself to be worried!  To be on the safe side, I would get her to the vet.

Best of luck!

Jessica