The information in this article was reviewed and approved by registered veterinary nurse, Beth Walker

Is your cat giving birth for the first time? If so, you may be feeling a little anxious about what to expect, and how you can make sure everything goes well. Fortunately, most cats will give birth smoothly without any problems arising. This is especially true of moggies or non-pedigrees. In this blog, we’ll explain how you can be the best midwife to your cat during pregnancy, kittening and after the birth. We’ll also answer some common questions about cat pregnancy, and walk you through the different stages of cat labour.

At What Age Can Cats Get Pregnant?

An adult female cat who hasn’t been neutered is known as a queen. Queens can get pregnant as young as four months old.

The breeding season for cats is usually from February to August every year. During this time, queens will have regular heat cycles every few weeks where they will try to attract a mate. Cats are what we call ‘induced ovulators’, which means that mating is what releases the egg, unlike dogs who need to wait for a specific time in their cycle to become pregnant. There are therefore far more opportunities for cats to become pregnant compared to dogs.

Cats don’t go through menopause like humans either, so they can keep getting pregnant regardless of their age. What’s more, queens are not picky when it comes to choosing a mate. They will mate with brothers just as readily as with non-related toms.

Cats can even become pregnant by a different male while already pregnant with another tom’s kittens! While heat cycles usually stop once a cat becomes pregnant, they can sometimes continue. If the cat mates again during the pregnancy, it’s possible for her to conceive further kittens. That means that kittens born in the same litter can have different fathers!

All things considered, this means there are a lot of opportunities for cats to get pregnant!

How to Tell if a Cat is Pregnant

There are a few telltale signs that a cat is pregnant that you can look out for, although they may not always be present. Some of the early signs of pregnancy in cats can include:

• Obvious weight gain
• Pinking up – where the nipples become swollen and red (this happens three or four weeks into a cat’s pregnancy)
• Vomiting – similar to morning sickness in humans
• Increased appetite
• Sleeping more
• Personality changes – such as being more affectionate towards you

Never press your cat’s stomach if you suspect she is pregnant. It can be very uncomfortable for your cat, and can even result in miscarriage.

The best way to tell if your cat is pregnant is to see a vet. Your vet can check by doing a safe tummy check or an ultrasound.

How Long is a Pregnancy for a Cat?

Pregnancy is usually around nine weeks for a cat, between 63 and 65 days.

Cat Pregnancy Calculator

You are unlikely to need a cat pregnancy calculator to work out your cat’s due date – it will simply be 63 to 65 days after mating. However, this Cat Pregnancy Calculator will give a full range of possible due dates if you’d like to check.

If you don’t know when your cat mated, there are other signs you can check for to see how far along she might be.

• If your cat’s nipples have just begun to swell and turn darker or redder in colour, then she is within the first 15-18 days of pregnancy.
• If your cat’s tummy has started to get bigger, she is likely within the first two to three weeks of pregnancy.
• Usually cats will stop their heat cycles while pregnant (although this is not always the case, see above). Cats are usually in heat every two to three weeks between February and October, so if you know your cat’s behaviour while she is in heat well, you’ll be able to count off how many heats she has missed. This will give you an estimate of when she mated, and how far along her pregnancy she is.
• If your cat appears to be scouting out a suitable place to give birth, she is probably in her last week of pregnancy.

Preparing For Your Cat to Give Birth

In the last couple of weeks before your cat’s due date, there are a few things you can do to get ready.

Keep Your Cat Indoors

It’s best to keep your cat inside towards the end of her pregnancy to make sure she’s in a safe place when she gives birth. She could go into labour sooner than expected, so it’s best to be on the safe side.

Inform Your Vet

It’s a good idea to let your vet know that your cat is expecting. They can recommend a suitable worming treatment for your pregnant cat, and you can make a note of the vet’s emergency or out-of-hours details in case your cat gets into any difficulties when she gives birth.

Prepare a Kittening Box

A kittening box is a clean, safe space where your cat can give birth. You should get it ready at least two weeks before your cat’s due date, to give her time to get familiar with it.

A large, open-topped cardboard box is perfect as a kittening box. It should be:

• Located in a quiet area away from the family and any other pets
• Kept warm (the room should be around 22°C)
• Big enough for your cat to stand, fully stretch out and turn around in comfortably
• High enough at the sides to stop kittens crawling out
• Lined with absorbent bedding material such as towels and blankets (these should be washed and replaced as needed)

Feed Your Cat a Pregnancy-appropriate Diet

During pregnancy, cats need to eat more than usual. In fact, in the final three or four weeks before their due date, queens will need around 25 per cent more food than normal!

It’s important to feed your pregnant cat a special mother and baby cat diet, such as this one from Royal Canin, in those last weeks to meet her increased energy needs.

Signs That Your Cat is in Labour

Now that you’re approaching your cat’s due date, you might be wondering how you’ll know when labour has started.

The most obvious signs that your cat is in labour include:

• Restlessness
• Being vocal
• Panting
• Excessive grooming, particularly around the vulva
• Passing a small amount of red/brown discharge from her vulva
• Hiding away
• ‘Nesting’ (pacing around her kittening box)

Just before your cat starts having her kittens, she will likely settle down in her kittening box, but sometimes cats will choose somewhere else. Though this might be frustrating if you’ve spent time making the perfect kittening box, it’s nothing to worry about. It’s important to let your cat choose a place she feels most comfortable.

This is the first stage of kittening. During this stage, your cat’s birth canal will relax and widen, and the kittens will get into the right position for birth. The first stage of cat labour can last as long as 36 hours, especially for cats giving birth for the first time.

How Long Does it Take for Cats to Give Birth?

After the initial stage of preparation outlined above, there are a further two stages involved in kittening. Once the second stage has begun, most cats will have finished giving birth to all the kittens within six hours, but it can take up to 12, sometimes longer.

The second and third stages of kittening are repeated for each kitten.

Stage two lasts five to 30 minutes for each kitten, and consists of the following each time:

• The foetal membrane (or water bag) appears briefly at the vulva and bursts
• The queen will usually clean up this liquid
• The queen starts actively straining. The first kitten is normally born within 30 minutes of straining starting
• The kitten comes out head first (usually, but tail-first birth is also normal), one or two strains after the head has appeared
• The mother tears off the membrane and licks the kitten to clear it’s nose and mouth so it can start breathing
• The mother also chews through the umbilical cord

Stage three involves the queen passing the placenta of the kitten just born. Usually the placenta will come around 15 minutes after each kitten, but occasionally two kittens are born followed by two placentas.

The next kitten should come ten minutes to an hour later, and stages two and three will repeat until all the kittens are born.

Normal Cat Behaviour After Giving Birth

As mentioned above, it’s completely normal for mother cats to tear off the thin membrane around their kittens and lick them right after giving birth. In fact, this behaviour is crucial as it allows the kitten to breathe. Mum will also bite off the umbilical cord.

It’s also normal for the mother to eat each kitten’s placenta soon after she passes it.

Between each kitten being born, your cat should seem comfortable. It’s normal for her to have a rest in between births and stop straining for a while. During this time, she’ll likely lick her newborn kittens, suckle them, and accept food and water herself.

It’s perfectly normal for your cat to have a vaginal discharge for a few weeks after giving birth. However, it should not smell.

How to Support Your Cat While She is Giving Birth

The best way to support your cat while she is giving birth is to watch quietly from a distance. Don’t disturb her or get too close as this might make her anxious, but keep observing her.

Try to count the number of placentas you see. There should be one for each kitten, and they should all pass within four to six hours. Call your vet if you think not all the placentas have been passed as it can be an infection risk. Remember that cats usually eat the placenta soon after it passes, so count them as they come out.

The vast majority of births go very smoothly for cats and they rarely require intervention. However, keep an eye out for the following problems:

• Straining for 20-30 minutes without producing a kitten
• Making noises that suggest she is in pain
• Bleeding from the vagina
• Excessive drinking, poor appetite or vomiting
• Unusual movements such as twitching, clumsiness or collapse
• Hot, swollen and painful teats (known as mastitis)
• Something else protruding from the vulva – this could be prolapse of the uterus, which is where straining causes the uterus to be pushed out

If you notice any of these problems, or you are concerned about anything else, call your vet. Additionally, if your cat has been in labour for more than 6-12 hours, we would recommend contacting your vet to check there are no problems.

What to Do in an Emergency

Occasionally, if your cat is having a difficult birth, you may need to intervene. Intervening can increase the risk of infection and the kitten being rejected by their mum, so only do so in the following emergency circumstances:

• You can see that a kitten is partly out, but they are not passed within a few seconds and the mother seems very tired. With clean hands, very gently pull the kitten downwards to get them out.
• The mother does not clean the kitten right after they are born. Use soft kitchen roll or tissue to clear the membranes from the kitten’s head, wiping its mouth and nose so it can breathe.
• The mother does not bite through the umbilical cord. With clean hands, use sterilised sewing thread to tie off the cord in two places around 3cm away from the kitten’s body. Gently tear between the two ties to break the cord.
• The mother is avoiding the kittens. Provide a clean, well-covered hot water bottle to keep the kittens warm. In case of rejection, you should have a substitute milk replacement and a feeding bottle or syringe ready for the kittens just in case.

Speak to a vet for advice afterwards if you have had to intervene in your cat’s labour.

Caring for Your Cat and Kittens After Birth

Once all the kittens are born, make sure your cat remains undisturbed with her kittens, in a calm, quiet place. This is really important, because if your cat doesn’t feel relaxed and comfortable, there’s a risk she might reject her kittens.

Your cat will probably be very hungry and tired after giving birth, and queens have more than double their usual energy requirements while suckling kittens. Continue to feed a special mother and baby diet all the way through to when the kittens are weaned.

Make sure your cat has access to plenty of water, but it should be safely out of reach of kittens to prevent them from drowning.

Try to change your cat’s bedding soon after she finishes giving birth. Gently, slowly and quietly remove any soiled blankets while she rests and nurses her kittens. Replace it with fresh, clean bedding, and make sure you disinfect the soiled bedding with a cat-safe detergent before using it again.

Regularly wash your cat’s bedding in the coming days and weeks to make sure it’s free from fluids, discharge and kitten faeces. This will prevent bacteria from developing.

How Many Kittens Can a Cat Have?

In one litter, a cat will have an average of four kittens. However, this can range widely from anywhere between one and 12 kittens. This partly depends on whether it’s your cat’s first pregnancy, and on their breed. Pedigree breeds such as Oriental, Siamese and Burmese cats often have larger litters. Your vet will be able to estimate how many kittens your cat is having.

On average, a cat can have three litters a year. This means that in a lifetime, a cat can have as many as 100 kittens!

Cats Protection estimates that in just five years, one female cat can be responsible for an astonishing 20,000 descendants! This is why it’s important to get cats neutered to keep populations under control – otherwise, we risk thousands of unwanted cats heading to animal shelters.

How Long After Having Kittens Can a Cat be Spayed?

A cat can get pregnant again as soon as two weeks after giving birth. It’s advisable to keep your cat indoors until you’ve had her spayed to prevent further pregnancies.

As soon as the kittens are weaned, the mother cat can be spayed. This is about five or six weeks after birth.

It’s also possible to safely neuter your cat while she is pregnant. This is something to discuss with your vet, for example after an unwanted mating or if there are health risks to your cat if the pregnancy were to continue.

Wrapping Up

Welcoming a new litter of fur babies into the world is very exciting, but it can be nerve-wracking too, especially if it’s your cat’s first time. Usually, all you’ll need to do is observe your cat quietly from a distance while she is giving birth. It’s rare that any intervention will be needed. By making sure that your cat has a suitable kittening box, is eating the right food, and feels safe and comfortable, she should have a smooth birth. Be on the watch for any signs that something is wrong, and contact a vet if you’re worried. But chances are, you’ll have an adorable family of kittens snuggled up together in no time.