How many kittens does a cat bear: gestation period and number of kittens in a litter

Every person who lives next to cats knows how wise they are and how mysterious their world is. Despite its independence, the cat knows exactly at what moments the participation of a person in its affairs is absolutely necessary.

One of these periods is childbirth, which she perceives as something dangerous for her life. Therefore, at home, many cats literally ask and demand that the owner be next to her, because the first kitten is about to be born, and perhaps the next ones after him.

How many kittens a cat bears, for how long and what helps her bear healthy offspring – these are far from idle questions that the owners of these cute animals want to know the answers to.

cat pregnancy period

Scientific studies have shown that pregnancy in a cat consists of five stages. Depending on what breed the cat is, it will bear offspring from 58 to 72 days. So, for short-haired individuals, this period is 58-68 days, and cats with long hair should bear babies from 62 to 72 days.

A relationship has also been established between how long the pregnancy lasts and the number of future offspring. If a cat has one or two kittens to be born, then it will take longer to bear them than five or more kittens.

Signs of pregnancy in a cat

The onset of pregnancy in cats is not difficult to determine if you know the main signs of its manifestation:

• the cat’s behavior changes, it becomes less active (immediately in the first week);
• the next two weeks, the animal may vomit (especially in the morning). This condition passes after a few days, but sleep and eat a cat now there will be more than usual;
• in the third week, her nipples turn pink and swell. A veterinarian with experience can determine the pregnancy of a cat for a period of 20 days, although the size of the kitten at this stage does not exceed the size of a peanut.

Stages of pregnancy

1. At 30-31 days, the cat’s tummy becomes noticeable, since the length of the future kitten already reaches 3-3,5 cm.
2. At 5-6 weeks of gestation, when the embryos have descended into the abdominal cavity, you can try to guess how much the cat bears kittens.
3. Approximately from the 42nd to the 50th day, the active development of the embryos takes place, that is, already in the seven-week period, you can (very carefully) feel the head of the kitten with your hand and feel the movement of the baby. At the same time the cat’s appetite is noticeably deteriorating, she becomes restless and begins to choose a quiet place where kittens will soon be born. With a light stroke, you can determine how many babies will appear, especially if there are more than two kittens.
4. After the 50th day, the kittens show tangible activity in the kitty’s tummy. She herself is often restless and may have urinary incontinence. At that time owners need to be patient and attentive to everything that happens to their pet. After all, better than she herself, no one knows how much time remains before the birth. About a day before they start, she will actively look for a secluded place, and the owners of the cat must prepare everything necessary for the appearance of babies.

Preparing for childbirth

The first thing to do is to try to stay at home with the cat on the expected day of delivery. Next you need to prepare:

• handy box. Be sure to run a cat into it to familiarize yourself. At the box should be open top, and the size is chosen so that the cat can rest against it with its paws. The sides of the box should be such that the newborn kitten does not crawl out of it. Instead of a box, an old suitcase may well fit;
• disposable diapers. They cover the bottom and replace when they get dirty. At the end of childbirth, the box is covered with a clean diaper;
• paper towels. They are necessary to wipe each kitten;
• scissors. Cat usually gnaws the umbilical cord, but if she does not, the owner must perform the procedure. Scissors should be pre-treated with boiling water;
• calcium gluconate (several 2 ml and 5 ml syringes). The drug may be needed if the cat has puerperal fever;
• vaseline oil. Be sure to prepare for the case when a large kitten hardly moves through the birth canal. Oil must be injected into the vagina with a syringe without a needle;
• veterinarian phone number (for emergencies related to difficult births).

After the birth of the last kitten, the box is covered with clean diapers and half-covered from above to allow the cat to rest.

It should be noted that if the cat does not give birth on time, this will automatically increase the risk of the birth of a sick or non-viable kitten.

How many kittens are born to a cat?

If the cat was properly cared for during pregnancy, she is healthy and the birth ended successfully, then most often 3 kittens are born. From the statistics it follows:

1. If cats give birth for the first time, then they will have smaller offspring than in subsequent offspring. The first birth usually takes longer. Moreover, after the birth of the first kitten, 10-15 minutes pass and the next baby appears (however, this interval cannot be more than 2 hours). The duration of labor is on average 2-6 hours. In very rare cases, it reaches 1-1,5 days.
2. In cats giving birth again, the offspring will be significantly larger than in the first birth. A separate topic is late pregnancy and childbirth in cats older than 8 years. Veterinarians consider this condition to be dangerous for her because of the overbearing of kittens, which happens often at this age. The worst thing is that the cubs can be born inanimate.

Newborn kittens

A newborn kitten does not see or hear for about ten days, but he has a well-developed sense of smell and touch, which is necessary when searching for the nipple of a mother cat.

On average, babies weigh 57-115 grams, with an average length of 10-12 cm. Already on the fourth day kitten paws massages mother’s bellyto get enough milk. And by the end of the first week, his eyes open (by the age of three weeks he will see well) and his weight doubles. When a kitten turns one month old, its milk teeth grow, and in five-month-old fluffies, milk teeth are replaced by permanent ones.

At the age of one month, you can cook minced meat for kittens and feed them little by little. Only Be sure to monitor the freshness of food and water. for drinking. It must be available and in the required quantity.

The most interesting begins at the end of the first month, when the kitten already knows how to sit and move confidently. Plus, you can play with it a little. If there are several kittens in the litter, then all of them are together in their nest and do not go anywhere from there. So, it continues until they are 1,5 months old.

If the need arises, the cat, carefully holding the kitten by the scruff, can move it to another place. She will do the same to him when the time comes. teach him many vital rules and how to take care of yourself. Having reached the age of 6 months, the kitten ceases to depend on the mother.

Care and affection are very important for fluffy babies, as both of these factors influence the formation of their character. Experts recommend taking a kitten into the house when he is about 8 weeks old. By this time, he already has 26 milk teeth, and his weight is 700-800 grams. Mother cats part with their cubs calmly, but if they still look for a kitten, then after making sure that he is not around, they finally calm down.

Conclusion

After the cat has become pregnant, the owner needs to follow simple recommendations care for her during this period.

1. It is not necessary for a pregnant cat to be vaccinated and give her any medication.
2. From 2 to 7 weeks, it is necessary to increase her usual diet by 1,5-2 times.
3. Starting from the 7th week, on the contrary, the amount of food should be reduced by one meal, and feeding should be three or five times a day. Nutrients to include in food:

• proteins;
• vitamins;
• mineral elements.

How much and in what ratio a cat should receive healthy nutrition during pregnancy is better to find out at a veterinarian’s appointment. Indeed, at this time, the proper development and safe birth of kittens depends on her health.

Scientific studies confirm the fact that there is an inverse relationship between how long the pregnancy lasts and the number of kittens in the litter. The fewer babies, the longer they need to be carried and vice versa. The gestation period for different breeds is also slightly different and ranges from 58 to 72 days.