Cat in pain after litter given away

[saifhussain23]

Hi.

My Cat had 4 kittens exactly 40 days back.... This being her first litter.....

2 of the li'l ones were given away about 5 days back and the other two were given away last night. She of course wasnt very happy about it and made sure we had a very disturbed sleep... not that i blame her.....

Anyways i just noticed that she isnt very comfortable , when i had a closer look, i noticed that her breasts (can i call it cat breasts!!?) have hardened, quite hard actually.....and i think she's in pain.......I'm not sure what to make of it.... Her nipples are oozing milk slightly...... is this normal? how long will this last? Should i get the kittens back (I can try!)?

Is anyone out there aware of something similar that happens to cats when their litter is given away??? Please advice.....

thanks ....

[saifhussain23]

Firstly....Thank you all for your comments...

My Cat - Mia, is a lot better now,  The hardening has softened almost completely now, and she's not in pain anymore.

Well she isnt very cheerful either, guess she misses her li'l ones.

I took her to the vet today, and she's gonna be fixed next week.....
But to my total disbelief, the vet said that she's already pregnant again!!
Now considering that she had her litter not even 2 months ago and also that she did not display any 'estrus' behavior.....Also i saw no tom cat around..... i am confused!!!

Maybe the Vet is wrong here.....will have to wait and watch......

Cheers! :)

[Ghilly]

It's natural for this to happen after the kittens stop nursing.  You were lucky to find homes for all four!  Good for you!  Just keep an eye on the mom for a couple of days to make sure she isn't developing mastitis.  You will know it if she does.  She will act sickly, she won't just appear to be uncomfortable.  As soon as her body figures out that there are no more kittens relieving the pressure of the milk that has built up it will stop producing milk and she will dry up and return to normal.  At the point when that happens would be a great time to take her to the vet and have her spayed, since the heat after the kittens are weaned is almost guaranteed to produce another litter of kittens if there is a male around.  

Ghilly

[April2]

I had the same thing happen last year when I was fostering a mama cat and kittens. After the kittens found homes, the mama cat got so hard I thought she'd burst. I was worried about her but was assured that it would settle down given time. You can try warm compresses in the meantime. That might help. Poor thing. I know that's got to be uncomfortable! Hopefully, it won't last long.

[HelpinUtah]

My mother adopted a Maine Coon who had just nursed her litter and then another cat's litter.  Her teets were sore too.  They were also hardened.  My mother would softly massage her belly and especially her teets.  She did that for a few weeks and she really liked it.  Within a couple days they were starting to soften and she started feeling better.  I don't know if your cat will let you do that.  When you start, it has to be very gentle.  Good luck!!!

[Savas]

Try using Vaseline. Spread some on the affected area. She should stop producing milk in a few days to a week. Its also possible that she has some scabbing/healing going on as well which can be very uncomfortable.
Kittens can suck quite vigorously, causing some minor skin damage. I understand this can happen with humans as well. :Things like this make me glad I can't have babies. :-)

[saifhussain23]

I just read a lot about it on the internet...... its supposedly cause the milk hasnt stopped being produced.... and since its not being emptied, the hardening has occurred ..

Now keeping in mind that its not even been 24 hrs since her kittens were taken away..... what should i do....

Taking her to the vet is the best option, but she isnt allowing even me to touch her..... apparently she's in pain.... Now i'm afraid to carry her to the Vet, also cause its a long ride.... Please advice...