Unplanned pregnancy

[marissposa]

my friend's kitty escaped before he could ger her neutered and of course she returned a few days later all preggers!  Since there are so many unwanted kitties in the world (and he already has a houseful!)  We were wondering if abortion is an option for cats?  Is it safe?  At what point in the pregnancy is the right time?  And what is the approximate cost?  Anybody know?

[rockN7]

My husband and I are avid cat lovers so when strays wander up to our doorstep we almost always take them in and find homes for them. One of them in particular we kept and two weeks later found out she was pregnant. We kept her all through the pregnancy and finally one day she went into labor. She picked a spot that's slightly hidden, like all mama cats do, and started giving birth. The first kitten was breached and got stuck. We knew that if we didn't do anything all the other babies would die along with this one. My husband gently reached in, grabbed it's little leg and gently pulled it out. As soon as he did Sally (the mama cat)  started bathing it and every five minutes she pushed out another one until she had all her five babies. Sally was a grey and black tabby but gave birth to a solid white cat, a calico, a solid black cat, a part siamese, and a solid red cat. A melting pot of kittens. So then we were in the dilemma of what to do with all these kittens, the mom, and the cat we originally had! Seven cats total! Well, this is what we did and this is what I recommend your friend does. We kept our 'miracle baby' the solid red one that was breached..the first born and named him Conan. Then we called around to animal rescue companies like Paws and ASPCA. Anything we could find. We left messages about the kittens and within days we got phone calls from people wanting to adopt the kittens. So people ended up with a companion. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. So there are people out there wanting pets so I would say give the babies a chance. :)

[marissposa]

RockN7:
That is a nice idea.   But the shelters in my area are really overcrowded and have been experiencing a lot of trouble (they have recently been under investigation due to overcrowding, inadaquate staff and unhealthy conditions).  I'm just not sure that putting more kitties in the system is the way to go, although I would love to coo over a bunch of newborns.
  I'm glad things worked out well for you and I really appreciate you adopting strays.  Thank you for your advice.   Ultimately it is not me decision to make,  I'm just gathering information for my friend.

[April2]

My sister got a kitten who was about 5 months old. She took it to the vet to get her spayed and the vet called and said that after he opened her up he saw she was pregnant and did she want him to continue? She was torn because she hated the thought of killing the kittens but the vet told her that her cat was just a kitten herself and the pregnancy and birth could be really hard on her so she told him to just go ahead with the surgery. So I guess vets will spay female cats who are pregnant. I think they charge a little more than a regular spay. I don't think I could do it, to tell you the truth. That's why it's so important to get them fixed as soon as possible before their first heat cycle, if possible.
I don't know if this is much help or not. I don't like the idea of abortion on anybody, human or animal. I agree with the above poster. I think she could still find good homes for the kittens. I took in a Mama cat last Summer who was pregnant with 3 kittens and I took out an ad when they were 8 weeks old and found good homes for each of them. I did charge just enough to cover the ad and I did interview the people wanting the kittens (to make sure there weren't any weirdos wanting the kittens for anything weird). But I tell you what, I only had 3 kittens but must have had 20 calls on them. So yeah, I think there are plenty of people who would want a kitten. Just something to think about.
Best wishes.

[marissposa]

Thanks.  Every bit of info in a situation like this is greatly appreciated and, yes the cat is just a kitten, not even a year old, so there is that to consider.  How dangerous is it for a very young cat to mother a litter?

[Ghilly]

It's less dangerous to spay her while she's pregnant than it is for a cat that young to have a litter.  

Ghilly

[marissposa]

That's what I suspected sadly.  Thank you so much for your honest advice.