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Snoof
14-11-2006, 06:31 PM
Well, the people who gave us Sashimi blatantly lied to us as we found out last week :shock:

She most definitely has been out since she had a litter, and indeed she has not been spayed (they lied to us about the former but not about the latter) and she will be having a litter of little kits in 2-3 weeks (although we must obviously allow for the fact that we don't know when mating occurred).

:roll:

Who does that? Who gives a pregnant cat away and lies about the fact she could be/is pregnant? She was lying upside down in front of the bedroom door last week (for the first time), showing her pinked-up nipples, which is what prompted us to investigate further, and yep... :roll:

She's gaining weight by the mile, but since she's skinny in the ribs we originally thought maybe they hadn't fed her a lot (and, at the time, she didn't look pregnant as you can see from the photos I posted - but as I said she wasn't lying upside-down).

Now, every time one of us sees her she gets affectionate comments like "fatso" and "nipplegirl" slung at her head - not that she minds, although she is finding it more difficult to jump up and headbutt hands.

She's got a box in the loft (where nobody currently goes and where my son can't go because there's a ladder in the way) with a lot of newspaper in it and a blankie that smells of her, and as soon as I track down another box that's big enough she'll have one in the cupboard under the stairs as well - the quietest, most secluded places in the house, and she can make up her own mind as to which one she uses but we're keeping the bedroom doors firmly shut as our bed is waaaay too lovely for kittens (we're deeply, deeply mean :lol: but seriously, we both have bad backs and we need the orthopaedic mattress).

We have towels, some blunt scissors, and the box is ready (and the other will be sorted tomorrow). We want to be prepared now, in case she gives birth early or the vet's estimation's off.

What else do we need? What else have you guys (who've had litters before, not personally of course) found useful? Any tips?

The people who gave her to us spent the first weekend pestering us (via Hippie's mobile, which we'd used to ring them) for pictures and to take good care of her - then I emailed them pictures of her and we've not heard from them since. Methinks they knew she was pregnant and wanted to get the pictures before we found out and refused to send them any.

I suggested we could ring them and have a good shout (I'm generally very polite but it made my blood boil to think they just gave her away without knowing anything about us other than the town we live in and the fact that Hippie sometimes wears a suit to work - and without having the slightest idea what we might do with the kittens or with her once we found out she was pregnant), and Hippie said "What's the use? They might want her back, and that isn't going to happen."

Not a cat person indeed :-) He's a sweetheart, and for all his grumbling at her about how she's a dirty stop-out (:lol:) he's really sweet with her, and has resigned himself to the fact that I'm going to be incredibly picky about who gets these kittens (but a friend of mine from back in Scotland has asked me to keep him posted because he and his fiancee might want two or three, and I know he takes good care of his pets and I have a few more interested people I know well enough to trust, so if none of those fall through we might be somewhere useful already).

If anyone wants to play the guessing game, be my guesst (couldn't resist the pun, sorry - I haven't been getting much sleep lately and I start thinking things are funnier than they really are!). I suppose we'll find out soon enough :roll:

But one thing's for sure - what with how Sashimi looks, they'll all be cute as buttons.

dinahsmum
14-11-2006, 06:38 PM
Oh my there seems to be an epidemic of pregnant rescues just recently.
Thank goodness she's with you - who knows what might have happened to her if you hadn't taken her ... probably just thrown out into the cold.
Well, best of luck with the practicalities - have no experience but I believe it's usually pretty straightforward. It will be lovely for your little boy to see the kittens and watch them grow. :)
Hugs for you and Sashimi (and Hippie and Random if I'm allowed!)
http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_22_18.gif

Snoof
14-11-2006, 06:41 PM
Of course you're allowed, DM, and thanks for the well-wishes :-D

I'll make sure to convey the well-wishes to the expectant mum, too, while she rests her gigantic belly on my clean washing and expects to be fed on command :roll: :lol:

Edit: And I'll try and snap some pictures soon - you'll be astonished (and, if you're like us, slightly horrified :lol:) at how quickly she's getting bigger. If there's a sentient power in charge of the universe, I really do wonder what they're thinking when they throw stuff my way sometimes :roll: But we'll cope, and it will indeed be wonderful for Random - who adores her :-)

Mags
14-11-2006, 06:45 PM
Oh dear, how could anyone do such a thing :mad:

One thing is for sure Snoof, she is so lucky that she has ended up with you....a true cat lover ;)

No experience of kittens here but I'm sure you will get plenty of advice in the posts to follow.......
Hugs to you all!

Moli
14-11-2006, 06:48 PM
Poor girl, thank goodness you took her Snoof... How could they just give her away like that!

Kazz
14-11-2006, 08:54 PM
No offers of advice from me. However why people would lie is beyond me why not at least be honest with people as you say they had no idea how you would react.

Hope all goes well I guess at 5 kittens blind guess - never been right yet for any of Smudgley's

Karen

dandysmom
14-11-2006, 09:09 PM
Quite a surprise for you! How could those people have done that, boggles the mind! But Sashimi lucked out coming to you, couldn't be in better hands! I'll guess 4, but mght want to revise that when you post the picture...:-D

alexgirl73
14-11-2006, 09:59 PM
Poor baby, at least she's in loving hands now. I'll guess 6!

Booktigger
14-11-2006, 10:28 PM
Aww, how could anyone do that - I am sooo glad she has ended up with someone who will be able to do right by her now though, it could have been so much worse for the poor thing.

whiskey
14-11-2006, 10:33 PM
at least she`s with someone that will love and care for her and her to be kittens.congratulations sashimi:D :D

Sweet
15-11-2006, 09:32 AM
Awww bless her, she is in good hands x

Snoof
15-11-2006, 11:21 AM
Thanks everyone - still hoping for some advice though, if anyone has any :-) I'm sort of nervous about it.

dinahsmum
15-11-2006, 11:31 AM
Thanks everyone - still hoping for some advice though, if anyone has any :-) I'm sort of nervous about it.
Try a PM to Fran & Smudgley .... think they'd be the most experienced regular posters. (Sorry Fran & Smudgley if you could do without this, but a catsey member in need, etc etc.) :)
This must be a good subject for an article sometime, which could be stickey-ed on Health

smudgley
15-11-2006, 01:13 PM
sticky-ed ~ I kinda like that word. :)


Sounds to me like you have everything under control. I'm happy to share my experiences Snoof. What is it you need to know?

Fran
15-11-2006, 01:14 PM
What a shock for you! But lucky for her that she has found you :cool: I think DM's idea about a post regarding pregnancy and kittening sounds like an excellent idea! In the mean time, if you have any specific questions, please feel free to pm me. I'm sure Smudgley will be happy for you to pm her too and she certainly has a lot more experience than I do. Don't worry. We are all here to support you and the expectant mummy ;)

smudgley
15-11-2006, 01:26 PM
Yes PM away if you need to.

Snoof
15-11-2006, 03:15 PM
Thank you both very much - the little madam is on the sofa washing herself as we speak, but I'll PM you both probably this afternoon :-)