So babies are 6 weeks and momma got fixed this week. She went into heat and I was advised that this would help her settle down ..... although the surgery went well, Amber was exhausted and her throat was quite scratchy afterwards. I rushed her to the ER because I was very worried about the labored quality of her breathing - turns out that when they are intubated, this can happen but since this was my first time, it was scary. Her voice disappeared for a few days but it's coming back.
The hardest part has been keeping them apart. With her stitches, it just seemed that 6 kittens might be too much for her so I put them in separate rooms to allow her some R&R time. It has not been easy. The kittens are still babies and so they need momma love and milk and momma is lactating but she had no release. Now she has mastitis and I'm still keeping them apart under the vet's advice because of the pain. She is on a dose of antibiotics too.
This has been one tough week. The love and responsibility that I feel for these animals is immense and trying to make decisions without previous experience has been a learning curve. I've stressed but my feline friends are resiliant and they are coping (better than me it appears..lol). All things considered, these cats are very tough but every day I feel a new emotion because it's my first time. I'm guessing that anyone having a new baby must feel this way... you love them and you marvel at them but the fear from their vulnerabilty can overwhelm you.
I think if I were to have a momma and babies again, I'd hope to hang on a little longer before having her fixed because ideally she needs to be dried up before the surgery or else the mastitis kicks in. Plus I didn't feel that the babies were 100% prepared (or maybe I wasn't prepared) to begin eating solid foods but this isn't an exact science and so you react on a case by case basis. As they say, you live and you learn. They are all doing just fine ...... my strongest instinct is to protect but I can't control everything.
Love makes the world go around but in times of fear, it can make it seem so much smaller....it's in that space, that the heart learns many lessons.
1 comment:
Just a word on keeping a momma and kittens apart when mama's been fixed! I've fostered litters before and the best thing I've found to do is to put the mom in a dog crate with a litter box, food and bedding in there after her surgery.
When the kittens want to sleep, then switch them with mom and give her some time outside the crate... They also need time together, but after surgery you MUST supervise, as in you being in the crate with ALL of them at once! (YEP! just crawl right on in!) This way, you can check on the mom's health and kittens, and the mom seems to appreciate a human with a warm washcloth (especially when they are tired after they've given birth, if you have a cat that was abandoned, lost or for whatever reason showed up on your doorstep while she was/is pregnant OR if one shows up with a litter of kittens, but don't expect her to like being separated from her kits if she doesn't know you!) This situation may take special handling and expertise depending on the cat, kittens, their temperment, health, etc.
I use TP (instead of newspaper - I dot trust the dyes AND colored dyes can be toxic (lead) for litter and with a think liner, it is easy to clean up with a pair of gloves &/or a liner change.
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