Cat gave birth now now incontinent....

[Meandmymunki]

Has anyone in rescue on here had a cat incontinent after giving birth? I picked up a heavily pregnant stray on wed night, she had kittens within 6 hours, 3 of them and all average size. Mummy cat is very timid and maybe 2 years old and has def had kittens before. Since then she has constantly leaked a trickle of urine and isn't pooing - just bits keep coming out. Vets did x Ray and saw nothing apart from a massive bladder and very backed up bowels, they gave enema (nothing happened) and expressed bladder, gave her metacam and said she has a very guarded prognosis if no improvement.
I am now hugely concerned as there has been no improvement at all, not a single litter tray visit it's like she has no messages that she needs to go, she is eating but not as much as I would expect. She isn't cleaning her own back end but is cleaning kittens and is very attentive to them.

[Crewella]

Sorry, no experience though I will ask the ladies at the rescue I foster for. I hope she's OK. xx

[Lilith]

Poor lass.

My first thought was that the muscles surrounding the vaginal area had been under stress and been temporarily stretched and strained ...odd though in a mature cat who has a small litter of averagely sized kittens and has given birth before.

Fooling about on google, looking up incontinence, I see that faecal incontinence can be a common problem in women after labour.

A cat rescue worker told me that queens are prone to diarrohea while feeding kittens (though I haven't seen this to be the case usually.)

Do hope this clears up by itself as her muscles tighten again; it's good that she's caring for her kittens normally but yes, I'd be disturbed that she isn't caring for herself.

Do hope she improves soon, bless her, and good luck with them all

[MarkB]

Poor girl - Sorry I don't have any experience Sally. I was thinking that I remember reading that calcium deficiency can cause muscle problems. I also remember reading that carrying kittens can deplete a cat of calcium.

I just googled calcium deficiency and incontinence and quite a few things come up. Maybe nothing, but I wonder if there is something in it. Being a stray, she probably struggled to eat properly and it is likely she has a calcium deficiency. Vitamin D is also linked as it is required to absorb calcium.

I wasn't even sure if it was worth posting, but you never know. I don't suppose it could do any harm to give her some calcium & vitamin d tablets.

For it to happen so suddenly, sounds more like nerve damage though?

Fingers crossed for her. Hoping for better news today.

[Meandmymunki]

Thanks guys, she is back in the vets
Was initially given options of time or pts, then another vet suggested a further x ray of an area that can have a break that can cause them to lose all sensation (as you say mark it would be a break that has snapped the nerves too), apparently the amount of feaces backed up on Fridays x ray suggests there was maybe a problem before she arrived, and now the birth has made it worse and affected her urinary continence too.
They have suggested if this injury shows up that the major surgery doesn't have a very high success rate and it still may be kinder to pts, but if no injury shows then they will try and manually unpack her and drain her bladder and give her a good bath to try and buy us a bit more time for natural healing to take place.
She's a real worry and her kittens are only 5 days

[MarkB]

Hope there is some better news today Sally x

[greenkitty]

Oh goodness what a worry, hoping you have some positive news today x

[Meandmymunki]

Sadly not
They did x rays and found nothing, her bladder was constantly really full and it was just the excess leaking out, she had no sensation at all for either urine or faeceas and all 3 vets agreed kindest thing to do would be not wake her up from the anaesthetic. They did say if I wanted to keep her going for the kittens sake they could try a daily enema and teach me how to express her bladders ever few hours but that she would still have to be pts when either her bowel twisted or her legs became too urine burnt. I couldn't wake her up, give her the kittens back, let her suffer and then pts it would be cruel. So they put her to sleep. I feel awful a young and otherwise healthy cat was pts and we couldn't save her, and she was such a sweet little thing. And now her babies have no mummy

Rip little Felix I loved you for the short time I knew you x

[Walesgang]

Oh no. What tragic news

Poor little babies, and poor mum

RIP Felix. Xxx

[greenkitty]

So sorry Sally, don't beat yourself up, as you rightly said it would have been cruel to keep her going and she probably would have been miserable knowing how clean cats are. Sad for her babies and for you but kindest for her.

RIP Felix x

[Crewella]

I'm so sorry. I completely agree, and would have made the same decisions. (((hugs)))

Rest in peace little Felix. xx

[Meandmymunki]

Thank you, it helps knowing others think it was the right thing to do too

[MarkB]

Sorry Sally . You had no choice and did what was best for Felix.

[Lilith]

Aww poor girl, poor girl...

No, you couldn't have let her linger on as a living feeding bottle for those kittens, sounds like she'd no feeling at all round her back end but who knows what discomfort she might have been in otherwise?

Wonder if she had some kind of physical trauma, such as a glancing blow from a car, that caused the trouble?

And to have to watch her and think, right as soon as the kittens are weaned, she'll be put to sleep? No.

At least those kittens will have got their antibodies from their mother - hope all goes well with them.

Poor little lass, thank goodness she found you.

[booktigger]

I'm sorry to hear this, but I think you did the right thing, you had to think of her quality of life and keeping her going for the kittens wouldn't have been fair. Sadly sometimes in rescue we can't save them, all we can do is show them love and let them go peacefully. RIP little one

[meriad]

Sally, I haven't been online much recently and only just seen this. I totally agree with everyone that you 100% did the right thing. Poor girl, one wonders what she must have gone through in her short life

Thank goodness though you did get to her in time and she's no longer suffering.


How are her kittens doing?

[Meandmymunki]

Thanks guys....

Yeah kittens are doing ok and have one of those snuggle puppy things with a heart beat to help them adjust.

[Meandmymunki]

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[Meandmymunki]

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[bobbys girl]

Just caught up with this post. So sorry to here the news. It is sad, but you did the best for her. RIP sweet girl.

Wishing you all the best with her babies. Please keep in touch.

Just seen the photos. SO sweet! I've raised 2 of mine from tiny kittens - very challenging, but SO rewarding.

[greenkitty]

Keeping everything crossed for those dear little guys x

[Lilith]

Yes, all the very best to those kitties!

I've only ever had to be a kitten foster mother for less than 24 hours after the mother cat was recovering from a caesarean, and it's a full-time job isn't it? As well as the feeding, the gentle swabbing with damp cotton wool at the other end, simulating the mother's tongue stimulating the little backsides...absolutely fascinating though, you feel such tenderness, but I admit I was scared of doing the wrong thing and very relieved when Annie, their mother, got her head up and said, oy, those are mine, hand them over! They all did well, much to my relief.

(I was very lucky to have my Annie - it must be awful to have lost Felix, again so very sorry.)

They're lovely little things - do hope they thrive and get good homes

[bobbys girl]

Just a mad, passing thought - are any of your other cats young females?

When my OH came home with Bobby (1-2 weeks old) Lily, a young female that was 'passing through', adopted him.

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Bob and Lil

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And yes, she is feeding him! She had been spayed weeks before and I think the hormones were still sloshing around (she had been (just) pregnant)

I know it's a big ask, but our dog Rosie helped us raise Willow. It was Rosie who taught us to toilet the kitten!

[Meandmymunki]

I am unable to mix them with my own cats (who would hate them anyway) as I have a calici carrier. The only other mummy's we have in the rescue have older kittens and large litters so wouldn't be able to adopt these. It's ok tho, I hand rear several litters a year and they have a heat pad and a soft toy with a heart beat and seem quite happy. Their eyes have started to open today.

[Lilith]

Several litters a year? Good on yer - but that's quite frightening - the mortality rate in rescued queens must be high - not surprising though when you think of the conditions some of them endure before finding a safe place - and sadly some of them don't.

Lol Bobby's girl you made me laugh re toileting. I don't know where I learned about it, I think I might have read about it, but my first Siamese's firstborn, Joey, learned the hard way.

He was his mother's darling, a lovely big lanky chocolate point (she was known to grab his scruff, with successive labours, and pull him into the kittening box with her - ok, I've got my kitten now) and he was very sweet natured. Faced with a tumble of tiny kittens (under supervision) about his feet, big brother Joey once helped out by washing a small backside...with the inevitable result.

I've never seen a cat look so horrified. Poor chap!

ps meant to say that pic of Lily and her 'cub' is brilliant

[Meandmymunki]

Most of the hand rears are litters found in sheds after mummy's have been stray and then involved in road accidents or just abandoned or found feral kittens with missing mummy's
We also get some that thru stress are just completely rejected by mummy's. 18 years in rescue and every kitten season something still surprises you- this year it's already been losing Felix to something so unexpected......

[Cussypat1974]

Jeepers what a story... I think you did the right thing too. The kittens got the colostrum which is the bit we humans cannot provide, so they stand a good chance. Very best of luck and hats off to you. Xxxxx