# Advice please?



## Corrie (Sep 25, 2009)

My queen should be coming up 7 weeks pregnant (she was mated between the 6-9 of August). This is the third time she has been mated and hasn't caught the previous two times but this time we have used a different stud cat and they were definatley seen 'doing the deed' which previous times she wasn't. She's strange in the fact that she only comes into season every 6 weeks normally but she still hasn't come into season. Her appetite has increased, but not much and she has but on weight, but not much. Because she is long haired, its hard to judge whether her nipples have changed as we don't really have a before and after. She still hasn't come into season though. Has anyone had a queen who didn't gain much weight during pregnancy? She's quite long bodied so could it be like boxer dogs, that she is carring the kittens up rather than out? She's always been very affectionate to I can't judge a change in that either. Any help would be appreciated


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## Corrie (Sep 25, 2009)

Oh and I forgot to say, although I understand about the issue of there being too many cats etc, please don't leave nasty comments about me breeding my queen. Any kittens she may have have homes already, the stud cat is gccf registered and the vet has been involved in every stage of this. Just thought I'd add this on.


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Welcome to CatForum! ...and yes, breeding cats can be a *hot* topic, but mostly we are respectful here at CatForum. IMO, people who breed responsibly; _vet-checked and healthy, pedigreed cats with an eye towards reaching the breed standard_ are awesome! Mostly, everyone else keeps me busy fostering kittens/cats for adoption. As for her not coming into season after being mated and her apparently long heat cycles, I guess the only thing we can really say about it; is there are no hard/fast rules and this may be normal for *her* even if it isn't usual for most other cats. 

I've only had one cat kitten in my home as an adult and that was about 5yrs ago. I took her (Shadow) in only 10dys before she kittened. *_she is sleeping on the desk as I type this_* Shadow is a small-ish cat and she had 5 kittens. She was *very* round when I took her in, easily evident visually and when I held her, in spite of her long hair. I have no practical experience in judging a pregnant cat's body-changes during pregnancy, so hopefully someone else with more knowledge than me will come along. 

Because I have no knowledge, I'd only be able to suggest a vet-visit for a pregnancy check. I think they can ultrasound or x-ray and count kittens after a certain amount of time. Because of her previous difficulty, you may want to go the vet-route. Has the vet offered any reason for why she was so difficult to catch pregnant? ...there could be something about her (_either an external problem or a genetic one_) that is preventing her from catching pregnant or carrying to term.
What breed will the kittens be?
Best of luck! 
heidi =^..^=


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## Sol (Feb 20, 2003)

Last time my queen had a litter she only got two kittens (one was stillborn, probably died during delivery) and she didn't gain much weight at all. As a matter of fact I wasn't sure she was pregnant until she was 7-8 weeks pregnant and this is a white, short haired female so usually the pink nipples shine bright and tell me if she's pregnant. Didn't happen this time.

So either you wait and see or you go to the vet for an ultrasound or x-rays.


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## Corrie (Sep 25, 2009)

Thanks for your advice. Sorry, I didn't want to seem sharp but thought it was best to get my points in early! The vet can find no physical reason as to why she couldn't catch, the other stud cat was never seen mating her so I think she just didn't take to him (fussy mare). This stud was seen mating her at least three times so in theory.... Slightly apprehensive about having an ultra-sound, I know the risks are low but they still exist and also I'm worried that the stress of going to the vets might not be good for her (obviously if her health was at risk that's different) . She's quite a petite cat so I wonder if maybe she is just having a couple kits and this would explain the lack of weight gain. The stud owner said that he tended to throw bigger litters though, 4 normally so I just don't know. It's her first litter so they tend to have smaller ones, maybe she just has the one? There are women who hardly gain weight so I imagine it mus be the same for cats, there is no norm?


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Well, there *is* a normal, but in almost everything...there is a wide range of normal and a few who are on the outer fringes in either direction who don't follow along with the majority, but are still normal _for themselves_.
Take me, for instance. I'm usually quite normal. Sometimes, my Husband calls me by my full name: Abby Normal. ..._he does that for a joke when he thinks I'm being unreasonable_. Now I ask you...HOW am I supposed to win a serious argument or get him to understand my point-of-view when he makes me laugh-out-loud like that? I'm telling you ... that man doesn't fight fair!
Anyhow, I remember an equine reproduction class I was in and how the veterinarian teaching it was discussing heat cycles and pregnancies and he said normal is different for every mare. So, I guess the same theory could apply to kitties, too.
Now, I also remember another breeding tid-bit, and I think it was Tesio who voiced this opinion; whereby he would bring a mare to a stud he had selected for breeding, but if the mare took an intense dislike to the stud, no matter that she was definitely in estrus, he would select a different stud. One she approved of. Tesio believed in doing his research, but also in letting Nature make her voice known, too, by allowing the mare to refuse a particular stud...maybe that is what happened with the other stud-cat?


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## Sol (Feb 20, 2003)

Corrie said:


> Thanks for your advice. Sorry, I didn't want to seem sharp but thought it was best to get my points in early! The vet can find no physical reason as to why she couldn't catch, the other stud cat was never seen mating her so I think she just didn't take to him (fussy mare). This stud was seen mating her at least three times so in theory.... Slightly apprehensive about having an ultra-sound, I know the risks are low but they still exist and also I'm worried that the stress of going to the vets might not be good for her (obviously if her health was at risk that's different) . She's quite a petite cat so I wonder if maybe she is just having a couple kits and this would explain the lack of weight gain. The stud owner said that he tended to throw bigger litters though, 4 normally so I just don't know. It's her first litter so they tend to have smaller ones, maybe she just has the one? There are women who hardly gain weight so I imagine it mus be the same for cats, there is no norm?


It doesn't really matter how large litters the male has thrown earlier. It's the female that decide litter size (the number of eggs she drops decide). It's only when the male have poor sperm quality previous litters may indiciate how large litter "he" throws. 

Some females only produce small litters. I know of one who's never had more than two kittens in a litter and she's had... 3 or 4 litters.

And as mentioned, what's normal varies from cat to cat. Some gain very little, some gain a lot. It can vary from litter to litter as well. When you think you know your queens "habits"... don't be surprised if she comes up with something new. :wink:


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## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

Sol said:


> This is a breeding forum. We discuss matters that concern breeding: delivery complications, weak kittens, suitable tests done before breeding, how to prepare a delivery, how you help mother and kittens, genetics, what to think about before starting breeding etc.
> 
> The overpopulation problem or other objections towards breeding are welcome in other suitable sections such as Cat Chat.
> 
> ...


I think all of us should be reminded of Sol's Sticky now and then.


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