How Long are Cats Pregnant For?
This is the most frequently asked question by cat owners. After all, you want to know how long it’s going to be before you need to start worrying about the birth!
Have you any idea at all? Has your cat been pregnant before and previously given birth to kittens?
One thing is for sure, knowing the length of a cat’s pregnancy won’t help at all unless you know the date when she mated with her chosen suitor.
As a rule, your cat keeps that information a secret!
Just when you think that your life holds no surprises, your cat comes home with more than she went out with……
So you thought that all that loving behavior and cute rolling around she’s been doing lately was just for your benefit? She’s been coming into season and was practising her seduction technique for every Tom, Dick or fur-covered Harry that will pass her way.
And now, quite suddenly, you have this niggling feeling that you are going to be a grandparent to a litter of kittens and have no idea just how soon they might be arriving.
So, just how long will it be before you can gaze on your tiny new kittens?
Feline pregnancy is generally 63-65 days in length – about nine weeks – but it is not unusual for kittens to be born after only 58 days gestation or as late as 70 days gestation.
But as chief midwife-in-waiting, unless you have a good idea when your promiscous puss-cat was consorting with the local toms, you will only be able to make a rough guess at the expected delivery date.
It’s more likely that you won’t have any idea that your lovely, pregnant cat is ‘with kittens’ until she is 5 or 6 weeks into her pregnancy and starts to show certain signs.
By the time you feel that you really need to know how long feline pregnancy lasts, your cat will be more than halfway through.
If you are very vigilant, you may have noticed your cat’s nipples looking significantly pinker than usual. This occurs around 3 weeks into the pregnancy as her milk glands begin to change in readiness for full-scale milk production when her kittens arrive.
Around the same time, your cat may go off her food. Could it be puss-cat morning sickness perhaps?
However, just about every cat gets picky about their lovingly prepared food from time to time, so pregnancy is likely to be the last things that enters your mind as you dispose of yet another uneaten meal.
Unless you have experienced a previous pregnancy with your cat, it is highly unlikely that you will attach any significance to these subtle changes.
It is only at the five or six week stage of your cat’s pregnancy that you will begin to be certain that your beautiful pet is carrying kittens and at this point, you will only have 21-28 days to go before her kittens are born.
Of course, as a loving and responsible cat owner, you will feel that it is your duty to make sure that you are fully prepared to help your cat give birth safely and calmly. It is up to you to arm yourself with the knowledge you will need to care for your newborn kittens and their mother to the best of your ability by finding a comprehensive ebook that will easily guide you through all the stages of pregnancy, labor, birth and nursing.
But best of all, just savor the anticipation of the joy that your new kittens will bring!
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