View Full Version : Kitten won't come out all the way, what do I do? Birthing complication
brandiarbonne
May 24, 2008, 10:53 AM
My cat had 3 kittens last night starting at 4:00pm. She just started to give birth to a 4th kitten that is not alive and she hasn't pushed the baby all the way out for over an hour. How do I help her to get the baby out without killing my cat? I have no money and cannot go to a clinic for help.
bushg
May 24, 2008, 11:09 AM
CatHelp-Online :: Kitten Care 4: Feline Pregnancy and Delivery (http://www.cathelp-online.com/health/kitten4.php)
Go down to the section that says delivery it is in orange, you will probably have to tie off the umbliical cord is she doesn't chew it into. Make sure that you read the article thoroughly.
froggy7
May 24, 2008, 11:53 AM
Even if you do get this kitten out, after being stuck in the birth canal that long, you need to get the mom in for a vet visit. So be planning on seeing a vet after this, or you may wind up with long-term complications. I'll be blunt with you... without proper vet care, this cat could die. And we can not give you appropriate advice, since we can't see what's going on.
wildandblue
May 24, 2008, 12:20 PM
All good advice. You could just call a vet clinic for instructions. A large animal vet even. I once had a large animal vet talk me through delivering a calf in a blinding snowstorm when he couldn't have attended the birth even if he'd had a snowmobile. Indelibly etched in my memory now for all time. Recognize this if the dead fetus is not removed the mother's hormones that control production of milk will not kick in properly and the live babies could be in danger. There could also be still another live one lurking in there behind it's dead sibling that is corking up the process and causing a bottleneck. And the afterbirth has to come out too or she could get an infection even if it doesn't. If there is a leg of some sort hopefully a head just gently tug it out at the same time the mother is pushing. The longer you wait--and I know you can be afraid-- the uterine contractions get weaker and the opening will start to constrict.