A little cat showed up at my house about 3 weeks ago.
She was thin but I thought she probably had a home because she wasn't too thin.
I saw her off and on for the first week, but for 2 weeks now she hasn't left my house. During these 2 weeks, It has become obvious that she is pregnant.
How far along is a cat when they start showing and how might I determine when she'll have the kittens.
And any other info you might want to share about pregnant cats would be great too.

Thanks

Are you sure she is pregnant and doesn't have worms? Swelling belly can be a sign of both. Akae, I know this isn't your cat, are you positive that she doesn't belong to someone in your neighborhood? Is it possible someone dumped her there knowing you are an animal person? Are you willing to take her in a pay for a vet check? It is the only way to know for sure what is going on with her.

Worms in cat can be determined by a rice like piece, or many, on the cats fur at rectum. If these aren't there, it isn't worms.

Swelling belly can be a sign of malnutrition and dehydration, too.

Cats don't take much from you, but you must realize, if she is pregnant, and I think gestation is 3 months for cats (not sure) then you will have a few kittens around you will have to find homes for, and if you decide to keep her, then have her fixed.

If her belly is already swollen, be kind, give her a box and a few old blankets, its probably is almost time for her delivery.

Gestation time for a cat is 63 days they will deliver some can go as longe as 70 days

Someone probably dumped her out in the neighborhood and she roamed around for a while before picking my place.
The only reason I'm guessing this is because she comes close to me;
Unfortunately she's not trusting enough to allow me to pick her up.

Usually, stray cats around here dart off like a bullet when they see a person,
So I'm thinking she is probably familiar with people, just not very trusting of them.

I did worm her (put it in her food).
I sit by the food and she'll gradually come over to eat it,
But backs away when I move - I'm hoping that by doing this she'll realize that I'm not so bad after all.
She almost lets me touch her now.
Any tips on that?

She did find a cozy spot in my garage to sleep. I have a cat door on the garage door, so she's been making herself at home in there.
I put a bed with some receiving blankets in it, but she doesn't go near it.

I'll be taking her to the vet for sure,
But at the moment I'm in a bit of a dilemma.
I have a lot of animals myself, each one of them have already had their yearly.
Jan. was for the dogs / Feb. was for the cats / march was for the horses / April's extra money was family vacation...
I'm tapped out until the 1st of may.
No one around here has reasonable payment plans or special deals for strays - I checked.
And, all the rescue groups are full...

What a shame, you know, all these pore animals...

She doesn't look sickly so I was hoping that it could wait, but then I noticed her looking pregnant.

She'll stretch out and it looks like she's developing milk because they just look full whereas they didn't before.
Perhaps she is just putting on weight because I'm feeding her.
If she is pregnant, I am very concerned that she may have them before I can get her to the vet (or even get her to trust me enough to pick her up).

Sorry, I know I'm rambling... so I'll stop, but any advise is greatly appreciated.

Try coaxing her to come to you with some kitty treats or even catnip they can't resist catnip just get her close enough to toucher her and show her you wount hurt her

Mrscoltweaver, I wasn't implying worms are out around the anus, I was referring to the tapeworm eggs which resemble pieces of rice stuck to the fur around the anus.

Well this sweet little kitty is letting me hold her.
She is purring like a motor.

My husband and I discussed it, and we're going to put her vet bill on our credit card.

So I'll be calling the vet in the morning (Monday).

They will more than likely let me bring her in - always seems to work that way with my other animals...

So I'll know more about her soon...

Took her in today.
She had fleas, an upper respiratory infection, and is pregnant...

They tested her for diseases - all were negative.

She's on antibiotics and will get shots/spayed after she has her kittens (probably another 3 weeks)

Then hopefully I'll be able to find her a home and the kittens too.

Thanks Ruby
I'd love to keep her cause she's a real sweetie, but all the other cats I have were strays too... She looks very similar to my 2 black cats who wondered here about a year and a year and a half ago.
Maybe all black cats look alike LOL or someone who lives close to here is letting their cat get pregnant over and over...

That might very well be the problem Akae. Someone, whether she was dumped or is a product of repeated pregnancy, is not being a responsible pet owner. Really pisses me off that people do this to their animals.

Let us know how everything is going honey.

Thought I'd give an update.

My daughter named her Sparkle.
She just finished her antibiotics and is looking good.

She likes to lay stretched out on the tile floor.
I believe she appreciates being in the air conditioning.

I gave her a really nice box but she's not the least bit interested in it.
She does however like the newspaper recycling bin along with underneath the bathroom sink in the cabinet - she paws it open.
I've even found her in a suitcase I left open on my closet floor.

I've seen her belly tighten up a few times over the last few days.
Maybe her body getting ready for delivery?
She also does a lot of spine twitching and tail flicking.
Don't really know what that's all about, but she pretty much does it constantly now.
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She is beautiful!

What a beautiful little girl! Since you have paid for the vetting, keep in mind that they are usually always willing to answer any follow up questions via the telephone.

Here are a couple of websites that should help you. If any specific questions or concerns pop up, do an internet search. There are so many people and vets on the internet that share their knowledge. You have animals and you have a brain. You know how to filter the good info from the bad.

Taking Care of The Pregnant Cat (http://www.petcaretips.net/pregnant_cat.html)

Cat Pregnancy - Prepare yourself for ... kittens! (http://www.cat-pregnancy-report.com/)

If you are having problems or just want to report back (which we hope you will!), post again.

Thank you for giving this girl and her kittens a chance at having a healthy and comfortable life Akae.

Thanks!

I did call the vet about the twitching last week and they told me she must have an itch. LOL So I felt pretty foolish.:o :D

Thanks for the great links!!

I'll definitely post another update when she has her kittens:D

She had her kittens this morning:D
Everything went well.

Thanks for letting us know Akae. I am glad everything went smoothly. You are such a dear person for taking on such a responsibility!

Just wanted to share these little cuties with everyone...
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OMG, how cute are those little fluff balls? So, it looks like there were only 3. Do you have any leads on good homes for them?

That is them so far.
Almost 4 weeks old now.

The only thing I'm concerned about is finding them GOOD homes now,
With people who will be responsible and spay and neuter them...

As far as Sparkle goes... well, we fell in love with her,
We'll have her spayed (which we were going to do anyway),
But now we're going to keep her.
She's a real sweetheart and she picked us... so she's a keeper...

No leads... I'm worried about that...

Well, you are a true sweetheart.

Start putting up flyers in all the vet's offices in your area saying they are ready to go in a month. Usually people who go into the vets office are people who take responsibility for their animals.

Chat with the people who work in the vets offices and get friendly when you post those flyers. They will be very willing to help you out when they hear your story about the cat. Let them know you want to find people who will spay/neuter. Get the names of the people you speak with in the office. When people call you, ask which vet they use. The ones you have good feelings about, call that vets office and speak to the receptionist that you created a relationship with. Ask about the person.

You may also want to tell the callers that you would like to do a home check. People who are responsible and really want a kitten will be very open to it.

Ruby, thank you!
That's what I'm going to do.

Update:D

All three kittens found wonderful homes because of the flyers I gave to the vet offices.
All the homes actually came from the vet I use.

One lady contacted me because her cat had to be put down due to old age a month ago and her daughter was devastated.
She remembered seeing the flyer and called the vet to get my information.
Her daughter is just thrilled to have another kitty and the vet said they were excellent people and pet owner.

Another family actually contacted the vet to see if they had any cats for adoption, they didn't so they also passed on my information.
They took the remaining 2 kittens so that they could stay together and have each other for company.

I couldn't be more pleased with the wonderful families these kittens have now thanks to the flyers and Ruby for making the suggestion:D

Sparkle is getting spayed and has become apart of our family - we just adore her...

Happy ending for everyone!

Thanks again Ruby!!

Akaetrue. Congrats, well done. Look at how many lives you have touched with one act of kindness. Also to rubypit who suggested the vet offices.

I took my cat to the vet, you can't really tell though you have to let the cat decide! I have found that out the last 2 weeks my cat was due and the kittens are still not her! Wait pateintly they will come. Feed her well :D