[kristel1212]

My cat is due by July 4 and still no luck. This is her first litter so I am a little worried because it doesn't seem like she is going into labor. She has started to stick her tail straight up in the air and rub her bottom on the floor. Does anyone know what the early waring signs/ PHYSICAL signs of labor are. Also are there some things I can help do to put her into labor. She has not even started to look for a place to have her babies she just lay's in the living room and is so huge that she has a hard time moving around. Her tummy is as hard as a rock and all the way up to the front of her legs. PLEASE HELP!

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[krissyg2991]

Well, one of the things you can do is check her temperature. (Rectally of course) Ideally, you would do this every day in the last week or so of her pregnancy so that you'd have an idea of what her temp is normally. It should be between 101 and 102 degrees and you can expect her to begin going into labor approximately 24 hours after her temp drops below 100.
About 24 to 48 hours before labor your kitty will start to act anxious and restless and will begin to start nesting. She may even begin nesting up to three days prior to going into labor. Next, she'll begin to lick her stomach and "girl parts" obsessively and will begin to have a discharge that precedes labor. Respirations increase and she may begin to pant. It is also common for momma to walk around yowling and pacing. When it comes time to expel the kitties, she'll alternate between laying on her side and squatting. The first kitten should come about an hour after she begins labor, and there should be an interval of about 10 min-1hr between them. They'll be in the amniotic sac and mom should be licking this off, to allow the kitty to breathe and stimulate it to do so. However, keep a wary eye for any kitties she does not do this on because you may have to intervene and wipe this membrane away from it's face at least, and rub it vigorously (yet gently) in a towel until it begins to breathe. Feel free to remove the rest of the membrane or you could just leave it for mom: your main concern is allowing the kitten to breathe. Mom should also chew the umbilical cord after she gives birth but if she does not tie the cord off with some dental floss about an inch from the kitten's body. Then snip the cord, leaving the dental floss in place to be sure the kitty doesn't bleed through it. You want mom to do as much of this type stuff as possible though, because she bonds with her babies through licking them. Then make sure the kitties make it to her teats to nurse almost as soon as she's done cleaning them up. Be aware that they are blind right now and may have a little trouble finding a nursing spot at first. Let them try for a bit and if they have too much trouble help them out a bit. The idea is to intervene as little as possible but you may have to. The nursing helps the contractions.

Keep her delivery area calm, quiet, and relatively dark.
Be sure to have towels and dental floss on hand.
You may want to keep her food and water in the room where she's nested.
Never ever ever ever give the new kitties cow's milk. If mom is having trouble or neglecting her nursing duties, buy a bottle and kitten milk replacer. Try to let the kitties get as much mother's milk as possible and use the replacer to be sure they're getting enough. Cow's milk will upset kitty tummies awfully!

Oh, and addressing your concern, don't be expecting your kitty to go into labor right on her due date. Every animal is different and, just like people, the due date is just an estimate and may be cut short or extended out a bit further. If she doesn't go into labor here in the next few days you may want to see your vet. I had a dog that got pregnant and never had puppies; we took her to a vet and it was a false pregnancy-she was producing milk, getting big, EVERYTHING! Also, working in a vet's office I've seen a few cases of false pregnancy in kitties also.

Good Luck!