Is Noodle Too Posh To Push???

Hey everyone,

Well, today is day 68.

On Friday afternoon day 64, Noodle had a show as her mucus plug came away. I thought, wow, she is off and birth would follow in the next few hours. As arranged, I called my vets to let them know, just in case I needed any help for her.

And I have spoken to the vet and my other breeder friends too, every day since. All this is normal

Last night (Monday) at around 6.30pm her waters broke... This must surely must be it now!
But as yet, despite small quantities of liquid tinged with small amount of blood, she is still showing absolutely no sign of having contractions.

I called the vet again at 9am. We decided to wait 2 more hours. Then at 10:45 I took her for an examination where met a new vet Finn. He had read all her health records and importantly info about her last pregnancy/birth history.

While purring away, Noodle was checked all over "she's big isn't she" Finn declares! He listens with his stethoscope but says that with her loud purring he could not possibly pick out Kitten heart beats.

He asked me about her behaviours and I explain that she is eating, drinking and even running on her   wheel at which he commended upon her dedication to fitness.

Next came taking her rectal temperature. I've been taking her temperature at home here with an IR 'gun' rather than doing it rectally. I do have the right thermometer to do it but cannot hold it in place as well as hold her still on my own. Anyway, all was declared fine there too.

We discussed her being on day 68/69 now which is a concern. But then considered the fact that my count from the first mating could be cause for a miscounted due date since cats can hold sperm alive inside for several days before conception occurs. Even so, the fact that she had her show on Friday and her waters went yesterday means that kittens are ready.

A shot of Oxytocin he explained cannot be given without there being contractions so there was nothing at all he could do to induce or bring on the contractions. But he did offer an ultrasound to at least see Kitten heart beats and gauge their health to help me make a decision. So Noodle was taken through for this which took about 5 minutes.

She was very vocal during but I learned that the three kittens were all of a good size, that he saw two good heartbeats but that the third Kitten was laying in a position where he could not get a good scan.

Finally we discussed the big questions.. what to do now?  And do we intervene?

I'm very reluctant to do this. She had an emergency c-section last year. At that time the decision was easy since she was very distressed, while her labour having started the night before with waters breaking also didn't progress. But her behaviours were that of a cat wanting to give birth. Hours of digging and a lot of fluid loss. This failure was put down to her having only one kitten since is thought that the second Kitten's pressure coming from behind is what helps birth to get going.

This is so very different to what I am seeing in her now. There is no distress and as there are multiple kittens this failure should not be a consideration.

If a c-section was required again, I would definitely ask for a spay at the same time. I just could not put her through a third pregnancy if this was the outcome now. Finn said even if I didn't spay,  second C-section scarring would likely render her unable to conceive anyway so a spay would be their advice too.

So do I elect and end her breeding days or not? If I elect there is less risk to her and her babies, though there is some risk as with all anaesthetics. Whereas if I wait and an emergency occurs then the risks all around are much greater.

There is a lot to weigh up. Her health and wellbeing is vital;  she is my beloved pet.

I would love to give her every opportunity to have a healthy natural birth with healthy babies at the end of that to nurture. I would love her to retain the possibility to have future litters too. But not at cost of her or her babies now.

So, I came away having chosen to give her a little longer and I hope very, very much to provide joyous news soon.

Thanks to all my friends for their love and support over these anxious days helping me not to panic! Thank you to all those waiting eagerly for news. I promise to update the page as soon as I have more news.

It's The Final Countdown

Well, Noodle has just had her last weekend of peace for a while and as I write there are just 2-4 days left until her litter is due to arrive.

This video was taken on Saturday 1st September 2018 as she slept soundly which allows the best chance to see her kittens inside. See too how her breasts are filled with the milk her kittens will need to sustain them.

I have noticed as she gets ever wider that when compared to last week's video the kitten's kicks are less prominent. I think there's much less room now for them to move about.

Noodle seems restless, definitely, she is uncomfortable. When she can she is sleeping but meantime, when awake she is packing away calories eating loads and then spending time going back and forth checking out the quiet space I have made for her away from our peppy & provocative Prune.

Closed off from Prune, the room surfaces and floor have been anti-bac'd. There is a litter tray, food food and clean water and a roomy cardboard box lined with a towel and vet bedding over the top of her beloved electric heat mat placed at one end (she must have room to get off the mat to regulate her temperature). The whole box is sheltered & is dimmed by having a blanket over the top cocooning her safely within.

Because it is a Prune Free Zone I am keeping the door closed, but Noodle's natural instinct to keep revisiting it, means that I too have to go back and forth to allow her access in and out!

I have been continuing on with the homoeopathic remedies for cat pregnancy too. As I mentioned last week, of those that are listed as useful during feline pregnancy and labour, I chose to just the two that I felt would be most beneficial to Noodle deciding that, while the others have their benefits, if she was at a stage where those might be useful I would prefer to be visiting my vet for help.

Anyway, it was time today not only to give Noodle the last of her pre-labour doses of caullophyllum which she has been having this twice per week over the last fortnight but also to add in a drop of Arnica too. This she will have daily until the third day after giving birth and is to assist her in healing from the trauma and bruising caused by the birthing process.

For more information about the homoeopathic remedies I have used during this pregnancy & labour, please visit www.animalhomeopathy.co.uk

Naked Sphynx Cat Hampshire will be back with an update when our kittens have arrived so watch this space!

Seeing & feeling babies moving in her tummy

What an amazing privilege it is to be able to feel and see kittens moving about inside of this gorgeous cat as she sleeps. We are delighted that we are able to share with you this very intimate moment in a video taken over the bank holiday weekend.

Typical of sod's law it that just as I stopped filming, a table tennis ball sized bump appeared pushing upwards for a moment - this can only have been a little head!

As of today, Noodle has just 8 days of her pregnancy left, or thereabouts, depending on when her labour begins. Usually, feline pregnancy is 63-65 days (counted from the date of first mating) but it can be up to 70 days.

What amazes me further is that she is still spending a little time each day running like the clappers on her exercise wheel. She is eating significantly more each day and is sleeping a lot, all of which is to be expected given that her body is doing such a magnificent job of incubating her growing kittens during this final stage of their development before birth.

I have a quiet room prepared for her should she wish to be on her own (ie away from Prune) when labour begins and so allow her time in there each day, with the door shut, so she can get some peace. She lets me know if she wants to go in or out, all cues coming from her.

As to Noodle's relationship with Pru during this pregnancy. I still don't think Prune has cottoned on at all that Noodle is changed in any way - well,  maybe excepting that her size has slowed her down some which has made her a slightly easier target in a game of chase. They still will seek one another out, with both just as always, taking it in turns to instigate games.  Having said that, Prune will get vociferously rebuffed when her exuberance is mistimed and disturbs a snuggly sleep!