Kittens....... yep, More of them!

Today was certainly an interesting day.  Our black cat, Kiki, began meowing and wanting attention.  Her poor tummy looked like it was about to explode, so we began wondering if the time had come....

Kiki - and her large tummy

Kiki's mother was a stray.  We had kept two kittens out of the litter, but before we could 'remove' the rest of the kittens, the mother took them away, and we were unable to find them.  Kiki turned up a couple of months later, and the children adopted her as well - she was always a bit 'skittish', and was frightened of us to begin with, often darting away under a chair or the couch before any of us could pat her or pick her up.

But the past few weeks, she's been a much more placid cat.  Her growing tummy may have had something to do with it!  And today, she would not let me leave her side.  I'd read on the Internet that when a cat goes into labour, it's best to give her plenty of space, and to stand well back, but Kiki mewed and meowed every time I moved away, and so, I sat with her, patting her, encouraging her, and comforting her as best I could.  It was obvious she was in a lot of pain, and she seemed very confused as to what was going on.  I must say I was worried about her - she's only around 7-8 months old herself, and still quite small.

After an hour or so, we could see the sack emerging, and then, with one last almighty push - we had one!  A gorgeous little black kitten.  It was quite amazing to actually see the birth of a kitten - in the past, they usually turn up at night, or are born in a back shed - so to actually see the birth, and even be there to offer some support to our cat was a bit special.

The first baby

Of course, it was not yet over, and while the second one was being born, she again gave a huge cry of pain.  At this, our male cat, Louis, sprang off the couch and raced to her side to see what was the matter.  The poor thing, of course, also had no idea what was going on, so after a minute or two, he wandered off, looking very out of sorts and confused.

Louis' Concern

And so the ordeal continued, but only for another hour or so, and then, it was all over!  Four gorgeous kittens, ranging from all black to one that is almost white, with two ginger ones in between. It is absolutely amazing that Kiki, as only a young cat herself, knew exactly what to do, and exactly how to care for her new babies.  Sadly, as we already have four cats, I don't think we'll be able to keep any of them, which of course is always the difficult bit, but we'll enjoy their 'cuteness' while we can!

Kiki and her babies

Linda.