Conference misery::feline_v1

    Angela,
    
    A cat can get pregnant and/or breed at six months.  When breeders
    say that Maine Coons are slow to mature, they mean that they don't
    attain their full adult size until 2-3 years, not that they can't
    have kittens until then.  
    
    If your cat was bred on Christmas day, you would need to count 63
    days from there, and that would be *about* the time that you could
    expect her to go into labor.  Gestation is between 57-70 days, with
    most cats going 63 to 65 days.  You can usually notice pink nipples
    at 21 days after breeding.  Then, at 5 to 6 weeks, you will notice
    the swollen belly.  At 7 weeks, you should see some mammary
    development.  At 8 weeks, the cat may start looking for a nest to
    have her kittens in, this includes dark places in your house, the
    closet, drawers, etc.  At 9 weeks, early signs of labor.
    
    You should handle the kittens immediately and frequently from the
    time they are born.  The more handling (by you, not by the whole
    neighborhood) that they get when tiny babies, the more socialized
    they will be.  Get yourself a good book on birthing kittens to have
    handy for when the time comes.  You may need to help, and you will
    certainly want to know how to tell if something goes wrong.  It
    could mean the difference between life and death for your cat.
               
    If Sparky isn't neutered yet, this looks like a good time to do
    it.  If your female isn't very far along, you may want to have her
    spayed now.  This could be considered a good idea if she is either
    very young, or very old, or not in good health.
    
    I usually start teaching my kittens to eat when they are 3 weeks
    old, if the litter is large.  If the litter is small, I wait until
    they are about 4-5 weeks old.  Weaning is taken care of by the mom's.
    They decide when the best time to wean is.  They can eat and nurse
    with no ill effects.  My queens usually let them nurse until they
    are 12-14 weeks old.  
    
    First step is to find out if she is pregnant.  Since she is farther
    along than 21 days, your vet should be able to palpate her abdommen
    and tell you for sure.  Don't wait too long if you are having her
    palpated, the kittens soon get too big to feel as individuals, and
    can easily be mistaken for other body parts at that point.
    
    Jo

    I might have the same problem with Scruffy.  She is 4 years old tabby
    Mainecoon.  I was to have her checked, to see if she was spayed when
    she was younger, before our adoption.  The vet didn't.  We, my hubby
    and feel she has always been steril.  She has never had a litter and
    doesn't really go into heat, like I see the strays in my neighborhood,
    but her nips seem different and I didn't notice them as before.  I'll
    have to wait and see too!
    
    

    
    Well, i'm even more sure now than i already was... Beaner's stomach's
    started to get bigger now.. looks like i've got some real cuties on the
    way!!!  One thing's for sure, it's gonna be hard to give them up when
    it's time.... Is it usually about 10-12 weeks that you can start
    placing kittens in homes? 
    

    
    
    	Uh-oh  Maine Coon kittens.....I could be in trouble....
    	My Sasha is part Maine Coon and I told Cary I'd love to
    	get another.....Uh oh.......  =)
    

    Angela......did you say Maine Coon.......ohh nooo.......
    

    Angela, I do hope that you are going to have Sparky neutered SOON?
    
    Elaine

    12 weeks would be a good time to give them up to new homes.  By
    then, you will have been able to give them all three of their kitten
    shots.  By the way, have you any idea how much this will cost you,
    in terms of money, and in time and effort?  
    
    I would have the male neutered ASAP, and depending on the health
    of the queen, perhaps ask the doctor about your options.
    
    Jo

    
    
    Yes, i am well aware of the cost of getting the kittens vaccinated.
    I have a very good vet in Sudbury, who charges only about $4 for the
    office visits. She is really super. Her name's Gail McNeill. 
    I am planning on getting Sparky neutered towards the end of the
    month, so he'll be all set *before* she has the kittens, because I
    know she'll most likely go back into heat immediately afterward. Isn't
    that the way it normally works?
    And as soon as I can after the kittens come, I am planning on having
    JellyBean spayed. There is no problem in her having kittens, as she is
    almost a year and a half old and in very good health. The vet saw her
    a few months ago and said she looked great, and she's all up to date 
    on all of her shots. 
    Taco is the only one with nothing left to be done, as he was neutered
    at 6 months. he doesn't want to have anything to do with her ever
    since she started to show though. Probably 'cause he wishes HE could
    have been the dad !!!
    
    Anyway, I will be sure and keep everyone updated when the kittens come
    along, they will be gorgeous I'm sure. It'll be REALLY hard to give
    them away (i'm sure i'll end up keeping one... oh no, can you imagine 4
    cats!!!)
    
    

    Imagine it??  I dream about only having four! :^)
    
    (Just kidding, I wouldn't give up one of mine)
    
    Jo

    Ya, me too!  10 cats means alot of litterbox changing!!
    
    Angela,
      Let us know how it goes, and I"m glad to hear that you'll be
    neutering everyone too.  For future reference, you can spay a female
    at 6 months.  I do  have low cost spay applications and perhaps 
    you'd like some to give out with the kittens when the time comes.
      Nancy DC

    
    Hi Nancy...
    
    Yes, those low cost applications might be a very good idea
    to give with the kittens. I would much rather have them 
    fixed than have them provide unwanted kittens to people.
    With JellyBean I pretty much wanted her to have a litter
    before I had her fixed, as I am planning on keeping one of
    the kittens anyway.... My vet's gonna be real busy with my
    business soon!!
    
    

    Angela, I meant that you should use the neuter application
    for the Maine Coon that you purchased as a ' Pet Quality'
    cat from the breeder.  I'm sure that he didn't know that
    you were interested in breeding the kitten - I'm a little
    surprised that you allowed that to happen - I think he
    will be also.

    I'm not surprised that your other male has stayed away from Jellybean.
     In my experience a pregnant mum and one nursing kittens can be
    REAL MEAN to other cats.
        
    I'm sure you've already thought of seperate quarters once the kittens
    have been born, but your neutered tom avoiding her may be a sign
    that she's already defending her territory.
        
    Kate

    
    I think you misunderstood my note. I never INTENDED to end up with a
    pregnant cat!  And there wasn't a way to stop it, as I did stop them
    many a time, and even went so far as to lock them in separate rooms
    when I wasn't around.  Please understand that i didn't buy the Maine
    Coon to breed!   That was the FURTHEST thing from my mind.  I bought it
    for a pet, and that was all.  If I intended to breed I would have
    bought a cat that was 'Breeder Quality' and would have bred it with
    another purebred Maine Coon Cat.  That was NOT what I did. JellyBean is
    a cat I have had for over a year now, and she is just a plain old mixed
    breed grey tiger striped cat.  I did NOT buy Sparky with the intention
    of getting JellyBean pregnant!!!!!!!!!   AND i never expected JellyBean
    to go into heat in the dead of winter either!  I figured that it would
    be fine if I got her spayed in the beginning of this year, which had
    been my plan for some time.  That plan was shot down, however when
    somehow Sparky got to her without me even realizing it. I had caught
    them and separated them a couple of times when she was in heat, and
    didn't see them do it again, but did keep her locked up for the
    remainder of the time she was in heat.  So, it isn't like i just let
    him have her so that i would have kittens!!!!  I hope this helps you to
    better understand how this situation arose.  It was only AFTER I
    realized that jellybean was pregnant that I thought maybe it would do
    her some good!  And i plan on getting Sparky fixed toward the end of
    this month, before jellybean has her kittens, and right on schedule to
    the time that Bob told me to get him fixed!!!!!
      

    
    re .13
    
    Yes she is already defending *her* territory, which is the whole
    apartment at this point!  I plan on keeping her in the second bedroom
    once the kittens arrive, as that is just a spare room at this point. I
    have already set her up with a good sized box in there, which she
    sleeps in very often. She has been a little mean to the other two, but
    she blows hot and cold. One second she's purring and nuzzling with
    them, the next second she's pissed at them and hissing. I guess cats
    are kinda like humans in that respect, huh?
    
    

    In .11 you mentioned that you had planned for her to have a litter.
    I can see how some folks might have taken that to mean that you
    allowed Sparky to breed her since you wanted to have a litter.
    
    Jo

    I think a lot of what Angela wrote can have multiple meanings. 
    I also think that since she bought the kitten as a pet, and he is
    pet quality, Bob has some say over what happens to the litter as
    the kittens will not be furthing the Maine Coon breed.  A breeder
    can give the buyer an estimate of when a good time to neuter is,
    however, a lot of different circumstances will govern exactly when
    the right time is.  Maybe if Jellybean was spayed, Sparky could
    have held off, maybe not.  Point is, the buyer should recognize
    potential signs, and act on them.
    

    
    So what you are saying is that my kittens should belong to the
    breeder??  That doesn't seem fair AT ALL. I am sorry now that I ever
    even let anyone know she was pregnant. I should have just shut up about
    it and not said a word, because obviously this has blown way out of
    proportion. I am offended at the fact that people think that i bought a
    main coon cat to breed. As i stated before i was CAREFUL, so careful in
    fact that i loccked them in separate rooms. The breeder, Bob, told me
    to wait until the cat was 8 months old before neutering him. I hadn't
    the money in December to spay jellybean. It was NOT MY FAULT OR MY
    INTENTION and i am sick of hearing that it was. It is too late at this
    point to have the pregnancy aborted, nor would i think about doing that
    to poor jellybean, not at this point. One thing is for sure, i
    DEFINITELY would have NEVER EVER said anything if i knew it would come
    to this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111
    

    Angela, I know your intentions were good and that you tried to separate
    the cats.  No one thinks you bought a Maine Coon Cat specifically
    for breeding.  You have to understand that the primary goal in a
    responsible breeding program is to improve the breed.  That is the
    reason why the pets in the litter are sold with spay/neuter contracts,
    so they will not be bred.  Some breeders, but not all, have clauses
    in their contracts specifically stating that if the pet kitten was
    bred, by mistake or otherwise, the entire litter must be turned
    over to them, or the female aborted if she's not too far along in
    the pregnancy.  I don't know the type of contract you signed, but
    maybe now is a good time to read it thoroughly, so you know what
    your rights are.
    
    Also, if your breeder was unaware that you had an unspayed female
    at home when he sold you Sparky, he might have told you to neuter
    him sooner than eight months of age.
    
    That's all I was trying to point out.  I realize you knew what was
    happening, and tried your best to ensure that it didn't.
    

    I meant to say, if your breeder was AWARE that you had an unspayed
    female....etc.
    

    Let's all take a deep breath, step back and sleep on this a bit, OK?
    
    Deb
    co-moderator

    re: 14
    
    I didn't misunderstand anything.  I'm just very disappointed with
    this whole mess.

    
    I'm sory, that's all I can say.
    
    But, anyway, I don't believe she's pregnant after all. I think she must
    just be putting on some weight. She went back into heat this weekend.
    (And for all of you who are thinking, here we go again ---- they are
    locked in two different rooms for today and a friend is taking one of
    them until she is out of heat).
    

    Gee Nancy, maybe you could help Angela out and send her a couple
    of low-cost spay/neuter certificates.  Maybe her vet will let
    her work out a pay-by-the month deal or something.

    I have had cats go through symptoms of season while they are pregnant.
    The best way to find out for sure is to get her into the vet and
    have her palpated.  Don't wait too long, after about the end of
    the 4th week, the vet will no longer be able to feel the kittens.
    In that case, you will have to wait til she is past 55 days, and
    have her x-rayed.  
    
    Jo

    .21
    Well said Deb,!!
    Kate