HELP! MOTHER CATS KITTEN DIED, she still has one live one?

Question

She will not quit following us around and meowing. I am worried she is neglecting the other kitten. She just had them late last night, and upon us getting home, we found one already dead (it looked like its stomach was eaten open?). Did she do this? Is she meowing to look for the other kitten? Has anyone else had this experience and how long do most cats stay with their kittens at a time? PLEASE HELP!

THIS CAT WAS A STRAY THAT WE FOUND AND RESUCED AT WALMART! WE HAD NO IDEA SHE WAS PREGNANT! WE ARE NOT IRRESPONISBLE PET OWNERS TO THE RUDE COMMENTER!

Answer 1

You have had some very good answers regarding you cat, but I just had to respond to the vindictive and hateful comments from thoven8.

his (???) answer was hateful and completely unnecessary, and its a pity that there are people like this taking out their own inadequacies by being cruel to others.

My limited experience was with a pregnant cat, that we found dumped in a plastic garbage bag on the side of the road.
(we saw it moving and curiousity got the better of us, THANK GOODNESS!) and this cat started nursing her kittens even while the rest of them were being born.
Could something else, like a rat or something have got to the kitten and killed it? and not the mother?

Good luck with this, you are obviously distressed about this problem....

Answer 2

There is a small chance that she might be in labor again...when my cat had her litter, we thought she was done, and then the same thing that you're explaining happened to us. The mom had 3 kittens the night before, and then started crying a lot and wandering. She ended up having 2 more more than 24 hours later, and she did not look like she was still pregnant.
The mother should stay with the kittens for at least 6 weeks. Gently put her back with her kitten, and see if she will feed it. Also, feel the mom's belly, maybe you can feel 1 more in there. If she hasn't started caring for the kitten within the next 24 hours, you're going to have to start bottle feeding the kitten, or she will die. Good luck, and keep a very close eye on them.

Answer 3

Unfortunately, it seems it was the mama-cat who killed the kitten.

Two proofs:
1. Female cats are known of being very protective about their kittens. Should anything / anybody she doesn't trust show there, she would almost certainly attack and drive the being away, no matter the size.
2. I've read that wild cats - at least those kept in zoos - do that kind of a thing quite often. The staff tries to observe them, and if they see the mother is licking the kitty's belly in a certain way, they try to intervene and separate them. The kitten will be bottle-fed and raised by humans from then on, but otherwise it would get killed, just in the way you've described.
I didn't knew that housecats would do that too, but it would be logical if they did.
Reasons for such behaviour are unclear for me, I can but guess that the mother finds there's something wrong about the kitty.

There's nothing you can do about this, except for watching about the other kitten, in case it would happen again (which I think is unlikely - if it was to, it would happen already). It's sad, but I suppose it's natural.

She should look for the other one on herself. Take in mind that in the wild, mother would have to leave her kittens for quite a time to hunt, so don't expect her to spend all the time with her baby.

The idea of consulting a veterinarian sounds very reasonable, and should it were mine cat, I'd do that - at least to be sure that I'm doing the right thing.

Answer 4

The mother may not have killed the first one, it may have died naturally and then she ate it. it is disgusting to us, but in the wild it would keep the body from rotting and leading predators to the nest. Some mother cats will spend 23 hours a day in the nest will thier babies and others will only go to the nest to feed. Without disturbing the baby, keep an eye on it every couple of hours or so. It will become weak and lethargic and its belly will look sunken and empty if she is not feeding it. If the mama cat continues to cry excessively, she may need a vet. In the meantime , give her plenty of food and attention. place her with her kitten and pet and praise her effusively as long as she stays with it. If she did not recieve adequate nutrition during her pregnancy, the kitten may not be healthy and she may reject it. If you can purchase a kitten milk replacer and feed some to the mama cat, it may help her recover from the delivery.

Answer 5

If you can, put mom and baby in a small box with a towel or blanket, and watch carefully, try to keep mom confined to a room. This may be her first litter and she doesn't know what to do. Put baby by mom to nurse. If she doesn't you have to start feeding with a dropper and kitten milk available in Petsmart, etc. We had this experience with a very young female that was abandoned. We took her in, she had 3 littens, one died, and she showed no interest in the others. She did not know what to do, so we put her in a box in a room, closed the door and kept her there. She is now a terrific mom. Just keep an eye on her. If she is meowing a lot, maybe something is wrong, maybe she needs medical treatment, maybe she did not deliver all she had, since one was dead, may be another. It was so kind of you to take her in.

Answer 6

Is this her first litter? Sometimes mama cats meow 'cause they're scared and just want you to be with them. Remember you are her mom and dad and she needs your support. If you find a quite place for them that's easily accessible like a closet and put a bunch of old towels or blankets down put her on them and grab the baby (yes it's okay) and place the baby by the nipple it will be just fine. You're there for support ( i know that sounds crazy but it's true) Just sit there for a while pet mama to let her know that it's okay. She will probably need you to do this for a little while. She will get up when you leave the room and start talking to you she just wants you to be around. I went through this with my cat with EVERY litter she had. As far as the one who stomach was maybe eaten open...Was it alive at one time? If so, cats have been know to eat their babies. It is RARE but it has happened. Just take it out and bury it. Maybe it was sick. Cat's know when there is something wrong. Good luck to you and your baby.
-Jacqueline

Answer 7

If this is her first litter, losing more than one is not unusual. If she doesn't respond to the needs of the other kitten you may need to replace its nutrition with KMR, kitten milk replacement and a bottle. You can buy the kits most anywhere for this. Its been awhile since I've had a cat to have kittens. She maybe stressed from the delivery. Keep an eye on her and the one cutie still alive. Keep it warm if you can by placing a heating pad on low underneath several layers of towels so you don't burn it in the process of keeping it warm. Just pick up whatever she had them on and place the pad and several layers of towels under. Good luck!

Answer 8

I comparable ingredient handed off to my cats the place the mum refused to feed her newborns. try finding out to purchase a emergancy feeding equipment and a heating pad. Set a container up with some blankets and the heating pad underneith. Then warmth up some kitten milk replacer for 30 seconds(verify to work out no count if that's merely too warm), the take one kitten at a time and feed them with a bottle each and every 2-4 hours for smaller kittens and each 8 hours for larger kittens. (:

Answer 9

Get the kitten away from the mom and feed it powdered milk in a small bottle, be sure to warm it too. You may have to be the mom for the kitten. Your cat does not seem like a fit mother.

Answer 10

She has already rejected the kittens. They may have come too early, or mama is too young, or the kittens are sick. She will not "mama" them. I am sorry. She is eating the young. It is almost impossible to save the other. And a cat with a litter of two? something went wrong.