Discharge in cats before, during and after pregnancy

A pregnant cat's discharge often appears right before giving birth. If secretions leak from the genitals 5-6 weeks before the kittens are born, you should seek help from a veterinarian, as this is a symptom of inflammation.

The secretion that appeared immediately before childbirth is completely safe and indicates the beginning of the mucous plug from the cervix. This phenomenon is observed approximately three days before the birth of babies.

Read about how to find out if your cat is pregnant here.

Why is discharge dangerous for a pregnant cat?

The average length of pregnancy in cats is 9 weeks. The following stages are distinguished:

The first and last stages are the most severe. With average, the animal remains energetic, the babies at this time are only gaining height and moving little by little. At this stage, the cat should not normally have any discharge. Although in some cases this is acceptable.

The problem is the pet’s excessive cleanliness. Since cats carefully wash themselves, the owner may not pay attention to the appearance of unwanted discharge.

In the early stages of pregnancy, a light pink discharge often appears. The eggs are immersed in the uterus and are fixed there, as a result of which a small amount of secretion is released.

At 4 weeks, the uterus closes and transparent and watery mucous formations form. It is very difficult to notice them, since they pass away along with the urine.

Subsequently, before the onset of 6 weeks, the presence of discharge indicates physiological disorders.

Small transparent or yellowish watery discharge may appear as the uterus fills with water, squeezing excess fluid out. If small clots are found that do not bother the pet, there is no need to panic and worry the cat in vain. But in other situations, it is necessary to seek help from a veterinarian, especially if discharge of purulent formations is noticed.

By the end of pregnancy, the appearance of discharge is normal. Rejection of the mucous membrane indicates the onset of labor. This means that the first baby has begun to move. As a rule, a pregnant woman develops lumps of a yellowish or greenish color.

Also read the article about how long a cat walks while pregnant.

Preventive methods

It is important to show the animal to the doctor in time so that it can carry to term and give birth to offspring normally.
When the owner finds out that his pet is pregnant, he is very happy and tries to do everything for the cat so that this period passes safely and healthy kittens are born. However, sometimes a cat's pregnancy does not go smoothly. In such a situation, it is important to react in time and contact a veterinarian, who, based on the diagnostic results, will advise what to do next.

As a preventative measure, it is recommended to always monitor your cat’s health, vaccinate on time, carry out deworming, and treat viral and infectious diseases. In addition, periodic preventive examination of the animal will not hurt. When pregnancy occurs, it is important to carefully monitor the condition of the pet, monitor its behavior, quality of nutrition, and physical activity. You definitely need to listen to the veterinarian’s advice, try to properly care for your cat, and protect it from stress. If the maintenance and care are correct, the cat usually safely carries the kittens to term, and the birth takes place without complications.

Mr. Cat Explains: Safe Slime Formations

The appearance of pink discharge may be noted after mating, this is normal.

You should carefully observe the abundance of mucous formations; if a foreign odor develops or blood is separated, you need to seek help from a veterinary hospital.

Until the cervix closes completely, unfertilized eggs can be seen leaving the genitals in the form of a brown discharge. This is considered the norm, as it indicates the mummification of dead, decomposing embryos, which occurs with complete sterility in the womb. If an organ is infected, an inflammatory process begins.

Normal discharge that you shouldn't be afraid of

You should not pay special attention to pinkish discharge from a pregnant woman after mating. If they correspond to the periodization of estrus, this cannot be considered a serious symptom. It is, of course, worth assessing the abundance of these secretions.

In addition, they should not have a strong odor or blood. Otherwise, the pregnant woman should be shown to a doctor.

It is also necessary to take into account the fact that until the uterus is completely closed, there may be extra eggs in the discharge. These are stringy brown lumps that can resemble small leeches. This is a completely normal process, which indicates the sterility of the flora in the pregnant woman’s uterus, which allows the embryos to undergo the process of mummification. Such cases indicate the absence of inflammation.

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Prevention

To ensure your cat’s pregnancy goes smoothly, prevention is important:

• Monitor the cat’s well-being, get vaccinations (to prevent infection), and monitor the correct diet. Regularly take the animal to the veterinary hospital for examination.
• With the onset of pregnancy, carefully monitor the cat’s behavior, mood and appearance.
• Follow medical recommendations.
• Protect the cat from hypothermia, excessive humidity and wind.

We also recommend an article about whether a cat can be sterilized during pregnancy.

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Timeline of cat pregnancy

Before continuing to explain why a pregnant cat has fluid, it is helpful to understand some general aspects of pregnancy and birth. The cat's pregnancy schedule is as follows:

• Heat Cycle While males typically reach sexual maturity between 6 and 12 months, a female cat can become pregnant at 4 months. After this time, the cat will enter its heat cycle, a process that can occur at any time of the year, but usually occurs every two to three weeks between spring and fall...
• Onset : Male cats do not have heat cycles and will seek out cats in the heat at any time. If intercourse is successful, the cat will become pregnant.
• Pregnancy : There will be no obvious signs that your cat is pregnant. However, if you notice that your free cat is stopping its heat cycle, this could be an initial sign. After 2-3 weeks, pregnancy can be confirmed with an ultrasound, but she is unlikely to tell a cat she is pregnant simply by feeling her belly for about 30 days.
• pregnancy period lasts 63-65 days. After this time, they will begin to show signs of labor. If your cat has reached 65 days and is not going into labor, you may need to consult your veterinarian. The kittens will be born one after another and will reach the amniotic sac, which the mother instinctively knows will open.

The cat usually gives birth without complications, but we need to be aware of the possibility. One of them is the release of fluid leaks from the vulva. It is important to know that some vaginal discharge is normal, but the quality and consistency will let us know if there are any problems.

A pregnant cat may also lose fluid from her nipples . A mother cat (known as a queen) will go through a process known as pinking, where your nipples will become red and enlarged. However, if the dripping fluid changes color or has an unpleasant odor, this is a sign of problems with the pregnancy...

The best way to avoid pregnancy complications in your cat is to keep her healthy. This means feeding them enough quality food, maintaining deworming and vaccination schedules, and turning them over to a veterinarian for necessary monitoring. After some time, the veterinarian can also determine how many kittens will be in the bed.

Fluid leakage from a pregnant cat is not always observable because the cat regularly licks the vagina or nipples. For this reason, we must be alert to any signs of discomfort or changes in the cat's behavior in order to resolve complications...

The cat's mucus plug came off

As a rule, the period of release of the mucus plug takes several hours. Having noticed a mucus plug, the owner should be on alert. The following symptoms may indicate the upcoming birth process:

• Showing attention to the genitals, swelling of the loop and change in its color. Under normal conditions there should be no discharge.
• Reduced animal activity. The pet prepares for the upcoming birth, becomes detached, and sometimes thoughtful. You cannot force a cat to be active.
• Loss of appetite. The cat refuses food and may be constantly thirsty.
• Specific stretching of the body, indicating the onset of contractions. This behavior means that the birth process has begun and the uterus is contracting.

In addition, a woman in labor, especially a firstborn, begins to meow loudly out of fear, trying to hide from prying eyes. It is recommended to close all hiding places and stop access to closets and closets for the cat.

It is important that the owner is always nearby, constantly petting the pet, talking to her in a gentle voice. It is forbidden to shout at an animal, even if it behaves inappropriately (for example, crawling under the blanket or ruining the sheets).

The onset of impending labor is also accompanied by the following symptoms:

• lowering of the abdomen - it takes on the shape of a pear;
• trips to the toilet become more frequent due to the pressure of the uterus on the bladder;
• release of the mucus plug;
• loss of water, accompanied by constant licking of the cat in the loop area;
• rapid breathing (shortness of breath).

The first baby appears after the onset of strong contractions for several hours.

Attempts that occur after contractions and last longer than 3 hours are considered pathological. In this case, you must urgently contact your veterinarian.

As a rule, prolonged labor in a pet begins to be accompanied by the appearance of an unpleasant odor. It is possible that the animal will need to undergo surgery.

Causes of bleeding in cats

1.Rupture of uterine tissue

Extensive bleeding is the main sign of this dangerous pathology that occurs in cats during pregnancy. The cause of uterine rupture is most often a sharp increase in the tone of the uterine muscles or their excessive stretching during multiple pregnancies.

Pregnancy is terminated if the uterus ruptures. If it is not possible to stitch up a rupture in the cervix or uterine body due to its significant size, the cat’s reproductive organ (uterus) is amputated.

2. Inflammatory processes

Inflammatory processes in the uterus, other organs of the reproductive or urinary system.

Placental abruption

Placental abruption is accompanied by the appearance of dark brown discharge and poses a danger to the cat and future offspring.

The cause may be both genetic abnormalities of the fetus and problems of the cat - luteal insufficiency, infection or injury. As a result, the nutrition of the fetus/fruits is disrupted and their death occurs. In most cases, fetuses that die before 45-50 days are resorbed in the uterus or aborted.

When placental abruption occurs near the end of pregnancy (8-9 weeks), the offspring has a better chance of survival. In this case, urgent measures are usually not taken; the cat remains under observation until the birth process.

Miscarriage

• “Natural selection”, when even in the early (and sometimes late) stages of pregnancy the body rejects embryos with pathologies, which can also be accompanied by bleeding.
• It may happen due to premature death of the fetus due to trauma to the abdominal area, in response to which the uterus reacts by rejecting the embryos.

Frozen pregnancy

When the development of fetuses (for some reason) stops and they remain in the uterine cavity. As they decompose, they cause an inflammatory process, which provokes the release of toxins and translocation of bacteria. As a result, a failure of various body systems may occur, but the kidneys react especially quickly to this situation.

Pathological discharge after lambing

If the animal's lambing was difficult or occurred in unsanitary conditions, complications may develop. Abnormal discharge in a domestic cat after giving birth looks like this:

• Copious cloudy leucorrhoea with an unpleasant odor.
• A transparent substance with blood streaks that is secreted for more than 2 weeks and does not decrease in volume.
• Yellow-green mucus with pus or blood that has a foul odor.
• White curdled flakes with or without blood.
• Scarlet blood that does not stop oozing throughout the day (extremely dangerous for the health of the animal!)

All these symptoms indicate that dangerous and alarming processes are occurring in the animal’s body. The cat needs medical attention. It is especially important to provide immediate assistance to your pet if scarlet blood is released from the genitals.

Treatment

Treatment tactics directly depend on the cause of pathological discharge from the uterine cavity.

If the abnormal discharge is caused by an uncomplicated infection, treatment may be conservative. It is enough to undergo a course of drug therapy to cure the disease.

Surgical treatment is necessary in all other cases: rupture of the birth canal, incomplete release of the membranes, aggressive course of the infection. Emergency care after lambing is necessary when the cat has uterine bleeding. If nothing is done, this could be fatal.