When can I bathe my dirty mom cat without affecting her nursing?

I would not give her a bath just yet, as there is a chance infection can enter the uterus when you bath a cat right after giving birth. I would wait at least 2-3 days before bathing her. At this point, her cervix will be closed. Be sure to rinse her off well to get all the cat shampoo off her for the safety of her kittens. You can use a warm damp washcloth to gently wipe around her vaginal area to get give her a bit of a cleaning.

Yes you are correct about your thoughts. It does hurt when they nurse now with their little teeth, and after three weeks they are old enough to start eating solid food. I’m glad you are starting to feed them. You can give wet kitten food now four times daily and add warm water to it to make it very wet. Usually having them lick it off your finger by the dish will teach them to eat. Just let the Mom go in and out as she wants and she’ll gradually wean them herself. Once her milk is dried up it’s a good time to spay her as she can get pregnant again soon afterwards. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your kittens.

I would not bathe the kittens (dip in water and use shampoo) but would just use a moist wash cloth (luke warm) and wipe them down. Then give them back to mommy who will lick them dry. Be careful when handling the kittens as they may be very scared and bite, especially if they were not handled before.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding the kittens. It is fine to start bathing them now. It nice to get them acclimated to the process before they reach 14 weeks of age. Prior to 14 weeks it is easier for them to adjust to new experiences. Keep bath time happy and a fun experience for them. Give special treats and stop if they show signs of anxiety. Do this once per week until 14-16 weeks of age or until they are used to it. Then just bathe as needed. I hope this information helps!

It's not a dumb question at all! :) It's recommended to feed kitten food to the nursing mother cat, because she is using lots of calories during this time to make milk for her babies. The kittens will likely start to show some interest in their mother's food around 4-5 weeks of age, when their teeth begin to erupt and they are capable of eating solid food - it's fine for them to begin eating it also, if/when they want to.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If she is no longer near where the kittens would be then you will have to assume she is done. I would give her a month or so to dry out. It does take time after kittens are weaned for the milk to stop coming, so finding milk still present isn't abnormal. There is not real way to tell otherwise. She will go back in to heat soon so keep her indoors. I wish you the best!

Go ahead and gently clean the sac off of the kitten. You may need to tie off the umbilical cord if Mom is not attending to it. (Normally she will chew it off.) you can use a warm hand towel from the dryer to clean the kittens and stimulate them. Mom may not show interest in nursing until she is done delivering. Good luck to all of you and thank you for using Pet Coach.