My cat is in labor for hours with only one kitten. What should I do?

Since she has been having contractions for a few hours now and has not produced a kitten, it is now time for an intervention by a veterinarian. Please take her to a vet or petER now. The vet will be able to determine whether there is another kitten or more than one, and whether there is a kitten blocking the birth canal. Your cat may need a cesarian section in case the kitten (if there is one) is too big to be born naturally. Please take her to a vet now.

If she is not straining to push at this time, then yes give her more time to birth the rest of the kittens at her own pace. This process, known as[ queening](https://www.petcoach.co/article/queening-giving-birth-in-cats/), can take up to 48 hrs to complete. Please try not to worry or [stress](https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-surprising-ways-stress-can-impact-your-pet) her during her labor process as this can stall and prolong her labor. If no kitten is delivered after 30 minutes of active straining/pushing, then you should have her examined by your veterinarian or at the nearest veterinary ER.

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. If Lucy seems comfortable, is caring well for the kittens, & you do not see her pushing or having active contractions, then you can let her rest. You may be feeling a contracted uterine horn, or it may be another kitten, but if she is content then you can probably wait until the morning to have her checked out. Since it is already late, you would have to take her in to the emergency clinic anyway, but I would not recommend it, yet. If she becomes restless, vocal, & you see her pushjng for more than 30 minutes without producing a kitten, then take her in. Hopefully, this will not be necessary. Take care.

Hello. This is always a bit of a mystery as to why this happens, but I personally have seen a queen have one kitten & deliver 4 more a full week later. Most often, a single birth is a premature kitten, but 2 kittens really confounds even this issue. If you can afford to have Lily seen by your veterinarian, an x-ray can show how many kittens are still present & an ultrasound can evaluate heartbeats. If the fetal heartbeats are around 180 - 200 beats per minute, then all is well. If the heartbeats are 170 or less, these kittens are stressed & need to come out. As long as Lily continues to act completely normal & there are no obvious vaginal discharges, then you can probably wait another day or so, but after that, I begin to get nervous. At this point, I would consider a C-section. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It is more rare for a cat to have a difficult time delivering kittens, however there is a possibility a kitten can become stuck. The whole litter is usually born within 6 hours with kittens every 30 to 60 minutes. If the cat is stressed or distracted she is able to stop her labor and restart the next day. However, if the female has been having strong contractions for greater than 60 minutes, she needs assistance in passing the kitten. Bring her and any kittens delivered to the vet’s office right away. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

It is not recommended to put any pressure on her abdomen/belly. You can really injure her and/or the babies. If she still has kittens inside her you will have to find a way to get her to a vet. If tee kittens stay inside her and they die, she will also die. Please get her to a vet and also have her spayed so this will not continue to happen.

Labor and delivery can take many hours depending on the mother and size of the litter. Contactions longer than 1hour without delivery of a kitten, restlessness and discomfort longer than 2hours or breaks between kittens of more than 4hours are all indications of the need for furhter action. Often getting them out of bed for gentle exercise/toileting/drink can help to kickstart labor again