Cat Health Symptoms

How do I take care of a cat that has just given birth?

Also, is it normal for a cat to give birth to a litter of three with only one living? If not, what could cause this?

Public Comments

1. yes its normal,anything could cause it,theres no telling,if they were early ,and the surviver cant suckle,you need to feed it with a syringe(eye dropper)milk or ask vet
2. There could be any number of reasons why only one kitten survived birth. Some investigation into your cat's health, by a vet, might give your the answer. Cats can have all sorts of diseases that can affect the health of unborn kittens. To keep her comfortable now, keep food and water close to the place where she has her kitten. Also make sure a litterbox is nearby, but not close to the food and water. She will need extra fluids to make milk, so I would recommend a canned food or, at the very least, a dry food moistened with water. It wouldn't be a bad idea to get some Kitten Milk Replacement Formula, brand name KMR, for her to drink for extra calories and nutrients. She is now recovering from giving birth, trying to maintain herself, and providing for a new kitten. I wouldn't separate her from the kitten right this minute, to haul her off to the vet for a check. If you have to take her, be sure to put the kitten in the carrier with her. They need to be together now for all sorts of reasons from maintaining the body heat of the kitten, to allowing the kitten to nurse at will. There is some simple blood work, that your vet can do, to rule out things like Feline Leukemia, Feline AIDS, among other things, just to be sure she isn't carrying some disease that could be passed on to the kitten. Good Luck to you. Take tender care of her. Do consider having her spayed after this baby is done nursing.
3. put the mother cat on a good kitten food while she is nursing the kitten.