What To Feed Your Cat After Giving Birth
If you have a cat that has just given birth to some cute little kittens, you should be extra careful to make sure that she receives sufficient nutrition, modifying her diet somewhat. During pregnancy you will already have taken certain precautions to ensure your cat was healthy and well fed, to ensure that her young are strong and have plenty of milk. To give the care that your cat deserves and to make sure that she is strong enough to feed her young, we at OneHowTo.com will give you pointers on how to feed your cat after giving birth.
Steps to follow:
During the last three weeks of pregnancy, your cat will have been fed with high quality food specially created for a cat this heavily pregnant. This feed is recommended for the cat to produce a milk that's very rich in the nutrients that the kittens need. Immediately after giving birth, a cat's appetite is affected and will want to eat almost nothing. It is very normal for cats not to eat much after giving birth. Despite this, keep encouraging her to eat some food and, in a few days, she should regain her natural appetite.
During the first 24 hours after delivery, your cat may hardly eat anything at all, but ensure that it has constant access to fresh, clean water. During this time, your cat produces colostrum, which is the first food that it will feed to its young and is full of vitamins, proteins and fats. It is very important for the mother to pass antibodies to its young. This colostrum is 88% water, hence the importance of the cat having constant access to fresh water.
To feed a cat after giving birth, during lactation, you should feed your cat with kitten-suitable feed. It should be fed specialized food because it needs to stay strong, healthy and must produce enough nutrient-rich milk to pass on to the kittens. As a general rule, your cat should be fed 2 or 3 times per day and should always have fresh clean water nearby.
Sometimes the amount of food you feed your cat may be higher, depending on the needs of your cat. You can even give it a serving of chicken or tuna every 2 or 3 days, to provide some extra nutrients. What's more important is that it eats and is healthy. To the other scale, don't overfeed your cat as excess weight can put its health at risk.
As time goes on, your cat will start producing less milk as the kittens grow and require less milk. Lactation is a process that lasts up to a maximum of 2 months, after which weening occurs, when the kittens start eating solid food.
After 4 weeks you can start feeding your cat the food it normally eats, before pregnancy. If it has gained some weight and is unhealthy, it's worth asking the vet for some advice on its current diet.
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