Species: Cat Breed: Ragamuffin ragdoll Age: 1-2 years
My cat is pregnant but still acting like she's in season, this has been going on now for about 4 months. The same thing happened when she was pregnant last time but lost the whole litter 2 weeks before she was due. The most painful thing is the constant howling, both my male cats now ignore her. Should I take her to a vet to see what the cause might be. I was wondering if it could be psychological or even a hormone deficiency.
Dr. Marie replied:
A cat can't be pregnant and in heat at the same time. Is it possible that she is not pregnant after all? A cat's pregnancy is generally 63 days long. So, if she has had these symptoms for 4 months then it may just be that she is continually coming in and out of heat.
Generally once a cat gets pregnant the heat symptoms stop. The symptoms that go along with being in heat happen because the cat is desperate to mate. These desires would go once she is pregnant.
I suppose it is possible that she is pregnant and the "symptoms" you are seeing are just her personality. But constant howling certainly sounds like heat symptoms.
Cats do not go in and out of heat every 6 months like dogs. They can be in constant heat or go in and out even every few days.
If you are not a professional breeder of cats then having her spayed is definitely the best thing you can do. However, if this is a cat that you do intentionally want to breed then you may want to consider seeing a vet for advice. The first thing would be to determine whether or not she is pregnant. If she is not, then they may want to look into medical reasons for her to not get pregnant. However, in my experience, if a cat has fertility issues it is usually best to not use them for breeding and instead select another cat for breeding purposes.
I hope this helps but let me know if you have more questions.
Dr. Marie.
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Customer reply:
I thought the same thing last time she was pregnant but then saw she was actually pregnant and right up to the delivery she still acted like she was in season, my older male would not leave her alone, I did wonder if this was the reason she lost her last litter. I am a breeder but only want what's best for her, she makes a great mother even though she has yet to have a live litter, she became a surrogate to a litter of Himalayan kittens who lost their mother when she escaped out side and died from a dog attack.
( stray dog ). I did consider getting her spayed but then she got pregnant again so thought she might act differently with the next litter but alas she didn't so have decided to spay her after this litter. I just wanted to find out what might be the cause of this issue. I thank you sincerely for your imput.
Dr. Marie replied:
You've got me stumped! I don't think I have ever heard of a cat having issues like this. Granted I have not done a lot of work with cat breeders. You could talk to your vet about referring you to a veterinary theriogenologist. These are vets who only deal with reproductive issues in cats and dogs.
And I suppose the other option is to spay her. It's a tough call.
Customer reply:
I certainly will be asking my vet again and ask to see if there is theriogenologist in our area and thank you again for your help and advise.
For Sophie I think the best option if she loses this litter is definitely to spay her, my husband and I have been talking about this option as our next step.
I think it is cruel to make a cat go through this constantly.
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Veterinarian, Dr. Marie created this site to be able to provide quick, accurate veterinary advice online. She would love to help with your pet's problem!
Dr. Marie is a veterinarian who practices in a busy animal hospital in Ottawa, Ontario. She created Ask A Vet Question as a resource for good, accurate veterinary advice online. Dr. Marie treats dogs, cats, hamsters, guinea pigs, and rats. She has been a vet since 1999.
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