if you can tell she's pregnant that easily, then she's due soon. too late to fix that.

call and ask the humane society. She sounds like a great cat! I hope you keep her.

this forum is national and so there won't be a lot of people on here in AZ. I am, but i'm in southern arizona.

It's much kinder to have the kittens aborted or euthanized than to add another litter to the ranks of the ones already living marginal, miserable, short lives.

& even if you find "good homes" for the kittens (check with their "adoptors" in 8 months & see how many still have the kitten), it only means that some other kitten dies.

Your own vet can spay her if he/she just *will*.

If not, check other vets, & call your city shelter & humane organizations, especially those that work with ferals.

Just say it plainly;
you have a very pregnant stray kitty & you cannot let her have kittens.

Here, I'd say check with kittico ( spayneuter@kittico.org ), & with feral friends ( info@feralfriends.org ).

You might email each of them & ask if they have a recommendation in your area.

I wish you the best.

Michelle, you are wonderful to take her home, I know how hard it is to keep being confronted with abandoned animals and not have the heart to turn your back. I second Sylvia's suggestion to talk to your vet, hopefully s/he will give you a reduced rate since you are helping a needy stray.

I totally agree with Sylvia on this - i was just afraid to say it.

If the kittens are born, you can remove them from the mother and they will fail quickly.

But keep the mother - any cat that jumps into a car like a dog would is a cat worth keeping!! Good luck.

I googled and came up with the link below- hopefully you can get her in before she has the kittens.

Here is a link that might be useful: AZ spay hotline

Just went through this. She appeared in my shed, skinny with hips showing, starving. What I could do? So I put food out. Because she was feral, she was wild and I could not get close. I told her she could stay if I could trap her and spay her, because I did NOT want a litter of wild kittens that I couldn't find homes for and could not keep and properly care for. A kitten herself, she was in heat the three weeks she was here, and the toms came in by twos and threes! I knew she had a good chance of being impregnated, as I saw her flirting brazenly and the toms taking full advantage.

Anyway, I borrowed a live trap and finally caught her on the back porch where I fed her. I wasn't sure if she was carrying kittens yet, but the vet and I agreed that if that was the case he would take care of them. Sounds harsh, but the reality is they would have had a hard life. $226 later, that was with a 15% discount because she was feral, but also with a $50 feline leukemia test, rabies and other shots, a de-wormer plus the actual spaying.

My mom thought I was nuts for putting the money into what probably was someone's else's cat, but I knew it was what I wanted to do. At least she wouldn't be having litter upon litter in my shed. Plus - she is SO pretty! And now I'm attached and I think she's decided to stick around where the chow is. So far, she sits and lays a couple feet away; but will not allow any touching. Oh - did I mention she was deaf? I'm using hand signals when I put her food down. When I do them, she comes running to the food dish and little by little is curious about me too. One problem, being deaf it will be very dangerous out there, esp. with a busy country road nearby. If she ever becomes tame enough to let in I will do so.

Gosh, sorry I hijacked your thread; but your situation reminded me of mine. May I add, that an elderly friend of mine absolutely raked me over the coals when I mentioned I would agree to abort any tiny fetus! Yes, she thought I was a terrible person to do that. I asked her if she wanted me to drop off the cat at her house so she could care for her and her possible six wild kittens?

{{!gwi}}

Thank you ALL for the responses! I had her groomed today and she had a nice bath, she looks MUCH bettter but I know those kittens are a-coming soon. I am getting everything for free, I volunteer for a petsitter who also works closely with shelters and the Humand Society so I get paid in trade, she will house sit my cats or, in this case, take care of the medical bills which are a tax deduction anyway!

I really want to let her out of her room and explore, but without shots and blood tests for everything I don't trust them all together yet.

Now, the biggest question: how to help her birth the babies? I have never done this before, so please tell me what I need and what to do when they come. I have her nestled in a bumch of towels in a circle, she loves to lay there, so that is a good, safe place for her.

Any info is appreciated!

BTW, her name is Amy.

Michelle - She might not have the kittens on the towel. They often seek out a hiding place (like behind a piece of furniture or in a closet) to birth. Make her a nesting box (cardboard box would do just fine). Tuck it in a place that feels cave-like but you have easy access to. They have a pretty good over-view on the link I've attached. I haven't had litters before. I think I'd watch a few youtube videos just to prepare myself for what they go through during the birthing process! I hope everything goes well!

Here is a link that might be useful: wikihow - help a cat give birth

Thanks kittens, that video will help.

Now another question. I have three cats, the last of which we adopted last year and the older two accepted with no problem. This time around one of the older ones just howls at Amy and Amy growls back very strongly. I can hold Amy or have her on my lap (she must be touching me at all times when I am in her room) when Cali is at the door or comes in a few steps, but Amy just won't lighten up.

I don't want to stress Amy out while she is pregnant, but I can't keep her afterwards if she can't get along with the other cats.

As soon as she has the babies and is able, I will have her spayed and have her get all her shots, but until then, as much as I want to introduce them, I don't know if Amy is free of disease or anything.

What should I do? Someone suggested a baby gate at the door, but my older 3 could easily jump that.

You just brought her home. Do not introduce them yet! A baby gate is going to offer absolutely no protection if she's sick or gets sick. Don't even think about putting them together for a couple of weeks, at least. Play it safe; you don't want a house full of sick cats! She might be healthy and disease free but could easily break an URI from all of this new stress she's under. None of your other cats should be in her room right now. I would even consider leaving her sequestered until after the kittens are growing if she's due shortly.

They will sniff and growl underneath the door. That's normal. That's how they start getting to know each other, by scent. It's much too soon for her to be accepting of a houseful of cats especially if she was an only cat before being abandoned.

Good answer, Kittens! I will keep you all posted.

In addition to what's been said, keep in mind that she's going to be in a very protective mood if she's near delivery, and will probably be even more so after the kittens are born.
She may even try to carry the kittens to an area she considers safer so keep an eye on her and keep all other adult cats away. If any of your cats are males, be extra careful the first few weeks and make sure they don't have access to the kittens. Neutered or not, males are known to kill very young kittens.

Is there no other way to get her fixed before she has the kittens? The attached is the Spay Neuter Hotline with over a dozen clinics in Maricopa County- one of them has to have an emergency opening sooner rather than afterwards.

Here is a link that might be useful: Maricopa Clinic

I use an old screen door which fits in the door frame of my extra bedroom when I have a new cat ... thank goodness it's been a while since I had to use it. The cats culd then see and smell through the door, but not get at each other.

And I agree that you won't be able to tell how whe going to act around your other cats until she's had her kittens and they are adopted out. She needs time.

more unwanted kittens .............sigh

they'll be cute for a few months and then you'll be glad to get rid of them/more throwaway pets