My sweet twenty-one month old CFA Grand Champion iCandy Jelly Belly was due for her first litter this week. Her due date was Tuesday. Monday morning she was acting a bit different and went in the nesting box , joining another litter of kittens and their mother.

By two PM she was intermittently panting for short periods of times, but no contractions. I had to go to work, so had a kitty sitter come stay with her while I was gone. Nothing happened. She continued the same activity (or lack of it) well into the evening. She seemed comfortable with continued purring.

As the night wore on, I was getting worried about the lack of contractions. I drove her to the emergency clinic at 3 am for an ultrasound. It appeared all was well at that time. At 8 am, I called the reproduction specialist and drove her down to that practice. Again the ultrasound showed that all was OK. One kitten’s heart rate was borderline, so decided to have an emergency C-section done.

Surgery went smoothly. As it turned out, Jelly Belly had a tissue membrane separating one of the uterine horns from the body of the uterus. The kittens on that side would not have been able to pass. The veterinarian that performed the surgery has done hundreds of C-sections. She had never seen anything like it. She feels that membrane played a role in preventing normal contractions.

The good news is Jelly Belly and the kittens are fine. She is a wonderful mother and I am grateful she is healthy.