Last April we were asked by the local animal shelter if we could foster a pregnant cat. Of course, we said yes and Bali came to stay with us until her kittens were born. Bali was one of four Bengal cats rescued from a kitten mill, and it was clear that she’d already had multiple litters.

On May 9, 2017 she went into labor and her first kitten was born at 9:30 am. We knew from a prior X-ray that there were two kittens, but as we waited over the next few hours for the second kitten to make it’s entrance and nothing happened, we knew there was a problem. We took her to the emergency vet. Medication was administered to try and help with the labor, and after that, all we could do was anxiously wait. Hours passed and still nothing. We were told the kitten was probably dead and we would have to take Bali in the next day for an emergency spay to prevent infection. We were devastated. We were told that we could stay in a room for a while and wait a little longer. They were kind but not hopeful there would be a good outcome.

He put us in a room and gave us a call button if something happened. Bali was in a lot of pain but they couldn’t give her any medications until they knew for sure the kitten was deceased. As the hours passed by without any results, the vet came in and told us we should take her home because they’d never seen a kitten survive in these situations. They went back to get her carrier, but while they were gone, miraculously, Bali gave birth to the second kitten. We hit the call button and the vet came back into the room. He grabbed Bali and both kittens to check them out. When he came back in he congratulated us as, against all odds, we now had two healthy kittens. He told us how to care for the newborn kittens and how difficult it was going to be keeping them alive for the first month as mortality rates were high.

Nursing was difficult, and the kittens required my help at each feeding to get enough food to grow and survive. Bali was back at the vet soon after delivery because of an infection from the complicated labor. They gave her antibiotics, which further complicated nursing for the kittens, since the medication passed from mother cat to kittens, upsetting their delicate stomachs.

It was touch and go for all of them over the next few months but all three survived. After caring for them, my husband and I fell in love with them and ended up adopting all three. They are now happy, healthy cats and part of our family!

Submitted by Debbie T.

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