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My cat had one dead kitten, still pregnant & bleeding. Is she okay?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 9 lbs

Hello! My cat is pregnant, she gave birth to one kitten, about 2 days ago. Sadly when we found it, it was dead. It looked like it wasn’t fully developed. My cat hasn’t had any other kittens since then. She seems normal, but she is bleeding a bit. I haven’t seen her panting or any other signs. She seems normal. Her belly is still pretty big, and looks like it still has more kittens in it. She has been cleaning her private. This isn’t her first time having kittens. What’s going on? Thanks.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Sara Farmer, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on October 10th, 2018

It sounds like Callie is no longer showing signs of active labor, and some bloody discharge can be normal for days to weeks following the birth of a litter. It would be unusual however for her to have only one kitten and I would be concerned that there might be other kittens left behind. I would recommend seeing a vet as soon as you can - if there are other kittens that are alive but distressed a c-section might be necessary, and if there are other kittens that have died Callie probably would still need surgery to have them removed.

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    Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 6th, 2017

    Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yumi and her baby are adorable! Cats are unique creatures and can go up to 24 hours between delivery of kittens. If she is actively contracting though for 2 hours with out the birth of the 2nd kitten that is an emergency. Cats also get very stressed and having a lot of people in the room during the birth process may also delay labor. If she isn't actively contracting, seems comfortable, the bleeding isn't excessive and she is grooming herself or the kitten I would leave her alone and have only one person check on her every 2 hours or so. If 24 hours go by with out any more kittens I would have an X-ray done to see if there are more kittens. I hope this helps and good luck to you both!

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    14Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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