Once you have confirmed your cat is pregnant, the next step is to alter her diet to suit her changing needs.

Good nutrition is vital in keeping a cat healthy throughout her lifetime, particularly during pregnancy. Like kittens, pregnant or nursing cats need an extra boost of protein and energy to help them through a period of physical stress.

A simple adult formula cat food won’t provide the extra nutrients required, so an ideal solution is to switch your pregnant cat back to a commercially produced kitten formula, both during gestation and for some weeks after the birth.

Keep in mind that food consumption may vary during pregnancy. Your pet may need up to two times their normal intake.

Throughout gestation, the female may show a slow, steady increase in body weight and at the same time a gradual increase in food intake, particularly during the last 20 days. Hormonal and behavioural changes that occur during reproduction may cause periods of under eating, overeating, or even not eating at all.

If there is a sustained period of under eating or if your cat’s body condition begins to deteriorate, take her to the vet. Generally, her appetite should slowly increase within 24 hours after delivery.

Producing milk is another one of the most nutritionally demanding tasks in a mother’s life. Food intake typically doubles but may even quadruple, during lactation. Feed your cat several times during the day and make sure fresh water is always available.

When kittens are three to four weeks old, they start showing an interest in solid food. The key to successful weaning is time and patience. A sudden change could be traumatic.

Gradually remove the mother from her kittens around feeding time and offer the kittens their first solid food and water. Dry food moistened with warm water may help stimulate their appetite. A gradual weaning transition should see the mother reducing, then stopping, her milk production.

Your cat’s food intake can also be gradually reduced, over the same time, back to pre-pregnancy levels.