Yes, each kitten develops its own individual placenta during pregnancy. Every kitten in a litter has a separate umbilical cord connecting it to its own placental site on the uterine wall, and each placenta is delivered separately after (or shortly after) that kitten is born. This one-placenta-per-kitten rule is important to know, especially if you’re helping a cat through labor.
How a Cat’s Placenta Works
A cat’s placenta forms as a band-shaped structure that wraps around the middle of each fetal sac, sometimes described as a “zonary girdle.” This band is where the exchange happens: oxygen, nutrients, and waste pass between the mother’s blood supply and the kitten’s through layers of tightly interlocking tissue. Each kitten floats inside its own fluid-filled amniotic sac, attached by its own umbilical cord to its own placenta.
This setup means that each kitten’s nutrient supply is independent. If one placenta has problems, it doesn’t directly affect the other kittens in the litter. The placenta anchors into the uterine lining at a specific site, and after each kitten is born, that section of placental tissue detaches and passes out as the “afterbirth.”
What Happens During Birth
Feline labor cycles through the same stages for every kitten. First, contractions push the kitten out. Then the placenta and membranes follow, typically within about 15 minutes. The mother cat tears open the amniotic sac, clears the kitten’s mouth and nose, bites through the umbilical cord, and usually eats the afterbirth. This entire sequence repeats for each kitten in the litter.
Sometimes two kittens arrive in quick succession, and the first kitten’s placenta gets temporarily trapped. In that case, both placentas may pass together after the second kitten is born. This is normal and not a cause for concern as long as both placentas do eventually come out.
Why Counting Placentas Matters
If you’re present during a cat’s delivery, count every placenta. There should be one for each kitten born. A missing placenta means it may still be inside the mother, and a retained placenta is one of the more serious complications of feline birth.
When placental tissue stays in the uterus, it can cause a uterine infection called metritis. Signs include foul-smelling vaginal discharge, fever, vomiting, loss of appetite, and lethargy in the days following birth. If you count fewer placentas than kittens, or if the mother shows any of these symptoms, veterinary attention is needed. In some cases, an injection of a hormone that stimulates uterine contractions can help expel the retained tissue, and X-rays may be used to confirm whether all kittens and placentas have been delivered.
The Rare Exception: Shared Placentas
In very rare cases, two kittens can share a single placenta. These are called monochorionic twins, and they occur in fewer than 1% of feline pregnancies. A large retrospective study examining over 3,000 fetuses across cats and dogs found a prevalence of only about 0.6% in cats.
Monochorionic twins are almost always identical (developed from a single fertilized egg that split early in development), though rare exceptions exist where two separate embryos fuse together early enough to share one placental structure. Identical twins sharing a placenta can also share a single amniotic sac, which carries additional risks during development.
For practical purposes, if your cat is having a normal litter, you can expect one placenta per kitten. Shared placentas are a biological curiosity, not something most cat owners will encounter.
Why Mother Cats Eat the Placenta
It can be surprising to watch a mother cat consume each afterbirth, but this behavior is nearly universal across mammals that give birth in the open. Several biological drives appear to be at work. The placenta contains blood and tissue with strong odors that could attract predators, so eating it quickly removes that signal. It also keeps the nesting area clean, reducing the risk of infection for the newborns. Some researchers believe the placenta provides a caloric boost at a moment when the mother has just expended enormous energy and may not be able to leave the nest to find food. There’s also evidence that compounds in placental tissue may have mild pain-relieving effects for the mother.
You don’t need to stop your cat from eating the placentas, though some cats may vomit if they consume several in a row during a large litter. If that happens, it’s fine to remove one or two before she gets to them.