Postpartum Lochia: 14 Days, 3 Colors, One 24-Hour Rule

Lochia is the normal discharge that follows birth, and it has a timetable: 7 to 14 days, 3 color stages, a volume that falls every day and a smell that is metallic rather than foul. Two things break the timetable — discharge still running after 14 days, or an odor that turns bad at any point — and both mean a veterinary visit within 24 hours. Nothing in this article is treated at home; the uterus is examined by a veterinarian.

What lochia is, and what it is not

After the placentas detach, the uterus sheds blood, endometrial fluid and debris for 1 to 2 weeks. The volume is small: 2 to 10 mL a day in the first 3 days, which is about a teaspoon to a tablespoon, then 1 to 3 mL a day as the lining closes down. It is neither a hemorrhage nor continuous dripping, and it should never fill a pad. A queen who leaves a 5 cm stain on the bedding once or twice a day in week 1 is inside normal. A queen who leaves a 15 cm stain, or who drips across the floor, is not, and that is a same-day call rather than a 24-hour one.

Stage 1, days 1 to 3: red-brown

The first stage is red-brown to dark red, thin, and slightly clotted; clots of 2 to 5 mm are normal in the first 48 hours and clots larger than 10 mm are not. The smell is metallic and mild, the same smell as a small blood stain on cloth. Expect the heaviest volume here, then a clear fall by day 3. A queen at this stage is tired but interested in food within 12 to 24 hours, and should not leave the kittens for more than 2 hours. If she is flat, ignores the kittens, or the discharge turns bright red and runs, that is a 24-hour question at the latest and often a same-day one.

Stage 2, days 4 to 7: pink-brown

By day 4 the color shifts to pink-brown or rusty, the volume drops to 1 to 4 mL a day, and clots stop. This is the stage people misread both ways: pink-brown on day 6 is normal, red on day 6 is not, because the color only moves one way. A slight increase on day 4 to 5 often follows her first walks out of the nest box and settles within 24 hours. Any return to bright red after day 4, or any volume that goes up rather than down, is worth a call the same day.

Stage 3, days 8 to 14: clear to cream

The last stage is clear, straw-colored or cream, thin to slightly tacky, 0 to 2 mL a day, and it tapers off rather than stopping on a switch. Most queens are clean by day 10 to 12, and 14 days is the outer edge of normal. Discharge at day 15 is not a variation, it is a finding: a uterus that is still shedding at 2 weeks needs to be examined, and the earlier it is seen the simpler the answer usually is. A queen clean at day 5 who starts again at day 12 has a new problem, not a new cycle.

The three stages in one table

Days after birth	Color	Volume per day	Smell	Action
1 to 3	red-brown to dark red	2 to 10 mL	metallic, mild	observe, log daily
4 to 7	pink-brown to rusty	1 to 4 mL	metallic, faint	observe, volume should fall
8 to 11	clear, straw or cream	0.5 to 2 mL	none to faint	observe, tapering
12 to 14	cream, slightly tacky	0 to 0.5 mL	none	expect zero by day 14

Five red flags, and the number attached to each

Sign	Threshold	Act within
Discharge still running	day 15 or later	24 hours
Foul, sour or sweet smell	3 of 3 on a smell scale	24 hours
Temperature	above 39.2 C	24 hours
Off food	24 hours	24 hours
Green or gray color	day 0 to 14, any day	0 to 6 hours

Three ways a normal course turns into a problem

The first is smell: normal lochia smells of iron, and a foul, sour or sweet smell at any point on the calendar is the single most useful sign a breeder can report. The second is duration, the 14-day line, which catches a uterus that is not involuting and a low-grade infection that never produced a fever. The third is the whole cat: a queen who stops eating for 24 hours, holds a temperature above 39.2 C, has a hard or tender abdomen, or sits hunched away from the litter is showing systemic signs, and those outrank the discharge itself. Green or gray discharge, or any tissue that looks like placenta, is also a 24-hour finding, because retained tissue is the usual cause behind it.

The 24-hour rule, and what happens at the clinic

Book within 24 hours for discharge past day 14, a foul smell at any stage, green or gray color, a temperature above 39.2 C, or a queen off food for 24 hours. Go the same day, without waiting for the 24 hours, for heavy bleeding, collapse, straining, or a queen who ignores the kittens. At the clinic expect an examination, an ultrasound of the uterus, and possibly bloodwork; treatment is decided and carried out by the veterinarian, never improvised with leftover medication at home. Take your log with you: the day-by-day colors and volumes shorten the visit and often remove the need for a second one.

Five things to write down every day

Color, volume in mL or in stain size on a 5 cm grid, smell on a 3-point scale (none, metallic, foul), the queen's temperature if you have a thermometer you trust, and how much she ate. Add the kittens' weights once a day, because a queen who is unwell shows it in their gains 12 to 24 hours before her own temperature moves. Five lines a day for 14 days is 70 entries, and they are the history a vet needs. Photograph the stain in daylight with a ruler beside it; color photos settle whether day 9 looked pink or cream.

Four steps for the next litter

Start the log on day 1 with color, volume, smell and the queen's temperature.
Expect the color to move red-brown, then pink-brown, then clear, and never back.
Book a visit at day 15 if there is still discharge, or at once if the smell turns foul.
Ask the veterinarian what to watch for, and put that answer in the log for the next litter.

Recovery is not only about discharge: the calorie target in postpartum nutrition math decides whether she has the reserves to heal, and the timing of the next call sits in postpartum heat. A clinic visit in week 2 is a small line in the cost of a litter and the cheapest way to keep a queen in the program.

Terms mentioned in this article

Frequently asked

How long is postpartum discharge normal in a cat?

Seven to fourteen days. Days 1 to 3 are red-brown at 2 to 10 mL a day, days 4 to 7 are pink-brown at 1 to 4 mL, and days 8 to 14 are clear or cream at 0 to 2 mL. Most queens are clean by day 10 to 12. Discharge that is still present on day 15 is a finding rather than a variation and needs a veterinary examination within 24 hours.

What makes lochia abnormal rather than just heavy?

Smell, color direction and duration. Normal lochia smells of iron, so a foul, sour or sweet smell at any point is abnormal. The color should only move from red-brown to pink-brown to clear, never back to bright red. Green or gray discharge, clots over 10 mm, a temperature above 39.2 C, or a queen off food for 24 hours all mean a vet within 24 hours, not a home remedy.

What should a breeder record during the first two weeks?

Five lines a day: color, volume in mL or stain size on a 5 cm grid, smell on a 3-point scale, the queen's temperature, and how much she ate. Add the kittens' daily weights, because their gains fall 12 to 24 hours before the queen's temperature moves. Photograph the stain in daylight with a ruler beside it, and take the log to the clinic.