Daily Kitten Chat Forum » Cats & Kittens

rescued kittens - need advice

(8 posts)
  1. Ok so, i have 5 kittens (2weeks old roughly)that have a feral mommy. I have had them home for 3 days now. i have read quite a bit on here and other forums but still need some more information. We (my fiance and I) have been feeding them the kitten formula (dry mix) from the pet shops 2:1 ratio with water as it states. When i first got them home they were a little difficult to feed. Now they eat like pigs. When they first got here they were peeing a deep colorful yellow which i read means they were dehydrated (correct?). i read how to stimulate them and have been doing this before and after each meal. which do to time constraints are 3-6 hours apart. I seem to recall all of them have pooped at one time or another in the last 3 days but none of them on a frequent or daily basis. 1 was solid everyone else is like mustard per say (normal?). Now, how often should a kitten of that age poop?

    i age them at 2-3 weeks because their eyes are open (except the runt he had 1 eye open now 2) their ears are up and they have like 6 (on the top and bottom) teeth in the front of their mouth and bumps where the k9s are going to be. they also attempt to walk and do that sloth movement though in the past few days 1 or 2 move pretty darn quick.

    Any other tips you could give would be great. I turned a heater on in the bedroom they are in because michigan is unseasonably cold atm just to keep them a lil warmer.

    Posted 2 months ago by animage #

  2. It sounds like you are doing a great job with these little ones.
    Google "orphan kitten care"
    Keep checking in, there will be more folks online after the weekend.
    There are a lot good folks on TDK.

    Posted 2 months ago by caroline #

  3. Hi Animage and welcome to TDK. This is a great place to get advice, support, care and comfort! We have just had another new poster asking about her tiny kitten, so I'll just give you the thread link, and you can look up the NJKatwoman youtube link, and look at all of her videos - she's such a great kitten hand-rearer!
    http://www.dailykitten.com/chat/topic/20600
    (The relevant links are on my post, second one down..)
    Meanwhile, I would give your babies a hot water bottle if you have one, covered with something soft, so it's just about the temperature of their mommy's tummy, poor little things....sp if it's a bit cold where you are now (same here, but this is Ireland - we're not the emerald isle for nothing..)
    Otherwise, sounds like you're doing a great job! most important thing is to keep them hydrated, nourished and warm!
    Keep posting - we will give you all the support we can, and there are plenty much more experienced with babies than me.

    Posted 2 months ago by eleniki #

  4. watched the brutus poop video thing .. fiance tried it no luck .. when i feed them i let them eat til they turn their head away .. wait a couple minutes then potty them.. now it seems the last couple feedings and potties that they are peeing clear which is good means they are hydrated im assuming. but a couple of them have pooped merely once in 3 days. are their bellies supposed to still be round when its time for the next feeding .. not hard just round. Fiance is going to call the vet tomorrow to see if we cant get them checked out for 1 office call price or something. considering they also see my 3 dogs and 1 cat i hope they will work a deal =), we will see

    Posted 2 months ago by animage #

  5. Animage, as long as they have pooped, and everything else seems fine, and bellies not hard, I would not worry too much. If they are on formula, there will not be that much to poop. Once every three days sounds ok to me if everything else is all right. But, as always, if something else is wrong as well, or you are worried, talk to your vet. If you click on the pink tags 'poop' and 'constipation' (top right hand corner), you will see many threads on this topic, as well as some advice from experienced foster mums! Good luck! and keep us posted!

    Posted 2 months ago by jcat #

  6. I have found (I think they call it the triangle method) that using just your fingers on either side of the anus and gently pushing a teeny bit in and down towards the floor works wonders to help a kitten poo - I just got in 5 3-day-olds that hadn't poo'd for the Humane Society and they all went for me with that method as soon as I got them home.

    As for keeping them warm - that should be fine, I personally use a heating pad on one side of thier box and set it on low (can get one in a drugstore - mine was from CVS - for around $17).

    Yes, the dark yellow urine can indicate dehydration but if it has gotten better you are off to a good start! Better inditcation of dehydration is pinching thier scruff where mama would pick them up and if it goes right back down they are good, if it stays "peaked" you need to probably either dilute the formula just a bit until it goes down (don't wait too long if this is the case, as dehydration can take a kitten downhill quickly and they would need Sub-Q fluids from a vet).

    Sounds like you are doing well though! Keep up the wonderful work!

    Posted 2 months ago by SnowFlower #

  7. Update - had fiance call the vet. They saw all 5 kittens under 1 office call fee. Overall vet is happy with everything and said everything seems good. Reason i was more curios about the poo is because 1 of them poops like theres no tomorrow and the others dont nearly as much. then again he is one of the better eaters. Had them checked for parasites as long as they were there. We're keeping 1 of the kittens found the other 4 good homes with ppl at work(though they wont be leaving for a while) Vet said next week we can try chicken or turkey baby food on our fingers to start weaning them. fiance also said bedding was soaked this morning when she went to change them to diffrent box for vet visit, so a couple are atleast urinating on their own so we got Good News cat litter/paper to start them litter training.

    Posted 2 months ago by animage #

  8. Forgot is there a certain time period in which they develop their pur. reason i ask this is 2 of them have really started their motors. i'm glad they are gettin comfortable just wondering if its a development thing or if they are capable at any point.

    Posted 2 months ago by animage #


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