Just catching this thread! Welcome Sarah, to TDK. *doing the happy poop dance for Lily*. Sending lots of positive thoughts for her continued good health. You are being a super meomy!
Daily Kitten Chat Forum » Cats & Kittens
new here & need advice :)
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Posted 1 year ago by SammyandOliversmama #
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SammyandOliversmama - Thanks for the support! Hoping for another poop today, she is about due haha.
Ginirosaru - Thanks for the supportive words! I think she is going to look a lot like the cat in your avatar when she grows up, although I can hardly imagine it now because she is so little. It's crazy seeing full grown cats - even the "kittens" in the shop seemed so enormous compared to her.
Anncetera2 - I tried the flat saucer with kitten food mixed with milk and she went right for it, as you said she made a mess hahaha. She ate a bit then did the usual walking around looking for stuff and wandered right into the food, walked through it and left footprints all over my desk hehe but actually showed a lot of interest in it and seemed to eat some so I think it should be reasonably easy to wean her..
What kind of time frame would you guys suggest in terms of weaning - would I feed her mixed milk & food every feeding for say a week or so and then just stop the milk completely.. or how long should the process go for? How will this effect the poop situation? I would imagine it'd be more regular if there's more going into her body than just milk? See how we go today with the pooping, hopefully we get something!
I have introduced a litter tray as well in her box because she seems to pee on her own occasionally, I notice it on the blankets after I washed them all yesterday. Now I just sit her in the tray when I'm stimulating her, so hopefully she might get used to it and eventually learn that that's where you "go".
All in all the meowing is not too bad anymore, she stays in her box with the teddy and blankets but when I get her out and feed her she loves to walk, walk, walk all over the place now that she's getting more comfortable on her feet. She meows when she's hungry but after feeding she wanders and just does quiet meows/squeaks so it's not too disturbing. She doesn't seem to have an interest in toys or playing with anything yet, she just explores the surroundings and wants to be near me so I think she will grow into that later.
Must go wake the little one up, time for breakfast! Will keep you posted xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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When my orphan, Munchie, was about 3, possibly 4 weeks old, I put her down after giving her her bottle. She then sauntered over to the cats' (I had 3 adults, too) kibble and ate some of it, as though she had been doing it forever. Or at least for several days. She knew exactly what she was doing. Since kittens tend to nurse until they are 6 or 7 weeks old, even after they start eating solid food too, I would offer her a bottle in the morning and in the evening, until then, until you are sure she is eating regularly. However, more experienced people may have better advice. I did everything wrong. I am quite sure I stopped giving her a bottle immediately, when I realized she could eat happily on her own. Still, she thrived and is almost 6 years old now and quite the little terror.
It seems to me that you are doing everything right and that your reward will be a healthy, loving cat.
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Hope so! Thanks Lily!
She is pretty vocal about what she wants when I think about it.. She meows when she first wakes up and wants food, meows and wont take the bottle when she needs to go to the bathroom, sits quietly when she needs to pee until she's finished, then when i try for poop she'll squeal at me if she doesn't need to go, she wanders around and squeaks a bit when exploring, and purrs and squeaks a bit when she's just sitting with me..
The last couple of days she will drink a bit from the bottle and then squeal and "get frustrated" if I read her body language like a human.. So I thought maybe the milk wasn't doing it for her anymore and she wanted something else, that's when I tried the kitten food mixture and she gobbled that down, then had a bit more of the milk just to top up..
So she's a good communicator, I just go with what she tells me!
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Sarah, I would try giving Lily the food drizzled with milk first, before the bottle. You should be able to increase the amount of wet food by at least half a teaspoon per day, per feeding; yes, she'll be growing that quickly! Then top her up with the bottle of milk. Within one or two weeks, she may be so frustrated with trying to fill up on the bottle that she'll abandon it altogether in favor of filling her hungry gut more quickly with the wet food.
Her stools may be a bit looser and less regular during this transition; that's normal. But she shouldn't go all-out to very runny diarrhea. If you're concerned about her stools being a bit loose, thoroughly mix a teaspoon of cooked white rice in with her wet food; that should help a bit.
Offer dry food, if you wish. Please try to offer the most high quality foods you can. I recommend avoiding soy, wheat, and corn as ingredients, as well as gluten. That will seriously narrow down the food choices, but the foods will likely be better for her. Others on this site can advise on feeding raw, much better than I can. All I can say is, that if you choose to feed raw, it's important that it be entire (including skin and bones, whether whole or ground up). Feeding just ground meat, like hamburger from a supermarket, will result in serious nutritional deficiencies over time.
It sounds as if Lily is doing quite well in terms of communication! I'm sure this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
Posted 1 year ago by anncetera2 #
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anncetera2 - you are right on the money with all your advice, thanks so much! The last few feeds I have just fed her a bit of the mixture first then topped up with the bottle until she is content, seems to be working a treat so will continue with this until she no longer seems interested in the bottle.. I have heard that feeding cats dry food is actually not good for them, is that true? I had planned to always keep her on just canned/sachet wet food because of that..
got a poop yesterday so all is well in that regard - i'm pretty convinced now that she's just a once-every-3-or-4-days kinda girl!
not sure if this will work but it is a facebook album with some old and new pics:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=193698&id=668376562&l=d241cfb1b2xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Thanks popoki! I am the same, completely new to kittens so I am completely grateful to the community here! So glad I happened to find this site!
The only other cat I have had was an adult when he decided to visit and ended up staying with us. Lily has certainly taught me a lot - I'm only 23 but I swear I am more equipped for motherhood now! Waking up to get her bottle ready, feeding every couple of hours, getting milk all over my black tops! hahaha.
Its all fun and games, and she is so great I can't imagine life without her now, I bet it's the same with yours no matter what age they pop in to your life xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Sarah, those pictures are adorable! All Lilies are cute so, really, it is not a surprise. Did I not say in my first (second?) post that you wouldn't be able to imagine life without her soon? She is obviously thriving and you are in for more joyful kitten antics than you can imagine...
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GUYS !!!
I came home from a friends house and checked on Lily and guess what.. I found a poop IN THE LITTER TRAY!Can you believe that!? Not only did she discover how to pee and poop on her own - but it's IN the TRAY!!! And then I came back for the next feed a couple hours later, and there was ANOTHER one in there!
I have been feeding her proper kitten food mixed with milk and they were like very proper looking browny poops, none of the yellow baby stuff like before! It's like she grew up in one day and now she's all self-sufficient!! Haha.
I only put the litter tray in there the other day to get her 'used to it' and since then I have sat her in there each time I helped her to pee and poop... and she must have learned from that!
Is that like, normal kitten behaviour to innately know how to use litter or do I have the smartest kitten in the world?!?!
Super excited! xxPosted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Well, naturally you have the smartest kitten in the world, quite clearly! ;-)
And it is also true that most kittens get the hang of the litter box quite quickly (though when you get to the mad toddler stage, when she's dashing around, she may -- just like human anklebiters -- have a few accidents when she's exploring a long way from her litter box and can't quite make it back in time).
You are now a true TDKer, you sound just as excited about poop as the rest of us! That is such good news and you can't go wrong with Anncetera's advice :) Little Lily is totally gorgeous in those photos. We look forward to hearing all about her lovely life with you :)
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How true that is, JCAT! Sarah, your joy in your new baby and all that you are discovering about her brings it all back fresh to me and, I swear, I am enjoying your Lily as much as mine and the rest of my gang. Don't you even think of not posting every milestone!
PS You will be surprised how quickly the joy of poop fades...
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I LOVE the picture of her squealing. I can just hear that little voice demanding what she wants right now.
Posted 1 year ago by CheetahBoysmommy #
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How have I not seen this thread before? Sarah, a belated welcome to TDK Chat from me, and a big YAY! for the poop :o)
Posted 1 year ago by MadcatwomanintheUK #
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Hello everyone, thanks for the support on poop ! haha. Sorry I haven't checked back for a couple of days.. Things are not so great anymore on the pooping situation and i'm afraid I need to call on your help once again..
When Lily first learned to poop she left a nice, neat solid one in the litter tray, this was while she was being fed mostly milk and a tiny bit of the food/milk mixture. This food was some sachets of kitten food I got that is apparently "vet recommended" called Hills Science Diet. It comes in gravy but with solid little beef triangle-shaped things in it.
I only got 2 sachets of that particular brand and then a box of this other one Whiskas which is just mincey-texture. (I dont know if these are international brands, I am in australia) but on the Hills Diet one things seemed to be ok... When I ran out I started with the Whiskas.. She still ate it up, has been eating on her own out of the bowl and I haven't needed to feed milk too much.. But now she has diarrhea!!!!!!! Problem being now she is mobile and capable of doing it on her own so she is "dripping" all over (sorry to be graphic) and I noticed today she has a sore red butt.
I gave her a bath and put vaseline on her bum today, and I have mixed cooked rice into the food as well just today for one feed but didn't notice any difference after that one, she was still drippy. So I just freaked out and now I'm scared to feed her anymore of that food so just feeding milk again. I think the food is just garbage supermarket brand and it must be messing with her system!!! The vet brand stuff is only sold at some particular places and I can't get back to get more just yet. So don't know what to do.. Should I keep feeding her the crap food with rice?? Or just forget it and feed milk until I get the good stuff?? (ps, i cant confirm its good, it just didn't seem to cause problems when she was on that and just happened to all occur on this other stuff)
Also - please answer me this - do kittens actually KNOW they are inhaling milk and will stop if so?? I feed Lily with a baby bottle normally and I know to keep her belly down when doing so so that she doesn't inhale it, but since I have been weaning her, today she wouldnt take it from the bottle and was chewing on the bottle teat, and wouldn't take the food in the bowl I gave her - so I poured some milk into another bowl to see if she would lap the milk instead. She went straight to it and got right into it and wouldn't stop! But she kept sniffing and blowing out her nose and sneezing as if it was getting up there, but she didnt stop until she had finished it! She didn't sound too good after I thought she was gonna conk out :( but then went back to normal and started meowing again and now seems fine aside from the poop thing... So now I'm too scared to feed her that way again incase she doesn't realise what she's doing... I might just have to do another vet visit tomorrow.
Ahhhh just confused and frustrated again :( Going through some tough times in other areas of my life and now I'm stressing out with her I just don't know what to do, feel like I can't win!! Thanks in advance xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Hi, Sarah, changing kitten diets in mid-stream (so to speak) can cause tummy upsets very easily and the Hills Science Diet (in New Zealand and Australia anyway) is a premium brand, available from vets only, whereas Whiskas and Chef, while perfectly adequate, are only the best of the supermarket brands. So you should be able to get some more Hills from your nearest vet, and I'd stick with it if she likes it and there haven't been any problems on it.
Kittens have to learn to lap milk and quite a lot of sneezing and spluttering is normal, I don't think she'll be inhaling it into her lungs (only into her nose, lol), so I wouldn't worry too much about that. She'll soon get the hang of it and it sounds like she really loves it!
I'm a bit worried about her sore little bottom so, just because kittens are trickier than older cats and can also dehydrate quickly from diarrhoea -- though that shouldn't be a problem if she's still drinking milk fine -- I think I would want to take her back to the vet for a quick check-up, if you can afford it, and buy some more Hills at the same time (also ask his advice about food).
Keep checking back as I'm sure more experienced kitty mums will be on soon...but it still sounds to me like you're doing fine.
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Sarah: can you get your hands on some plain yogurt? It needs to be the kind with active cultures (magic stuff in layman's terms) in it. (It will say so on the container). If so, give her a teaspoon twice a day (see if you can get better advice from your vet about how often. Though it cannot hurt her, you want to give her enough to do the trick). After 4-legged Lily had her kittens her "output" was vile- loose and stinky. The vet had me give her a tablespoon of yogurt and I only had to do it once-- the problem cleared up immediately.
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Thanks guys... I just woke her up for breakfast and the ones that she left in the tray overnight looked better, a bit more solid so either the milk or the tiny bit of food with rice must have done the trick. I will keep feeding her milk until I get some more Hills food today. I will use yoghurt if I still have dramas with the other food, thanks Lily. I did the milk in the bowl again and she lapped it up, she seems much more into that then the baby bottle now that she thinks she's all grown up..
She did lap some water out of another bowl yesterday and didn't seem to have trouble with that, it was like she knew to extend her tongue out further than her nose lol, but I fed her again this morning and she still spluttered and coughed most of the way through like she forgot and just dived right in to the bowl, I really don't like it? It makes me uncomfortable but she goes right back to it and drinks the entire bowl up.. It's a flat bowl and the sides are not too high so not sure if there's anything else I can do in that regard. I guess practise must make perfect like you said.
Sorry for the dramatic post yesterday, I guess I did the old "focusing on the negative" trick. Really she has been great the last few weeks and this is just one small thing..
She is getting really playful now, I can't keep her in the the tub thing anymore unless she is sleeping, she just wants to hop out. She just dashes around madly lol.. I'm going to head out today and see if I can find some baby fencing or pet fencing that's kinda see through and not too tall that I can use inside. Any recommendations? She's too small to just leave alone in a room so I thought I would just "fence" an area in my studio that she can run around in but still confined and safe..
Thanks again guys.. you are awesome, big hugs xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Be careful of any fencing you buy-especially the kind that folds like an accordion. You don't want her to get her head stuck and possibly get hurt. It is also likely that she is small enough to escape that. How creative are you? I just happened to have put on my to do list replacing my window screens, which makes me think of screening material. The material for that is relatively cheap and you could easily staple it to four boxes (or other upright things) that only need to be a little taller than she is (to make a square area of whatever size you choose. (you would also need to put books or magazines in the boxes to make the heavy enough that they would stay put.)
You could then staple the mesh over the top to enclose it completely. Then, to let her in or out, all you would have to do is tip it up. Actually, if you tried to make it fairly large, you would need 2 more boxes/center supports to make it stable.
I am afraid that exhausts my creativity... especially of the relatively cheap variety...
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Nooooo, don't ignore Lily, especially her sensible advice on being very careful about screens that could concertina on Lily or have hinges that could close on her -- she could get her head or tail or a limb trapped when you weren't there. Also be careful about the size of the holes in any screening -- if she possibly can stick her head through any of the holes or openings and get it stuck, she will! We have to put perspex over the cages at the shelter where I work when there are young kittens in them as the first thing they'll do is try to stick their heads through and it can be very dangerous.
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Lol, thanks guys. I didn't end up finding anything today in terms of walls, only retractable stuff. But I spoke to the vet and got some more of the "good" food. I think it's good anyway, we'll see in the next couple of days. But the vet confirmed the supermarket stuff is junk, as did the pet shop lady where I bought it. Learned my lesson now! Dumb supermarket brands :( I'm so angry at them for pretending that cat's love it!
The poop situation is all my fault as I have discovered, cos I've just been feeding her too much different stuff. Whoops! So I bought like 12 sachets of the Hills stuff and discovered they sell it at a pet store close to home so now I know I can restock from there. Does anyone know whether using the same brand but changing flavours will cause an upset? Say if they run out of the beef I got, can I get chicken? Lol. Or will that confuse her body too? Seems like a dumb question but worth asking. The vet lady advised me against using yoghurt because it was just another addition to the different things going into her belly so I'm back to milk and the Hills food. HOPEFULLY all turns out okay and her red bum settles down otherwise I will have to take her in tomorrow to have a check up.
My dad has a workshop where he does woodwork and has a bunch of timber I wonder whether to just make four walls out of that at about knee height and just keep her in there next to me in my studio, she wont claw it or be able to get stuck in it that way. Would you guys be very against that option?? I reckon that's probably easiest because then there will be room enough for her water and food bowl on one end, as well as the litter tray and blankets etc so she can have it all in there.
Also, I had a bit more success with her lapping up milk and water. I used a jar lid and just squeezed a tiny bit in and she licked it off of the lid as opposed to drowning in a puddle like with the deeper bowl. So I think she will hopefully learn from that..
New weird thing... After she eats she does this weird thing with her paws, she keeps kinda wiping/scratching her mouth with both paws as if she is trying to get something out.. She started it after I fed her some of the yogurt mix.. Is that weird? It looks weird. I don't know if it's a hairball or something but I haven't seen her grooming herself yet, but it's kinda like she's trying to regurgitate something. Any ideas?
Guys I wish I could send you all gifts because I feel like I'm taking more than I'm giving! I'm asking so many questions!! What can I do in return?? Lol. I appreciate your advice and support soooo much, it's brilliant to know I have a resource and backup when I need it. thanks xx
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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Hi, Sarah, different flavour, same brand (as in Hills chicken, Hills beef) should be fine.
Likewise getting your dad to make a 'playpen' should be fine, if he makes sure the wood is finished smoothly enough so your baby can't get splinters, but I do think she might find it very dull not being able to see out and so she might complain very loudly for a very long time -- I think I would! Also, in a few weeks, she'll be first climbing and then jumping on up and out of there. I wonder if a human baby playpen of some sort might do (again, you'd need to be careful about the size of any gaps). If it's wood or mesh, she WILL try to climb it...
Hard to tell from your description of her wiping her mouth with her paws whether she's just grooming herself (sounds likely with yoghurt) -- which would be normal, and she'd probably be purring when she did it -- or whether she feels like she's actually got something stuck in there (in which case she'd be distressed and might be making gag noises or actions). If the latter, and if she's still doing it, I would definitely ring the vet. I don't like the sound of that, though I don't really see what she could have swallowed that could have got stuck.
Keep checking back, as always, someone else might have much better answers for you. Ask as many questions as you like, we'll always try to answer them if we can (or tell you to ring the vet if we can't, lol) because we've all been there. Sharing Lily's exploits with us IS a gift :)
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Sarah-- I understand wanting to keep her confined while she is still so little and you are away but what is the point to doing so while you are with her? Are you looking for a little peace? (hah, hah, like your life will ever be your own again!) Like JCAT said, she will be able to climb/jump out of anything you build very soon-- they grow fast! Do you have a bathroom you can shut her in while you are gone? As long as you put the lid down on the toilet, that is about as safe a place as there can be. Also, if you baby proof your room, put dangling cords (such as window blinds have-- also electrical cords out of reach or taped down)you can probably let her run around all she wants. Just so long as there are no wall holes she can get in it should be fine. Really, confining a cat or kitten is tough. You might want to think about not doing it, if you can make her environment safe. I basically kept Munchie (my orphan) in the big cats' carrier, when I left during the day, where she would sleep all day, until she was 4 weeks old and really seemed to know what she was doing. I did go over my house thoroughly to eliminate dangers.
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Thanks jcat.. I considered whether see-through or solid would be better because she will hear me there in the same room. Not sure whether she'll constantly just want me or be able to occupy herself. At the moment the big storage tub is in the other room so I get her out of there and she hangs out in my studio to feed and to play for a while, then goes back in there to sleep and I cover it over with a towel so it's dark, and she settles in. As soon as she hears me in there or wakes up or wants something I hear her meowing. She's growing out of it now and doesn't need as much sleep so it must be boring.
Lily, I just feel that she needs her own "area" if that makes sense. I figure she's a permanent resident now :) Now that she's more playful and independent, I want her to just have her own spot that she can get used to where everything is - the food/water bowls in one corner, the litter tray in the other, blankets and teddies and hot water bottles for sleeping, and toys for playing and enough room to run around... Everything she needs, when she needs it and she still has room to play and explore while contained in there. If I'm there then cool, otherwise she can occupy herself and not just have to sit in the dark til someone comes back.
It doesn't matter at all if she ends up being able to jump out when she's older, I can even just take the walls away at some stage, I just feel more comfortable having walls of some sort to confine her adventures while she is still so tiny.
It is definitely for my peace of mind as well :) so I can concentrate and not have her roaming around lost and meowing, and not have to worry I'll roll over her with my chair or my dad will step on her or something.. Lol. When it's not play-time I have to put her back in the tub so she'll go to sleep, and I wanted to put her in more of a stimulating environment where she can do as she pleases and doesn't feel like I'm chucking her in a dark box and forgetting her..
It's like a toddler having her own room with her own toys!
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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P.S. Yeah I'm not sure about the wiping of the mouth - it doesn't look like she's just cleaning herself but like she ate something gross and is like "peeeugggh.. what.. was... that!!" or something, she shakes her head and keeps doing it. I thought it was just the yoghurt but she still did it with other food too. I wondered whether the food mix with milk is sticky or something and was sticking to her mouth but I looked and didn't see anything in there.
She's not dehydrated but she doesn't drink a lot of water, mostly just what's in the milk.. Is that normal for her age? I still need to get her used to lapping without drowning and choking. So maybe her mouth is dry? Not sure.
I'll keep an eye on her this morning when she has breakfast.. maybe I'll video it or something x
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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No weird wiping this morning, just standard cleaning her paws after she walked all through her food lol.. maybe the supermarket food just tasted as yuck as it smelled! Oh, and poop seems to be better today - more toothpastish.. x
Posted 1 year ago by sarah_a204 #
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