Hello, I just found this site and seems like the perfect place to ask for some advise. We found a litter of kittens outside our home a few days ago. From what we can guess, they are 3-3.5 weeks old, and we never found the mother. 3 of the kittens have been taken to other homes to be cared for (bottle-feeding, etc) but I kept one of them with me. Obviously she is very young and needs a lot of care and attention. Aside from feeding and wiping her hindquarters with a warm cloth, what else should i be doing? And I can tell she misses her siblings but I'm not sure what to do with her at night, because i don't think she should sleep in my bed yet.
Daily Kitten Chat Forum » Cats & Kittens
Need some good advise!
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Welcome! You'll get all sorts of good advice here. Thank you for taking in the wee one!
You can fix her a little bed of her own in a box or something similar, with a soft blankie and either a ticking clock (to simulate mom's heartbeat) or a stuffed animal for her to cuddle with. Yes, she's a little small still to sleep with you, you could inadvertently roll over on her :-(
But cuddle her a lot, socialize her by talking and playing and holding her. If she's on dry food, make sure she's got lots of water. If she's on wet food, make sure she's got lots of water. Try not to give her cow milk, that can cause diarrhea, which can be fatal in tiny kitties. She may not poop for a couple of days, and when she does begin, it might be a bit loose. If she does develop diarrhea, check with a vet as soon as you can.
There are others here who can give you plenty more advice, and the Breakfast thread is pretty active now, you might want to ask questions there too.
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Ok so I took the liitle one to the vet for the first checkup. first thing i learned: its a boy. second thing i learned, he needs to eat more. we're trying to feed him about 10mL of formular every 4 hours or so. The problem I having right now is that he wakes up but doesnt want to eat. What should I do?
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Welcome to TDK, both you and the little one. There are some good sites for info, along with good people here who have hand-reared kittens before.
http://www.messybeast.com/catarchive.htm#health
http://www.petplace.com/browse.aspx?a=2&c=741&parentTopic=CatWellness
Posted 2 years ago by AZDEBRA 5/27 & crew #
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Hi, Nick, bless you for looking after your new little boy. If he needs more food, better to try and get a little in him every two hours, rather than four, if you can, little and often. Warm the formula gently in the microwave as it's more appetising for him if it's warm. All you can do is keep trying. Sometimes a little Nutrical paste (a high calorie paste) or a smear of Karo corn syrup on his little mouth (no blobs he could choke on) can give them a bit of extra energy to kickstart them feeding. Make sure he's kept warm and snuggly as that helps a lot with his digestion.
Siobhan gave you great advice about the bed. You could also try making him a nest out of one of your unwashed shirts or sweaters, so it smells of you. I slept with a kitten who wouldn't stop crying on my bed -- I put him next to my head on the pillow, so he could feel the warmth and it was fine. You won't worry so much about smothering him then (though I have to say, we have never yet had a smooshed kitten from sleeping in a bed on TDK).
The messybeast site that Deb gave you is brilliant for advice. Some more good ones are:
http://www.messybeast.com/handrear.htm
http://www.kittenrescue.org/pages.php?pageid=15
http://www.fanciers.com/cat-faqs/orphans.shtml
http://www.feralcat.com/raising.htmlGood luck. We are not vets but if we can help to answer any more of your questions, we'll always try :)
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He started eating better last night. I just had to squeeze the bottle a tiny bit and he started suckling. Now I just need to get him to sleep somewhere that isnt on me. His box has a very soft and warm pair of pajama pants and a toy cat for him to snuggle with, but he wont have any of that. He will cry until he gets out. At the moment he's sleeping on my lap, which is ok now but I can't keep him there for very long...
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Great news about his eating! Perhaps the teat hole needs to be enlarged a tiny bit. Do the pyjama pants smell of you? You are taking the place of his mum and all his siblings now so it's not surprising he wants to be close. I must admit, I would give up and let him sleep on my pillow... I love sleeping with kitties and they don't necessarily want to do it for long.
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Ok so I started placing tshirts that I've worn this week in his box for bedding and he seems to like them. He's currently snuggling under a soft toy dog. My main concern is his growth. Generally how long till he starts gaining some weight? And I've been warming the forumla with hot running water instead of the microwave, as it just seems a little easier to manage the temperature
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Hi Nickheik, welcome! Is that your little one in your avatar? What a cutie. Bless you for taking good care of him, it sounds like you're doing a good job. Don't hesitate to post with any questions; there are lots of people here who have raised tiny kittens and give great advice.
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Hi nick, I'd leave him in the box he's already in, cats love to stuff themselves into small boxes for some reason. Also a small box is easier to keep warm and probably feels less scary than a bigger one would. i love his pictures you posted.
Posted 1 year ago by Moonshadow_NZ #
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Hi Nickheik! Your little Matsuri is a real cutie pie! Kudos to you for taking on the task of a kitten so young! I wouldn't wake him up to eat. I suspect that all the good feedings you've been giving him are catching up with him and he's just sooooo comfy that he'll sleep longer. They do alot of their growing while they sleep and a full grown cat generally sleeps 18 hrs. a day. Did the vet recommend an age for providing dry or canned food? I'd guess that soon he'll be ready for something more subtantial than formula. Not alot but little bits of canned and be sure if you buy dry that it's dry KITTEN kibble. It's better for their digestion and the nutrients provide a better foundation for their growth. Best of luck to you both and keep us posted! =)
BTW...If you click on our avatars you'll find that many of us have a Catster page where you can see our kitties too. =) -
Thank you very much guys! He ended up waking up on his own after about 4.5 hours. He ate, went potty, played with my fingers a while, and is now in my lap sound asleep as I type.
I'll be taking him to his clinic on Monday to see when I should start him on some different food. He's still pretty young but I did see little teeth comin in so new food might not be too far away
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Like most babies Matsuri eats,sleeps and does 'you know what', interspersed with playtime. Sounds like a very cute normal kitty Nick. Well done on getting him there.
Posted 1 year ago by Moonshadow_NZ #
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His paws aren't too big yet, but being a kitten that could change within a week, haha.
And that is so true MS_NZ. He just recently started wanting to play with my fingers and such, so I'll have to get him some toys very soon. Gotta wait until someone can watch him for me though, heh
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Last night and this morning I've been havin a hard time getting him to sleep in his box. I figure it's because he's lonely so I've been putting his shirt-blanket on my stomach, wrappin him up in it a bit and letting him fall asleep that way. Seems to work pretty well so far.
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