I Bought A Kitten A Few Days Ago. Shes Only 6 To 7 Weeks Old. I Didnt Get Told Until After I Had Got Her Home That She Is 6 To 7 Weeks Old. She Has A Bloated Tummy But I Dont Know If Thats Down To Her Eating Alot. She Also Has Fleas Or Ticks And I Have Asked Everyone I Know About Getting Rid Of Them Safely. Also She Meows Constantly Now I Know Thats Because She Misses Her Mum And Littermates. I Have Made Loads Of Comfy Corners As Such All Around My Place But She Doesnt Like Them Which I Think Is Weird. Also She Is Always Shaking I Dont Know If That Is The Amount Of Fleas. Please Someone Help Me Because I Am Getting Really Upset. ( I Am Unemployed But I Can Get Money Together For Any Emergency Treatment She May Need ). I Need Help With Everything That I Have Put Above. Thanks For Looking.
Daily Kitten Chat Forum » Cats & Kittens
First Time Kitten Owner And Worried Sick!
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Hi, APZ. we're not vets but we'll try to help.
First, you need to get the fleas and/or ticks off her. A gentle bath with Dawn is probably the best way. Make sure you towel her dry really gently but really quickly and well, as you don't want her to get a chill. You should also buy a flea comb and comb her every day. If you have problems with fleas and ticks in your surroundings, get some diatomaceous earth. You need to use the food-grade diatomaceous earth, not the swimming pool grade. (I'll put a pink tag in the corner of the page, top right -- click that and you'll find lots of previous threads giving advice on fleas and how to use diatomaceous earth, which is cheap and safe for you and kitten.) Fleas can cause anaemia in young kittens and even kill them so you do need to deal with the flea problem.
It's great that she's eating well. Is she using the litter box okay? Kittens do have rounded tummies, but if it's hard and distended, then she probably does need to see a vet. If it's soft, and she's pooping okay, then it's probably worms. If she has fleas and/or ticks, she also has worms, and they cause bulgy tummies in kittens. The vet can give you a safe dewormer for her -- I would not use over-the-counter dewormers on her as she's only six weeks old. The worms will be getting a lot of the food you're feeding her.
You're right, she's crying because she misses her mum and littermates. You could try making a nest for her in a box, with one of your old unwashed shirts or sweaters or a fleece sweatshirt. If it's unwashed, it will smell of you and that will comfort her. A heat pad is a good idea, or just a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel (make sure she has room to crawl off it if she gets too hot.) A stuffed soft toy or beanie baby is great for her to snuggle up to and some people suggest a ticking alarm clock wrapped in a towel to remind her of her mum's heartbeat (make sure you turn the alarm off!) Or you could just hold her against you as much as possible.
The shaking could be because she's cold or frightened. Very occasionally it is a symptom of neurological damage so see if, once she's feeling more at home and more comfortable, she's still shaking all the time -- if so, a vet visit is a good idea.
She will need to go to a vet eventually to begin her shots and later to be spayed. I'll give you another tag for low-cost clinics so you can look for them in your area. Ring round your local vets, find out their charges and see if any of them will work with you on payment plans, etc. Some vets will give you a first check-up on your kitten free, in the hopes that you'll go back to them for any future treatment -- check it out.
And come back here whenever you like, with any questions or worries, and I'm sure you'll get loads of help. Does your baby have a name yet? You can put a picture of her as your avatar if you like, and make a Catster page for her (click on my avatar and you'll see my kitties). Welcome to TDK and keep checking back for more answers. :-)
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How to find low-cost clinics for spaying and neutering:
http://www.friendsofanimals.org/programs/spay-neuter/index.html
http://neuterspay.org/
http://www.petsandanimals.org/spayneuter_services.html
http://www.doghause.com/spaywhere.asp
http://cat-care.suite101.com/article.cfm/free-and-low-cost-spay-neuter-clinics
http://www.squidoo.com/low_cost_or_free_spay_and_neuterAlso google for low-cost clinics in your area.
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Oh, and what are you feeding her? A good quality wet canned kitten food is probably the easiest to start with. Make sure meat is the first ingredient on the can. You will gets lots of great advice on here on the best things to feed her but I am in New Zealand (where there isn't a lot of choice, lol) so am not the best person to advise on that.
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Some links for diatomacous earth, if you can't find it locally:
http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/defaq.html
http://www.dirtworks.net/Diatomaceous-Earth.html
http://www.earthworkshealth.com/ -
I Got Some Kitten Food From A Pet Shop In A Pink Pouch... Chicken. She Loves It. Always Makes Noises While Shes Eating. Thank You For The Advice. I Have 6 Flea Combs On There Wayy... Oh And Is Bob Martin Flea Spot On Good For Kittens? With The Bathing... Ive Read On Here That Baby Shampoo Is Good?
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Ohmigosh, I've been giving you all American links but if you're in Reading, I assume that's Reading in the UK?
Okay, diatomaceous earth in the UK is also called Fullers' Earth. Still ring round all your local vets to compare charges but also ask your family and friends if they can recommend good, inexpensive vets. Also contact the RSPCA -- they almost certainly run a low-cost desexing programme in your area or will know who will, and they should also be able to recommend a good vet in your area.
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I wouldn't use Bob Martin Flea Spot-on on a six-week old kitten, I'd stick with the bathing and the comb for now, and/or the vet if you can afford it.
Nothing against Bob Martin Flea Spot=on, I've never used it in my life, but flea treatments can be toxic to young kittens.
For the bath, you need a gentle pure soap (liquid or flakes), something as gentle as possible. Baby shampoo isn't necessarily the best. I thought you could get Dawn in the UK but maybe I'm wrong. It's what they use to wash the oil off seabirds during spills etc.
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Yes Unfortunatley I Am In Wet England Ha! I Tried My Microwaveable Beanie Earlier And She Doesnt Like Sleeping In The Comfy Corners Ive Made... Maybe A Box Might Be The Best Way. I Just Get Upset Because She Shakes All The Time And Meows Like Shes Trying To Tell Me Somethingg. =(
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Okay, in that case look for pure soapflakes or pure soap liquid -- I'm sure Lux or Palmolive would do something similar. Kittens like boxes because they like to feel safe inside a hidey-hole or nest. She's crying because she's so young, once she feels more comfortable with you and safe, and once she gets a bit older, she won't be so nervous.
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Soapflakes... Hmmm Ive Never Seen Soap Flakes And Maybe The Flea Combs May Make A Big Difference As Ive Seen Huge Fleas Running Through Her Fur. I Feel So Bad For Not Asking How Old She Was... She Is Always Either Under The Bed Or On The Floor When There Are Loads Of Nice Spots. Now To Find A Box Lol! Now At Least My Mind Has Been Put Straight... I Was Going To Ring Around Vets And Ask There Opinions.
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Okay, well, a pure soap liquid then. But do give her the bath today as you really need to get those fleas off as fast as possible. The combs will help but the quickest way to get most of them off is a very gentle, luke-warm bath.
She will be under the bed or on the floor, that's where she feels safest. (KIttens like to have all four feet on the floor!) She will start coming out more as she gets more comfortable with you and when she's begun to explore her surroundings. It is a good idea to confine her to one room at first, with her food and a litter tray (not too close together), and a hidey hole (like an open closet) to hide in and then she can come out and explore a bit more each day as she feels more comfortable.
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Yep, apparently the UK equivalent to Dawn is Fairy liquid soap. You need to get just plain Fairy liquid (no fragrances, especially lemon or citrus -- cats hate citrus -- or additives), just plain Fairy liquid.
As I said above, fleas can give your kitten anaemia and even, in the end, lead to death so that is the very first thing to do.
When you bathe kitten, gently soap a ring around her neck first so that all the fleas don't immediately run up to her head. Five minutes is plenty and make sure you rinse all the soap off well. Then put her on a towel and towel her gently dry as fast as possible, comb her to get rid of the last fleas then put her on her heating pad or on her hot water bottle wrapped in a towel. Keep her bedding clean and flea free.
Remember this is just because she's so young and has so many. Keep combing her every day (but avoid further baths as they are a bit harsh on kitten skin.) At around 8 to 12 weeks (check on the packet) you can treat her with Advantage or Revolution. She will need to be dewormed around then, too.
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To be honest, there is not much difference between kitten and adult food. Kitten food is, I think, higher in calories and may have a few extra vitamins or things added but we only got kitten food a few years ago in NZ, before that ALL cats ate adult food.
It could be that it's because of the change in diet (from what they were feeding her before to what you're feeding her now), or because she has worms, or because of stress. If the diarrhoea persists, and she stops eating, she could dehydrate very quickly so if it lasts more than a day and she doesn't eat, a vet visit is in order. Just keep an eye on her and as long as she's eating wet food which has a lot of water in it) and drinking water normally,
and the diarrhoea doesn't persist, she should be all right. Don't give her dry food (cat biscuits) as they take moisture out.If she stops eating, come back and we'll give you a recipe for home made rehydration salts, to keep her hydrated until you can take her to the vet.
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oh ok. I just wondered why it was so full of fleas and stuff. Shame on those people for not letting that kitten stay with its mum for a a couple of more weeks. I found my kitten when he was 7 weeks old, and he did ok. When she gets more comfortable in her home, she'll be less meowy. She's just unsure right now.
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Kitties like the security that the walls of a box offers. As others have said, when she's feeling better/fewer fleas, she'll become a lovey girl and seek you out for play and a place to sleep :-) One of the sweetest things about being a kitty mommy is having your little dear crawl up on your chest and fall asleep purring. It's one of the most wonderful things about being a mommy to a small kitten.
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My kitten had fleas when we got her. We discovered this when we took her to the vet. He said that if she's 2lbs or more you can use a flea treatment, but I wouldn't use that without a vet's approval. You should take her to the vet soon and get her the dewormer. The worms can spread to you if you don't get rid of them soon. Gross. Once she's free of fleas, I would let her sleep with you. My kitten loved doing that. Now she's an independent 11 month old and only occasionally wants her meowmy. I've heard getting her a stuffed animal works well as well as confining her to a bathroom or bedroom for the first few weeks. Although 8 or 9 weeks is better, 6 or 7 weeks isn't super young and she should adjust fine.
I found the hardest thing about having a kitten that young was avoiding stepping on her or rolling over her or having her get into something that's bad for her. and guarding my human food because she always wanted a taste.
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Good luck at the vet! Kitten specific food is best because of the higher fat and calorie content they need, since they burn so much energy. It is great you are taking her to the doc, she will be much more comfy and get the care she needs. It is a good idea to bring along a stool sample as they often want to test for parasites, which are very common.
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Shes Actually A Bit More Relaxed Today Definately... But She Is Having Really Bad Poos... Basically Like Water... She Is Drinking Water All The Time And Is Having Several Meals A Day... Think I Will Defo Ring Up And See If Theyll Just Give Her A Check Over And See That Shes Growing Okk... Shes A Funny Kitten Always Chasing Her Tail Hehe. =D
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