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Hello fine cat people..I am new here but have been lurking since I decided to get back into rescuing (I used to be very deep into that world, but stopped 13 years ago, long story but it involved a man )
Anyway, I took in approx. one year old calico who was pregnant (my mom found her)
She had 4 boys on March 13th, 2021. 2 cream striped short hairs and 2 orange swirl medium/long hair.
It was an easy birth, the only hiccup being that the last kitten who was the smallest didn't attach right away but after half hour finally did. My post is mostly about him.
Another hiccup after birth was that Mama Cat (Bronia) got a severe URI when the kits were 5 days old and the kittens started sneezing. After debating and weighing pros and cons both my personal and rescue group vets said to put them on amoxicillin.
This decision was not made lightly.
I will post a picture of the weight the kittens have been gaining, I am obsessive and am extremely invested in these guys.
The kitten I have a question about is the smallest of the 4. His name is Milo. I don't know if he is a runt, Bronia has not treated him differently then his brothers, his eyes opened around the same time...but he is small and gains much less then his brothers. He is definitely smartest of the four, probably because he has to be.
But he does get knocked off the nipple by his brothers.
To show you the difference between biggest brother (Gene) and Milo is easy....Gene is currently at 347g while his tiny brother is only at 289g.
The other brothers (swirly orange) are also over 300g by now (Major Briggs weighs 326 and Dean weighs 306g)
The bigger brothers gain a noticeable amount throughout the day while Milo will only sometimes gain 1g during the day. He seems to gain most of his weight at night
BUT...in a 24 hour period he does end up gaining between 12g and 20g which is in the normal parameters.
I don't think he acts any different then his siblings...I see him on a nipple all the time, he is learning to play, sleeps on top of his brothers and is giving walking a try. His eyes are more open the his biggest brother.
I did try supplementaly feeding him, but he wants nothing to do with KMR. I am getting new nipples today and will try again.
My vets don't seem to be overly concerned, said he looks healthy just small.
I guess my question is whether this is normal, to have one kitten so much smaller then his siblings. Not only smaller? gaining weight at smaller increments.
Should I be more proactive and force the KMR feeding issue?
My vet is very good, but he is not an expert on neonates.
Should I take him to a more kitten experienced vet (I talk to my rescue vet over the phone, but can make an appointment to see her but she is an hour away)
Am I over obsessing, should I just let it be as long as he gains the same amount over 24 hours. I worry about him...
And I am SO sorry about my disorganized and scattered question/story.
I have severe ADD and writing like this is one of the hardest things for me.
Thank you for any suggestions or input in advance.
I have more (many many many more) pictures if they would help.
Anyway, I took in approx. one year old calico who was pregnant (my mom found her)
She had 4 boys on March 13th, 2021. 2 cream striped short hairs and 2 orange swirl medium/long hair.
It was an easy birth, the only hiccup being that the last kitten who was the smallest didn't attach right away but after half hour finally did. My post is mostly about him.
Another hiccup after birth was that Mama Cat (Bronia) got a severe URI when the kits were 5 days old and the kittens started sneezing. After debating and weighing pros and cons both my personal and rescue group vets said to put them on amoxicillin.
This decision was not made lightly.
I will post a picture of the weight the kittens have been gaining, I am obsessive and am extremely invested in these guys.
The kitten I have a question about is the smallest of the 4. His name is Milo. I don't know if he is a runt, Bronia has not treated him differently then his brothers, his eyes opened around the same time...but he is small and gains much less then his brothers. He is definitely smartest of the four, probably because he has to be.
But he does get knocked off the nipple by his brothers.
To show you the difference between biggest brother (Gene) and Milo is easy....Gene is currently at 347g while his tiny brother is only at 289g.
The other brothers (swirly orange) are also over 300g by now (Major Briggs weighs 326 and Dean weighs 306g)
The bigger brothers gain a noticeable amount throughout the day while Milo will only sometimes gain 1g during the day. He seems to gain most of his weight at night
BUT...in a 24 hour period he does end up gaining between 12g and 20g which is in the normal parameters.
I don't think he acts any different then his siblings...I see him on a nipple all the time, he is learning to play, sleeps on top of his brothers and is giving walking a try. His eyes are more open the his biggest brother.
I did try supplementaly feeding him, but he wants nothing to do with KMR. I am getting new nipples today and will try again.
My vets don't seem to be overly concerned, said he looks healthy just small.
I guess my question is whether this is normal, to have one kitten so much smaller then his siblings. Not only smaller? gaining weight at smaller increments.
Should I be more proactive and force the KMR feeding issue?
My vet is very good, but he is not an expert on neonates.
Should I take him to a more kitten experienced vet (I talk to my rescue vet over the phone, but can make an appointment to see her but she is an hour away)
Am I over obsessing, should I just let it be as long as he gains the same amount over 24 hours. I worry about him...
And I am SO sorry about my disorganized and scattered question/story.
I have severe ADD and writing like this is one of the hardest things for me.
Thank you for any suggestions or input in advance.
I have more (many many many more) pictures if they would help.
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