Is it possible for a cat to restart lactation?

Hi. Four weeks ago a "wild" cat that used to come to us daily for food gave birth to kittens. A day later she was hit by a car. We took to her to the vet and she is now recovering with us. We were not able to locate the kittens so we weren't able to save them. Yesterday a friend gave as an orphan kitten that they had just found. We believe the kitten to be about a week old - the eyes are open but not really seeing, and he weighs about 175 grams. When we introduced him to the cat last night she instantly adopted him and he bas been suckling regulary. Is it possible that four weeks after giving birth and not having had the kittens for more than 24 hours before the accident that the cat has restarted lactating? When we took her back to the vet for a check up 5 days ago he commented that her mammary glands were swollen.

We are bottle feeding the kitten anyway but we wonder if there is any chance of him getting milk from his surrogate mum.

Many thanks.

It's very possible for this cat to restart lactation, especially if she isn't spayed. It's good that you're still bottle-feeding the kitten as, even though it looks like he is feeding, he may just be getting comfort by suckling but not receiving any milk. The best way to tell if he is getting milk is to weigh him at the same time every day. If his weight steadily increases about 10-20 grams a day, he is getting enough nutrition. Also, if you cut down on the bottle feeds and he is still fat, happy and calm, chances are he's getting lots of milk. If he becomes restless, is crying and is rooting around, looking for milk, you will have to fully bottle-feed him and the mumcat can nurture him by snuggling and cleaning him.