How old are these kitties? Why are they pooping in the bed? Names? (pics)

xourtney · Aug 20, 2008

Hello!
I have two orphaned kittens in my care right now (first time I've ever owned a cat--or really spent time with one.)

They have been with me since Saturday night and I am wondering their ages. They are on KMR right now and both weigh around 7.5oz, up from the 6oz when I took them in.
(excuse the ugly carpet--its a rental)

Both poop and pee well with stimulation, but the orange one will pee on himself, his sister, the bed, me...

Today he started pooping in the bed (or nest, I think) which he and his sister rolled in.

They purr like crazy, crawl like little maniacs, charging me when I take them out for feeding time, and the grey one can lift herself for a half step (once in a while.)

I'd love to have an idea of their ages and some tips for kitten raising, and name ideas!!

abbycats · Aug 20, 2008

They are Adorable!!!!

Bless you for taking care of these little ones! They look about 3 or 4 weeks old.

goldenkitty45 · Aug 20, 2008

Oh geezzzzzzzzz those kittens are probably no more then 3 weeks old! No wonder they are having problems with elimination and not knowing what to do/where to go. Most kittens don't really use the litter pan till 4-5 weeks and later. I'd confine them to a large crate/cage and a shallow litter pan no more then an inch high.

You probably have to stimulate them into going for a little while. They would need formula and very frequent feedings.

I would pick "Samantha and Darian" from Bewitched

laureen227 · Aug 20, 2008

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Oh geezzzzzzzzz those kittens are probably no more then 3 weeks old! No wonder they are having problems with elimination and not knowing what to do/where to go. Most kittens don't really use the litter pan till 4-5 weeks and later. I'd confine them to a large crate/cage and a shallow litter pan no more then an inch high.

they're really young! for comparison, i'm going to post a pic of Firefox when i took her in - she was 4-5 weeks old at the time.

get some KMR [i used the just born pre-made liquid - sold at Petco] & an eyedropper or baby kitten bottle... if they can lap you can use a shallow saucer/bowl - but they'll get it everywhere! in a couple of weeks, you can try wet food 'soupified' w/the KMR.
if you can't find KMR, try the kitten glop.
lots more info here: handrearing kittens
do you have a thematic preference for names?

goldenkitty45 · Aug 20, 2008

Good comparison. There are enough on here that have had kittens recent to do a more accurate age. I'm going by the ears/position and those feet. I knew they had to be less then 4 weeks as the ears are not in the right place

xourtney · Aug 20, 2008

I just tried a little plate of milk for the babies, but the boy drove head-first into it!

I guess they aren't ready for that, hehe.

I'm not really sure about a theme. I named my puppy Samson after Brock Samson from Venture Brothers since I love the show.

laureen227 · Aug 20, 2008

Originally Posted by xourtney

I just tried a little plate of milk for the babies, but the boy drove head-first into it!

I guess they aren't ready for that, hehe.

if you're referring to cow's milk, it's just as well - can cause major digestive upsets in cats [vomiting, diarrhea]...

GoldyCat · Aug 20, 2008

Originally Posted by laureen227

if you're referring to cow's milk, it's just as well - can cause major digestive upsets in cats [vomiting, diarrhea]...

She said in her first post that they're on KMR.

They're adorable. How did you come by them?

laureen227 · Aug 20, 2008

Originally Posted by GoldyCat

She said in her first post that they're on KMR.

ooops, my bad - i missed that!

meoww88 · Aug 20, 2008

Originally Posted by abbycats

They are Adorable!!!!

Bless you for taking care of these little ones! They look about 3 or 4 weeks old.

Awww Bless them, they're soo sweet

I agree definitely 3 to 4 weeks old.

rockyzeus · Aug 21, 2008

i also agree they are not more then 4 weeks of age good luck with them i would see if you could sechudle a vet appointment with them to make sure they are healthy good luck they are cute

xourtney · Aug 21, 2008

Originally Posted by GoldyCat

She said in her first post that they're on KMR.

They're adorable. How did you come by them?

There are a lot of feral cats in my area. Saturday we had the first rain in a long time and as I was coming home I saw these guys crawling away from a dead cat

but it didn't look like them; my husband and I looked for a mama (tried to look in the storm drains, too--they hide there) but it was raining really hard. they were soaked. I hate the feeling that maybe the dead cat wasn't their mom and she was maybe out there, but they were covered in fleas and really cold.

Can a bunch of black cats make those color kittens?

Also, the orange on makes a huge amount of urine. I look them out of their nest last night and it was completely soaked in pee. (The cat bedroom is so stinky

)
The grey one had "darker" urine this morning (drips yellow-clear, but if I stimulate it slows darker), but I think her pee-pee is irritated. I gave her some pedialyte and put vaseline on it. Is there anything else I can do?

I'm going try try and get them to the vet, hopefully by next week. The vet in my area stops seeing people at 4 and my husband works till 5 so its tough.

cc12 · Aug 21, 2008

Oh they are so cute and so lucky you found them.
Usually the mother would be cleaning their waste by eating it at this age. I have 8 little ones and their bed never had any pee pee or poo on it. So they have no one to do that at this age so they just go.
I would maybe get some puppy pads and put it under them so that you can throw them away.
Mine are litter trained but I still find a stray poop in their room sometimes because they are still getting the hang of it. You will have to show them how to use it because they don't have Mama to show them.

Good luck with these cutie pies.

sakura · Aug 23, 2008

I'm so glad these babies were found! Chloe was found in a similar situation (in a rain storm, busy street, one littermate, no mom in sight, about 4 weeks old) and now she's a healthy 1 year old fireball.

I'm pretty sure that black cats can have kittens those colors.

Are you going to keep them or re-home them?

I don't know a lot about kitten care that young but how about the names Archie & Veronica? The little red-headed guy could be Archie and the girl is Veronica

kittyl0ve4 · Aug 23, 2008

Im not saying im an expert, but those kittens look older than 3-4 weeks..
Here are a couple pics of Monster, when he was 4 weeks old

goldenkitty45 · Aug 23, 2008

No way are those kittens more then 4 weeks old - look at the ear set and how the feet are held. They are no more then 3 weeks old.

sohni · Aug 23, 2008

These ones are three weeks old:

This one is two weeks old:

I think the OP's kittens are pretty darn young.

sohni · Aug 23, 2008

If you like cartoon themed names you could try Azreal (smurfs) for the grey one, and Copper (fox and the hound) for the orange one.

icklemiss21 · Aug 23, 2008

I would guess 2-3 weeks.

To give you and idea

Lori at 1 week

Lori at 2 weeks

Lori at 3 weeks

Lori at 4 weeks

icklemiss21 · Aug 23, 2008

and Tippy at just over 5 weeks

How old are these kitties? Why are they pooping in the bed? Names? (pics)

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