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orphans

post #1 of 30
4/22/10 at 2:07pm
Thread Starter 
I have adopted an orphaned litter (5) of kittens. They were about 2 weeks old when I found them. Eyes were not open yet. I knew mom had them, she was feral, and was run over and died. They are happy, healthy 4 week olds now and have tripled in size. I still stimulate to potty at feedings. How do I introduce a litter box? They don't have a mom to lead the example. Also, What kind of real food should I start them on and when? They are on KMR and eat about an ounce each every 3-4 hours. If it matters, there are 2 females and 3 males. This is a whole new world for me. I love all animals, but am primarily a dog person. I have also found good homes for them when they are ready. Two will stay with me. Any help will be appreciated. I call my vet on a daily basis, but need a wider assortment of resources. They were also vet checked with a perfect bill of health.
Thanks,
Emily Strickland
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post #2 of 30
4/22/10 at 3:39pm
Welcome to TheCatSite Emily...
you have a loving heart.

I am sure that you will have some useful feedback from members soon.
Please make yourself at home.
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post #3 of 30
4/22/10 at 3:46pm
First of all, welcome, and thank you for taking in these little kittens

Kittens just know how to use a litterbox from instinct- it may take them a little while to catch on, but they eventually will get it. I use a shoe-box lid to start them on with a little bit of non-clumping litter( clumping can be very dangerous for kittens because a lot of the time they eat it, and it can clump in their stomachs). Put them in there after meals and when they wake up. Take their paws and just dig in the box with them so they get the feeling of it. Some catch on quicker than others, but it shouldn't take too long, especially after they start eating solid food.

On that note, it's a good time to start showing them solid food. You can use wet or dry food(for dry you want to moisten it up with the milk replacement of water). If you decide to try wet food, what I do is(and it can get messy ) I take some wet food on my finger, and smudge it on their face around their mouth. Their instinct is to lick it, then they get a taste for it. Once again, some take longer than others to get the hang of it. Keep them on KMR until you know for sure that they are all eating the solid food.

Raising babies from such a young age is such a wonderful and rewarding experience. You're a wonderful person for saving their lives
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post #4 of 30
4/22/10 at 4:03pm
Thread Starter 
I have had a really great time taking care of these babies. They are all so sweet. Thanks for the info!
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post #5 of 30
4/22/10 at 4:27pm
Kittens will typically start using a litter box without stimulation around 3-1/2 to 4 weeks old, so I suspect yours are ready for one. Use non clumping litter, and start the transition by stimulating them while they are in the litter box. Kittens may have an instinct to bury their waste, but mine had no clue what a litter box was for until I showed them. Don't be surprised that you'll need to do things like hold their tails away from their bodies at first - my last orphaned litter got their tails dirty when they didn't realize they had to do that.

Some people start transitioning them off the KMR by forcing them to learn how to lap it from a bowl. Once they are used to a bowl being a source of food, you can start to incorporate wet food and water.

Orphaned kittens are a blast!! And by all means, please tell us when they've used the box on their own for the first time. I know I called my friend the first time mine did that! You will be the proud meowmy!
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post #6 of 30
4/22/10 at 5:55pm
Bless you for taking on the raising of these dear little creatures. I am sure I speak for all of us when I say we are looking forward to hearing all about their progress as they grow and learn. We would also love some pics. There can never be too many baby pics posted here.
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post #7 of 30
4/23/10 at 10:36am
Thread Starter 
Someone used the litterbox last night! I am so excited! Again, thanks for all the info. I will try to post some pics early next week. We have 2 that look siamese, one black and 2 striped. I am keeping the white female and striped male (spayed and neutered as soon as possible). My son is keeping the striped female, and I have a friend that says she wants one, and wants it to be the one noone else wants. Still looking for a home for one male. These guys have been a godsend for me. I am recently divorced after 15 years, and they have really helped me alot. Don't know how you guys feel about religion, but I think God has really taken care of me.
Again, thanks for alll the support. Sure I will have more questions!
Emily
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post #8 of 30
4/23/10 at 11:07am
Your post warmed my heart Emily.

I look forward to seeing your cuties pictures.
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post #9 of 30
4/23/10 at 2:13pm
It warms my heart to know that you all helped each other out
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post #10 of 30
4/23/10 at 7:04pm
I think we need to see some pictures!
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post #11 of 30
4/27/10 at 3:40pm
Thread Starter 
They used the box all by themselves friday night! The only time they have accidents is if the box is occupied. I have them in a playpen, so really don't have room for 2 boxes, but they will be out of it soon. I also put dry food in friday just to see what they would do and they were all over it! I am still bottle feeding, but they are playing with the food and a few are nibbling. I have a couple of pics, but they arn't very good. I couldn't get them to hold still! Can someone tell me how to post them? Thanks again!
Emily
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post #12 of 30
4/27/10 at 3:58pm
I use photobucket.com because it's easy and quick. Once they're uploaded, you need to copy and paste the IMG tag (last tag under the pic) and then post it here

I can't wait to see them!!!
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post #13 of 30
4/27/10 at 6:35pm
Thread Starter 
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post #14 of 30
4/27/10 at 6:46pm
Looks like a seal point and a lynx point, in the siamese. And at least medium-length hair, it looks like.
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post #15 of 30
4/27/10 at 6:49pm
Thread Starter 
all of the dark ones are going to be short hair. Female white is going to be medium and the male will be long. He is much smaller than he looks. He is all hair. Sorry the pics wern't very good. I'll keep trying to get some good ones.
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post #16 of 30
4/27/10 at 6:50pm
Thread Starter 
what is a seal point and Lynx point?
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post #17 of 30
4/27/10 at 7:24pm
Those are some ADORABLE kittens! It looks like you did a good job with them!
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post #18 of 30
4/28/10 at 8:45am
Thanks for the pics. They are so cute! I hope they continue to thrive under your care.
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post #19 of 30
4/28/10 at 3:20pm
They are adorable.
You are doing a wonderful job caring for them.
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post #20 of 30
4/30/10 at 9:32am
My husband found 3 babies at work. The mother and them got seperated when some workers moved a front-end loader that they were living in. The mother is feral and the loader was moved to the other side of the complex. They must have only been a day or two old as they still had their umbilical cords on. They are now 4 weeks old and they are keeping me on my toes. I am going to start with the liter box this weekend. I have been trying to get them to drink from a bowl and so far its been less than perfect. They love that bottle and maybe drink for a moment and then just step in it. But I will keep trying. I tried a little wet food mixed with KMR yesterday and they wanted nothing to do with it. Bless you for taking your babies in....and I am glad that you posted and got some good feedback as that has helped me too. Mine babies are are Torties and I will post pics soon. Yours are so beautiful and I am glad you have homes for most of them. I have a lot of interested people also. I too have found this to be very rewarding and so glad to have experienced this. I will miss them and am thinking of keeping one. I already have three, but I'd love to keep them all.
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post #21 of 30
5/6/10 at 10:39am
Thread Starter 
Sorry it has taken so long for an update. The babies are great. They are eating hard food and I am bottlefeeding 2 x a day. The bottle is more for me than them! Everyone is using the litterbox. I had to put 3 with them because if one is occupied and another needs to go, they will not go in the occupied one. They are climbing everything! My legs are tore up from them using me as a jungle gym! they have lots of toys and I love watching thm stalk each other. Reminds me of baby Simba from the Lion King. They are around 6 weeks old now, and the 2 that are going to other omes will be leaving next weekend. I will miss them both, but at least 2 will be with me and the other with my son, so I can see it anytime. They do great in the car, other than me not being able to corral them so they are everywhere! I have 2 new pics. The one of the lone kitten is Circe. She is one that I am keeping. The other is how they sleep. It is a bamboo box and they hang 1/2 way out of it. They opened there eyes as I snapped the pic, but that is actually how they lay. I am also keeping the striped male. Any Ideas on names? Spike is stuck in my head for some reason, but kind of want a Greek mythology name to go with Circe.
Thanks again for everything
Emily
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http://i837.photobucket.com/albums/zz299/craftyestrickland/cid__0428001741.jpg[/IMG]
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post #22 of 30
5/6/10 at 10:40am
Thread Starter 
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post #23 of 30
5/6/10 at 12:38pm
They sure are precious!
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post #24 of 30
5/6/10 at 12:43pm
They're getting cute everytime!
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post #25 of 30
5/8/10 at 4:41am
Is there any way they can stay with their siblings a bit longer. Our vet told my daughter the other day, don't let them go any sooner than 8 weeks. As important as human contact is, kitten to kitten contact is more important at this stage.

If you can see your way clear to hold out till 8 weeks, you will probably have better socialized kittens. They really need the interactive play at this stage.
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post #26 of 30
5/8/10 at 5:04am
Yes, my vet said 8 at the very least, but that keeping for 9 or 10 is the very best. Just a suggestion. Mine are 5 weeks now and I will keep them at least another three...possibly four or five. That's both for their benefit and mine. lol
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post #27 of 30
5/18/10 at 3:32pm
Thread Starter 
Sorry it has taken so long to reply. I am going to keep them a little longer. They are so cute right now. Totally weened. They run, jump and play. I love watching them stalk each other. They are into everything! Think I said before that I have bred dogs in the past. I can't believe the difference between behavior in puppies and kittens! I think Kittens are more labor intensive because they can climb things and puppys can't. I will never complain about puppies getting into trouble! Still looking for a home for 1, and a friend of mine has kittens under the porch. They are just now comming out and playing. I have been asked if I can find homes for them also, but I don't know if I should mix the 2. Any suggestions?
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post #28 of 30
5/19/10 at 2:35pm
I just saw the babies photos, they are adorable.

Did you mix the two litters?
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post #29 of 30
5/19/10 at 3:22pm
Thread Starter 
No. They are all from the same litter. I don't know if it would be ok to put the 2 litters together, since the others have been outside with no human contact. Plus, I am sure there is a flea issue and I don't want to expose these babies, my dogs or my birds to that. I really would like to take in the other litter to give them a chance at life, but I don't know that it would be safe for all of my other animals. I was suprised when I found this litter at the vast difference between them all. Have short medium and long hair with siamese looking, striped and solid black. Again, thought I had a pretty firm grasp of genetics, ect with the dogs, but I was badly mistaken! What is even worse is that I have become so attached to them all I do not want to let any of them go. I think instead of being the crazy cat lady, I am going to be the crazy animal lady! I would have no problem opening my own petting zoo at this point! 10 zebra finches, 5 kittens, 6 mini schnauzers and a giant schnauzer on the way (will have by september)! I guess I am a glutton for punishment! Seriously I am about to open a boarding facility withing the next 2 months and I will be doing rescue work. I have dabbled in both and now is the perfect time for me to jump in head first.
I just wanted some opinions about taking in the other litter with all of my other animals.
Thanks
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post #30 of 30
5/20/10 at 4:29am
Quote:
Originally Posted by craftyestrickla View Post
I just wanted some opinions about taking in the other litter with all of my other animals.
Thanks
We love crazy animal ladies here.
So that your question does not get lost in this thread, it might be a good idea to start a separate thread with this important question.
How are the kittens doing?
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