orphaned kitten

jbsmomto1

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Hi, my name is Barb and I am working with Toronto Cat Rescue for bottle feeding kittens. I currently have 3 litters right now, the first litter is lone little girl who I named Hope, she is somewhere between 3-4 weeks old, I am leaning on closer to 4. The 2nd litter is a brother and sister, who are also about the same age. The final litter was delivered unexpectedly to me last night about 10pm, a lone male, who is about the same age as the others.

Hope had some sort of nasty bacteria infection going on and has finished her a/b as of this morning. The kitten who I thought wouldn't live has surprised me. Jimmy and Sabrina, are doing well, both are on clavamax for what they think was a URI, both have recovered and will be done with ab on Sunday.

The newest little man, is I'm sure suffering from a URI and an eye infection, both eyes are open but the one eye is so gooped up it has sealed itself. He is sneezing, not eating and very small. By small I mean he weighs 130Grams, the others are well over 250+ with 2 of them being over 300. I have named him mouse and he will be going to the vet this afternoon for a checkup.

So why am I here? I'm not sure really, I guess I just wanted a cat place to visit, to read, to get advice and to show off my rescue babies. You can read the stories of the 4 babes at my blog http://zooinmyhouseohmy.blogspot.com...-and-them.html I do my best to update this daily with pics, weights and what is happening with them. I did this b/c so many people adopt from a rescue but don't really know about their previous lives. SO I hope that they will visit my blog and know as much about their kitty as possible.

my questions for now are :

With Mouse being so small, has anyone ever heard of something that can be added to his formula to help him gain, I know for my parrots they have something called instant ounces but I haven't seen it for cats.

Again with Mouse, being that he is so small, I am assuming that he needs a newborn schedule rather than a 2-3 week one correct?

Hope, is a sucker and Jimmy seems to be getting the brunt of it. I hate to separate them b/c they are at the age where they really need to NOT be alone, so I have been moving her when she starts on him, then she goes to Sabrina, but poor Jimmy's little man bits end up so swollen that I end up keeping her away from the others mostly, I don't want him to have issues later in life with his bits from someone sucking on them. Is there another way to deter her? I have tried bitter lemon spray and thought about hot sauce but I don't want to hurt either baby, I would much rather she just learn not to do it....ideas on that one?
I have considered making little diapers to cover him, but that isn't going to help with litter training which they are doing right now, I have thought about bandaids but worry she will inhale it....

Anyway, please read my blog and feel free to offer any advice, stories or anything else that will help us out. There are tons of pics, more of the litter before these 3 but they were also here from birth and I had more time....there will be lots of these ones as well, but right now I just am having time issues. Be sure when you head there to watch the videos of my minature poodle being a mommy to the babies, she is amazing and if she could lactate there would be no need for me at all lol.
 

StefanZ

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Welcome to the Forums!


About nutritious extras, do you have salomonella-free eggs in Canada?

Raw egg yolk into KMR or goat milk does marvels.

If you dont have guaranteed salomonella free eggs, there are ways to lessen the risks, but it isnt still not 100% safe...



Good luck!
 
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jbsmomto1

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Originally Posted by StefanZ

Welcome to the Forums!


About nutritious extras, do you have salomonella-free eggs in Canada?

Raw egg yolk into KMR or goat milk does marvels.

If you dont have guaranteed salomonella free eggs, there are ways to lessen the risks, but it isnt still not 100% safe...



Good luck!
I can't be sure that we have salmonella free eggs... I have never heard of them so guessing we don't.
 

mom2raven

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I read your blog and now am concerned about my own little orphan. She has a very round belly, I thought that meant she was getting enough food. She also has an eye that goops. It washed off but I still worry.
And I live in a small town where I am not sure that there is even a vet within a hundred miles.
 
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jbsmomto1

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Originally Posted by mom2raven

I read your blog and now am concerned about my own little orphan. She has a very round belly, I thought that meant she was getting enough food. She also has an eye that goops. It washed off but I still worry.
And I live in a small town where I am not sure that there is even a vet within a hundred miles.
A round belly is good, providing it doesn't stay bloated, it needs to shrink down even a small bit before you add more food into it. These 2 have bloat so bad b/c of what they were fed and how they were fed. Round is good, plump is good, but fat, round and very tight are not. Goopy eyes are common, and usually just wiping the eye with a bit of warm water on a cloth or cotton ball will fix it up good as new. As far as mouse's eye, its got puss underneath it that has dried up. I suspect if someone were to attempt to open it that pus would be proven visually.

The very best way to make sure your baby is getting enough food is by 2 things,.... weight, they should gain about 10G a day becoming about a full lb by 4 weeks of age. Also a kitten that is content meaning, filled up, burped etc etc will not usually cry. When a kitten is crying there is a reason, may be one we can see or it may not be...gas pains hurt and they cry, hunger hurts to a degree and they cry, if they are uncomfortable they cry. The weight thing isn't set in stone either as every one of my babies usually gain between 10-20G a day, sometimes more. If its true bloat you will know. if you don't have a scale, get one, weigh baby at about same time every day (be sure to calibrate every time), even there is minimal gain for a day or so, don't stress it happens.
 

mom2raven

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Thank you. Her belly is round but not tight. She is eating 1.5 teaspoons every 2 to 3 hours during the day and 3 to 5 hours at night. She doesn't cry at all, until I grab her to feed her. I think if I waited for her to cry before I fed her she would never eat. Maybe she has learned all her needs are being met so she doesn't need to cry?

How do you keep kittens clean? I use a warm damp washcloth and wipe her off, but she still seems dirty, she poops by herself now and it gets on her and I am afraid of being to rough trying to get it off.

Thank you for the help and good luck with your own little babies.
 

levi68

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I know it's a shame but PLEASE separate Hope and her brother. I just went through this... I had four boys who started to suck on each other. I, like you hesitated to separate them. Kittens have died from complications from being sucked on. You can reunite them when they are eating independantly and when you can supervise. Please don't wait like I did...
I always use papertowels to wipe little bums. I get the quartered sheets and fold them, dip them in warm water and wipe to stimulate.
 
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