Newly adopted feral adjusting well, but...

Well, 9 days after the spay and Cookie has only gained 1/4 of a pound, so now he's 8 weeks old and 1 and 1/4 pounds. He does seem larger than he was 9 days ago though. Kinda worried, but maybe he's just going to be a small cat. His mother weighs only 8 pounds. She has been turning up her nose at our food. We are only acquiescing to feed her the stuff she likes (it gives her diarrhea unfortunately) because by not eating the other stuff she's giving Cookie the message not to eat it either, and we need to try to get him weaned. She is still nursing him however, and needs to keep up her strength by eating SOMETHING. When Cookie is weaned, it's no more softie on our side, they'll eat what's put out when they get hungry enough and realize that they're not going to get anything else. Or so we hope.

Binky got her stitches from her spay out today.

Cookie is a little guy if he only weighs 1 1/4 pds. But he really looks pretty healthy in the pictures, so hopefully nothing to worry about. Hope the continue to do well!

Ok, so what age or weight can we hear a kitten purr? Because we have had Cookie for over three weeks now and he has not purred once. His mama purrs but it seems he has never purred, not any that we can hear or even feel. :/

Ok so I was sitting on the couch today when Binky was nursing (yes, Cookie still nurses at 9 weeks old) and I heard his little motor going, so he purrs just fine.

OH GOODIE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cookie's motor runs just fine :lol3: :rub: Such happy news!!

Well, Binky is getting up into high spaces that Cookie can't get up to to try to get him to stop nursing. But then she hogs all the food and won't let him eat any (she will actually bat him away) , and he won't eat if we feed him separately in another room. Oh, he'll take a couple of nibbles but as soon as mama's paw goes under the door he's scratching at it to be let out. Having separate food bowls doesn't help either. Is there anything we can try? He nurses for maybe 5 minutes a day right now and I know that's not enough food for him.

This reminds me of a mare (horse) and her foal :lol3: They must be separated after weaning - at least for horses. Some kittens I think are the same way as foals - never wanting to be separated from their mother. I think you must separate them at least for feeding. Cookie will have to learn to eat without mom nearby. If Binky is pushing Cookie away from food - then that is not good for Cookie. YOu can even gently syringe feed Cookie a little mushy canned kitten food. That might satisfy his need for mothering :lol3:. If it were me, I would separate them for feeding time. If you are feeding dry too, then leave out a few bowls in different locations. Binky is trying to tell Cookie - NO more nursing as best she can. He will learn. :nod:

We did get him to eat 1/4 of a can of food yesterday without his mother. But my husband also had to sit on the floor and use his leg to block the view under the door. We don't have access to specific "kitten food" other than dry kibble, which we leave out but neither of them will eat. The canned food says it's formulated for all life stages, but well you know how these things lie. My husband has also been chopping up chicken and cooking it lightly (just the chicken, no seasoning, oil, or salt) and giving a little to Cookie but most to Binky. Cookie doesn't seem to know what it is, Binky would die for it.

I am sure the All Life Stages is true :nod: Not to worry about that. Canned is better then dry anyway - but more pricey. Lightly cooking up some chicken is a great idea as an addtion to their diet. Maybe make the pieces realy small for Cookie. I bet he will learn to love it. :happy3:

Well, after that bit of sneering at the food we got them, we could only get them to eat canned for a while. Cookie is 11 weeks, and is nursing maybe once every other day at this point. The canned is eating us out of house and home at $60 a month. So we're trying raw, based on the diet here: http://www.catinfo.org/?link=makingcatfood We're using bone powder as we can't afford a grinder, but it mixes very well in our blender, which is a Vitamix knock off but still a lot stronger than your typical household blender. At any rate, it was an immediate success!

OH WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, homemade raw will be much cheaper than commercial canned cat foods. OH GOOD FOR YOU! A good, nutritious diet. I would encourage you to go to our Raw Forum under Nutrition and post a thread! IF you need some extra help, advice and suggestions. SO happy that things are going so well.

Well, we had to give Binky a bath. We put some Advantage on her (the correct dosage, given by the vet) and within four minutes she was foaming at the mouth. I"ve read enough (and we called the vet just in case) to know that we needed to get the medicine off of her. So into the bath she went. She was not happy, she pulled through her breakaway collar and tried to hide behind the toilet (at least we know it will break away with enough force now), she hissed at us, but at least she didn't try to scratch or bite. Eventually she settled down enough for me to pour some water over her back. Then I picked her up in a towel and held her for a little until she decided to scamper off. The towel's on the floor now so she can roll on it and get dry. Well, we know yet another flea med we're not going to be able to give her.

Oh dear..hno: How awful for all of you! Are you sure Binky didn't lick at the product?? If it was placed between her shoulder blades, then she could easily reach around to lick. Cats will foam immediately if they get the product in their mouths . Sorry you had to deal with a bath. So stressful on you and Binky. Hope all is well now.

I'm sure she didn't lick it, I was watching her the whole time just in case she did.We have two more feral kittens next door to us. They have been abandoned by their mother or she has been hurt or killed, they're about 3 to 4 weeks old. Little tux boy is about the length of my husband's hand and his ginger and white sister is twice his size. Binky is no longer producing milk since Cookie is 12 weeks and fully weaned. We can't get to a store to buy formula. However they are able to eat kitten kibble that Cookie would not eat. We can't afford to take care of any other cats other than feeding them. They live in the crawlspace at the coffee house next door. This place is used to feral cats having their litters there. They also see these kittens have been abandoned. Our neighbor is starting to handle them. He usually works with the feral kittens in the area. Unfortunately he is of the mindset that a) kittens are cute, and b) Nature will take care of overpopulation on its own. He fixes the cats that he claims as his own, but doesn't bother with the others. There is no local rescue. The game plan is to continue feeding the little ones next door and continue handling them, and then at 8 weeks (because they do not have a mother, otherwise I would let it go longer) put some postings up on the bulletin board in the coffeehouse about them. Unfortunately my neighbor's idea of what an adequate home is differs by FAR from ours. He doesn't even bother to get his cats their first kitten shots or first rabies shot. And they all live outdoors, though they can get into the crawl space to get out of the elements. If nobody will adopt them, the coffeehouse is amenable to letting them live on the porch and be greeters. I recommended at least getting them fixed, but my neighbor said that kittens were cute and nature would get rid of those who can't survive. The problem is, he's the only neighbor we have who can afford the surgeries.

Well, then you know that Binky is very sensitive to flea topical products. Good that you watched her after application so you know this.

Yeah - I find that most people don't care for the feral cats and have the same opinion of them as I do. I am sorry there are more abandoned kittens. I wish you had more assistance with these kittens. I feel so lucky in that I have at least two to three contacts at any given moment to place kittens such as the ones you and your neighbor found. Wish I could help you, but I am so far away. You just have to do the best you can for them. The problem is that they ALL need to be sterilized or there will be more and more kittens. I hope your neighbor can be convinced since you say they have the money. I would try to plead and convince them to help save lives and get all of these cats TNRd. :cross:

Ok, well with the fact that it was 103 outside today and the tux is SO small (fits in one of my hands) and we're supposed to have severe thunderstorms, we brought them in. I got to the pet store and bought some KMR though they are able to eat kitten kibble. The kittens were panting outside today it was so hot. There was no choice but to bring them in. None at all. We can't afford it long term but there is someone interested in at least one but probably both of them but they didn't have a clue how to raise a kitten this young. We don't really either since Binky did most of the work, but at least I've read enough to try. I'm not giving up on them until they decide to give up. The little tux is skin and bones, dooesn't have the energy to play but he is eating. I just hope it's not too late.

AW Bless you heart... they surely would have perished being left out in this heat. You are doing THE best that you can and I admire and commend you for your loving/caring efforts with these kitties. You are giving them love and care and no matter what happens, you have saved them and given the best chance. We do have a Kitten Forum here on site http://www.thecatsite.com/f/36/pregnant-cats-and-kitten-care and if you really need some experienced advice - please do start a thread there... Sending vibes your way for these babies. :heart3:

Yep, I already started a thread there, and there are pictures.

Revenwyn said:

Yep, I already started a thread there, and there are pictures.

Click to expand...

Just saw!! OH they are so sweet and tiny. for Carly and Simon.

Since nobody's seen a recent picture of Cookie... he has grown and is developing his adult features! He is 3 and a half months old and weighs about 5 pounds already! We thought those folded ears would never pick up, and now they're HUGE. There is no doubt, he's going to be a BIG cat.