kittens and Lysine

Does any one bottle feed healthy, nursing kittens with formula and add lysine to it?  My breeder said she bottle feeds kittens starting at 2 weeks with formula and ads a pinch of lysine to it and a drop of honey?  My mama cat does get lysine on her kibble.  I know that lysine is good for multiple cat homes and to help treat or prevent cat flu but I also dont see why I should fight with 2 week old kittens who are not used to the bottle unless it is absolutely necessary.  Doesn't the formula change the consistency of their stool and maybe the mama cat woudn't do her natural job of stimulating them to pee and poop. 

Formula isn't nearly as good as what Mama Cat has. Mother's milk has a ton of antibodies and beneficial bacteria and everything else a kitten needs to be healthy. I don't have any idea why someone would give formula to healthy nursing kittens, unless it's a particularly large litter and the mama cat needs the help, or she just isn't making enough milk.

If you really want to get lysine into them, you could try one of the lysine gels. Or just wait until they're on solids and add it to their food.

I agree with Willowy, and also your own question.  If you really want to give them extra flask without any need for it, you can give some goat milk, this is at least natural.

I suppose your breeder meant to do it as a way to give them this lysine.  Although I wonder if they dont get some of lysine from their mom.  Speculating here, I dont really know.

Interesting question, hope others will join in.

She does it so they can get the lysine. My concern is the risk of them aspirating, change in stool habits and eating habits. I too wonder if the lysine goes through the mothers milk. Plus they are doing so well why would I want to change anything. But I never want to be naieve and like to know what others are doing.

In my view the less you fiddle round with what kittens eat the better.  Mother's milk (so long as they are gaining well) and then straight onto kitten food.  I know some people give baby rice, egg, kitten milk, goat milk, all sorts of things, but if they are growing well on mother's milk that's best in my view.

Ok, so perhaps solute it in a little of home-made pedialyte?

some dextrose, some kitchen salt, water...  Not harmful, and no changes in stool.  You dont need much, so it will hopefully not make them eat less of mother milk.

Otherwise, goat milk as said. Water down a little perhaps.

Both must be better than kmr without need.

The real question is as said by us both, if it is necessary for healthy kittens with healthy mom.

For virus sick kittens, or kittens where there IS contagion going on in the household,  it is surely useful.

Not even with the rehydration fluid in my view - the kittens don't need it, and you don't want to fill them with something with no food value.  Their stomachs are really tiny so you could easily leave them feeling full with just a small amount of bottle feed.

Also I notice the more I handle (of course they are crying for mom) them the more they appear to close their eyes and as we say in USA "poop out". I am going to hold off on the bottle feeding and introduce the lysine at 4 weeks with their food. I have two neutered adult males. One is a shelter cat that we got at 12 weeks. He has never been sick but I am not sure if he was sick at an earlier age and is a carrier. The other is a Siamese that we got at 12 weeks and his sister that we had gotten with him was deathly I'll with pneumonia. She was coughing out blood, sick. My breeder took her back. Her brother never got sick until about 8 months ago he got an eye infection without symptoms of a uri and was given terramycin. Ocassionally he and the other will sneeze. Right now they have been seperated from the gang except for the occasional walk through the nursery area. No contact with the kittens. Mother has never been sick. All have been vaccinated. I don't feel like I need the lysine for the babies. I am so glad I have this site to go to. Thank too for your help.

Do wash your hands really well before going into the kittens, and consider leaving your shoes at the door and wearing an apron you keep in the room.  It is possible they are carrying and excreting viruses (given their background) that you could transfer on your hands or clothes.

Are you weighing the kittens each day?  If they are putting on 10g or more most days that's fine.  And get in touch with your vet PDQ if they show any virus symptoms.

AFAIK lysine is only helpful for FHV, not for FCV or the other URI viruses cats get.  It works by interfering with the reproduction of FHV.