2 week old abandoned kitten HELP

So Loki is between 3 and 4 weeks old now. She is amazing! I am wondering tho if its time to start litter training and what's the easiest way to go about it? While she hasn't pooped in her own she is peeing. I have a pan and litter in her box with her and I put her in it but how do I make her realize the purpose of it. Also she seems to be eating an awful lot now. It went from 1/2 a tablespoon or so to over a full one. Is that normal? I know she is growing rapidly but that seems like a lot!!

Re litter training.      Yes it is time to start as soon as she's going on her own.   It may take her a while to get the hang of it,  but you do want to try because you don't want to actually encourage her to get the habit of going in the wrong places.    

Clean up any messes as soon as possible.  Use an enzyme based cleaner to get rid of the odor.    Check her bedding often and wash as needed.

 Also put a little of her poop and a little piece of paper towel soaked in her urine in the litter box(es),  so she will smell that that is where that waste belongs.   

If she is now confined to a cage  or large box,  she is fine with one litter tray  but if you let her out loose so she has a whole room ,  provide multiple litter boxes with low sides and put them in corners of the room,  or somewhere else Loki seems to be attracted to use for that.  

I start out using the cardboard boxes from cases of cat food because those have very low sides that is easy for a kitten to get into.  Then within a few weeks ( depending on kittens size)  graduate to some plastic boxes with sides about 2 inches high.   

 Make sure to start with non-clumping litter since it is normal for a kitten under 6 weeks to explore things with their mouth and they may try tasting some litter and you don't want them eating litter that will clump.    I wouldn't use clumping clay litter  for kittens under 8 weeks. 

Keep an eye on her and if you see her sniffing around in corners or if you see her squat or get in position to defecate ,  try putting her in the litter tray.      Also  a few minutes after eating , try putting her in it..  

    As she gets bigger,  keep her in one room until she is using the boxes well in that room.  When you do let her out in more of the house,  you will at first need more boxes than for an adult cat,  since kittens can't hold it long once they realize they need to go.     

 Oh  -- and yes it's normal that she is now eating more.    Here's a kitten feeding schedule that gives an estimate of the daily amounts in cc's   http://kitten-rescue.com/kitten_feeding_schedule.html

lokisnewmom said:

That is absurd

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You don't have to agree with what I posted, but there is no need to be rude.

Thanks for the advice! She had a little diarrhea yesterday and then it was like soft serve. I made her some kitten glop because she wasn't gaining enough on the formula. Now she is doing very well! I alternate the glop with KMR. She still hasn't pooped on her own yet. Does it take longer for that?

 Yes it usually does take longer for her to control those muscles to poop on her own.   so it is normal. 

I am starting to get a little worried about Loki. She had some diarrhea 3 days ago and hasn't gone since. She has been eating glop alternating formula. I stimulate her and have even tried doing it in warm water but no luck. She doesn't even seem like she is trying she has been going pretty normally other than this. She is peeing on her own in the litter box now! So proud

UPDATE: after no poop for 4.5 days I took her to the vet. When they took her temp and a stool sample she definitely said she was NOT constipated but quite the opposite. And her tummy was very soft. They suggested to go ahead and start her on food because she needed the extra bulk to firm it up and give her the sensation to poop. The "kitten lady" suggested Royal Canin BabyCat so I went out and got the cans of soft as well as a bag of hard. The hard is only the size of cake sprinkles and is so cute! Well after offering her the wet food first and being snubbed, she chose the hard food and did a very good job eating it even tho it was only a few pieces. They also said to mix the soft in with her milk to make it thick and let her drink it out of her bottle. She sucked it right down and also ate about 20 pieces of the hard. YAY we had great looking poop around 7 last night and a lot of it! I couldn't have been happier. Unfortunately while she peeing on her own in the letter box I am still have to stimulate her to poop. Will she do it on her own soon? Is it normal for it to take longer for her to poop on her own?

She did hit 1 pound and is absolutely amazing!! I am wondering tho when it's a good time to start letting her stay out of her box at night. During the day she stays out all the time except for naps the vet was also very impressed with how well she was and what a great job I had done. That makes my feel so proud! Thanks for reading!

 That's  sure good news she is having poop   -- and not just any poop but  "great looking poop"   ( LOL )  

Yeah that RC Babycat is very tiny pieces, easy to eat,  high calorie.  and that is excellent that it is agreeing with her. 

  and I would certainly hope to get her on wet food too,  so that's a good idea to mix in the wet with the formula in her bottle and I'm glad she sucked it right down.  ... it gets her used to the taste.  then you can start adding more of it.   Then start offering the same KMR x canned kitten food mixture   in a bowl,  plate,  or jar lid.  

 I think it is pretty normal that they pee  on their own before they poop on their own.   She should be starting to do that soon though.   but  sometimes bottle babies can be slower.  

Update:: Loki is amazing!! After her starting on the RC Babycat hard and soft food she pooped in her own and in the litter box! YAY Loki!! I was so excited for her! I am wondering however if it is normal for a little bit of poop to come out while she is playing? I just wipe it off and keep going but I am curious. Other than that she is doing so well!! Her other litter mates all died last week and had I been able to see the future I would have taken at least one more of them. So sad that a little house cleaning and a bath would have saved them all.

^I'm guessing it is normal for a little bit of poop to get left behind and then she expels it while she is in motion.

How sad about her littermates. I don't think you ever told us how you came to find Loki in the first place. Where were her littermates living?

I took Loki from her mom when she was a week old because the litter before her all died. I wanted to give one of them a chance not knowing what the outcome would be. It was my aunts cat and like I said before the living conditions were absolutely horrible there. Loki is thriving and goes to the vet on the 30th for her first shots and 2nd dewormer. She is eating RC Babycat hard food on her own but won't have anything to do with the soft food. I mix that in her bottle during every feeding reducing the amount of milk so it gets thicker. When I ran out the other day I gave her only formula and she almost choked because it wasn't thick. I won't be doing that again! I know that it was selfish of me to take her from her mom but I wanted to give at least one of them a chance to live and be loved and spoiled. Boy is she!! She weighs over a pound now and amazes us every day! We haven't had this much excitement in our home in a while. She makes us laugh until we cry!

lokisnewmom said:

It was my aunts cat and like I said before the living conditions were absolutely horrible there.

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I haven't seen the post where you describe the living conditions at your aunt's. So is your aunt going to get her cat fixed now?

lokisnewmom said:

I took Loki from her mom when she was a week old because the litter before her all died. I wanted to give one of them a chance not knowing what the outcome would be. It was my aunts cat and like I said before the living conditions were absolutely horrible there. Loki is thriving and goes to the vet on the 30th for her first shots and 2nd dewormer. She is eating RC Babycat hard food on her own but won't have anything to do with the soft food. I mix that in her bottle during every feeding reducing the amount of milk so it gets thicker. When I ran out the other day I gave her only formula and she almost choked because it wasn't thick. I won't be doing that again! I know that it was selfish of me to take her from her mom but I wanted to give at least one of them a chance to live and be loved and spoiled. Boy is she!! She weighs over a pound now and amazes us every day! We haven't had this much excitement in our home in a while. She makes us laugh until we cry!

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I only just found your thread and want to say what an amazing job you are doing raising little Loki. It is so sad to hear about her siblings. I look forward to hearing more as she grows and develops and hope all continues to go well for you.    

Thanks so much!! We absolutely love her to death! After hearing about the others dying I have been kind of paranoid about every little sneeze or anything lol I think I'm driving my husband crazy! I am so glad she is thriving and I really feel in my heart she will live a long healthy life!

Fingers and paws crossed for you in this house. 

Oh, no - no spraying for natural instinct behavior! Plus, this kitten is way too small to be punishing for anything. There's lots of ways to deter bad behavior without spraying them with water!

Great to hear she's really catching on to the litterbox and pooping on her own.

 I don't think it's very abnormal about a little poop coming out when she's playing,  it may be that, as Primula suggested,   she doesn't quite get it all out in the litterbox so there's some  left right in the rectum,  that then comes out when she is  running and stretching and climbing.    Maybe partly a muscle control thing, maybe partly that she is  in a hurry to be off and playing,   or it could also be partly related to the texture of the poop  (if it is so soft it's not formed , that could cause her to have trouble pushing it all out.       If so,  let us know.    there's a few things you could do )

 One of those things is something I would recommend anyway considering  the place you said she came from and the fact that her littermates have passed away (RIP kittens) --    I would have a fecal sample tested to see if she may have some other kind of parasite that the de-wormer she had would not have got rid of.  

It will be nice if she'll start to eat some canned food   ( or canned food / formula mixture)  on her own,  so when she grows up she would be able to eat at least some wet.   since it's really better for a cat's health not to be on an all-dry diet. 

Primula also brought up a good point about Loki's mom....   If she hasn't been spayed yet,  is there a way you or other family members can convince your aunt to  do that?  ( or just deal with it yourself?)   If she is not spayed , she is likely to get pregnant again soon and more kittens may suffer... and if they do survive,  that's more added to the population when thousands of cats and kittens are being killed at pounds for being homeless.  

Here is a link to Spay Tennessee  that can help you search for low-cost programs    http://www.spaytennessee.org/

 ( some are even free  if the owner qualifies by income & residence). 

 The ASPCA website also has their own database you could check,  just in case there's anything different.  

 It looks like there are several options around Nashville   including a mobile van that does free s/ n  for pets of low income residents of Davidson County   http://www.nashvillehumane.org/custpage.cfm/frm/89829/sec_id/89829

 For people who don't qualify for that, they can buy a certificate for a cat spay for $65  that is accepted by a group of local veterinarians 

http://www.nashvillehumane.org/custpage.cfm/frm/89844/sec_id/89844

They did a fecal test for other parasites when she was there last week. It was negative!! They won't take the time to have her spayed... That's just how they are and we aren't in the position to have it done ourselves. I hate that and wish I could do more but we are helping mom and granny out and that taps us. They have 2 or 3 females that aren't fixed. It's sad

Update: Loki has lost a little weight and has some diarrhea. I think she ingested a little soap from her bath the other day tho. She is however eating her formula mixed with rice cereal and chicken baby food from a dish! And today she started drinking water from it on her own!! We are down to 2-3 bottles a day. In the morning and at night before bed. When I say before bed I mean like 11:00 lol well she decided she wanted to learn to climb in my bed and play at 3 in the morning. She was too funny to even be the least bit upset with her at all!! If her poop doesn't return to normal she is going back to the vet or gonna see if they can just give her something!

Fingers crossed she's OK with the diarrhea and may be just the changing diet.  Is she managing to consume enough calories - it sounds like she's getting more active and playful now so will be burning much more energy?  

So good to hear she's started training you up for night time hunt and play sessions in place of her mum and siblings.    Long may they continue and that she develops lots of new cat skills.