Baby kitten advice

shefflad38

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Hi, first post from UK.

I am a lodger in a home that has two cats (they took strays in). One of the cats was pregnant (the very independent one, the other stays in) and 4 days ago gave birth in my bedroom on my bed. She had two Monday night, and had the third 12 hours later. She took the kittens under my bed into a case I had. (Owners had prepared a nesting area in the living room under a dark chair).

However, yesterday she moved the kittens out of the case and onto a rug, still under my bed but out of my reach! (I had not been touching kittens, but could pull case out to check on them)

Now, I feel she is better in my room (Unfortunately for me) as the other cat is constantly hissing at her, so I can shut the other cat out.

Mum although independent appears to trust me after the first few days. She only leaves the room for minutes at a time but only if I go with her (appears as reassurance) however if I do return to my room she seems happy leaving me in the room if I return. She appears to be doing great, she is always with them and from what I can see they are constantly feeding from her.

My questions/concerns are - I cant properly see them or check on them, is this a major concern? Also, sorry to ask the stupid question but how about the toilet and newborn kittens?

Hope that makes sense. As said, a very independent mum seems to trust me after our four days together so I don't want to spoil that.

Thanks
 

jennyr

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Well, like it or not, you have been adopted! And it is a great thing to win the trust of a feral or semi-feral cat - it is not given easily.

In an ideal world you should try and check on the kittens and weigh them every day on a scale that measures in grams, and be able to change the bedding in the nest regularly. But I would say that as you are sure the kittens are eating well from mum and that mum seems happy, I would take things gently. The last thing you should do is upset the momcat in any way. I suspect that in a few days you will be able to move the bed and get to the kittens and try to put them in a more accessible place,. The mom may move them again, of course!

AS for toiletting, for the moment, the mom deals with all that by stimulating the kittens, licking them after each feed till they go and cleaning up after them. Gross, I know, but it stops the nest smelling and attracting predators. That stage lasts a couple of weeks at least, by which time I suspect you will have made friends all round. When you do get access, we would love to see pictures.!

On feeding, is the momcat getting plenty to eat, ideally a good kitten food? She should have as much as she wants, two or three times a day.

Let us know how things progress and we can offer more advice as they kittens grow.
 

red top rescue

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You might try sliding an old quilt under the bed as far as you can go.  Maybe she will move kittens onto the quilt, and then you will be able to pull out the quilt to check on the kittens.  In the meantime, use a flashlight (I think you call them torches in the UK!) to peer under the bed and make sure all the kittens are moving and with mama, and that should be just fine.
 

StefanZ

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Yes, you can also use a small mirror too peek with, together with this flashlight.  It may be easier in some positions.   Although you wont get as good look see as when you can observe directly.

Anyways, if she is ex-homeless, her situation NOW is a lot better than when still outside...   So, do your best, but dont be sorry if you cant do a 100% effort.

Good luck!

btw, has she been defleased?   One danger when you cant or dont dare to touch the kittens of a ex semiferal/homeless, is if they do have fleas, you wont notice it...   We had horror stories of that sort...
 
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red top rescue

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@StefanZ has a very good point about the fleas.  If mama had any fleas, they would move to the tender babies, and if they multiply, they can actually eat enough baby blood to make them anemic.  You can easily remove fleas from babies using a flea comb, combing out the fleas and flicking them quickly into a dish of water with a little dish soap in it (to break the surface tenison).  Fleas will sink to the bottom and drown.  I recently received a mama cat with 2 kittens left in a box at my gate.  The first night I combed 70 fleas off each kitten and about 3 or 4 off the mom.  The next day I combed 40 fleas off each kitten and 2 off the mom.  The third day I combed 5 fleas off each kitten and none off the mom.  The next day I got 5 fleas total from them and have seen no fleas since.
 
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shefflad38

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Thanks for all the advice.

I managed to pull the rug out yesterday and have a look. They all appear healthy and are moving around. Mum didn't seem to mind too much.

They are now directly below where I sleep so its quite humerous listening to them squeak away. Mum seems great with them and I get the feeling the kittens are in charge as mum always reacts to them (although I'm sure it's just her doing her job)
 
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