Caring for a stray kitten - need help!

A neighbour found a stray kitten in their shed and brought him over to us. We've had plenty of outdoor cats, but I've never tried to take care of one on my own. I figure he's about 3 weeks old. His eyes and ears are open, and he can move himself around, but he can't stand up on his own yet.

I've had the kitten with me all day. Every time I put him down or in a box, he starts crying immediately and won't stop until I pick him up again. Would this be because I need a heating pad in the box? Or is it because he's all alone? Or maybe a combination of both? I want to be able to put him in a box tonight without him crying all night so that I can get some sleep.

I'm also having trouble feeding him. I bought KMR and a bottle at a local store, but he just doesn't want to try sucking on it. I also tried a syringe, but he won't put his mouth on that either. He absolutely loves sucking on my hands & fingers though.

His cry sounds a bit strained. I'm not sure how to explain it.. He sounds like he lost his voice or something. Just doesn't sound like any of the kittens we've ever had outside, and we've had lots. Not sure if this is a sign of a health issue, or that's just how his voice is.

Finally, he doesn't seem to be crying for food at all. He has slept on my stomach most of the day. He'll wake up and suck on my fingers sometimes and falls back asleep, but never just starts crying for food.

Update: He's been sleeping in a box for a few hours now. I put a heating pad under half of the box and placed a towel inside and he likes it. He also started to figure out the bottle. He is chewing on the bottle nipple instead of actually sucking it, but he's getting milk out so I think it'll be ok.

Good he begins to eat!  Syringe is easier, he doesnt necessarily suck on it, you squize it gently into the corner of his mouth, ie a sort of forcefeeding.

But better he does it himself yes.   I hope you do it him on the tummy, head a little up, like if he nursed his mom?

There are tips on how to perk in energy in weakish kittens, but you seem to managed beautifullly so far, and its going now.  

Im not sure he was abandoned for real.  The most probable is, mom left him there and was searching after food.  Or fetching rest of the kittens.

But anyways, now he is inside and the most difficult part is done.  The best for him IS to be adopted and fostered, so... Proceed.  And proceed to be very mommy to him.   A little later you can surely pick the friendliest of your residents and let him / her help with fostering / companionship.  (when you are sure he is healthy that is)

Dont forget to stimulate for eliminate / evacuate him, if he doesnt do it on his own. 

Tx for caring!

 Good luck!

Oh, so glad he's doing better.  I was thinking his voice may be worn out from crying.  He's missing his mother and siblings and the warmth of the heating pad helps replicate their presence.  Just make sure it doesn't get too hot for him.

Kittens this young are very susceptible, so watch him closely. If his eyes gunk up, get him to the vet right away.  He may have an upper respiratory infection.

Stefan is correct about stimulating him, too.  He'll probably have loose stool because of the change in his diet but his body may also still need to be reminded it needs to go.  Mom would wash her babies and her licking would stimulate them to go.  Washing him with a warm, wet washcloth is an excellent way to mimic this.

Yes, I have him on his tummy and make sure his head is up to feed him. He hasn't fully grasped the bottle idea yet, but he is getting some food. He still much prefers to suck on my fingers, so I let him switch between that and the bottle when feeding.

His voice sounds much healthier today. Sounds just like any other kitten we've had. Must have just been strained from crying too much.

Yeah, I doubt he was just abandoned. My mom is the one that talked to the neighbour, so I didn't get a chance to ask how long he had been alone for. We live on an acreage though, so there's always a chance that the mother was run over by a car, or that something happened with another animal (there's foxes & coyotes around and no one keeps their dogs on a leash).

I have been stimulating him after each meal with a warm, wet cotton ball. He's been peeing, but hasn't defecated yet. I read that they don't have to do that often when they're on KMR, but hopefully he goes today. Our dog groomer is coming over tonight, and she's raised lots of kittens herself, so I'll get her to look at him and make sure everything is going well.

Kitten is still doing well. Has been eating more (I think it's less than what is recommended, but after a while he just turns away from the bottle, so I assume he's full.) He also pooped this morning finally! Not lots, but better than nothing.

I have one more question though - he has an eye infection, which every kitten we've had seems to get. It always clears up on its own for the outdoor kittens, but I'm wondering if there's something I can do to speed up the healing, besides taking him to the vet? Would a tiny bit of polysporin be safe? Or should I just continue with a warm, wet cotton ball a few times a day?

I believe there is an antibiotic eye ointment you can get - the polysporin isn't for eyes, if I am not mistaken.  If it is, it shouldn't hurt.  I would keep washing his eyes with a cotton ball soaked with saline solution, which is antiseptic and sterile.

I would watch though to make sure his nose isn't stuffed up.  That's an upper respiratory infection and a bit more serious.  Worth a trip to the vet, just to be safe.

Glad he's doing better!

He seems to be breathing normal to me. Doesn't sound stuffy at all.

I'm looking online and not seeing anything available for this at local pet stores, which means I'd have to go to the vet. I can't really afford that right now, but if it gets serious, I'll take him. Like I said though, we've had tons of outdoor kittens, and every one of them gets this. It always clears up by itself, but sometimes it takes a few weeks, so I just wanted to speed up the healing process.

It may be something the cats were overcoming as their immune systems matured.

Keep wiping his eyes and keep a watch on it.  All the changes in his life may have stressed him out and that will make it harder for him to fight off any infection.

Alright, I have a new problem. Hopefully someone can help before I go to bed.

I fed him around 5 today. 3 hours later, he woke up and started crying. I figured he didn't get enough food from the last feeding (still being a bit stubborn), so I gave him more. Now he won't go to sleep in his box. The heating pad is on, but he just keeps crying and won't sleep. The only things that help to stop him from crying right now are letting him walk around, or letting him sit on my stomach and suck my finger. Why won't he sleep? He had been doing so well with falling asleep within about 10 minutes before. Is he still hungry? I've been feeding him until he won't take the bottle any more, but I'm not sure if he stops because he's full, or because air bubbles keep forming in the bottle's nipple, discouraging him from continuing. Or maybe the formula still isn't coming out fast enough for him.

Is he evacuating as he should?  If not, you must help stimulate him.

Tell us if you need tricks...  If he is perhaps constipated.

Also, burping may be useful.  Like a baby after feeding, especielly when using a bottle.   It seems  often burping is not necessary, but sometimes it may be the difference...     @xxTaylor  

He's been peeing after almost every meal, and has pooped once so far. Is it ok that he didn't pee a few times? And what should the consistency of his poop be? I thought it would be more solid, but it was liquid.

I finally got him to sleep during the night. He figured out how to get out of quite a tall box, so had to put him in a huge Rubbermaid container. I think part of the problem last night is he didn't like such a small box, plus his new one is clear, so he could see me beside him in bed.

I've tried burping by just gently patting his back after feeding with 2 fingers, but I don't think it's done anything yet. He seems to randomly burp on his own after feedings.

We've settled into a feeding every 4-5 hours. For his feeding this morning, I stopped letting him suck my fingers in between the bottle. I think it helped! He seemed to eat considerably more.

He may also be lonely, which was helped by him being able to see you.  He sounds like he's going to be a people cat!  Excellent idea - but I predict he may begin to want to actually be with you in future.  You're his mommy now. 

That's actually great to hear It's not always easy being with him so often, especially if I need to eat or something, but we're making it work. Our Pomeranian absolutely loves cats, so once kitty is old enough to not be confined to a container any more, our dog will love sleeping with him too, and that should help me out. She actually goes to his container and checks in on him a lot, and loves to play with him & lick him when I put him on the floor.

Thanks everyone for the advice. If I have any more questions, I'll definitely be back here!

Oh that's great about the dog.  She'll provide him with the love and company he needs.

The last (and only) time he pooped was 2 and a half days ago. I fed him this evening and stimulated him after, and the tiniest amount of poop came out (not solid). He also didn't pee at this time. 10 minutes later, he was walking on the floor and a whole bunch of poop came out. Some was liquid, and some was hard. I'm assuming this is normal...? After this he slept on my lap for 2 hours. I then put him in his box, and 5 minutes later there was a big spot of pee on the blanket. Should he be going by himself like that yet?

Hi Tyler, I think it's wonderful that you are trying to help this kitten but I think maybe you should take him to a vet. You need an evaluation so you can see where he's at; is he hydrated enough, are parasites an issue, is the eye problem turning into a URI etc. At his age kittens can go downhill fast. Do you have a 24 hour vet hospital in the area? Many of them will offer a break on price if you explain that you found the kitten and you are trying to do right by him. 

Update: After his last feeding, he started pooping as soon as I started to stimulate him. It wax a lot, and it was almost all liquid. Hopefully this is just because he was backed up for a few days, and that he has it all out of his system now. *fingers crossed*

Tyler, please keep an eye on him. He sounds like a four week old I found who had a raging case of parasites. That kitten had loose bowels and became dehydrated. He also had major issues because the parasites were taking nutrients he needed and making the bowels work overtime. This kitten developed fading kitten syndrome and spent a week in ICU; we pulled him through but it was touch and go. 

xxTaylor said:

The last (and only) time he pooped was 2 and a half days ago. I fed him this evening and stimulated him after, and the tiniest amount of poop came out (not solid). He also didn't pee at this time. 10 minutes later, he was walking on the floor and a whole bunch of poop came out. Some was liquid, and some was hard. I'm assuming this is normal...? After this he slept on my lap for 2 hours. I then put him in his box, and 5 minutes later there was a big spot of pee on the blanket. Should he be going by himself like that yet?

Click to expand...

Poo of kittens before they eat solids is rather rare.  The ideal consistency is usually described like tooth paste.   It there were hard pieces, it tells he had some constipation. Its surely why he didnt eliminated several days.

Liquid is thus a little too rare, but still, better than constipation.   So its not perfect, but not so bad as it sounds

You can try with giving him some puré of canned crushed pumpkin, the plain type, not any sweetened pie fillings.  He is old enough for it now.  This is often used to regulate his bowels, both to prevent constipation, but also, regulating, to lessen on tendency of watery poo.

He is beginning to elimate himself  - as they do with time.  So its time to try and litter - training him.  Be sure the litter is non clumping, as he will prob want to try it out.  You dont want clumping sand inside of him.

Otherwise, its just to change his bedding often enough...

If he gets more constipation, you can try and eliminate by: you hold him in left hand.  His back end you have into running warm water, so its nice for him. With forefinger of your right hand you tap on his behind and his genitals.   Work nicely.  It also gives some mild massage on his tummy and intestines, loosening the knots...     Be sure there is no draugh, its comfortably warm in the room, and you dry off him afterwards carefully.

This tip learns us also, its fully possible to bathe even small kittens when necessary.   

Good luck!