Two orphaned 4-week old kittens

Hi there,

I've recently become the foster mom to two 4-week old kittens. I work at a vet clinic, and a client found them in her backyard, no mom in sight, so brought them to us. As they are so little, I bring them home every evening, and bring them back to work in the day. They are eating well (in fact, they are little piggies!) eating around a can and a half of Royal Canin Development Kitten each day between the two of them. They are also learning to drink (with a few face dunks), and are VERY active and playful.

They do have chronic diarrhea, and have received one dose of Strongid-T and are getting a quarter sachet of Fortiflora/kitten daily. It is still very loose, and one kitten seems unable to control this and drips when out playing. The other kitten finds a corner to go in before eliminating. Our vets think it is just the transition onto wet food from their mother's milk that caused the diarrhea, but I would have thought there would be some improvement in the 5 days I've had them.

They get very poopy and gross over night, so get a daily bath in warm water with just a drop of very mild vet shampoo. They are thoroughly towel dried before going into their carrier with a heater in the room to prevent them from getting a chill. They are starting to groom themselves, but they aren't so great at it...

I take them out often to play and run around the room, and they are very people friendly and love attention. They are just starting to play with toys and eachother, and every day look stronger.

Is there anything else I could/should be doing? Ive never raised baby kittens before, but am trying my best. They do get vet attention daily at work, and their growth and health are monitored. I am just still so worried about their diarrhea. Should I be?

Thanks, sorry this was long-winded...

Welcome to the site

It's great you have taken these kittens in and I'm sorry you are having poop problems.
I would have expected the diarrhoea to have started to improved, if it was just the transition to kitten food.

I suspect it might be the Royal Canin food thats causing the problem. I would suggest giving them a very bland diet of cooked/boiled chicken and rice for about a week to see if this improves their poop consistency. If it does, you then know it's the Royal Canin that's the problem and then you try completely different brands.

Just make sure you slowly introduce the new foods by gradually mixing it in with the chicken.

Please keep us posted on how you are getting on :catguy:

Agree with @GemsGem  , it could well be the Royal Canin and it is worth stopping that and trying a bland diet to see if their systems recover.  My boy didn't tolerate Royal Canin at all even by the time he was 4 months.  Each time it was tried he would get diarhoea.  If this continues though you should go back to the vet, or if there's any sign of them being less playful. 

Do you have possibility to get goat milk, preferably fresh, but bottled is OK too?   Its never wrong with this, either as main course or as supplement.

Royal Canins baby dry is working nicely, our experienced rescue advisor tells.   So there are RC products which are first class.  Also, their kmr-milk is OK.

You had tried with probiotics, which is usually a good idea.  BeneBac is another good one.

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice!

They will be coming back into work with me tomorrow, and we've blocked off time for the vet to see them in the morning after a bowel movement.

Otherwise they are still very happy, healthy kittens. The plan is to adopt them out from the clinic after 8 weeks old and after first vaccines. The new owner has to pre-pay the spay/neuter cost, and sign a contract to bring them back at 6 months for their respective surgeries. In a perfect world, we'll adopt out to our clients, so we can keep seeing them as they grow over the years. I know I'm going to be VERY picky about who they go home with