HELP! First time kitten mom

*Gray Tip*
3.2 ounces 1 day old
7.3 ounces 12 days old!

Sarthur2 this is the same baby you asked about in the picture! Her eyes have opened and her fur has really come in! She has unusal gray coloring on her back legs and front foot (didn't get pictured this time) and cute two dots of gray on her pink little nose! She is defiantly the one who looks just like mama, without the black! She has been gaining great weight, but her personality hasn't shown through yet either, although I do think she may be my quiet sweet one. She LOVES to lay on her back and have her belly rubbed. She will lay there for me and I'll just rub her little tummy and she will stretch her little legs up in the air and yawn her little yawn, it is adorable (Video below!)
I love the top left picture of her. We got the shot of her, which looks like she is crossing her little paws contemplating what's going on in kitty world lol.


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Dark Paws
3.8 ounces 1 day old
9.0 ounces 12 days old!

Dark Paws otherwise known as Fatty or Trouble Maker is my biggest kitten! He has always been the biggest of the litter and kept the title this whole way through! He is my other trouble maker, along with stinker butt, and is also always trying to get in trouble! He is my first kitten to start trying to play with his siblings. He and Multi were wrestling around yesterday evening (He was biting at Multi's foot) and it was so darn cute. He and Stinker Butt are the two that love to cause chaos and I swear they are gonna give me premature gray hairs! Even though he is a trouble maker, he makes up for it with his cute little face! I adore his tiger markings.

*Light Paws*
3.9 ounces at day 1
8.3 ounces at 12 days

This girl right here is my little Princess! She is so stinking cute, I couldn't take enough pictures of her. She was one of my bigger babies when born but fell behind last week and is just now catching up. My goal is to get her to 9.0 ounces at the 2 week old mark, which I think is defiantly doable!
Princess is my snuggle bug and is always snuggling up to one of her siblings or the stuffed animals I keep in their box (check earlier posts from yesterday to see pictures!) She is way more quiet than Fatty and doesn't try to make any trouble so i call them my evil/good twins (since they look a lot alike except for their paw colorings). Can't wait to see more of her personality shine through!

So that was my update on all the babies and I will do a weight check in on Sunday when they will be 2 weeks old!! I am so proud of them all and mama. I have included a little slide show of the pictures with some music!

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[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

While I can't believe how fast these babies are growing, I still miss my sweet Simba every day. Multi reminds me a lot of him personality wise and watching Multi grow and thrive is so bittersweet because I wish Simba was with them and growing as well. He is sorely missed and I still cry every night when I watch my sweet babies roaming around, picturing Simba with them. I have come to accept that he is defiantly watching over them and that he will get to see everyone one day  (not anytime soon!).
This update was for my sweet Simba who was gone WAY too soon but will always have a place in my heart. You will never ever be forgotten baby.

Wonderful updates!  I love the photos and personal updates on each kitten.

WOW!!!

Nice job! All have more than doubled their weights in the first week, which is the desired protocol!

They are all absolutely adorable, and I love your picture scrapbooks of each, along with the descriptions. You already know them so well, and their personalities will emerge more and more each week.

Mama kitty deserves kudos as well for doing such a good job nursing and licking. She has earned a gold medal, and so have you!

Now they need to continue gaining steadily, because you're not out of the woods quite yet, but judging by the looks of each, they are on their way!

Now I'm going back to re-read and study each kitten again.

Hoping you'll add a picture and weight of each kitten every week now, so we can follow you and your kittens all the way through this amazing journey!

Thank you for your hard work and dedication!

Not sure if I've posted in this thread before, but I've been reading all the updates, and wanted to say what an amazing job you've done helping to raise the largest litter of kittens I've ever heard of.   No way could the poor Momma Cat have managed on her own. Not to mention, she was a stray until you welcomed her into your home. What a change in your home in only a couple months!

Love the photo updates for all the kittens.  I'm partial to little Stink Butt, but that's probably due to the name, LOL, as all the kittens are adorable.    And sorry about sweet baby Simba. 

Do you plan to keep any of the kittens?

I have just read your thread and I have to congratulate you on the wonderful job you have done raising these precious kittens. I cannot even imagine how tired you and mamma cat must be. I have never heard of a litter of 9 kittens! They are all so beautiful!

I am very sorry that you lost little Simba.

There are so many wonderful stories of awesome cat lovers on this site. I will enjoy reading more updates on your large family.

Arg I'm so frustrated! It's like once everything starts going good, something Bad has to happen.
Well to start of my scale broke yesterday so I cant weigh any of my kitties until I get paid tomorrow and am able to go buy a new scale.

My frustration is with the mama cat, otherwise known as Dutchess. I'm not sure if it's because she is tired but she had started yesterday to leave her babies for longer periods of time and come back once every hour to nurse for 10-20 minutes then leave again. She is eating well as well as drinking water and using her litter box (poop is normal). I have heard horrkr stories of mastitis and I want to get everyone's opinion on what is going on. I've included pictures of the mama




She let me feel every nipple and did not seem in any pain when I did. it just makes me nervous her starting to leave them for longer times, especially because up till Friday she was an amazing mother and only leaving maybe every 30 minutes for short eating/potting breaks. She has been dewormed, this was earlier in May when I first rescued her, and has been eating her same usual appetite. Because of her leaving I've been now rotatin two groups every hour. When she comes back into the box the next group feeds and then so on. When she leaves I let them all snuggle together.

We have made it so far and I everyone was gaining the best amount of weight so I finally got to stop supplementing but I know I may have to begin again. Just want all my babies to make it.

On a good note, all of the kitties eyes are open! So yay! Two are starting to try and stand up on all fours while everyone is starting to try and play with each other. everyone at this point looks healthy, no yellow pee, and no whining like crazy (hunger).

Thanks guys!

Wow! Poor mom. I want to ask catwoman707 about this.

It may not be mastitis, but she sure looks irritated. While we wait to hear, can you put some olive oil on them for lubrication?

I wanted to get that out there for catwoman, but it sounds like the babies are doing great.

Mom is taking breaks because she is sore. She's endured a lot of sucking. The babies are probably still getting enough for now, but the scale will let you know.

A new scale tomorrow is soon enough since no one is in trouble.

How old are they today? Two weeks? Moms usually begin to take longer breaks around this time. Just keep oiling her nipples for now. It will give her a small amount of relief. Mom is honestly holding up really well and so are you!

sarthur2 said:

I wanted to get that out there for catwoman, but it sounds like the babies are doing great.

Mom is taking breaks because she is sore. She's endured a lot of sucking. The babies are probably still getting enough for now, but the scale will let you know.

A new scale tomorrow is soon enough since no one is in trouble.

How old are they today? Two weeks? Moms usually begin to take longer breaks around this time. Just keep oiling her nipples for now. It will give her a small amount of relief. Mom is honestly holding up really well and so are you!

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I figured that might be it, but I defiantly over worry. And as soon as I posted this, she went into the box with the babies and has been in there for 30 minutes, letting them feed and cleaning/stimulating them all. I was thinking about asking you guys earlier what's a good cream or solution to help with sore nipples bexause I figured with her nursing so many and non stop they must be sore.

olive oil is okay to put on her nipples? Any other remedies?

And yes, today marks 2 weeks since they have been born! :nod:

Just olive or vegetable oil because anything else right now would not be good for the kittens to ingest. Catwoman may have another idea. Do you have oil handy? (Do not use baby oil or vaseline)

Two weeks! Won't be long until they can try mush - around the 4-week mark.They will still be nursing but it will help mom.

Okay so mom's nipples look extremely sore and overworked.

This is of course due to such a large litter, it is like she is nursing 2 litters, which is simply overworking her.

While I can't say if this is the beginnings of mastitis, here are some things to watch for.

One is, mom will have a fever. This is an excellent indicator of a mammary gland infection.

If she slows/stops eating/drinking/nursing.

However this may simply be overworking her, I highly recommend Utter Cream. Sold at feed supply stores. Also vitamin A is good, but prefer the utter cream.

It works fast and is a huge help to ease her discomfort.

When she is taking breaks in between nursing, you can help her out by using a warm compress on her sore areas, be careful not to rub at all.

It's so not her fault, she has done the best she possibly can, I know how relieved you were to not have to supplement, but mom really needs help.

If this does not improve and she ends up unable to continue feeding this many, you may have to permanently pull some and bottle foster them for her.

Not what you are wanting to hear I'm sure! 

But look at it this way, it can get worse, she may decide it's just too much and stop wanting to nurse at all. It is simply too painful and she is overwhelmed. 

Remember, as much as she loves and adores her babes, when it comes right down to the bottom line, she will save herself over the babies.

So stay aware of her feelings and actions, we don't want this to happen, as you might end up in her shoes.........

kntrygrl256 said:

I've been reading this thread and been right there with you and everyone during your ordeal. I think you are doing a wonderful thing for momma and the babies.

I am so sorry to hear that Simba didn't make it, but one thing you can be thankful about is that he passed away being so loved and cared for and you gave him a strong name to take with him to the Rainbow Bridge. He will always remember how you cared for him.

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This is my first day as a member of this site and I've been sitting on my couch for hours reading your story. This site and these people are truly a gift

catwoman707 said:

Okay so mom's nipples look extremely sore and overworked.
This is of course due to such a large litter, it is like she is nursing 2 litters, which is simply overworking her.

While I can't say if this is the beginnings of mastitis, here are some things to watch for.
One is, mom will have a fever. This is an excellent indicator of a mammary gland infection.

If she slows/stops eating/drinking/nursing.

However this may simply be overworking her, I highly recommend Utter Cream. Sold at feed supply stores. Also vitamin A is good, but prefer the utter cream.
It works fast and is a huge help to ease her discomfort.

When she is taking breaks in between nursing, you can help her out by using a warm compress on her sore areas, be careful not to rub at all.

It's so not her fault, she has done the best she possibly can, I know how relieved you were to not have to supplement, but mom really needs help.

If this does not improve and she ends up unable to continue feeding this many, you may have to permanently pull some and bottle foster them for her.
Not what you are wanting to hear I'm sure! 
But look at it this way, it can get worse, she may decide it's just too much and stop wanting to nurse at all. It is simply too painful and she is overwhelmed. 
Remember, as much as she loves and adores her babes, when it comes right down to the bottom line, she will save herself over the babies.

So stay aware of her feelings and actions, we don't want this to happen, as you might end up in her shoes.........

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I will most defiantly get some udder cream! What's funny is right after I posted mama cat went right back to her usual ways. I know she's exhausted and I am defiantly not frustrated at her, just the situation! She has been an amazing mama cat and I just worry about her. Her appetite is still great and she's drinking water, I think she just needed a good break (as would I), but I wanted to Make sure it wasn't an infection.
Do I just put the udder cream on and leave it, or wipe it off before she feeds?
Thank you so much for replying. I love mama cat just as much as I love my babies and want everyone to come out healthy. I am so amazed with Dutchess and couldn't ask for a better mom for all these kittens!

I think you rub it in a little.  I remember someone recommending to to me when I was nursing my kids.  It will not harm the kittens.

Isn't catwoman the best?

Rub it into her nipples and the surrounding mammary area. It should quickly sink in because she is so dry and chafed. Leave it. It won't hurt the babies. Re-apply several times daily as needed.

What do you think about supplementing each group once a day to give mom a break?

Is this good? I called our tractor supply and this is all they had.