Bottle feeding and stool

Hey guys!

last week i picked up three newborns someone had found in order to try and get them to connect with my nursing mama cat. but since she only liked them for about an hour, i've been bottle feeding them ever since. i have a few questions, though-

they are 6.4 oz, their eyes and ears are open, they're getting little bumps in their gums for their teeth. i had a fecal taken for them and had them dewormed and pretreated for coccidia, and the vet said they weren't dehydrated or anything and that they looked good. but for some reason, they still have lots of diarrhea. i narrowed it down to overfeeding- i was giving them 15-20 mL per feeding- but now that i've cut it down to a more appropriate 5-10 mL every two-three hours, they seem to cry a lot afterwards, as if they're still hungry, and they still have diarrhea. granted they don't appear to be affected by it or dehydrated or anything, they love to crawl around and are pretty strong wigglers, but i'm still a bit worried i guess haha. it's the first time i've ever bottle fed any kittens and i want to make sure i'm doing it right.

anyone have some advice or tips or anything? i would really appreciate it.

the kittens are crying because they are hungry.  If they weigh 6.4 ounces they need roughly 50mls throughout a 24 hour period.  the formula is 8ml per ounce of weight and round up.  They can have more if they need it. The bigger the kittens get the more they will need.   Overfeeding (not really possible) will not give the kittens diarrhea.  what are you feeding them?  We recommend powder KMR over liquid as the liquid can give kittens diarrhea.   You can also give the kittens pedialyte between feedings or if you are using powder KMR can mix it with that.  Kittens can become dehydrated very quickly at this age.

Others will come w/ more advice.  Keep us updated.

we've been feeding PetLac. and oh thank goodness, i've been wanting to feed them cause they just keep crying. i'm gonna go feed them now then! 

so is it 8mL per oz per feeding? the math has me admittedly a little confused, haha.

No per the day/24 hour period.  So if you are feeding. every 3 hours that 8x a day and  6.4 mls per feeding.  Or if you are feeding every 2 hours then 4.5 mls. 

The kittens need to be fed around the clock and should gain a minimum of .2 to .4 a day.  More is better.

ooooh okay! wow that clears it up, thank you!

When is the last time you weighed them?

i took them to the vet on thursday, and that's when they weighed them.

Okay. They should have gained a little more since then. You can round it up to 7 mL per feeding. How are they doing? Are they eating the full amount yet and crying less?

Do you have a heating pad in their nest and a stuffed toy to cuddle with?

okay, i'll keep it at 7mL. i just fed them, but they still meowed for a little bit before getting quiet, is that normal?

i do, i have a heating pad on low, a sheepskin blanket, and some old soft flannel shirts that they crawl all over to sleep with, and a lil black kitten toy that they tend to suck on more than snuggle, lol.

That sounds great! Do you burp them and stimulate them to go wee and poo after feeding them? And did they easily drink all of their milk?

If you haven't been burping and stimulating, you need to. I can explain how. And some of their mewing might be from gas in their tummies. Let me know!

yeah! their urine is a clear color with a slight yellow tint, but they've still got some gooey diarrhea. and yeah, they drank it in seconds, they're pretty eager haha.

oh right, how do you burp them? i've tried sitting them upright and lightly patting them on their backs but it never seems to do anything.

Just put them up to your shoulder and pat their backs. You are probably doing fine. Their stool should be toothpaste consistency, but I know they've had some diarrhea. It should get better.

I'm thinking maybe you should feed them every three hours instead of four since they seem so hungry. Can you try that? How long did they cry tonight? Do you rub their backs or tummies a little to soothe them after you put them down?

okay, i'll feed them again in.. 2hrs 45 mins! and okay, i didn't know for sure, i haven't actually heard any burps.

they cried for a lil while, not as long or as loud as usual though thankfully (maybe because i gave them more?). and yeah, they like to purr and knead and i can't help holding them up to my neck and face and snuggling for a minute

That sounds good. Let me know how they do. Are you feeding them through the night? They have to eat around the clock right now!

Have you tried reintroducing them to your mother cat?

oh gosh yeah, i didn't get any sleep last week haha. now i spaced it out so i wake up twice to feed them and sleep a lil more throughout the day, pretty much whenever they sleep.

they just woke up though for a moment crying, i tried feeding them but they didn't seem too interested, so i changed their bedding and added a few more flannels. i think they just got a lil chilly. 

i have tried that again, she doesn't seem to want anything to do with them anymore. 

Was it time to feed them?

no, at the time i had about two hours to go.