3 day old kittens. one not gained.

misterwhiskers

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Oh, no. I'm sorry to hear this. I'm not a kitten expert at all, gosh I'm hoping an advisor pops in soon. But I've heard putting a little sugar water on the gums can help with energy and hopefully encourage suckling.

We have a member here who put the nipple to a bottle on a syringe with success. Do you think you might be able to try this? Can you get full fat goat milk as a supplement or do you have kmr?

Praying the little one makes it. Fading kitten syndrome is heartbreaking. You can do your best, that's all you can do. Hang in there, ok?
 

bellad

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I cant help with using a dropper as I have never used one. If your too scared to use it you sew going to have to go to a pharmacy/vets and get a syringe and force feed the kitten one tiny drop at a time in the side of her mouth, giving her time to swallow snd breathe before the next drop. You really need to feed her ASAP or she is going to keep losing weight, I dont think you have any time to waste here.

There are videos on you tube on feeding kittens with syringes/droppers you can watch to give you a bit more confidence

Honey or sugary water rubbed in her gums will maybe give her the energy to eat, Is she warm enough? If she isn't warm she wont eat . Hopefully someone with some more experience will be along soon with more advice

Are you in UK? Me too, a lot of the KMR brands recommended on here aren't available for us. Since I have been hand rearing my kittens I have found most vets stock Royal Canin baby cat milk, its usually around £11, its the best brand you can buy and is also available on amazon a bit cheaper. Most pet shops sell beaphar kitty milk which from what I have read online is also ok to use. The royal canin comes as a kit with bottles and teats in the box with the milk. We had to start feeding our kittens really late at night and could only access a 5ml syringe, one for giving kids medicine. We got on fine with that but your kittens are quite a bit younger so if you can get to a vet or pharmacy they will be able to sell you a 1 or 2ml syringe.
Its scary scary force feeding them the first time, I was so nervous but I knew it was better than the other option of letting them fade. I wrapped mine right up in a towel so only the head was poking out the top, then put tiny drops in the corner of the mouth, once you get it you'll be fine its just scary to start with
 
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delilahndrew

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She's warm.
I've just managed to get her to take nearly 2 ml. Gave mum a huge bowl of food so she would ignore the milk, put baby on mum to feed then got the dropper in corner of her mouth dropping in a drop at a time. She seemed to feed more vigorously when she tasted the milk and stayed on much longer than she has all day.

The vet gave me cimicat I think it was. Yes uk x
 
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delilahndrew

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I need her to make it. Was told on Sunday my grandad wouldn't survive the night. I couldn't leave the kittens, my family is far away. He's died this morning. I feel awful. She has to make it.
 

bellad

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My friend runs a cat rescue and uses cimicat so it must be a good one :)

Thats brill you got her to take some, it will help hugely and give her some more energy to take another feed. Handsome Kitty worked out 3ml every 2 hours for the little girl, I think if it was me as she took just under 2ml I would be tempted to try again in an hour, I know this may not be possible as its taking up so much time but even just for the next few hours hourly feeds could make a big difference. My runt was only having small gains so I did 2 hourly feeds rather than 3 and within 12 hours of doing that she had doubled the previous days gain.

Where abouts in Uk are you? I'm Plymouth :)
 

bellad

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Oh no that's really sad, you know what though your Grandad will understand that you couldn't be there, you are doing everything you can to save a life! You must be feeling emotionally drained. The next few days at least with all the night feeds are going to be exhausting, I haven't slept for more than 2 hours for 2 weeks now, I am shattered physically and mentally but when I see 5 kittens growing, playing and starting to lap milk from a bowl its so so worth it. Have you got anyone at home who can help you out with the feedings?
 
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delilahndrew

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I'm in north Wales x
No just me and three kids. And my own business to run which I working Friday and Saturday so hope she has perked up a bit by then. I'm only in my garage, photographer so won't be far or for long.
My husband and I recently separated so yeah. Got it all going on!

Would I be at risk of over feeding her as she's still sucking mum?
 

StefanZ

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Oh, no. I'm sorry to hear this. I'm not a kitten expert at all, gosh I'm hoping an advisor pops in soon. But I've heard putting a little sugar water on the gums can help with energy and hopefully encourage suckling.

We have a member here who put the nipple to a bottle on a syringe with success. Do you think you might be able to try this? Can you get full fat goat milk as a supplement or do you have kmr?

Praying the little one makes it. Fading kitten syndrome is heartbreaking. You can do your best, that's all you can do. Hang in there, ok?
Why? the necessary and adequate advices were given already yesterday.

But I see the stream of advices from the others forumists are very good and useful advices them too.    :)
 

StefanZ

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I'm in north Wales x
No just me and three kids. And my own business to run which I working Friday and Saturday so hope she has perked up a bit by then. I'm only in my garage, photographer so won't be far or for long.
My husband and I recently separated so yeah. Got it all going on!

Would I be at risk of over feeding her as she's still sucking mum?
No, practically no risk of overfeeding no.

Is she pooing or peeing?  You hinted she had some problems?   And got advice to have a drop or two of some coldpressed food oil with the kmr?

Any problems with gases in the tummy?  Simeticon is the remedy for this.
 
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delilahndrew

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Mum had constipation. She seems OK now.
Baby has peed when mum licks but not seen anything else.
 

StefanZ

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Mum had constipation. She seems OK now.
Baby has peed when mum licks but not seen anything else.
Ah, so it was mom whom had constipation.   The advices give earlier stands for mom too, with the difference you can give not 1-2 drops of oil, but may give perhaps several.  Good coldpressed oil is good nourishment by itself, so it cant harm.   And of course, be sure she has enough of water / fluids.

It it doesnt helps, minerale oil is even more potent - the difficulty is to find minerale oil which is of food grade...

Moms usually ates what the kittens produce, so many owners of moms with kittens, never see the poo of kittens.  Its almost only rescuers of orphans whom are experienced with seeing the kitten poo...

If the kitten isnt distended in belly or similiar, lets presume the pooing with nr 2 goes OK.
 

bellad

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I wouldn't worry about her not doing a poo as it looks like the first proper meal she has had in a while was the 2ml you just fed her, my kittens seem to go a few days before they go and they're not constipated as when it finally comes boy does it come lol!

Have you managed to get more milk into her?
 
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delilahndrew

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She's not doing good at all :( not sucking now. Breathing laboured. Floppy.
 

StefanZ

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She's not doing good at all
not sucking now. Breathing laboured. Floppy.
That sounds not good - she is probably going down.

I presume you had tried with everything, alike putting sugar source on the mouth, keeping her warm, etc?   If so, its probably to keeping her comfortable and wait, what is left...
 

bellad

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Oh no :( Did you get any more food into her apart from the 2ml this morning? If she is weak and hungry she won't feed, this is when it is so important that you make her take the food, there is only one outcome if she doesn't eat :(
 
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delilahndrew

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She's wrapped up with hot water bottle. Been putting sugar solution in her mouth.
 

Sarthur2

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If she's got labored breathing she has probably aspirated milk into her lungs, developed pneumonia, and will not make it. You need to hold her close and keep her comfortable.

In the future, when feeding, it is much easier and safer to use a very small 1 mL syringe. It is tiny and you have much more control than with a dropper. Such a syringe is obtainable from any pharmacy.

I'm sorry the kitten is not doing well.
 
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Sarthur2

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No, it's a 4-day-old kitten. It's not eating. They simply don't recover from this, unfortunately :(.
 
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