Found 3 (prox.) 4 Week Old Kittens -- Have Sesame-Grain Attached to Fur!

Hello, 

My boyfriend found 3 abandoned kittens in the backyard. They looked malnourished covered in fleas, and they also have eye discharge. We had them since Monday, I didn't take them a bath (with dawn soap) until today because I wanted to make sure they were strong and stable enough. I noticed the two of the kittens had these grain-like sesame stuff on the bottom of their backs. We've rescued kittens before (two of which we kept), and I have never seen them before. I took one out and it was moving around, so I'm not sure if they're baby maggots or worms. At first I thought they were eggs from the fleas. 


Maybe someone can help with what it is. Sorry if the picture is blurry, iPhones aren't the best cameras to take pictures with and this was one of the best I can do. 

Here are the little bundles of joy


We haven't named them yet. 

Thank you so much for any input given! 

Probably tapeworm segments - does it look like little grains of rice stuck to the hairs around their butthole (sorry for the terminology, but it is what it is lol)

The tapeworm segments come out their butts when they poop - they get them from ingesting infected fleas.  They look like little white rice grains on the fur - but they turn darker after they've been exposed to air for several minutes, then they look more like sesame seeds as you have described.   I'm sure this is what's going on here with your kittens.

The only thing is - if they are really only 4 weeks old, they are very young.   You can't safely give tapeworm medication to kittens less than 6 weeks of age.  They need Droncit or Praziquantel.  

I would call a vet and ask for advice on how they would handle tapeworms for such a young kitten because I honestly don't know, other than wait until they are old enough and then give them the medication.  

Also, I don't know of any flea medication you can give to kittens less than 8 weeks of age.  When they are old enough, get flea meds from a vet - DO NOT GET the flea meds from the grocery store like Hartz or Sargents - they are very dangerous!!  Make sure to get a good flea product from a vet.

Best thing to do about the fleas now would be to bathe them with Dawn dish soap (the blue Dawn) - that will kill the fleas, but won't get rid of the tapeworms inside.   You can also get a flea comb from any pet store - when you comb the fur, the fleas get stuck between the teeth of the comb, then you can dip the comb into a dish of soapy water to drown the fleas.   It's more time consuming, but it is effective.  I think a Dawn bath plus flea combing is the best way to get rid of fleas in such young babies.

You have received very good advice! I agree those are tapeworm segments.

You will also need to treat their eyes, and that is usually with an antibiotic ointment like terramycin. Again, you'll need a vet for eye medicine, worm meds, and flea meds. Depending on their age, the vet may go ahead and de-worm with pyrantel pamoate or droncit.

When they are 8 weeks or 2 pounds you can use Advantage for kittens on their necks.

Do they have their baby teeth yet? What are you feeding them?

Thank you for caring for them!

Thanks for the replies. 

They weren't near their bottom area. It's on their lower back side, I tried combing them out but they're stubborn. This weekend I'm going to see if a flea comb can take them off, but if it persists/reappears I will definitely schedule with the vet. It's not severe, I only found a few when I was drying them out. 

Do they have their baby teeth yet?

Yup, the front only and they're very little. 

What are you feeding them?

I'm bottle feeding them with KMR liquid formula. I do (sometimes) mix it with a little unflavored pedialyte but they prefer it being concentrated. I also find that they become hungry quickly when I dilute the forumla with pedialyte.