caring for four week old kittens

I became a foster dad for four-4 week old kittens after their mother was hit by a car, they are from a dairy farm.Two will eat on their own but I'm also feeding them from a bottle, the other two will not eat anything other then from a bottle but they want to tear the nipples with their teeth. I'm weighing them everyday  8.5, 9.1 ,11.5,& 11.8 oz. Any help is appreciated

At four weeks old the kittens should ideally weigh around 16 ounces, and begin gaining a pound a month until they are 6 months old, so yours are a bit underweight.

If you can tell me which weights belong to the two who are bottle-only I can tell you exactly how much kitten formula they must have daily to thrive.

Which formula are they drinking, and what are you feeding the two who are eating?

In general, kitten chow moistened with kitten formula is a great way to begin solids. So is pate-style wet food such as Fancy Feast mixed with enough formula to make a mush. Any wet food with a protein source as the first ingredient is good, however.

Have you provided a kitten-sized litter box to the kittens who are eating on their own? You'll need to put them in it, but most kittens learn quickly.

What is the long-term plan for the kittens? It's very kind of you to care for them!

8.5 & 9.1 are the bottle only kittens I have been able to get them to eat without the bottle by putting some on my   finger and letting them lick it off but they wont' eat out of the bowl.

 I'm using kmr formula for all of them and I'm using fancy feast and candida natural kitten with the kmr.

All four are using the litter box especially after feeding them. all four have solid bowl movement. 

It sounds like these other two will be eating soon, but for now they both need a minimum of 72 mL's of formula per 24-hour period.

So if you feed them every 4 hours, for instance, they would each get 12 mL's of formula per feeding. As they gain they need more. It's 8 mL's per ounce of body weight per 24-hour period. More is always better if they'll take it. And of course they can eat solids and still have bottles also until they are ready to drink kitten formula from a dish.

It dounds like you're doing a great job! Keep us posted as to how they are doing .

8.5 & 9.1 are the bottle only kittens I have been able to get them to eat without the bottle by putting some on my   finger and letting them lick it off but they wont' eat out of the bowl.

 I'm using kmr formula for all of them and I'm using fancy feast and candida natural kitten with the kmr.

All four are using the litter box especially after feeding them. all four have solid bowl movement. 

Today I decided to let the kittens explore some and to let them meet their 14 month old step brothers, I was surprised when they licked the kittens and then let them lay with them. the kittens are gaining weight they are now each around 14.5 oz the two smaller ones are catching up. The biggest one rips the bottle out of the others mouths and tries to drag it away so I had to feed the smaller two elsewhere. so much fun watching them play with each other.

I am delighted to hear how quickly they are gaining weight and catching up! Also that they are playing and exploring. They do sound healthy!

As you know, they need to eat their wet food or mush several times a day. It was a good idea to feed the other two elsewhere. Licking mush from your finger will lead to them eating on their own over the next week or so. They are just a tad bit behind right now. How much weight have the smaller two gained?

The two smallest ones are now 11.5 & 11.8. I noticed today that one has a loose stool and a little drop of blood in it, he was having some trouble going to the bathroom when I brought them home.

What is a safe kitty litter to use I was using a clumping cat litter and I saw one of them trying to eat it so I removed it and started using a pine litter now they won't use it. 

You can use unscented, non-clumping litter.

Are the little ones still bottle only? If so they need 96 mL's of formula apiece now each 24 hours. I'm thrilled that they have already put on a few ounces apiece!

The loose stool may be from parasites, or from adjusting to the formula. The blood is probably from irritation from the stools. If it keeps up the kitten may need to see a vet for de-worming and/or an antibiotic if there's a bacterial infection.

I suggest a non-clumping litter until they get over the novelty of the litter pan. Putting doggie pee pads around the pans helps too.

The kittens are now 6-7 weeks old and are eating on their own, feeding them some canned kitten food along with moistened kitten food and water. 

They had their first vet visit today , they all checked out good 1.6- 2.4 lbs.

Yay! They sound like they are doing well! Congratulations on getting them to this stage, it's no small feat

That's awesome .

step brother peanut giving the little one' s a bath

That's sweet!