Taking care of a new kitten

Hi guys, Im new to this site and in need of advice.
I have a new baby kitten that I rescued yesterday in honor of my recently lost cat.
The new kitten seems to really miss her mother because she cries a looks desperately around for any sign of her. she appears to be around 4 to 5 weeks old.
I have examined her and she looks fine, although a bit bony. The problem is that I noticed a small internal lump on her anus after I cleaned her there.
Yesterday after her dose of kitten milk she threw up a bit.
Any advice?

Until someone with more experience comes along here are a couple of suggestions for comforting your very young kitten.

Get a soft stuffed toy, teddy bear kind of thing, for her to snuggle with. Find a ticking clock to put with it - sounds like a heartbeat and also reassuring.

Loosely fill a sock with uncooked rice. Knot or tie the open end closed, and warm in the microwave. Little kittens sleep huddled with their siblings and with mom so she may be feeling chilly.

Good luck. Updates - and pictures! - are welcome.

I like the above suggestions. Also, with that lump... Might she be a misdiagnosed male? I had one that we thought was female until suddenly, his testes dropped.

I bought an electronic blanket for the kitten. The vet suggested that i clean her anus properly and that is what i did. I have her in a very small room with a heating device warming the place. It is very warm and cozy. She is not eating much and she is always sleeping and she looks like she doesnt want to play. What do you think and thanks a lot.

make sure that the heating pad is on low and is covered with a towel. 

Ok thanks, its not too hot but i will cover it anyways.

Kittens love to chew on things to keep an eye on the blanket's electrical cord. You may want to use a microwaveable heating pad for pets instead of an electric blanket. The SnuggleSafe is popular. Make sure to heat the pad for the correct amount of according to the chart on the pad. Microwave wattage varies and it's important not to overheat the pad which can explode in the microwave or seriously burn your pet. There are other brands of microwavable heating pads for pets and each has their own heating chart based on microwave wattage so be sure to read all the instructions.

Always wrap a heating pad in a towel to prevent it from burning your pet.

There's also this toy / heating pad: http://www.petstages.com/product-details/kitty-cuddle-pal

How much and how often are you feeding her?  How much does she weigh?

Does she use a litter box or do you help her eliminate?

At 4-5- weeks I doubt she is fully weened. You should pick up seem KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) to feed her.  What are you feeding her.  She needs kitten chow with tiny pieces that are small enough for her to eat, like Royal Canin Mother and Baby Cat.  She also needs wet food but it should be watered down to a mush with water, KMR or goats milk so she can lap it up easier.  Feeding on paper plates so she doesn't need to lean down into a bowl will make it easier for her to eat.

She is a cute kitten and I'm glad you took her in.

pb007 said:

I bought an electronic blanket for the kitten. The vet suggested that i clean her anus properly and that is what i did. I have her in a very small room with a heating device warming the place. It is very warm and cozy. She is not eating much and she is always sleeping and she looks like she doesnt want to play. What do you think and thanks a lot.

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She is still tired, probably underfed, not entirely comfortable as yet   (btw, where does she  come from?  from being homeless or is she used to friendly humans?  What did you recued her from?)

but I suspect she isnt out of the woods as yet.  So at least the yellow alert flag is on, until you see she gains nicely every day and is playing.

Has she been dewormed?  She is old enough to get a mild dewormer.

Pyrantel poaomate dewormers are mild and good for round worms, which almost all kittens have.  The only real exeption are kittens born from well  cared for, inside only moms.

If she had fleas she may have tape worms too.

Milbomax takes both round and tape worms, and it too can be used with quite young kittens.  Even healthy 2+ weeks kitens.

Good she has it warm now, but be not too warm.  A stuffed companion animal is a good ideas suggested above. Even without this ticking watch if its too complicated to arrange.  You yourself please do talk much to her in friendlyh voice, do make much crooning, friendly sounds.  Friendly, not pitiful.  Carrying at your chest is good, especielly if she isnt afraid and fights against.

I see you do have help from a vet.  Good  - even if not all vets are very knowleable on kittens.

She was rescued from the streets and given to me that same day. The vet recommended to give her some kitten formula with some special royal canin dry food for kittens also. She loves the dry food, which I give her wet since she had a hard time chewing. She is very weak...I will take her back to the vet if I see no sign of improvement in terms of behavior. She also seems to have very fexible bones which I also find odd. She would stand up and run after me but suddenly sit down as if she were tired...
Im worried...but i might be over reacting since I lostImy former cat this Friday. I dont kknow.

I would really like some advice on the amount of food I should give her and the frequency. When i gave her the kitten milk she had diarrThanksshe still does,so Im only giving her the royal canin dry food mixed with water which she really likes...

She should have as much food as she can eat at this age.  What kind of formula did you give her?  I think she should still be drinking formula.  At this age and weakness level I would feed through the day and night, offering some food every hour.

I also worry that the vet may have given you an unwell kitten.  

talkingpeanut said:

 
She should have as much food as she can eat at this age.  What kind of formula did you give her?  I think she should still be drinking formula.  At this age and weakness level I would feed through the day and night, offering some food every hour.

I also worry that the vet may have given you an unwell kitten.  

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I think this was thought as a rescue, and giving a new chance to a person in sorrow  "I couldnt help my old cat, but if I can help THIS cat in dire need, all my bad feelings will be amply  repaired and washed out" . So it was not a present - here you have your new kitty, enjoy.

pb007 said:

I would really like some advice on the amount of food I should give her and the frequency. When i gave her the kitten milk she had diarrThanksshe still does,so Im only giving her the royal canin dry food mixed with water which she really likes...

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Exactly WHAT sort fo kitten milk have you got hold on?   some are more reliable than others, and some are even unreliable...

Can you get raw goat milk, fresh or frozen - if you can, this would prob be the very best. 

pb007 said:

She was rescued from the streets and given to me that same day. The vet recommended to give her some kitten formula with some special royal canin dry food for kittens also. She loves the dry food, which I give her wet since she had a hard time chewing. She is very weak...I will take her back to the vet if I see no sign of improvement in terms of behavior. She also seems to have very fexible bones which I also find odd. She would stand up and run after me but suddenly sit down as if she were tired...
Im worried...but i might be over reacting since I lostImy former cat this Friday. I dont kknow.

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Ok, so we can presume she was in a bad shape when found, weak and more or less emaciated, etc.

Nothing peculiar with her being weak and dont managing to do much, just conserving her forces and resting.  Considering the situation and background.  But by the same reason, its yellow flag up, possibly even red alert...  You can win a grandiose victory here, but it can be a defeat too...

The positive of this is, you wont have any problems of her being born homeless. Her being severly sick, and you helping her, does automatically fostering and socializing her. It would work so even with an adult, it will of course be so with a kitten too.

If she is that weak, the vet perhaps wanted to wait with the deworming.   Even mild dewormers like pyrantel do take a toll on the strengh...  With a healthy kitten its no big deal, but with a very weak...    and there are other all round dewormers who are taking much on them kittens.

Now she has diarrhea... she has gained some energy and she seems hungry. Do i leep on feeding her the dry food???

I hope, what the kitten needs most in these moments now, is love and good home care.

Its not to underestimate this.

Compare with the great Florence Nightinghales finds in the Crimea war: the ratio of surviving [wounded and sick] soldiers rose dramatically when the nurses come and made the hospital wards clean, proper and gave good attendance.

I dont know where the statistics began.   From the moment the wounded and sick were admitted through the hospitals doors, or after the come to the care wards, ie after the surgery was done.     And of course, the worst wounded died before they were carried to the hospital.

So, the big lesson were, most lives werent saved by surgery nor flashy doctors, but by good, reliable, proper everyday care...

Florence. whom  was on of creators of modern nurses, and also co-creator of modern medical statistics.

Here the vet has seen the kitten, and presumabely did what was possible to do at this moment.

She should really be getting some kmr in addition to the dry food.  Are you feeding her food specifically for kittens?

I wouldn't immediately change her food again as that can cause further stomach upset.  Instead, slowly transition to something more appropriate and supplement with kmr.  She may have diarrhea from worms, as mentioned above, but be too weak to deworm.  I think it's mostly important that she stay fed and hydrated right now.

StefanZ said:

 
I think this was thought as a rescue, and giving a new chance to a person in sorrow  "I couldnt help my old cat, but if I can help THIS cat in dire need, all my bad feelings will be amply  repaired and washed out" . So it was not a present - here you have your new kitty, enjoy.

Exactly WHAT sort fo kitten milk have you got hold on?   some are more reliable than others, and some are even unreliable...

Can you get raw goat milk, fresh or frozen - if you can, this would prob be the very best. 

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I agree, but she should have been properly vetted or made more aware that this kitten was unwell.  Given more care instructions, etc.  I just don't think it's fair to hand over a sick kitten to someone who just lost a pet.  

@pb007  please call your vet back and ask for additional support.  This kitten needs it.

pb007 said:

Now she has diarrhea... she has gained some energy and she seems hungry. Do i leep on feeding her the dry food???

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Of royal canins dry food products, the best is the RC for mother and babycat This is even better than that labelled just Babycat.

What you feed depends in part on what you have.  WHAT brand of kitten milk do you have?

Can you get hold of raw goat milk?   Bottled / powdered / cartonned full fat goat milk, is OK too, but not as excellent as raw...

If she seems hungry, she need prob more food.  Be sure in the beginning better with small portions but often, than too much.  Especially with the emaciated this is important.