Possible resorption?

I'll get some better pics of the one with twisted legs when I massage his legs later.

Wow chipmunk, quite the herd!! Congrats

While mom has 8 nipples, the lower 4 are the best/main source, the biggest will always reserve for themselves leaving the other smaller 3 to be constantly kicked off, and either end up on the uppers and not get enough, or tire out from the feisty bigger one and give in, curling up and napping rather than nursing as the others are.

So in a short time, they will begin to fall behind, which WILL catch up to them and they will head downhill, which is near impossible to turn around, so best to rotate or supplement early on, like today once you get weights.

Know that for every ounce of weight a kitten has, they need 8 mls of milk per day, so a 3 oz baby needs 24 mls a day.

The only way to know when they have mom as well as supplementing is to take daily weights, watching for a gain every day of a good 8 or more grams, the very least is 6 grams.

Twisted legs, not a deformity, but tendon growth, often and in your case likely caused by cramped quarters while in utero.

At this newborn state they are extremely soft and able to be manipulated easily.

Using your thumb and first finger, massage and roll the leg and foot, one at a time really working it good.

Once this is done for several minutes, start twisting it in to it's correct position.

Done several times a day, they will correct fast.

This can be done without stress to mom right there while baby is nursing or with mom.

For supplementing or rotation of kittens, of course you know they will need to be in a very small box or container with soft bedding and a heating pad under the box.

Box with babies should be away from mom, as far from her as possible so she can't hear them.

Otherwise she will be trying to put them back with her and not nursing the ones she has with her.

Wow seven babies! Mine just had six last week! I hope mama is able to do most of the work for you, mine is neglectful and leaves me to do a big portion of her job, but six babies is a lot so I can only imagine how you must feel with one extra!

I'm sure all will go well and good luck to you

How are things going?

I know you are busy with all of your cats, but give us an update when you can! [emoji]128522[/emoji]

Everything going good. She's a very attentive mom, which is lucky, and I have already given twisty leg several massages and stretches today. He is the runt and weighs in at only 75 grams. The others are all at least 95. I rotated the kittens several times already and made sure the runt got the prime nipple. He moves very well, and now I'm really only worried about his left back leg. The other paw is just a tiny bit curled. Mom looks pretty sore, but that's to be expected.

Glad things are going well so far. You're on top of it! [emoji]128522[/emoji][emoji]128077[/emoji]

That back leg will straighten with your continued massaging it to where it needs to be, though it may take a few days. I think he could also use supplementing for now. 75 grams is a low birth weight.

In addition to supplementing the runt, I also have decided that it might be a good idea to rotate only the other six, three at a time, and always leave him with mom so he has maximum chances to get milk. How long do you suggest letting each group eat before rotation?

One hour per group. And supplement any others that are not gaining 6-10 grams per day for now.

And obviously mom will need breaks to eat and use the litter box. Is she eating well? A dish of KMR a day for mom will give her extra calcium.

You will want to apply olive oil or Udder Balm to her nipples daily. They will get sore with all that nursing.

She's started to ignore her babies and is trying to reach the foster kittens. They're in a crate and even though they've stopped crying now, she is too fixated on them. She seems completely uninterested in her own kittens now. She also moved them under the bed where I can't reach. If I have to crate her, how often should I let her out? Or should I let her see the fosters? I don't want them to drink all the milk, though, because she kinda has newborns to feed.

I really think that the kittens should be where I can reach so I can weigh them and massage the runt's leg. They're not crying, but now the fosters are because mamacat is talking to them. I crated her for a few minutes while I at least set a blanket under he bed, and she just stood at the door carrying one of her kittens.

Yes, you definitely need to be able to reach the newborns. What are your options?

chipmunk-kim said:

She's started to ignore her babies and is trying to reach the foster kittens. They're in a crate and even though they've stopped crying now, she is too fixated on them. She seems completely uninterested in her own kittens now. She also moved them under the bed where I can't reach. If I have to crate her, how often should I let her out? Or should I let her see the fosters? I don't want them to drink all the milk, though, because she kinda has newborns to feed.

Click to expand...

The fosters must be moved as far away from her as possible, opposite end of the house, their crying for her is stressful, her maternal instincts are screaming to go get and care for those crying babies!

This will cause neglect for her newborns, and is too stressful for her to be able to give them 100% that they need.

I was thinking the same thing - that they really need to be totally separated. Then mom won't need to be crated. She can calm down and focus on her own litter.

Why are the fosters crying?

They cry when their hungry, that's all.

chipmunk-kim said:

They cry when their hungry, that's all.

Click to expand...

I understand. This is what triggers mom's maternal instincts though, she feels the need to care for them.

Are they young?

They're four weeks. They cry at feeding time to demonstrate their impatience while I feed the first one. There's four so it gets pretty loud.

I've moved the bed away fom the wall so I can reach the kittens, so at least I can weigh them daily and massage the runt. Theres really no other place for her to nest, unfortunately, so I think that will have to do for now.

Runt gained eight grams so far. I'll weigh everyone wlse soon but I really gotta clean the house. It's a proper mess.