Foster Journal

I agree that weaning is a process. Will they let you keep them longer?

They'll be with is until they're eight weeks but they probably won't provide anymore formula. I picked some weaning formula up at pet smart so I'll just be doing that I guess.

I think the weaning formula is a good idea. [emoji]128522[/emoji]

Good for you.  The general opinion is that eight weeks is a minimum, and ten to twelve is best.

My poor Hekitty got dumped at my house when she was only five weeks old.  I bottle fed her and her sister.  She's now eight years old, and has done very well, except for insisting on smurgling (kneading and nuzzling...she does NOT, thank God, drool) on the inside of my right elbow.  Luckily, I'm left handed.

I love the word smurgling. One of my first bottle babies, Pippin, still does it. Arms, faces, necks, anywhere she can reach. She was a rescue and not a foster, and we ended up keeping her and her brother, and the next kitten too.

In other news, the babies right now are doing good. They can absolutely go potty without stimulation, though the feces is still very soft and mustardy looking. And messy of course. Hydration is okay. Not amazing, but not bad. Any suggestions on how to firm them up? I give kitten mousse, the babycat kind and the grey ones eat it sometimes, but they, especially the gingers, still prefer the bottle more.

Mustard colored poop is not normal. It should be brown. Have they been wormed? They may have an infection that is causing the yellow poop that would require antibiotics to clear. Please talk to your vet.

The vet thinks it's the change from mom's milk to the formula and gruel. They had the mom on site but spayed and released her immediately, and the kittens stayed at the shelter. I don't know why they didn't keep her with them for a little longer.

I have diluted the formula with an extra part of pedialyte in case that helps.

Sigh ... that's a shame they didn't leave mom with her kittens a bit longer. If the yellow doesn't change in a few days, talk to the vet again. Hopefully, it's just the food change.

Latest poop. Soft but more brown than before.

Don't know what it looked like before, but keep a close eye.  If it doesn't improve, have the vet check again.  It might have been the sudden change in diet.  Goodness knows it can throw an adult cat for a loop, let alone tiny kittens!

How is the poop today?

Brown again, but still soft. They've been showing interest in the babycat canned food so I hope that'll help them firm up. I may have to pick up some pumpkin otherwise.

Sounds much better! Soft isn't bad.

All of them are over a pound except for the girl. She weighs 425 grams. She actually weighed 434 grams yesterday, so she's had a loss. They've been destroying nipples left and right so I'm really pushing them to lap their food up. I have turkey baby food, with just water and turkey and cornstarch, and I have kitten wet food (babycat). They don't seem to be as hungry as before, but maybe they can just go longer without eating now. Or maybe they don't like the food.

Are they eating the baby food and wet food?

They prefer the baby food. They like it out of a syringe though, not a dish. Hopefully they'll get it soon.

They've been ridiculously fussy with the bottle.

They're learning to use the litter box.

Sorry for the simplicity of the post. I only got a few hours of sleep last night.

That's fine. I'm glad they like the baby food. They'll catch on soon. I hope you get some rest.

My little fosters got vaccines an on Thursday last week and were dewormed and weighed again at the shelter. The girl still weighed less than a pound, and they gave us hills A/D canned for them, which they loved.

They are using the litter box very well and getting interested in kitten kibble. They're also finally starting to turn away the bottle and go for just canned food.

The humane society said they'll take them back for surgery and adoption when they weigh at least two pounds. Hopefully they'll be mentally ready by that time. Their next check up is in three weeks. I'll get some pictures later, if I can remember.

This is good news! Nice job! Hopefully, you can keep them for the minimum 8-10 weeks at least before they go up for adoption. [emoji]128522[/emoji]

Yes, please try to talk the Humane Society into letting you keep them till at least 10 weeks.  They are learning so much about how to be cats from each other at this age.  It's hard for them without a mama, and why stack the deck against them?  They will be much better kittens for the extra time together.