Please help! Young mother of 3 newborn kits

Hello, we adopted a female "teenager" bob-tail tabby 6wks ago that was already pregnant? Not sure if gestation of cats, she gave birth to first one at 8pm, 2nd around 10pm and 3rd between 10pm and 1pm(found the little guy in the closet behind shoes with placenta still attached,runt) She is very attentive to them and has come out of nesting box to drink, eat and use the litter box. The problem they are having is they cant seem to fins the nipple. They are "rooting" around for it, ive tried to help them but they do not even open their mouth when near it. Mom feels full, feels a bit on the hard side. This is our first time with newborn kits and could really use some advice. Is this normal? How much longer ahould i wait before getting worried? Any and all help is appreciated. Thank you

Ok, quick update, in the time it took me to setup a profile and type my question, the runt has latched on successfully!!

Nature is pretty good at this, I wouldn't worry too much about it. As time goes, the hair around the nipple will fall out, making finding and latching on much easier. Good luck with your new babies. Sincerely, the kittykeepers.

Yes very true! And thank you!

MinniesMomma30 said:

Yes very true! And thank you!

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How is it going?  Has all three latched on?   Is the runt free from the placenta now?  If not, you can cut it off now, with your nails best, or even scissors, as it has dried now.

Good if you weigh them every day, so you see they do gain nicely every day. Minimum 6g a day, but preferably 10g+

M minniesmomma30

How are the kittens doing? If they do not latch and nurse yoy may have to supplement them with kitten formula until they are strong enough to nurse. Please update!

If mom is only six months old she may not have the nutrients for her kittens and her own growing body.   Give her a dish of KMR (powdered is better than pre-mixed, avoid Hartz and saergents brands) every day to give her extra nutrients that will be passed to her kittens through her milk and not be drawn from her own body.

BTW We love pictures!

Sorry for the late response, happy to say all 3 have been nursing very well! We actually have 2 that are on the smaller side and one that is bigger. So 2 runts i tried uploading a picture of them nursing but cannot. Thanks for your concern, for being a younger manx, shes actually a great momma!

That's good news! [emoji]128522[/emoji]