Caring for abandoned/orphaned kittens

Albon is prescription.

Soft serve consistency in formula fed kittens is normal. I usually call it toothpaste consistency, but same thing. They will begin to have formed stools when they wean to solids.

Diarrhea will be straight liquid, smells bad, and burns their bottoms.

wonderstruck016 said:

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• wonderstruck016
• Jun 24, 2016

This is Cordelia. She is incredibly social and playful! This is the kitten I am planning to keep

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• wonderstruck016
• Jun 24, 2016

This is the infamous lime-green pooer Cobalt! My husband loves this little guy. If plans fall through with his tentative new home we may keep him as well.

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• wonderstruck016
• Jun 24, 2016

This is Carlyle! He LOVES to eat and is a big sweetheart. He also has a tentative new home to go to once he is weaned  

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Oh my they are beyond adorable!!! Thank you for caring for and loving these little ones!!

Mamanyt1953 you must check out these sweet lil things [emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️

I am, I did.  And there are tiny tail tips peeking out in the lower two pics!  Those little faces are too sweet for words.  I want to kiss them on their widdle kitten lips!

Great news - my vet just touched base to check on the kittens. She said all fecal tests for parasites and worms were negative! She is going to call and check in with us again tomorrow to see if the poo stabilizes at all overnight. If it doesn't she said she may give some medicine to help settle their tummies!

What a caring vet! [emoji]128149[/emoji][emoji]128077[/emoji]

Question - my female kitten Cordelia weighs slightly less than her brothers (they weighed in today at around 14 oz, Cordelia was around 12 3/4 oz) and typically eats less formula than they do with each feeding. Is this normal? She has been smaller and eating less than the boys ever since we found her last weekend. She has been gaining weight very steadily though! I'm probably just a little paranoid because she's the little baby I want to keep 
Here she is being camera shy and sleepy with a full tummy after breakfast   

It's fine. [emoji]128149[/emoji]

Of the 4 in the litter my stray mama had, 3 were males. The female was always more petite than her brothers and still is a year later.

She looks like a sweetheart!

Sorry I have so many questions! Here's some more lol. 

The kittens are approximately 4-5 weeks now and are getting better at using a litter box. I am also beginning to introduce them to wet food (Royal Canin Babycat). I still have all 3 kittens in a crate for sleeping with 1 small litterbox. This week, I am planning on kitten proofing our spare bathroom so they have more room to roam around. 

My questions:

1. With the kittens still being so little is it OK for them to continue sharing a litter box? At what age do I need to have multiple boxes available?

2. I've been crazy about keeping them warm, with heating pads and hot water bottles. How can I make sure they stay warm in our bathroom? Or is it less of an issue now that they are getting a bit older?

Yes, they can continue sharing a litter box for awhile still.

I would just put the same heating apparatus in the bathroom and they can sleep on it or near it or not, as they choose. It's less critical now though.

Is it chilly where you live?

sarthur2 said:

Yes, they can continue sharing a litter box for awhile still.

I would just put the same heating apparatus in the bathroom and they can sleep on it or near it or not, as they choose. It's less critical now though.

Is it chilly where you live?

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Thank you! The outside climate is not chilly but we currently live in a basement. Although the basement is finished, it is rather chilly down here even in the summertime. We use space heaters and since the kittens arrived we have kept the room they stay in at about 75 degree F. Without the heaters, the air temp down here is about 68 which I thought would be too cold for the kitties. 

You'll want to add more litter boxes when they have more space to roam around in.  They have small bladders and can not go too far when they realize they need the box. 

Yes, 68 would be too cold.

So I'm in the process of setting up my spare bathroom for the kittens. Here is the set up I have right now: 

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The carrier which has been their "nest" is open so the kittens can freely move in and out of it. They are all snuggled up in there together for a full tummy nap right now. 

I am worried they are going to get lost and/or cold in such a big space! But at the same time I feel like they are getting too big to be all together in the carrier. 

Thoughts? Suggestions? I'm so nervous! 

I'm thinking about actually going to Walmart to get a super size cardboard box to keep them in for another week because I am so nervous about giving them this whole space already ... they are my babies and I want to make sure they are safe!

Where are you putting their food bowls?

Are you putting a heat source in the bathroom?

I was going to put their bowls in front of the toilet.

I decided instead to put an XXL 50 gallon rubbermaid container in the bathroom for the kittens. There is enough space in it that they have a sleeping area, an eating area, and a litter box.  There are hot water bottles in the sleeping area and there is a heater in the bathroom set to 77 degrees F. The rubbermaid is also on top of a rug so it's not in contact with the cool tile.

I feel like this will be more gradual for them rather than giving them so much space so quickly. 

It sounds like a good plan to me. I also like your idea of the bigger container.

When do you plan to put them in the bathroom, and how much time will they still get to socialize with you guys?

They are actually in the bathroom right now just in the huge container. 

I am still formula feeding them 6 times per day so they get all of that socialization time. Between feedings, when they are awake, my husband and I take them out to walk around and play. My mom and dad have also been assisting with feedings and extra play times. So they are getting lots of love  

Also - they boys now weigh a pound each! Cordelia is not far behind! They have doubled their weight since we found them!

Question time:

1. I have been offering kitty gruel (PetAg formula mixed with Royal Canin Babycat Wet) for the past couple days at 2-3 feeding times a day and the little ones have showed precisely 0 interest. My husband and I have been rubbing it on their lips and also dipping the bottle nipple into it. Any suggestions to get them more interested?

2. The kittens are getting quite good at using the litter box. When they are asleep, though, they have just been peeing in place. Kind of like a little kid wetting the bed. Is this normal? Also, I'd like to use the Kitten Attract litter but it says hard clumping and I thought kittens should only have non clumping or clay litter? I'm a little confused.

yes its too early for cat attract. kittens eat the litter and we don't want that.

It may be too soon for weening. try again in 4 days. They wean at 5 or 6 week I have heard. They may just not be ready. or maybe they will if they watch mom lap at wet food? I hope others chime in=sounds like you are doing a great job!

foxxycat said:

 
yes its too early for cat attract. kittens eat the litter and we don't want that.

It may be too soon for weening. try again in 4 days. They wean at 5 or 6 week I have heard. They may just not be ready. or maybe they will if they watch mom lap at wet food? I hope others chime in=sounds like you are doing a great job!

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Thanks  

That's what I thought about the Kitten Attract I just wanted to make sure! When will they be old enough for that? 

I think they are approximately 4-5 weeks. We don't know for sure. They all weigh approximately a pound (give or take for each individual kitty!) and they will lick formula from my finger and chew on the bottle nipple.  Mom is out of the picture - they were stray born next to my house and mom stopped coming around. The little kittens had been howling and crawling from their nest. We haven't seen her. That's why we brought them in to nurse when we did We have no other adult cats in the house who can coach them.