Just got a set of orphraned kittens...

Earlier my parent heard some crying from the detatched garage and when we went to investigate we found a total of 4 kittens. All looked to be about 4 weeks old, can walk but not gracefully and we couldn't figure out who the mother is. I did have my suspicion and if it was right, she's a stray who hangs around on the farm and this litter would be her first. They all appeared to have not fed at all in the past day.

3 are white with dark spot on top of their head and 4th one is yellow striped. I just gave them a feeding, one seemed a bit lethargic and didn't take much but other 3 sucked up quite a lot. One of the white one does have an unsightly wound on the side of his neck and has worm in it. We are planning to take this kitten to the vet since removing this kind of worm is often hazardous to cat's health.

I'm guessing 4 weeks based on their teeth (one hurts my finger when he tried to suckle on it!) and their size. I can't get their weight yet since they were quite hungry. I'm pretty sure all 4 are male kitten but I can't be too sure yet. I haven't tried the solid food as I don't have anything other than adult cat food at the moment. In a few hours I'll be going back to them for more feeding and my parent would be picking up some supply for making kitty food.

As for the mother cat, I wish I knew of a way to catch her. She is one of a number of strays who regularly came and went around the farm. The non feral cats (4 of them) that stays with me are all spayed and neutured.

Why are you waiting to get to the vet? These little ones sound like they need quick vet intervention. What are you feeding them? That is more than likely a maggot in the wound of the little kitten's neck and it is imperative that you seek help quickly.

While you ar3e waiting to get kitten food you can use a mix of goats milk and egg yolk. But you say they are orphan? Where is the mom? Is she not coming to see/feed the littens at all?

#1 I didn't go to the vet right away because it was well after midnight and the nearest 24 hours vet I knew of is almost an hour drive away.

#2 the reason I suspected they were abandoned because they were all very hungry and making a racket. 4 weeks old don't usually make these noise if their mom is still around. As I mentioned they appeared to have not been fed for a day.

When you've lived on a farm with several cats and kittens, you just sort of develop a feeling of when the kittens are not doing OK and this is one such case. The last time I had to care for orpraned kitten was 6 years ago when a small female kitten was caught in between a ground hog and a stray tomcat. I think she would have been someone's lunch if we hadn't intrevened. She was 6 weeks old and was able to get into solid food right away and she has been doing great since then.

Have they been seen by a vet yet? How are they doing?

It's great that you are taking over care of the kittens! Plz keep us updated! What will you do with these new kittens?

Originally Posted by Wilykat

I did have my suspicion and if it was right, she's a stray who hangs around on the farm and this litter would be her first. They all appeared to have not fed at all in the past day.

As for the mother cat, I wish I knew of a way to catch her. She is one of a number of strays who regularly came and went around the farm. The non feral cats (4 of them) that stays with me are all spayed and neutured.

Click to expand...

What I would do is contact local vet offices and humane societies about getting a few traps. Trapping is a very humane way to catch a feral cat and it makes it easier for you to get her to the vet to be spayed. Since she has already given birth..she is probably in heat again (and may be pregnant). I highly suggest you start trapping ASAP. Once they have been fixed and brought UTD on shots..they can be released back outdoors.

Here is a list of TNR groups in Michigan:

http://www.alleycat.org/orgs.html#mi

Katie

The litter have been to the vet the morning after I got them. The one with the worm has been taken care of, the vet said it was a grub, a common problem with most animals and a certain tye of fly in Michigan. The lethargic kitten was given a shot (vitamins I think) and has been doing better.

2 of the white are now eating solid food and all 4 seems to be doing OK so far. The one that had the worm is eating the most of all. The other 2 that hasn't started on solid food yet are still meowing a lot as if looking for their mommy.

EDIT: a few typos corrected

Have you seen the Momma cat at all since taking in her babies? Unless something has prevented her from seeking them out, I would think she would be somewhere close by.

I still see her but she seems to be keeping distance and she has never tried to enter the garage where the kittens were originally.

If she is hanging around, it will be easier to trap her, get her into the vet to be spayed and vaccinated, then release her.

~gf~

Glad they are doing OK

Keep us posted

Still doing OK at this time. But I need to give them all a bath. What is the best way to do it? It's not like I can take them all next time I take a shower When I had the orphraned kitten last time, it was just by herself and she was easy to get litter trained but these 4 aren't quite up to using litter box yet so they are having accident all over themselves today.

I am not an expert but I would be very wary of bathing young kittens except in emergency. They get cold so quickly, and it would be a shock to them. Can you not 'blanket bath' them by rubbing them gently with a soft warm wet towel?

You can use baby wipes or commercial pet wipes to bathe kittens who are just a little dirty. If you have to get them under running water, take care to get as little of them wet as possible. Towel dry them well and put them in a carrier on top of a towel with a Snuggle Safe or warm rice socks to keep them warm until their fur dries. Otherwise they can get hypothermic.