Deformed hip in kitten

We adopted a pregnant cat from our local shelter, and 3 days later she had her babies. One has a full tail, one a half tail and one no tail. They are now almost 5 weeks old and it is apparent that the one with no tail has some sort of problem with her hips/back legs. She can't seem to get those back legs all the way under her while walking. She is getting around, but I wonder if anyone has any information about such an abnormality. I plan to keep her myself, to make sure she is taken care of properly. Thanks for any input.

They apparently carry the manx gene and your no-tail girl has what is called manx sydrome. The manx gene causes a shortening of the spine, but at what degree the shortness occurs varies because it is an incomplete dominant gene - instaed of "overtaking" a recessive gene, it "mixes" with it. My cat, Big Mac, manifests his manx gene by having a barely perceptible short tail with a gnarly end (he's also huge and hops like a bunny, but that's a different story!). Manx sydrome occurs when the gene is affecting not just the tail vertebra, but also the bones of the body vertebra. This means that many nerves are missing or malformed and the internal organs may be crowded (to due the contracted spine).

A vet who has experience with manx kitties may be a tremendous help.

Thanks for your answer. After reading your post, I did a little research and according to what I read on various web pages, it does not sound very encouraging. It can affect their bowel and urinary functions and there is nothing that can be done if that is the case.
. I will take her to the vet and hope her case is a less severe one.

We'll keep you and the babies in our prayers that everything turns out okay.