patches kitten way to small...what to do?

I thought the kittens would come out and latch right on and I was panicked when it didn't happen but someone on this wonderful site let me know that sometimes it took a couple of hours and they worked it out! It is truly amazing!

Congrats!

I agree with the suggestion to weigh everyone regularly. A mother cat has only 8 nipples total and often they're not all equally good. Most cats have 6 good nipples and the last 2 don't produce much milk. Any kitten who fails to gain weight from one day to the next should be bottle fed every 6-8 hours and allowed to nurse in between. Any kitten who is willing to eat should be considered reasonably vigorous and will have at least a reasonable chance of survival if he gets enough to eat, so it's worth helping out with feeding duties.

Make sure everyone is warm too...if the little runty is too chilly or not warm enough, he will not want to nurse. If kept warm, his desire to eat should be there!

Originally Posted by wookie130

Make sure everyone is warm too...if the little runty is too chilly or not warm enough, he will not want to nurse. If kept warm, his desire to eat should be there!

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I really had to warm him yesterday, right after birth mom didnt clean him much so he stayed wet and began to get cold....I could feel a definite difference between his body temp and the other kittens....I put him under my shirt and sat next to the heater...I really didnt think that little guy would make it but today he is doing ok...small but ok. Yeh! Now my worst problem is not enough teets..some of them are flat and dont really have a nipple....they all seem ok though...I had a suggestion to rotate kits in groups of four so I will have to try that...Im just nervous about moving them around that much..
Oh wel gotta do what you gotta do....

THis is just a suggestion... If mom is nursing and all seem ok then try to let her do it...Less work on you but it helps mom with the bound..Do you see milk from the flat teets...

New foster mom: congrats with all the skittles hoopla who ever thought patches would have as many as skitttle's. hope she and babies are ok.

Nope.dont see milk.cant try to express because they are so flat...I do think I'll wait...Im just nervous that all of them will get enough....

Feel free to help Patches with the runt by supplementing a feeding here and there, making sure runtie is still being kept nice and toasty warm.

Please read www.kitten-rescue.com

Great site, loads of tips for bottle feeding with KMR! Sounds like the runt could use that extra "oomph"!

Try to put a kitten to the nipple after you squeeze it... Let them nurse and then see from there.. Skittles milk drips so I am not sure if patches does.. Try that.. but if need be then yes supplement they can dehydrate really fast...

Do the kittens seem to whine..

Originally Posted by momof3rugratz

Try to put a kitten to the nipple after you squeeze it... Let them nurse and then see from there.. Skittles milk drips so I am not sure if patches does.. Try that.. but if need be then yes supplement they can dehydrate really fast...

Do the kittens seem to whine..

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Only when theyre all fighting to get a nipple.....do yours do that? They still seem to pass right over nipples when hunting for one.....even the good ones...I try to put them in front of it but they just keep hunting.....eventually they do seem to get to it though..dont know how.....
are you sort of checking to see who nurses when...maybe I should start writing down when I see them nursing....cant be with them all the time..but maybe I'll see a pattern.....

Honestly they all nurse it seem like at the same time... I see a row of 7 and you hear it... Occasionally I see 1 fall to sleep but then that one gets a nudge for onother baby and off to drinking again.. It is weird how they all seem to sleep at same time also... I have watched her nurse and them all dose right off. I mean big bellys they even feel full. Then mom gets up eats restrom then back to them to a nap only to wake to 7 babies nursing again

Originally Posted by momof3rugratz

Honestly they all nurse it seem like at the same time... I see a row of 7 and you hear it... Occasionally I see 1 fall to sleep but then that one gets a nudge for onother baby and off to drinking again.. It is weird how they all seem to sleep at same time also... I have watched her nurse and them all dose right off. I mean big bellys they even feel full. Then mom gets up eats restrom then back to them to a nap only to wake to 7 babies nursing again

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Our babies do sleep together too.....thats amazing with them all nursing in a row like that!Maybe we'll get the hang of it soon! Thanks for all the good advice guys...gonna go check on them now....I'll check in later...Oh. I did get the scale from Walmart..most weigh 4.0 oz....little runt weighs almost 3 and half. two others I couldnt weigh.they actually look small too but just have more hair....momma was getting mad.........I'll have to try tommorow...
By the way, tommorow I'll be posting pics....need help from hubby ..gone out of town today.....checkin in later tonight....see you...

I am so excited pictures

3.5 ounces is not abnormally small for a newborn. They don't all get the same amount of nutrition in the womb so it's not unusual for some to be bigger and some to be smaller. What matters is evening out the playing field now. Make sure she gets enough to eat (mama's milk and formula if necessary) and as long as she gains weight, she is likely to be as healthy as the others.

I also didn't feel that 3.5 oz is too small in a kitten. If your scales can weigh by grams, it is sometimes easier to see the weight gain or loss. A kitten should gain around 10-15 grams a day. Try and keep a journal and weigh at the same time each day for more accuracy.
Is the hair trimmed away from the nipples? In medium or long hair cats that can sometimes get in the way of the kittens finding their own teat.
You may also contact your vet about something to help the Mother's milk supply. He may suggest certain herbs that will enhance her production of milk, or suggest a higher calorie food, such as feeding a canned food such as Hills A/D, along with a kitten kibble to help with calories she loses nursing a large litter.
A healthy newborn kitten is either nursing or sleeping. If one moves too far away from the others, move it back to the siblings to help it stay warm. A kitten will digest food at a quicker, safer rate, when kept warm.
If you do end up deciding to supplement, make sure the KMR is warm, and that the baby is warm as well, (never feed a chilled kitten, it can cause death). It is also easy to overfeed, I believe some have already linked sites, that should say the amount to feed at certain ages. Also, if a kitten has trouble bottle feeding, your vet can show you how to tube feeding, which can be a lot less stressful on you and the kitten.
Good luck with all the babies!!

Momof3, I agree with the last 2 posters...3.5 is a very good-sized newborn kitten...the norm at birth in a healthy litter is anywhere between 3-3.4 oz., so really, your runt is still slightly above average in size, which is wonderful!

Now, it's just a matter of "leveling out the playing field," as someone else said, so that the smaller kitten can keep up with the rest.

I'm so happy to hear that you have 7 chubs! That's wonderful! No wonder Skittles was so large while pregnant! Aren't you glad she ate well?

Newfoster, have you been able to weigh the runt yet? How is he/she doing this morning?

She looks so differeant every day.... She is not big anymore that is wow i am not use to it... SHe is a great nurser... I noticed she lays down and if she is on a kit she moves a little then gets them to her front and then lifts them with her moth to the pile of nursers...