3 tiny babies left to drown!

My mom just called me from work, and a woman that she worked with wanted to know if I could bottle feed some kittens. Her husband went fishing today and found 3 tiny kittens in a plastic bag that someone had dumped off to drown!

I've bottle fed puppies before, but they were much older than these kittens. The woman says that she thinks they are only a few days old if that. I don't know much about taking care of some so tiny, so any advice would be much appriciated.

They are supposed to arrive in a couple of hours. I've got everything set up for them in a large dog crate that is in my spare room. Of course, none of the other animals in the house will be allowed access to the room that the kittens are in.

Is KMR enough for such tiny kittens?? What else should I have to be prepared for them? I know I have a lot of work ahead of me.

Hubby isn't very happy at all about us taking them in (we probably have too many animals as it is), so I'm doing what I can to keep them here until they are ready to find forever homes.

I don't know if I could even attempt this without the support of tcs!

I'm sorry that I can't answer your questions, but I haven't any experience in this area. Good for you for taking them in, and good luck with the little ones.

Sending vibes.

A couple hours may not even be soon enough to get food into these babies. They need to eat every 2 hours even through the night. KMR is fine, and you need to stimulate them to go to the bathroom.

Oh no! I hope they make it.

Others will come along and give more expert advice, but I have heard that if you put a little glucose or sugar water in their mouths that this will stimulate the suckling reflex, and then you can proceed to bottle feed them.

Here's a link...
http://www.forgottenfelines.com/new/...botbabies.html

Keep us updated! Sending my good vibes to those little babies...

Originally Posted by Jen

A couple hours may not even be soon enough to get food into these babies. They need to eat every 2 hours even through the night. KMR is fine, and you need to stimulate them to go to the bathroom.

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Her husband is taking care of them until she gets off work. He's feeding kmr and she'll bring them to me when she gets off. So they should be ok until they get here. They would keep them but they both work so they wouldn't be at home enough to feed them properly.

You also may want to have her join this group:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/orphankittens/

Katie

Originally Posted by Godiva

Oh no! I hope they make it.

Others will come along and give more expert advice, but I have heard that if you put a little glucose or sugar water in their mouths that this will stimulate the suckling reflex, and then you can proceed to bottle feed them.

Here's a link...
http://www.forgottenfelines.com/new/...botbabies.html

Keep us updated!

Sending my good vibes to those little babies...

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Thank you so much for the link!! Very informative. And thank you so very much for your good vibes, I have a feeling these little babies are going to need all the vibes they can get!

I've never bottle fed babies, just supplemented a little as they nursed from Mom. One thing I will advise is that if they won't suck the bottle, use a syringe to drip the formula into their mouth.

And kittens rest on the tummy to nurse. I always want to cuddle them on their backs, like a human baby, but that can allow the formula to go into their lungs and choke them. So belly down, and tilt the head back, and then feed them.

I think it is horrible that they were abandoned like that. Thanks for doing your part to give them a chance!

Thank you so much for the advice! I think I will only be keeping them through the weekend and then I will call my vet to see if he has anyone who would be willing to foster them. I don't feel like I am experienced enough to really handle these babies until they are old enough to go to good homes, and hubby really is opposed to bringing more animals into the house, and I'm afraid I'll really rock the boat if they are here for 3 or 4 months. I also know that I will get very attached to these babies, and won't want to let them go when its time, and its just not feesable for me to keep any of them. Thanks again for all the great advice! I'm sure I'll be asking for plenty more when the babies arrive!

Are they here yet?

I'm starting to get worried about them... I bet they're very hungry and nearly dehydrated by now... *bites fingernails*

I'm very frustrated and worried right now...the lady never dropped off the kittens like she said that she would. She has my phone number and she never called. She was supposed to drop them off around seven thirty and its now ten thirty. I pray that these little ones are ok!! I don't know why she didn't drop them off, she knows where I live, and she was very happy and quite relieved that I would be taking them off her hands. I've tried contacting her and I've had no luck. I feel terrible...I really wanted to help these poor babies. They would've never been in this position if people weren't so cruel and stupid....please send vibes that the little ones are still ok. I can't figure out why she wouldn't have at least called...

Oh no! She should have at least called you to update you.

You did your best... we can't say the same about them.

Bless you for trying. *hugs*

Thanks so much...I feel so terrible. She better hope that if she let those babies die that I don't run into her anytime soon.

Oh yeah... I'd be furious too! Ugh! She better fear the wrath of a cat lover! She's probably embarassed, no? Or perhaps she dropped them off at the SPCA or something like that. All you can do is hope for the best.

For next time, and sadly there will be a next time, you might bookmark this site www.kitten-rescue.com

Hopefully she just had a change of heart about her ability to care for them. I didn't know anything about very young kittens when one wandered into our yard but I found myself turning into a very protective mama very quickly and wound up turning down several offers to help.

And as for the not being able to let them go, it was certain that we were NEVER going to have a cat...

Thank you for the link Hissy. I will definately bookmark it. Pippen--I wish she could've just had a change of heart, but with her work schedule I don't think she could care for them even if she wanted to. Thank you all for all the help. I hope that I can find out what happened tomorrow.

Awwwwww! THAT IS SO WRONG! I took in two that I found in my yard, they were a couple days old... You're an angel for even thinking of doing it... It's a task! BEST OF LUCK and keep us posted!

get some KMR cat milk from the vet. The powdered kind won't spoil. The large size is 30.00 or so. Most vet carry it and small bottles as well. But be sure and get the powdered kind. It lasts and the kittens will love it. I also have a bottle baby which we fed from about two days old. Once she learned to nurse, we were on a rigid schedule for food.

Now, she is grown and she thinks she is human. Her name is Kissy cause she loved being kissed when she was tiny.

I wish you all the luck in the world.

Also make some sort of soft little den for the babies.

Something else you willl have to do is BE LIKE MAMA. This is important now. Baby cats cannot use the restroom without mama cat stimulating them. Normally this is done by mama cat by licking their bottoms. What we did was use Q-tips dipped in baby oil or vaseline and gently rub their privates. They pee nearly instantly or poop. I got a tiny little litter box and would do this in the litter box when Kissy was about 1 week old I guess. By three week, when she could see, she was using the litter box.

If you don't do this, the kittens will not make it. They cannot use the restroom on their own when they are new borns. When you notice them actually using it alone, you can quit doing this, but it will be a couple weeks. And possibly more. It depends on the cat.

Good luck! And speaking from experience, you will bond with these cats. Whoever feeds them will be mama to the babies. It is a big responsibility.
Jenn

p.s. To this day, if I ask Kissy "You wnat a baba?" she meows and nearly attacks my leg as I get her one ready. She loves to sit in your lap and drink a bottle. She is the thired picture on the top row of my signature. The one sleeping on her back..

OH my god. I just read through the entire link. That is horrible. I sure hope the babies make it...

Give update. Did the lady ever call?

People are the real animals of the world, you know?