Rescued kittys ..how long should I wait..

Hi all, I'm new to your site and new to kitty rescue. A mama cat had three kittens two weeks ago in Grandma's closet and disappeared on Friday night. We left the babies alone most of the day Saturday hoping she would return. By Saturday evening I couldn't stand it any longer and took the babies to hand raise. They are doing great after a very frustrating night of trying to feed them. I'd all but given up and decided they should be put to sleep instead of letting them starve. I prayed all night and decided to take them in at 10 am Sunday to the pound. Thank God!! They started eating that morning and are doing great. I have a small problem. They haven't had a bowel movement since their mom left on Friday night, today is Monday night. What my real question is...how long do I wait for them to have a bowel movement. I try to consider that they didn't eat at all Saturday so didn't really expect one Sunday but did expect one today. When should I start worrying?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Hi there and welcome to the site. You don't say how often you are feeding these babies? But it should be much more than three times a day. After you feed them you need to take a warm damp cloth and massage their tummy and bums. Since something has happened to mom, you are the mom cat now and you have to stimulate these babies as the mom does with her tongue. But you use warm water to help them go and just rub in a circular motion, but don't overdo it and make them raw. The should go in just a few minutes after they eat. The easiest way I have found to do this is to put a pan in the sink and on the other sink run a thin stream of warm water. Hold the kitten in your left hand and massage with your right, dipping the cloth into the warm water to help with the elimination. You will probably get messy- but it is imperative that these kittens eliminate waste.

Sweetdreams, You deserve to be commended for being a surrogate mother to these kittens. Are you giving them a formula? Are you feeding them frequently? I would, if you haven't already done so, give them a soft stuffed animal to cozy in with. They should stay in a warm, relatively secluded place that is well shaded. That's the way mommy does things. If you can, my vet recommends a bottle, rather than a dropper; it's more natural. Of course, I'm probably not telling you anything you don't already know! Please keep us informed of their progress.

Hi again
Thanks for the help. Sorry I wasn't very informative about their eating habits. I guess I wasn't patient enough either. This morning I woke to quite a mess in the den. I gave them warm baths and used a heating pad and blow drier on them to get them dry, then fed, stimulated and tucked them in with clean bedding. I have been feeding them every 4 hours around the clock, with a goats milk,water,karo syrup and egg yolk formula that someone recommended until I could get to the pet store for KRM. I started with an eye dropper because they refused the bottle and I was desperate. They went to a bottle when I got a different shaped nipple. Unfortunately the babies refuse the KRM even when mixed with the goats milk. I'll check into some vitamin suppliments with the vet or continue to try the KRM/goats milk combo.

It sounds as though you're doing a great job!! Goat's milk seems to agree with most animals. I'll bet this is the first time you've ever been glad to see such a mess! I fear you'll have a mess to clean up every day, but you're a good kitty mother, so I know that won't faze you--well, not too much, anyway. I had to do this same job and I know it's tough, but so satisfying!

You might call your vet and see if they have nursing bottles used for baby squirrels and rabbits. The nipple is elongated so it goes further down in the mouth and I have found it is easier to use on new kittens, then a regular nursing bottle. Good luck, and watch that heating pad, if should be for pets and not humans, the human pads can burn a kitten quickly even when stuffed under a towel, so make sure that it is underneath enough cover. Try to keep the kitten's area as warm as you can, and don't let them catch cold. Good luck, the task ahead of you is daunting to say the least.