2 week old kitten not latching

[Umerwhat]

No idea what kitty miracle happened, but his belly is full and he's 258g! That's a 14 gram jump from the last time I checked in the early morning hours. I did try the sponge feeding, but that should be 95% momma's milk there.

I did notice last feeding he was on a nipple on the right side. When I try to get him to feed on his mom, I'm desperate to get him on any nipple. He usually ends up on the second nipple on the left. Are kittens really so stubborn they'll starve themselves over finding another nipple? Otherwise, I did notice the momma was really full this morning. I really hope he keeps this up. I can take him the to the shelter tomorrow if needed, where there are some people experienced with syringe/bottle feeding. Just don't want to put the momma and kittens through a long car ride unless necessary.

Anyone have any other possible explanations for the sudden jump? Also thanks so much for the help so far from everyone.

 

[Sarthur2]

The explanation is that he nursed from his mother quite a bit — and quite successfully — and has gained weight. Therefore, I would resist any trips to the shelter at present, and also see how he does over the next 24 hours on his mom’s milk alone, without supplementing. Keep in mind that small fluctuations are normal.

Also, kittens do claim a nipple and will nurse exclusively from that one, even if it means fighting for it.

 

[Umerwhat]

The kitten's weight did drop significantly so I took him to get checked out at the shelter today. Besides being listless and not growing, they couldn't find anything obvious wrong with him. They actually seemed to think he looked reasonably healthy compared to other kittens they get in at that age. They did give me some nutri-cal to feed him. So I've mixed it in with a bit of formula to syringe feed him every few hours. He seems a bit more willing to drink it with the nutri-cal, but it's still tough to get him to drink more than a couple ml.

One thing they did notice is he was latching onto momma, but not drinking. I'm still trying to figure out went happened yesterday that gave him a full belly. Is it possible he just has really weak sucking power? Does he need an overly full nipple to feed successfully? Honestly I have no clue about these things, but I'm out of ideas here. I also haven't felt momma's milk get so full again since before that successful feeding.

Would it be okay to separate the momma for an hour or two to let her replenish and give the little one first dibs? How long does it take for the milk to fill up? I'm not sure if momma will become frantic or not. She seems quick to forgive me if I give her food, but I'm not sure how long that'll work.

 

[Sarthur2]

I suggest you continue to supplement on a regular basis and let the kitten nurse mom when and if he is able. At least with supplementing he should gain steadily and grow until he is ready to wean to soft foods.

 

[Umerwhat]

With his growth stalled, will he be able to start trying wet food around the 3-4 week mark? I almost wonder if it'll be easier to get his chonker siblings to wean earlier to give him more shots at the milk.

 

[Sarthur2]

Some kittens are ready to begin weaning at 6 weeks, while others refuse until 7 or 8 weeks. It’s really a wait and see situation. You cannot force weaning.

In addition to supplementing regularly, put the kitten to a nipple when the others are sleeping to give him additional opportunity.

 

[Umerwhat]

I wasn't intending to totally wean so early. Just wondering if the big one would stop draining the milk 24/7 if he started eating a little pate or something on the side. Surprisingly, he already has teeth starting to pop out.

 

[Umerwhat]

Oops forgot to reply to the second part, but I'm struggling to help him get on his mom's nipple the last couple of days. The mom has started associating me with food and gets up most times I enter the room. The few times I've tried to get him on lately he tries for a couple minutes and leaves. I haven't given him honey since he had that good feeding 2 days ago. Is it safe to give along with the nutri-cal or would it be redundant?

 

[Sarthur2]

You can give both honey and nutrical.

Try putting mom’s food bowl next to her in the nest, or put the kitten to her after she eats and goes back to her kittens.

Mom should be constantly producing milk in her mammaries.

 

[Umerwhat]

Thanks for continuing to reply. Unfortunately he's not doing well. He's down to 231g. I don't think he has the strength to feed from his mom any longer. I've only been able to get 2ml of the kmr/nutri-cal in him every couple of hours. He doesn't seem to have the strength to keep eating after that. Though I know the lack of food is also the cause of that. I don't know at what point I should stop force feeding him.

 

[Sarthur2]

Continue feeding. Does he swallow okay? I’m hoping you can get him over this hump.

 

[Umerwhat]

He did start to pant and shake. So I started him on the 'alert' part of a fading kitten protocol. This one here:

Fading Kitten Syndrome - How To Save A Kitten

In this blog post we will go over the steps you need to take in order to save a fading kitten. Fading Kitten Protocol, Complete Supply List

sagablaga.wixsite.com

In the past when I tried to manually make him pee, nothing would happen, presumably because the mom had it covered. Because I had been feeding him so long without momma's help, I finally got him to manually pee for me. It was white and opaque. Looking online that sounds like pus. So I've started him on antibiotics I was given for another kitten(that one is healthy as a horse).

I'm mostly through the protocol at this point, but he's still panting sometimes. Does anyone have experience with this? The protocol says to continue until they're their version of normal. Do I continue the 15 minute interval feeding until it goes away? Any experience with this appreciated.

 

[Umerwhat]

I'm heartbroken to say he didn't make it. He didn't have the strength to swallow any more. I wish I had more experience going into this. But I know they wouldn't have survived outdoors either.

 

[Sarthur2]

I’m so sorry. RIP sweet kitten.

You did all you could. He was loved and cared for.