8 week year old kitten problems…

[kokokitty]

Hi all,

I got a kitten 48 hours ago and he’s very underweight (the breeder admitted he’s likely the runt, she had to bottle feed him before weaning). He warmed up to us within an hour, purring and on our laps. Absolutely fearless which was amazing.
He uses the litter tray perfectly, runs around like a loony and loves play, drinks water but he’s barely eating. But he’s still managing to poop which is odd, maybe he’s eating a little at night?
Today he was very tired though, sleeping on his back on my lap and literally not reacting to a paw being lifted.
He also (excuse me) has very smelly poops and has silently farted a few times (equally as smelly).
He also meows constantly, when not playing he wants to be on our laps, when I squatted down to stroke him he even tried climbing on my lap.

Should I be concerned? Separation anxiety? Still adjusting? Attention seeking?
He’s going to the vet for a check over real soon anyway, just looking for some advice in the meantime.

 

[IndyJones]

Has he been wormed? Looks a bit like he could have worms if he is underweight. Most kittens get them at some point. Contact the vet and see what they say.

Also what are you feeding? Some foods are really hard to digest (cat chow, purina one , anything grainy)

8 weeks is also very young he shpuld still be with mom untill 12 weeks.

 

[StefanZ]

How old is he presumed to be? 8 weeks? Im not sure he is fully 8 weeks... I would guess on 6.

Good you are going to see the vet. I suppose he hasnt been dewormed. And if the breeder was so so, it wont be enough with the usual anti round worms deworming, it shall perhaps be anti tape worms too...
(If you have access to Milbomax, its a good and mild all round dewormer).

Otherwise, a tip is goats milk. Its mild and nourishing... Either with bottle or him drinking it himself.

 

[silent meowlook]

Hi. I would get a vet appointment as soon as you can. He does look under 8 weeks. If he is that stunted then he really needs a vet check. Even if not, it’s a good idea to get a kitten checked out right away with a vet. He is adorable.

 

[kokokitty]

Hi. I would get a vet appointment as soon as you can. He does look under 8 weeks. If he is that stunted then he really needs a vet check. Even if not, it’s a good idea to get a kitten checked out right away with a vet. He is adorable.

He’s defo 8, we saw him with his litter who were bigger.

 

[Rodosi]

If she ain't eating... Try getting some medicine from the vet that increasing the urge to eating. Might help.

 

[kashmir64]

He’s defo 8, we saw him with his litter who were bigger.

Female cats ovulate eggs separately. This means that each egg can be fertilized by a different father at different times. This could result in a kitten actually being younger than it's littermates.
Not saying that this is what happened, just saying that it can happen.

 

[StefanZ]

Female cats ovulate eggs separately. This means that each egg can be fertilized by a different father at different times. This could result in a kitten actually being younger than it's littermates.
Not saying that this is what happened, just saying that it can happen.

Correct. It could even be 2 different litters simultaneously, born 2-3 weeks apart.
Not common, but not totally unique.

One of my neigbours had a cat from such a second litter. She got the kitten from a local farmer, whom did drown the first litter, as is common among farmers. But when the second litter did come three weeks later, he realized something unusual happened here, and let them live, making pains to get them homes...

 

[IndyJones]

Female cats ovulate eggs separately. This means that each egg can be fertilized by a different father at different times. This could result in a kitten actually being younger than it's littermates.
Not saying that this is what happened, just saying that it can happen.

Thats why kittens from the same litter can look complelty different. Indy has the dilute gene for example and is blue while her brother did not and was brown.

 

[Shawna87]

I raised a little one from 3 weeks old and he had almost the same things. Once I dewormed him, got him on a wet food that he liked and was consistent with it, and he adjusted to his new place he settled down. His poops got better and he stopped meowing all the time. My baby would meow so much I would put him in another room while we ate dinner to have a few minutes of quiet in the day

It might take some time to find a food he likes. I’d try going to a pet store and getting a few different cans (or order some off chewy even if it’s hard food) and see what he likes. I have one picky cat that I had to try lots of different food with to find the kind he liked. On chewy if your cat doesn’t like it they’ll refund you too!

I agree with the others he is very tiny. His belly is also pretty big and round which is a sign of worms. If you carefully squeeze his belly and it feels hard or swollen that are signs of works

I also used Tiki Cat Baby Thrive Chicken and Chicken Liver Recipe Supplement. It’s a high calorie supplement for underweight kittens or kittens that aren’t eating much. These really helped my baby!

He is definitely a cutie! You’ll do great caring for him! I’ll link the supplement below. Keep us updated on how he’s doing!

https://www.chewy.com/dp/526094?utm_source=app-share&utm_campaign=526094

Chicken & Chicken Liver Recipe Supplement - Tiki Pets