Hello All- I recieved an adorable little black baby kitten from the local municipal humane society to be bottle fed. I've had him about 3.5 weeks now and we estimate his age to be close to 5 weeks. He has molars at this point and weighs about 575 grams/ 1.25lbs. He has been VERY difficult to feed since day one. He refused the bottle until about a week ago and I had to use a syringe. He will only use one nipple (which was given to me by the humane society) but they don't have any more and I have tried about 30 others with no luck. This one started to break down so I had to cut it, but it's still the only one he'll use. I can usually get about 15cc in him over the course of an hour (he takes 5-10cc then refuses more, plays and potties, then when he starts to get sleepy again he'll down the rest) The clinic told me to start weaning him now that he's about the age with the hopes that he'd take to that better. So, over the past 4 days I've been slowly mixing "smoothies" of kmr and royal canin babycat for each feeding with the bottle. He refuses to try it on its own aside from one taste today. Unfortunately after his morning feed he steadily refused to eat anything at all. And then he vomited this afternoon. I immediately brought him to the emergency vet and they gave him fluids and anti-nausea meds and said to try and get him to eat again in 2 hours. Once the 2 hour mark hit, I tried to feed him plain liquid kmr (the store was out of powdered and my online order won't be here till tomorrow). He refused after 4cc. I added some babycat and he managed to get 10-12cc more down. I'll try to feed him again in about 3-4 hours and see if he'll take another 15cc, but even so it's not enough to hit his daily needs. I don't understand why this kitten won't eat. All of the forums say to try Gerber baby food, or various other remedies. He will not take any of them. He hates eating and it's a constant struggle every day to get him to gain weight. I have to feed him every 3-4 hours round the clock to get him barely getting the right amount, and the last 4 days he's missing the mark and not gaining. I feel like no one at the clinic is listening. The vet tech said to just leave some wet food on a plate a couple of times a day. If I did that, he'd be dead in a matter of days. I've watched every webinar by the kitten lady and for so much research but nothing is helping us. I'm at my wits end and I don't know what else to do. Anyone have any advice?
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First time foster with tricky bottle baby, please help
- Thread starter Katheryn
- Start Date
He doesn’t sound quite ready for soft foods yet. I would hold off on the smoothies for another week, then try again. Plenty of kittens will refuse soft food until they are 6 or 7 weeks old.
You are doing something right because at 1.25 pounds he is right on target with his weight for his age! Also, if he won’t take 15mLs at each feeding, don’t push it. He’ll be hungrier at the next feeding and should eat better. Kittens do occasionally plateau for a couple days where they are less hungry; then they grow and eat more and gain again.
Does he suckle better from the syringe or the bottle?
How are his poops - formed but soft? Is he regular? What color are they?
I often think that a finicky kitten like this one needs a buddy. Might the shelter you work with have another kitten his age you could bring home to keep him company? They also watch and learn from one another. It usually helps for kittens to have another kitten.
I hope he feels better soon and do keep us posted!
You are doing something right because at 1.25 pounds he is right on target with his weight for his age! Also, if he won’t take 15mLs at each feeding, don’t push it. He’ll be hungrier at the next feeding and should eat better. Kittens do occasionally plateau for a couple days where they are less hungry; then they grow and eat more and gain again.
Does he suckle better from the syringe or the bottle?
How are his poops - formed but soft? Is he regular? What color are they?
I often think that a finicky kitten like this one needs a buddy. Might the shelter you work with have another kitten his age you could bring home to keep him company? They also watch and learn from one another. It usually helps for kittens to have another kitten.
I hope he feels better soon and do keep us posted!
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #3
Thank you so much for your reply. He'll only use the one nipple and it's hole is quite large now. I could try the syringe with it, but I'm not sure it'll work as well. He had been doing pretty well on the bottle.
Poops are daily now for the last 3 days, which is great. Most recent sample was 4 smaller poops, brown and we'll formed. He's previously had blood and mucous in his stool and constipation, but tested negative for parasites. And he just started going in the litter box in the last 2 days.
I'm letting him go a 3 hour stretch right now before I try some kmr with a splash of pedialyte.
Right now there are no more kittens in this age group that I could pair up with him. He actually came to me as a mismatched pair, but the other kitten died almost immediately. Plus I have another adult female foster that I just recieved and my chihuahua- both of whom are kept separate from the kitten. So I don't think I could take anymore on, especially given how tough this guy has been, and losing the other one.
Poops are daily now for the last 3 days, which is great. Most recent sample was 4 smaller poops, brown and we'll formed. He's previously had blood and mucous in his stool and constipation, but tested negative for parasites. And he just started going in the litter box in the last 2 days.
I'm letting him go a 3 hour stretch right now before I try some kmr with a splash of pedialyte.
Right now there are no more kittens in this age group that I could pair up with him. He actually came to me as a mismatched pair, but the other kitten died almost immediately. Plus I have another adult female foster that I just recieved and my chihuahua- both of whom are kept separate from the kitten. So I don't think I could take anymore on, especially given how tough this guy has been, and losing the other one.
I did not mean put the nipple on the syringe. I just meant let him suckle from the tip of the syringe. At 5 weeks he will chew any nipple you use. If he’s starting to use the litter box then he will be ready to eat the smoothie mixture from a flat plate any day now. Hang in there because he sounds almost ready to turn the corner!
If you continue to see mucus and blood in his stool he may need an antibiotic to cure a bacterial infection in his digestive tract. It’s not always parasites causing the problems.
It does sound like you have your hands full! Thanks for fostering.
If you continue to see mucus and blood in his stool he may need an antibiotic to cure a bacterial infection in his digestive tract. It’s not always parasites causing the problems.
It does sound like you have your hands full! Thanks for fostering.
