hand-raising week old kittens

[kayla9]

Hello! A woman brought me some 3 day old kittens that she found squirming about the garden at her work place out in the open, she put them in an empty flowerpot and followed the standard protocol of waiting 3 hours for mom to come back before determining that she wasn't going to. I have experience with neonatals but this is my first litter this small, all previous ones have been 3 weeks+
They are 9 days now and are doing very well, for a while i was having trouble with their pooping- at first they were constipated, fixed that, then their poop was green, fixed that, and now its finally almost normalized (its still a little too solid for my tastes) under the guidance of my vet.
however this afternoon i noticed that one of the kittens was a bit sleepier than usual. he has been eating and going to the bathroom fine, but at feedings he used to be one of the first to clamor for my attention and now he doesn't even get up until i wake him up. i will of course talk to my vet as well but it's late and i was hoping if anyone knew something i could do now.
Here is their info:
warm hot water bottle changed every four hours to ensure it stays warm and cool side option
poop once a day
pee every feeding
eat 5-7 ml of kms per feeding
feeding once every 2 hours during day time and once every 3 throughout the night under vet recommendation

if anyone has any ideas i would be grateful, i know lethargy is never good ):

 

[Sarthur2]

What is each kittens’ weight at 3 days and today?
Which brand formula are you using? Powdered or pre-mixed? Are you feeding with a syringe or bottle?

Does the sleepy kitten still eat well? Do you hear any noises when he breathes - crackles or coughs or heavy breathing?

I can provide better insight with these questions answered. K kayla9

 

[kayla9]

What is each kittens’ weight at 3 days and today?
Which brand formula are you using? Powdered or pre-mixed? Are you feeding with a syringe or bottle?

Does the sleepy kitten still eat well? Do you hear any noises when he breathes - crackles or coughs or heavy breathing?

I can provide better insight with these questions answered. K kayla9

unfortunately the kitten passed away. i took him to the vet in time but she couldn't diagnose him- i live in a place where proper veterinary care is hard to come by. All that is left is to continue caring for the other two- when i woke one of them up to feed them he started doing this sneezing thing, i listened for gurgling in his lungs and didn't hear any but did some coupage anyways to be sure.

 

[kayla9]

the sneezing kitten weighed 110g the day i got him (3 day old) and now weighs 140g (10 day old). no crackling or coughing, only sneezing, breathing is about 2 breaths per second- seems regular to me, at least in comparison with his sibling.
Powdered formula- brand vita lac, syringe feeding. He eats really well (i actually have to cut them off out of fear of overfeeding) at aprox 5-7 ml per feeding

 

[Sarthur2]

Sounds like the other two are doing well; so sorry for the one you lost. It’s not easy hand raising kittens; you must feed round the clock and if they want more, give it, as they are growing. If they appear congested they will need clavamox.

Where are you located? Keep us posted!

 

[kayla9]

Sounds like the other two are doing well; so sorry for the one you lost. It’s not easy hand raising kittens; you must feed round the clock and if they want more, give it, as they are growing. If they appear congested they will need clavamox.

Where are you located? Keep us posted!

I live in a town in mexico- both kittens are doing well! i have been noticing that they are a lot hungrier so i've been feeding them more as suggested. i'm doing the second daily weighing in two hours or so and will let you know their gain, but they've been doing 9-10 ml each feeding and i switched from syringe to bottle. The sneezing kitten has stopped sneezing, i put a diffuser with purified water in their box for about 5 mins after every feeding and hold him over it while doing some coupage, which seems to have really helped. I also bring them in the bathroom while i shower so they can get the steam, all of this in absence of a nebulizer but luckily the humidity is almost always 80+ here to begin with (i've stopped using the air conditioning in my room for good measure)

 

[kayla9]

also, since they're almost two weeks old i've been extending the feedings to every 2 1/2 - 3 hours

 

[kayla9]

Thank you so much for your condolences. I've been trying to just hyper focus on the remaining little ones to avoid thinking about him, but it really is heartbreaking I at least know that i gave him all my love and comfort in his last days and did everything i could to save him.

 

[kayla9]

The kittens are doing well! They turn 5 weeks today and go in for their weekly check-up. Eating about 19 ml per feeding, and a few days ago I began switching them to KMR formula (I was having some trouble on weight gain with the other one) which they're taking pretty well, although one of them got a little bit of diarrhea so I waited until it went away before increasing the amount of KMR again. Both their eyes are completely open and they're getting super interactive, learning to jump and play! I'm thinking about upgrading them from their box to a part of my room because I think they will outgrow it soon.

 

[kayla9]

Okay, so I got this litter of three kittens when they were 3 days old- unfortunately I lost one at two weeks of age, but the other two have been doing well. They turn six weeks tomorrow, a little late for weaning maybe but they've always been so small and underdeveloped (I get the feeling mom might have abandoned them because they were born prematurely) so I didn't feel safe switching them. One of the kittens, the female, has a full set of teeth and is ready to go; but the little male, who was always the runt, is only just beginning to get his incisors and I can't even feel his molars. In all my time rescuing kittens I've never seen such a big developmental difference between siblings, should I only wean the female and continue to bottle feed the male until his molars come in? Or should I get them both on slurry? I don't want to wait too long to wean them either. I'd love to hear from anyone who has had a similar experiences with a litter.

 

[Sarthur2]

He is developmentally behind and you should treat him as such. He is probably not ready for weaning yet since he has no teeth. Continue to let him develop at his own pace without pressure. He’ll get there eventually.

 

[kayla9]

Yeah, that's what I figured I should do, I'll start just the female on slurry with a supplemental bottle tomorrow. Pocket kitten picture for tax, thank you so much