Help! My 8 week old kitten won’t eat (we have to bottle feed her)

[JulieCalifornia]

We got two kittens 5 days ago… I was told they were exactly 8 weeks old the day we got them (and that they were eating on their own and was even given a baggie of hard food that they were supposedly eating), but about 24hrs later, I realized that one of them wasn’t eating… I had the hard food out that I was given, but I also tried wet food and goat’s milk, she wouldn’t eat anything… so I bought kitten formula; she won’t eat it from a bowl, but when I put it in a kitten bottle, she drank it all up.., poor thing was starving… we’ve only had them for 5 days and her sister eats food and drinks water from a bowl, but this one will only eat formula from a bottle (and she’s crying and hungry at every feeding, so it’s not like she’s just being picky)… What could be wrong with her?? Aside from that she seems happy… I imagine the woman I got them from maybe fudged their age and that maybe they’re not really 8 weeks old (which makes me sad)… but even at 7 weeks (or even 6 weeks), kittens should be able to eat on their own, right? How do we teach her to eat? Could something be wrong with her that she can’t eat out of a bowl?
Thanks for any advice!

 

[StefanZ]

We got two kittens 5 days ago… I was told they were exactly 8 weeks old the day we got them (and that they were eating on their own and was even given a baggie of hard food that they were supposedly eating), but about 24hrs later, I realized that one of them wasn’t eating… I had the hard food out that I was given, but I also tried wet food and goat’s milk, she wouldn’t eat anything… so I bought kitten formula; she won’t eat it from a bowl, but when I put it in a kitten bottle, she drank it all up.., poor thing was starving… we’ve only had them for 5 days and her sister eats food and drinks water from a bowl, but this one will only eat formula from a bottle (and she’s crying and hungry at every feeding, so it’s not like she’s just being picky)… What could be wrong with her?? Aside from that she seems happy… I imagine the woman I got them from maybe fudged their age and that maybe they’re not really 8 weeks old (which makes me sad)… but even at 7 weeks (or even 6 weeks), kittens should be able to eat on their own, right? How do we teach her to eat? Could something be wrong with her that she can’t eat out of a bowl?
Thanks for any advice!

You can show us pics of them when they arrived? I suspect as you do, they are somewhat younger...
And yeah, its common they eat themselves, whichever. But not all do, there is some individual variation...

My suggestion is you continue with handfeeding, give her the security and comfort of a loving home.... and be sure she sees when her siblings eats, so she will follow example... If she is visibly hungry every feeding, perhaps feed her a little more often.

You CAN of course let a vet check up her, just to be sure... It is after all, a wise advice to let a vet check up any newcomer, if not buyed from a reliable seller whom let HERs vet check up before selling...

Also, we must presume they should be dewormed any time now, and get their shots in a couple of weeks. Partly depending on how old they really are.... You can deworm with OTC dewormers if you know which to buy; but may be wise to let the vet advice you. shehe knows what reliable otc dewormers are in your area. Usually its enough with dewormers for round worms, but if there is any risk they had fleas, an allround dewormer taking also tape worms is necessary.

Its my advice you wait with vaccines with the handfeed one... She may need more time, till she is completely stabilized.


Ps. Goats milk is good enough and cheaper than kmr, so you can alternate with kmr, and use goats milk as supplement if needed.

I do not recommend kmr stage 2, its probably better to continue with kmr stage 1.

 

[Sarthur2]

I agree with StefanZ . She is not quite ready to wean. Feed her often, and you can eventually mix pate style wet food in with the milk.

Here is a helpful video:

 

[di and bob]

Kittens develop at all different times, just like human children. She will eat when she is ready. Bless you for giving her a bottle until she is ready. She will eat eventually. I teach them by putting them next to the dish and smearing a TINY bit of food thinned with formula on their lips, they usually learn to lick it off their lips, then progress to licking it off the dish. Sweet little mite!

 

[Kris107]

I agree with di and bob . My most recent adoptee came home around 8 weeks and she would NOT eat dry kibble. Even the wet food was a little bit of a challenge at first. We had to take a tiny bit and pop it in her mouth. It was more the mechanics of it. She just hadn't learned it. Sometimes if they grow up with their mama around, they nurse more than the foster parents think and one just didn't wean like the others. But making sure your kitten gets calories is important too, but try something appealing so they start getting used to something more solid. I've also weaned kittens by mixing formula with wet food and they suck at it (like slurping soup) at first. Then you can slowly make it thicker. Then if your goal is kibble, then you can do softened kibble.