Help! Stressed And Lonely Foster Kitten...

[kraftykittenz]

My wife and I have experience with fostering neonatal kittens up to adoption age (singlets and small litters). So far, we've been successful with just over 20 individuals. At the beginning of this kitten season, we landed a set of 3, 3-week old siblings, Cole, Jake, and Valerie, all now about 3 months old.

The boys gained weight and grew much faster than their sister and were deemed fit to be neutered today 5/22/18. Valerie, deemed too small yet for the invasive spay procedure, stayed home. (Home is with my mother, she helps foster full-time after weaning, the kittens are kept in a comfy and secure kennel (ferret nation 2 level) in her home, and get fun-run time in the living room several times a day. Meal AM and PM with water at all times.)

Valerie always seemed the aloof and independent one, usually being the first to strike off on her own to explore a new area and the last one to settle down for snuggling. This morning we packed up the boys and took them to the shelter for their snip-snip day. The procedures went well and they are still in recovery. They will now remain at the shelter to recover and recieve their pain meds until pronounced healthy enough to be allowed to go home with their new families.

Valerie suddenly won't stop yowling and crying when confined to her kennel. Yes, actual yowling, screaming, and crying calls...

We've never experienced this level of anxiety in any of our previous fosters. She seems to be okay when allowed to run, but the rest of the house is not able to be kitten-proofed so she cannot have full-time reign.
During rest times, she cries and yowls almost ceaselessly.
We already:
- know and understand that she's lonely and misses her siblings
- assume she feels a bit scared to be alone right now because she doesn't understand why she's alone
- do NOT give attention during squalling fits but wait to praise calm quiet
- have tried covering the kennel with a blanket/sheet for naptimes - she swats at it and grumbles frustratedly
- thought of asking Cole and Jake's families to take her on too, but each family is restricted to a single cat due to their housing arrangements.

We beg of the more experienced community here, please, if you can, give us insight into helping Valerie calm down in the absence of her brothers.

Thank you.
KKZ

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi and welcome!
oh, poor sweetie - can you put a rice filled warm sock in with her? soft/low volume classical harp music?
Also, have you looked into any calming products? There's feliway but a lot of other products are on the market now with different ingredients and methods - treats, sprays, diffusers, collars, wipes.
Also, can you see if she's interested in eating more frequently - that just seems like a long stretch of time inbetween food in the AM and then in the PM.

 

[danteshuman]

The only thing I would add is lots of slow blinks and puuurrrring at her. My first instinct when I think of a squalling lonely left behind foster kitten is to pick them up, place them on my chest as I sit and to puuurrr like mad. Then talk softly and slow pets. Then distract with toys. Wee kittens especially seem to like being on your chest and feeling your heartbeat/puuurrr.

It won't help this time but for the next litter you can order a snuggle kitty that you can place a hot pack in and has a fake heartbeat.

I only raised 2 bottle babies we found at 10 days old. 1 was failing to thrive. Honestly what saved her wasn't me but my super calm neutered male cat I made let her nurse off him once. After that he let her nurse off him whenever, groomed them and taught them to hunt. So if you have a very calm nurturing g adult cat that the vet gives a clean bill of health and is OK with the kittens being near them (with supervision) that may be your biggest help. That kitten that was failing to thrive did everything her sister did 5 days later. So your kitten may have been conceived last/be a week behind her brothers developmentally.

Again this won't help with this litter but if you have to break them up I would still board them all together since their sibblings are their security.

Good luck & thank you for fostering them.

 

[duckpond]

Bless her heart, yes im sure she is scared, and lonely. I would give her all the attention and love you can. Im a sap for kittens, im afraid i would not be able to see her throwing a fit for company and not love on her, right or wrong.. Maybe there is even another foster kitten around her age you could bring in to be with her?