New Foster Litter, 2 seperate sources

[FosterMeowma]

I have a new litter of kittens to bottlefeed, from two seperate sources. A total of 4 kittens, 2-3 weeks old.
Two of the kittens are severely underweight, and 2 of them are average size but suddenly started dropping.
One of them is on medicine for a bacterial infection that is causing her to have bloody diarrhea. She was found abandoned in a house after the tenants moved out, and had been without food for at least 24 hours before being found. She was half dead when I got her 4 days ago, she is the white and grey pictured below. I have named her Spirit.
She was so badly infested with fleas that she had to have a flea bath, the vet used flea drops after the bath, and she had to have an iron supplement to get her blood and iron levels back up.
The other three kittens are coming today. They need bottle feeding to make sure they thrive, one of the litter (it used to be 4) passed away from Failure to Thrive already. They are on dewormers for two different types of worms.
My question is, with the different health issues these babies have, will it be safe to put Spirit in with the other three? Or should I keep them seperate?

 

[Sarthur2]

I would keep Spirit separate for now - at least for a couple of weeks until she gains weight and gets bigger and until the other kittens are finished with their meds.

That means Spirit will need a heat source and a soft cuddly stuffed animal to snuggle.

Thank you for taking this on and keep us posted!

 

[FosterMeowma]

Thank you! That's all I needed to know, I realized I forgot to put the picture of Spirit at the end of my post, so here it is. These pictures were taken yesterday, you can clearly see how far she has come since I got her already- when I first got her, she couldn't hold up her head, was too weak to suckle a bottle, didn't move on her own, and never made a sound.
Now, she walks around (still dragging her back legs), demands food (loudly!) every two hours, suckles her bottle (and will eat anywhere from 10-20 ccs a feeding- day one I could barely get 5 ccs in her), and fights me for control of the bottle!
I thought I would lose her day one, now I'm convinced she will have a long and happy life.

 

[Sarthur2]

She is precious!

 

[FosterMeowma]

She really is! Such a sweetheart!
Just got the other 3 kittens. Say hello to Phoenix (picture 1), Pixie (picture 2), and Pandora (picture 3).

 

[FosterMeowma]

Ok so... something just happened, and I'm not sure if there is anything I can or should do about it...

The three kitties today came with their mama cat, Tiger. The bottle feeding I'll be doing is supplementary, since they were losing weight with Tiger.

Well, I heard Spirits little mewl so I went into the foster room and she wasn't in her box. She was in Tiger's box, with Phoenix and Pixie and Pandora, screaming her head off as Tiger cleaned her bottom.

I waited until Tiger was done, and then reached in to grab Spirit and feed her and put her back in her own box. And Tiger, who let's me pick up her 3 girls and pet her, hissed at me as soon as I touched Spirit.

So I waited until Tiger was done nursing and had jumped out of the box, and then I picked up Spirit and fed her and stimulated her and cleaned her up and put her in her box.

Tiger immediately jumped up, grabbed Spirit, and carried her to her box and put her in.

 

[Sarthur2]

Well, alrighty then! Miss Tiger has decided that Spirit is to replace the baby she lost. I think it’s very sweet. So much for the separation - let’s go with it. Hopefully everyone on meds is doing well and not contagious. Otherwise, if there’s a mama in the house, it’s good for the kittens!

The question is does Tiger have enough milk for everyone? Weighing will answer that soon enough. Tiger’s kittens may have been losing weight because they weren’t feeling well. I suggest you continue to try to supplement until the kittens are all caught up and thriving.

 

[FosterMeowma]

I actually started off with both Phoenix and Spirit, solely bottle feeding. At that time, they were both under 6 ounces. Then Phoenix started thriving, and so we decided to try her back with Tiger.

I now have Phoenix and the rest because Phoenix is gaining rapidly, while Pixie and Pandora are losing. So I think that Phoenix is hogging the milk now that she feels better, I am supplementing with KMR either way, mama cat is best, but Spirit in particular needs a bit of extra care

 

[FosterMeowma]

UPDATE! Just got back from the vet! Pandora and Pixie are suffering from an accidental overdose of worm medicine and antibiotics. Basically, they managed to consume Tiger's dose after she let it drip from her mouth.

They are both very sick, the medicines killed off all the good bacteria in their guts, leaving the bad ones to thrive and flourish. Pandora also has pneumonia, while Phoenix and Pixie have URI.

The vet said to prepare myself for them not to make it, but I am going to do everything in my power to save them!

 

[FosterMeowma]

And I just lost Pandora...

 

[Sarthur2]

Oh my word! I was not aware that you were medicating the mother cat. Wish we’d been told. I thought everything was good. How sad. I’m so sorry. I hope the others make it.

 

[FosterMeowma]

Oh my word! I was not aware that you were medicating the mother cat. Wish we’d been told. I thought everything was good. How sad. I’m so sorry. I hope the others make it.

Allow me to clarify- I was not medicating the mama cat. The overdose happened 4 days ago. Their human mama says she didn't know the medicine would hurt them, and so didn't tell anyone about it until I was rushing the kittens to the vet to figure out why they were so sick.

I, too, wish I had been told. Because if I had known right away, Pandora might have made it.

 

[catsknowme]

Condolences on losing Pandora - you tried valiantly. At least, she is spared lifelong breathing problems with weak lungs. Poor Tiger - losing two babies for a mama kitty with such good maternal instincts is especially hard. Caring for beautiful little Spirit will help Tiger heal.
Are you giving Tiger additional probiotics? That way, there is a better chance of rebuilding Pixie's gut flora through both adding to the formula and the estimated 40% chance through mama kitty milk.
Thank you for the precious photos. Prayers and vibes for encouraging & happy updates

 

[FosterMeowma]

All of them are on probiotics, Phoenix and Pixie have URIs as well. I'm still supplementing, mama is on probiotics and I'm mixing some probiotics into their milk that I'm giving them.

All 3 are still gaining weight- Phoenix is up to 9 ounces now! And Spirit is at 8 ounces, Pixie is at 10.

Tiger is a feral mama, but she let's me pet her and pick her up when needed, so she knows I am here to help. She's become much more protective of the remaining kittens (which is normal) and is spending more time in the box than out of it.

They are also on a medicine to help with the diarrhea as well as the antibiotics. All 3 are nursing regularly, and mama is doing a great job stimulating them.

The vet sent me home with the supplies to do sub-cu fluids, and I'm mixing their KMR with pedialyte for extra electrolytes. The biggest worry right now is dehydration.

But the kittens are starting to play with each other! That's a great sign!

 

[FosterMeowma]

Oh! And here is my older foster, Eevee, who has officially been declared URI, coccicida, and round worm free! She will be going to our rescues next adoption fair.

 

[FosterMeowma]

Oh! And here is my older foster, Eevee, who has officially been declared URI, coccicida, and round worm free! She will be going to our rescues next adoption fair.

Forgot the picture lol

 

[Sarthur2]

Thank you for clarifying the situation. It’s great to hear how well they are all doing.

 

[FosterMeowma]

They are still struggling, but I have hope they will make it.

 

[FosterMeowma]

It's been awhile since I updated, has been crazy here!
Phoenix is growing and thriving, she is the most active of the three and is constantly trying to climb out of their bed. She also gets really excited when I come in.
Spirit is no longer having the bloody diarrhea! She is starting to play, and loves eating more than ANYTHING!
I'm still worried about Pixie. She was doing well for awhile, growing and thriving, but yesterday she started losing weight. I have started supplementing her every 3 hours, but this is only allowing her to maintain the weight she is at currently.

We are going back to the vet tomorrow morning, I'll let you know what the vet says!

 

[Sarthur2]

This may be all you can do until she rounds the bend. Sometimes around the 3-week mark or so kittens can experience fading kitten syndrome (FKS).

If they are eating well, pooping normally, and hydrated, i.e. nothing else wrong, they usually will snap out of it in a few days. It’s scary, and is a failure to thrive issue that seemingly pops up out of nowhere with no explanation. Supportive care often gets them through. I hope this is the case with Pixie! FosterMeowma