Newborn Kittens Elimination

[JMA143]

Hi all,

Just a few days ago I suddenly ended up with 6 newborn kittens, mom apparently abandoned them and they were brought to me. They are just a few days old, some umbilical cords still attached. We have been syringe feeding with KRM and the kittens have all been eating well, no other obvious health issues, but I'm having trouble stimulating them to defecate (they urinate without any problems). I have tried the warm wet cloth and rubbing their genitals and anus, but no defecation. Some of them have defecated on their own in the box, possibly stimulated by the towels? I don't know if they're constipated with the sudden change from mom's milk to KRM but I'm worried that they are not going often enough and when they go in the box I cannot tell which one has gone. There is no bloating, no discomfort that I can tell, they aren't crying, and they continue to eat normally.

I know this sounds horrible but right now finances are tight, with 6 kittens I am worried of the cost of a vet, and there is no one else willing/able to care for them. Any suggestions?

 

[Kittycatcat]

Do you know what happened to mama cat? Is it possible she could be looking for her babies? It would be great if she could be trapped and reunited not to mention how much easier it would be for you.
Have you watched kitten lady videos on YouTube? She has some great advise on toileting kittens.
How often are they going? I wouldn't expect them to have a poo everytime. It sounds like your doing a great job with them.

 

[JMA143]

Thank you for the support, I'm so anxious, I'm just terrified of losing some of the, even though I know this happens.

Long story but mama cat had the kittens in a bush by my mom's house. My mom found them without mama but left them alone to see if she would come back. Mama came back at some point and moved some of the litter but left a few behind. My mom waited until the next day to see if mama would return to get the rest but she never did. One of the ones she left was a runt, so thinking she may have abandoned the others for some reason as well, so my mom brought them to me. Mama cat apparently had moved to the underside of a neighbor's car, and when he started his car she took off with one kitten but couldn't grab the others. Neighbor took them and gave them to my mom because he knew she had the others, though I think she would have come back for them if they had left them alone. No idea where mama is now, no one has seen her.

As for the kittens, I can confirm that only two of the six have defecated in the last 24 hours. Some went in the box Sunday but that was more runny, couldn't tell who or how many had gone. I did watch the kitten lady videos and have been following her instructions, but not getting much results.

 

[StefanZ]

Hi all,

Just a few days ago I suddenly ended up with 6 newborn kittens, mom apparently abandoned them and they were brought to me. They are just a few days old, some umbilical cords still attached. We have been syringe feeding with KRM and the kittens have all been eating well, no other obvious health issues, but I'm having trouble stimulating them to defecate (they urinate without any problems). I have tried the warm wet cloth and rubbing their genitals and anus, but no defecation. Some of them have defecated on their own in the box, possibly stimulated by the towels? I don't know if they're constipated with the sudden change from mom's milk to KRM but I'm worried that they are not going often enough and when they go in the box I cannot tell which one has gone. There is no bloating, no discomfort that I can tell, they aren't crying, and they continue to eat normally.

I know this sounds horrible but right now finances are tight, with 6 kittens I am worried of the cost of a vet, and there is no one else willing/able to care for them. Any suggestions?

I will write some in 90 minutes. Busy now.

 

[JMA143]

Just an update, at least two kittens went during feeding time today, there was some in the box again, and one went while i was stimulating, but definitely showing signs of constipation (beginning poop is dark and hard, after a lot of pooping it started becoming softer and yellower). We've added more water to the formula which may be helping, but any additional advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Sarthur2]

Add drops of olive oil to each feeding. It usually helps to get things moving and keep them moving.

 

[StefanZ]

Yes, both more water and some olive oil in the food.

There is more to do if its real constipation, but these do suffice mostly.


There is also the trick of eliminating in warm water, even running warm water. You can enhance it by tapping with your forefinger...

 

[JMA143]

Thank you all, will definitely try these things! Keep you posted

 

[JMA143]

So a new issue has arisen with the kittens, two of them are constantly suckling their littermates' genitals. I've read how this can become harmful and I've been trying to watch them and move them over when they do it, but they keep returning back to their siblings' or finding another one to try and suckle. I've also tried feeding them a bit more to see if they're still hungry, sometimes they eat more but once I put them back in the box they go back to suckling someone.

For now I've separated the two into another box (they don't suckle one another for some reason), but is this the right thing to do? Will this create problems with socializing? Will this behavior stop on its' own as they get older?

Thanks

 

[Sarthur2]

They want to suckle for comfort. The instinct is normal but suckling genitals can damage genitals. You are right to separate them, but do give them some supervised together time. They may outgrow it, though some cats will suckle for life. I had one who suckled a teddy bear her entire life. Try giving the sucklers a soft cloth with corners soaked in formula to suckle. This sometimes helps.

 

[JMA143]

Thanks for the help, at this point i have now had to separate most of the kittens as more have picked up the behavior and some kittens were getting swollen genitals. that was a bit stressful managing different boxes for everyone before compartmentalizing one large box for the four culprits. I give them a little time after feeding to cuddle with each other, but once the suckling starts, i separate them again. I hope they do grow out of it as this will be harder to manage when they get bigger.

The elimination has gotten a bit better as we've added more water and tried the olive oil, i think i need to add a little more oil but they're definitely going more. I really appreciate all the help as I go through this process, thanks guys!

Also little update, their eyes are slowly opening and I'm so excited

 

[Sarthur2]

Have you given them something to suckle on like I explained?

 

[JMA143]

Have you given them something to suckle on like I explained?

They all have socks full of rice that i warm up for them and a few of them will suckle on them, but once another kitten is nearby they go after them instead. I even tried cutting a small hole in one sock and sticking one of the extra bottle nipples through it to see if they would latch onto it, but they would only chew it for a second then let go (they still haven't taken to bottle feeding, so I don't think they like the nipples much). I had tried dipping a wash cloth in milk awhile ago for one of them and it didn't work, but maybe I can try it on some of the others. This last feeding was rough, i have all 6 of them sleeping separately now.

 

[Sarthur2]

Have you tried Miracle Nipples yet? They closely resemble mom’s nipples. Kittens usually take to them well.

 

[JMA143]

I will look into that, thanks!