Orphan 3 week old kitten who now has pneumonia, can you tell me if I am doing everything right?

[krz]

My goodness,  she is so sweet,  and you and your boyfriend are amazing for saving this little baby!!

 

[savingkali]

kali update:

Her legs are so much stronger now. She's running around my bedroom and playing with everything and anything! She's so cheeky and funny. Ill upload the video of her playing a little later she's grown soooooooo much! She looks like a little cat now, instead of a pokemon

 

[eb24]

She looks like a little cat now, instead of a pokemon

Haha that is such an accurate reference! I have always said young kittens look like glorified hamsters but I may start having to use this one too! 

 

[pbmaltzman]

The kitten is a rather pretty little tortoiseshell.  You could give her, if you want, goats' milk as well as the kitten milk formula.  That's pretty young, but I have heard of kittens being pulled through when orphaned at even a few days old.  Best luck to you and to the baby. Your heart is certainly in the right place!  Bless you for taking on the challenge of rearing a kitten who was orphaned so young!

 

[savingkali]

First day we got her I instantly thought she looked like mew from pokemon:

 

110305-pokemon01-mew4.jpg

• savingkali
• May 20, 2013

and to PBMaltzman, thank you, I really care about her. I'm so proud of her for surviving such a severe illness at such a young age. Everyone I spoke to when I first found out were convinced she wouldn't make it.  But through dedication and patients she has pulled through.

I'm a little nervous at the moment about changing her food, she's currently on a fantastic formula and in a week or two I will be adding some wet kitten food to slowly introduce her so she doesn't have the same tummy problems. 

And here is that video: 

http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/3923/tibxwovdrvmufrcbnthfuc.mp4

 

[pbmaltzman]

She looks delicate, but she must be a tough little kitten!  Best of luck to you and to her!

 

[savingkali]

Kali's 6 Week update!

I can't believe my little girl has managed to reach 6 weeks of age. Before I started this thread I was convinced I wouldn't have Kali much longer. 

Today Kali is a little bundle of fluffy energy. She loves to run and jump and climb and play with everything (including my laptop as I'm trying to type...) I bought her a litter box on Friday with great litter sand and I have been waiting for her to start to pee before I scoop her up and put her in the litter box.  I'm very excited to say that today little Kali climbed into her box by herself and peed! I was so proud of her! 

She and Lola are now best friends and when Kali has had enough play time, she climbs into my lap and purrs before falling asleep. She truly is an angel. 

I am a little concerned though, she hasn't defecated in 5 days... Her stomach isn't bloated and she hasn't seemed uncomfortable at all, she just hasn't pooped.... any advice?

Anyway, here's a recent picture of her:  

Kali Sleeping.jpg

• savingkali
• May 27, 2013

 She fell asleep in my lap on her back, it was too cute!

 

[mamabirdy]

Glad she is doing so well, here's my Harley as of Saturday (just gone 5weeks) see what I mean.

image.jpg

• mamabirdy
• May 27, 2013

 

[savingkali]

OH MY GOD! Soooooo adorable! <3

 

[eb24]

Has she pooped yet? That is definitely something you need to watch. I know before she had terrible diarrhea and now seems constipated. Maybe adding some plain canned pumpkin to her diet would be a benefit? It's great for regulating bowel habits. She really shouldn't go more than a day or two without it being worrisome. 

If it seems to be recurrent bouts have her evaluated by her vet. 

 

[savingkali]

Has she pooped yet? That is definitely something you need to watch. I know before she had terrible diarrhea and now seems constipated. Maybe adding some plain canned pumpkin to her diet would be a benefit? It's great for regulating bowel habits. She really shouldn't go more than a day or two without it being worrisome. 

If it seems to be recurrent bouts have her evaluated by her vet. 

I went to the supermarket today to try to find plain canned pumpkin but I couldn't see it anywhere! I started getting more and more worried. She still hasn't popped so I decided to add some wet kitten food  to her formula in hopes of loosening her bowels... I'm going to start weaning her now because I think she may not be getting enough water in her diet. I'm also going to start massaging her belly to stimulate things. 

 

[tabbymommy]

hope everything works out

 

[savingkali]

hooray! She pooped! I have never been so happy to see poop before but she did it 2 yesterday

I'm currently trying to get her to lap and eat her wet food form a dish but she gets so frantic that she gets it almost everywhere but in her mouth! Should I continue giving her the wet food/formula/water mix through her bottle or try with the dish? should I worry if she gets it up her nose?

Also my boyfriend thinks he found her mum, a guy he know has been looking out for her but she's had pneumonia for 3 years with green mucous coming out of her nose, if she was pregnant with pneumonia could it have effected her kittens?

 

[tabbymommy]

Um the last question is maybe and for the wetfood don't worry she will mostlikely sneeze it out. Kittens have a tendancy of making messes with their food just give it to her once or twice a day and keep giving her the mix until she starts actually getting it in her mouth. I think the others can help alittle better but that is just what I would do with the food

 

[envykatt]

Awww she is adorable! Reminds me of a kitten I had named L.A (loud & annoying-my boyfriend named her) pumpkin is great for poops. Whether constipated or too runny. I was told if you can't find pumpkin in a can look for pure pumpkin baby food. Chicken baby food (stage 2) is good if she isn't as into chewing & prefers licking it up. My 8(nearly 9wk) old kitten Eji wasn't supposed to make it. He got very sick and his eye got puffy & the vet didn't know what it was. Told me he would die. A few days later he died in my boyfriends arms. He did CPR & got little Eji's heart going again. Vet said he's just gonns die again. I went to another vet & begged for something, anything. She said liquid steroid was an only resort. Gave him a dose & said it may or may not work and said he still may pass away. He's now doing great. Eats a ton runs around & plays
We still watch him closely (though it's been a couple weeks) and love him endlessly. Miracles happen it sounds like Kali is a miracle kitten as well.

 

[eb24]

I'm currently trying to get her to lap and eat her wet food form a dish but she gets so frantic that she gets it almost everywhere but in her mouth! Should I continue giving her the wet food/formula/water mix through her bottle or try with the dish? should I worry if she gets it up her nose?

 

Right now she probably needs both a dish of wet food a few times a day so she can keep learning how to properly eat, as well as a few rounds of formula bottle feeding so she keeps her nutrients up. She may have an easier time if you don't water her food down as it's less messy and doesn't get up the nose as easily. If it does I wouldn't worry too much about it as she will work it out and it's part of the learning process. You can wipe her with a wet warm cloth to help it out. Only if she seems like it's interfering with her breathing should you be concerned. Otherwise, allow her to learn via trial and error. 

 I was told if you can't find pumpkin in a can look for pure pumpkin baby food. Chicken baby food (stage 2) is good if she isn't as into chewing & prefers licking it up. 

Canned pumpkin baby food is fine to give so long as it doesn't have any other additives (double check the label). Many pet stores also sell canned pumpkin so check there too.

You are also right that an all meat baby food is a good substitute in situations where the kitten has an upset stomach and needs a soft diet to get them back on track (again, double check the label that it is nothing but pureed meat- many have onions and garlic added for flavoring which are highly toxic to cats). However, it should not be given longer than a few days as it does not have the nutrients that cats need to survive (mainly Taurine). If you want to give it longer than that add some nutri-cal paste formulated for kittens to ensure her nutritional needs are being met (sold at most pet stores).  

 

[envykatt]

Hi! I just found a product i wanted to tell you about. Its a vitamin powder pack my boyfriends aunt gave us. She uses it for her kitten rescues. Its FortiFlora. Made by Purina. We mix it in with wet food. Each pouch is a single serving. My adult cats don't like it but all 3 kittens don't really mind it. so you can look into that.

 

[eb24]

Yes, fortiflora helps regulate the bowels and works well. I just give young kittens half a pack though. 

 

[envykatt]

I use one pack for 3 kittens lol. They dont mind

 

[tbsolutions]

This story is good. I hope you continue to update this thread. Rock on Kali!