Stray Cat, 7 Kittens, Lots Of Questions

[surya]

Cat rescue can be very stressful. Take care of yourself too.

 

[momof3b1g]

That's fine. You can use kitten milk replacement formula instead, if it's cheaper. Poor nursing mamas need as many calories and nutrients as they can get! Does it say on the container how much to give her?

The KMR directions say 2 teaspoons of KMR powder per 5 pounds of body weight for a nursing mama cat. Mixed with whatever amount of water she likes, I suppose.

She should also be eating kitten food. What brand are you giving her?

I wasnt sure it was the same. she likes this alot better. 3/4-7/8 cup per day for 5 pound cat.
mix 1:1 ratio

Kitten food dry purina kitten chow, but she doesnt always eat it. and Fancy feast kitten canned. I have given her some other brands and FF too.

 

[Willowy]

Sounds like you have it handled!

If you can, try Purina ONE kitten food. It has more calories than regular Kitten Chow. I've had a lot of success with it and FF Kitten turkey flavor.

 

[momof3b1g]

Thanks i dont think i have seen P1 kitten. But do give her ff kitten. I bought some wellness kitten dry and canned though

 

[momof3b1g]

Trying to get kittens to eat more solid food. Mom is struggling to feed them all. They do good with wateted down canned food. Last night i put dry with KMR. They didnt leave much. Or maybe mom ate some . Today i tried again and they left alot. Cant leave it as afraid of bacteria
Need tips on feeding 7 of them. I hate going in and waking them up. I put down dry kitten food in a bowl and some have been nibbling . But dont want them constipated :/
Also dont know how much to always give mom. She doesnt care much for the dry food. Gave her 3oz at noon. She ate most. She doesnt always eat enough. I think. She weighs 8.5 pounds feeding 7. (shes in a room) so how often do i give her wet food? Without leaving it to go bad?

 

[Wile]

Trying to get kittens to eat more solid food. Mom is struggling to feed them all. They do good with wateted down canned food. Last night i put dry with KMR. They didnt leave much. Or maybe mom ate some . Today i tried again and they left alot. Cant leave it as afraid of bacteria
Need tips on feeding 7 of them. I hate going in and waking them up. I put down dry kitten food in a bowl and some have been nibbling . But dont want them constipated :/
Also dont know how much to always give mom. She doesnt care much for the dry food. Gave her 3oz at noon. She ate most. She doesnt always eat enough. I think. She weighs 8.5 pounds feeding 7. (shes in a room) so how often do i give her wet food? Without leaving it to go bad?

I don't know about KMR, but according to my vet you are ok to leave wet food out at room temperature for 6-8 hours before it goes bad as it has been pasteurized. I've done that with my own cats for years and never had a problem.

 

[momof3b1g]

I don't know about KMR, but according to my vet you are ok to leave wet food out at room temperature for 6-8 hours before it goes bad as it has been pasteurized. I've done that with my own cats for years and never had a problem.

I have read up to an hour. Up to 24 hours. But there is a difference between leaving fresh food and half eaten food. As if its been eaten from. The bacteria forms pretty quickly. And with little kittens. Could be more of a problem then adult cat.

 

[Wile]

I have ready up to an hour. Up to 24 hours. But there is a difference between leaving fresh food and have eaten food. As if its been eaten from. The bacteria forms pretty quickly. And with little kittens. Could be more of a problem then adult cat.

My cats are grazers, so the food stays out during that period and slowly gets eaten. When I get home from work I dump anything uneaten and put out a can for dinner. I've done this since they were 12 week old kittens and not had any issues, but I don't know about whether it is different for 5 week olds.

 

[LadyLondonderry]

I've never worried about leaving canned food out, either, but the OP mentioned moistening dry food with KMR -- from what I've read in this forum, adding liquid to dry food can create a bacteria-friendly environment. (Correct?)

 

[StefanZ]

PetAg makes usually good products so I presume this is good too.

Otherwise goats milk is always useful.

 

[momof3b1g]

I've never worried about leaving canned food out, either, but the OP mentioned moistening dry food with KMR -- from what I've read in this forum, adding liquid to dry food can create a bacteria-friendly environment. (Correct?)

Ya i dont know if it needs to be picked up right away. But i think any moisture to dry food is bad.
Darn kittens are getting under my feet. Squished one and hope it wasnt hard enough to do internal damage. Im struggling to keep them safe and keep myself sane and healthy.
I feel bad i was in there to clean litter boxes and they follow me. Dont know where to keep them so they have access to mom, litter boxes. But dont get under toe

 

[Wile]

I've never worried about leaving canned food out, either, but the OP mentioned moistening dry food with KMR -- from what I've read in this forum, adding liquid to dry food can create a bacteria-friendly environment. (Correct?)

Ya i dont know if it needs to be picked up right away. But i think any moisture to dry food is bad.

I've read elsewhere that you can leave moistened wet food (with water, that is) out for 6-8 hours as well, but I don't have a source for it. I think warnings for moistened dry food being an extreme breeding ground for bacteria is when compared to the shelf life of unmoistened dry.

KMR is supposed to be good for 2 hours from what I just looked at on a can, so if you are mixing with kmr I would use 2 hours as the upper limit. Canned wet food for mom you're good for 6-8 hours

 

[msaimee]

How are the kittens and mama cats doing? Is the bite on your hand healing?

I leave out canned food moistened with water for about 4-5 hours and have never had any problems. If I leave the food out, they will eventually eat all of it and it keeps me from wasting too much food.