Weaned Bottle Baby Laying In Litter And Poop

[kittyfosterfam]

Hi everyone! I'm new here so I'm sorry if I do anything incorrectly. We currently have a litter of four kittens around four weeks old we are fostering. When they were pulled from the shelter they were covered in fleas. They got a flea bath (much to their protest) and got settled in. They all refused (and continued to refuse) a bottle but eagerly chowed down on slurry made of KMR and kitten wet food. Their weight gain is good so we're not too concerned about them being weaned earlier than ideal/normal. These kittens are our first ones that are this young (and only our second litter, our first were 8 weeks when we got them) so we're not quite sure what is 'normal'. One of the kittens, the largest, a long-haired ginger enjoys napping and rolling in the litter box, especially when it is filled with poop (we clean it out at least five times a day but he always gets in right before we take it out). I know kittens are supposed to be clean to promote good grooming habits later in life but this guy couldn't care less about the poop on him. The poop is quite difficult to get off, my favorite trick is getting the area wet with a washcloth and brushing it out with a toothbrush but sometimes even using my fingernails to try and pull the poop off doesn't work and he has to have a bath (which I know isn't ideal but I can't find anything else that works). So my questions for all you wise kitten raisers are;

1. What are some possible reasons he could be doing this?
2. How can we get him to stop?

 

[kittens mom]

They're pretty young I was still helping my pee and poop at this age. This is likely something that will resolve with time. I had to use a warm washcloth and baby wipes on mine till they were about 8 weeks old to make sure they stayed clean. They did learn to use their own poop boxes one night and painted their whole crate often referred to as the Great Poop Painting Party. All of my concerns went away as they got older week by week and nature kicked in and they stopped walking in poop and their food and learned to clean themselves.

 

[Sarthur2]

Yep, as Kittens Mom said, time will resolve this. They just need to get older. Clean them with a warm, damp wash cloth in the meantime!

 

[Topherius]

LOL oh god the litter playtime.....Its pretty common and I still don't know why they do it. Mine liked the feeling and sound I think but she is quite the clean freak now 2 years later and grew out of it quick....it was just new and different, then other new and different things took priority. Bathing kittens until they are proficient groomers is sometimes necessary....just use warm water and a bit of dawn because its gentler than shampoos and easy on their skin. Good luck with your poop monster!

 

[kittyfosterfam]

Thank you all! I can't wait until he grows out of it. Looks like we'll keep on doing what we are doing then.