Young Kitten Refusing To Eat

[Crazygamer2018]

We know you're doing your best. Goat milk is also safe for cats by the way.

Thanks, i will check if any store near me has goat milk

It is alarming that a 4 month old kitten is not eating and not tearing through the house wrestling and interacting with siblings.
There is an underlying cause for this which is critical for you to find out, the only way to do this is by taking him to a vet, if you possibly can. If not then he might very well not live and it is probably something simple, worm treatment etc is an easy fix.
Surely he has lost weight, and kittens that age do not have much to spare since they burn off what they eat with activity.
So it's not about finding something he likes, but fixing the reason for his not eating and sleeping so much.
I also wonder if he is possibly nursing from mama. If mom allows it a 4 month old will definitely nurse too.
The problem with feeding him milk is that cats do not tolerate lactose, milk will cause diarrhea, and at this point that will cause him to be in worse condition than he is now.
So stop the milk, and get a can of pate food (pureed, no chunks), add water to it and syringe feed. Or use turkey or chicken baby food add water and syringe feed.
He would need at least 1 jar a day, or 1 can a day, add enough water so that it will suck up in to the syringe without trouble.
If he fights it and I bet he will, wrap him in a towel and do it.
Syringing is not feeding down his throat, because he will resist he can inhale the food and will get pneumonia.
So small amounts in to his cheek area and wait for him to swallow it and repeat.
The food should be room temp or warmer, so adding hit water will make it nice and warm and more enticing rather than cold.
Continue throughout the day until he can be seen by a vet or he starts acting normal.
This will help ensure that he does not die before he is seen by a vet. He can't be in good condition if he has not eaten in days, so please do this asap.
All 3 should be vaccinated and dewormed asap too.
Momma needs to be spayed when you can too.

Be sure he is going peepee. A urinary tract infection will cause him to sleep too much and lose appetite and is dangerous if not given treatment, so keep an eye on that to know he is peeing.

Let us know!

I will try to take him to vet if i manage to somehow get some money as i am currently without job
Belive me, if i manage to get money so can get him to the vet i would be happiest person in the world. If i wasnt in this bad situation without job i would have taken him to the vet same day he stopped eating, will see if can somehow get him to the vet, i hope i manage to do it.......

He has definitely lost weight, thats for sure but i dont know if he is nursing from his mom as none of them are house cats, they all live mostly in my backyard so i dont really see if his mother is nursing him cause there are many places outside they can hide when they are with their mother and when or if shes still nursing them

I didnt give him much milk since i know its not really good for cats, i just used milk to see if he can even swallow and then i proceeded with some of things suggested here but i didnt manage to get much into him as he was fighting and kept his mouth tightly closed most of the time but hopefully it was enough to get him trough the night
Dont worry i didnt feed him down his throat with srynge, didnt want him to choke to death
I have put only small amounts in his cheek area as you wrote in your post

I will spend more time outside with him tomorow and will try to see if he can at least pee and i will let you know

And also you mentioned deworming, i remember about a year ago mother of this kittens had worms and there were like some small pills you can buy at vet and i remember vet recommending them for getting rid of worms, and if i remember correctly (it was about a year ago so i could be wrong) when i was buying those pills vet working there told me they can also be used on kittens but in smaller dosage and they are really affordable, is that deworming you are talking about or is it something else cause if thats it i can definitely try giving him those

Hi! To the OP C Crazygamer2018 You're doing fantastic, both with the language as well as a very challenging situation
(was at the dentist this morning, and then my car went in the shop )

In any case, I see that there have been a few mentions already of Gerber stage 2 or beechnut baby food - try the ham flavor if you can get it, and eggs.
Homemade Pedialyte can be a lifesaver;

tent test for dehydration and home-made pedialyte recipe - The Daily Kitten

Kitten Glop Recipes - Supplementing Cats and Kittens with nutritious formula you make at home: presented by Bengal Cat breeder Foothill Felines. --This website has a number of kitten glop recipes, with ingredients that you may very well have available.

I realize you don't have access to a lot, but I'll go ahead and post my entire list, just in case you're able to get something (and also for any readers/lurkers

These can be used on their own or combined with food. Also, if you heat the food a little - stir it so there aren't any hot spots from the microwave. Or you could heat some water, about a tablespoon, and add that to canned food. A shot glass works to stir it all up.

• Chicken or beef flavored baby food such as Gerber Stage 2 - make sure there is no garlic or onions in the ingredients

• Tuna and/or the juice, a low mercury/low/no sodium brand is called SafeCatch

• Salmon, mackerel

• Sardines (make sure there are no bones)

• boiled cut up chicken or turkey with no seasonings

• canned kitten food any brand - it's usually smelly. See if it's eaten on its own, then maybe mix it in or put on top

• Try mixing in Kitten Milk Replacer - there are recipes on the internet or store bought

• Fish, tuna or BBQ flavored canned wet food (I personally have never seen BBQ flavors, but...)

• Lickable cat treats or pouch treat 'gravy' poured over the food

• kitten glop (recipes in website link above)
• Bonito flakes
• fortiflora
• fish oil
• green beans, asparagus mushed up

• goat milk, or no lactose cow milk
• whole cooked eggs (the white must always be cooked) or raw egg yolk now and then
• broth with no salt and no garlic or onion or seasonings of any kind
• There are also commercial toppers, Applaws is a brand that can work well as a topper
  
• Some good treats would be freeze dried Purebites, Orijen, Meowtinis, Meowables

• There are also Lickimats that you could spread types of soft food onto, even yogurt, and even freeze it. Licking something helps a cat to feel better emotionally The LickiMat - Food Puzzles for Cats
• Not so much for hungry kittens, this last point is for cats that need calming; brew some chamomile tea (from the little bags - it's safe for cats), a couple teaspoons a couple times a day or so

Huge thanks for support and all links and info i will make sure to read and check everything and see what i can find and try
Btw, hope everything will be fine for you with your car, in this day and age you really need to have car for everything
Hell, here in Croatia most of jobs require you to have a car, if you dont have a car you cant get most of the jobs....

If you're not sure which meat baby foods to feed, here are some pictures of Gerber and Beechnut, two popular brands: My Cat May Need Surgery

If your local supermarket or big box store (Wal Mart, etc) doesn't have either brand or you live outside the US, look for a plain meat baby food that only contains meat and water. It's usually a "stage 1" type pureed baby food. Avoid food that contains rice or cornstarch if possible and definitely avoid garlic and onion.

Yeah, i live in Croatia so probably none of stores carry brands you mentioned but i will see what i can find, thanks






I replied to as much posts as i could and if there are some post that i didnt post reply to dont worry i have still read all posts i just maybe forgot to reply to some of them

Anyway, its already really late (here in Croatia its about 4:50 AM at the time i finished writing this huge post) so i should probably get some sleep and i will post an update tomorrow and let you all know how its going

Huge thanks to everyone for all your support and information
You are all amazing, thank you

 

[mschauer]

And also you mentioned deworming, i remember about a year ago mother of this kittens had worms and there were like some small pills you can buy at vet and i remember vet recommending them for getting rid of worms, and if i remember correctly (it was about a year ago so i could be wrong) when i was buying those pills vet working there told me they can also be used on kittens but in smaller dosage and they are really affordable, is that deworming you are talking about or is it something else cause if thats it i can definitely try giving him those

Yes although not all deworming medications work against all types of worms. If you have some and know or can find out the dosage I think it would be worth a try. Given how bad off he sounds, if it is worms, it may not be easy to treat without vet supervision.

 

[Crazygamer2018]

Hey everyone, im back

Sorry for late update but i was in town today to buy some foods to try some stuff recommended here and i also tried to spend more time with kittens outdoor to monitor what happens, i also stopped by vets office to ask for deworming medication and i got some pills for deworming

I have gave him dosage that was recommended by vet working there and he has swallowed pill without problem

I have also explained situation to vet and she told me to try with deworming pills for now to see if it might help

Today i tried again feeding him trough syrnige and i can barley get him to eat anything, i have tried warping him in warm towel but its still verry hard to feed him as he mostly keeps his mouth tightly closed and sometimes spits anything i put in his mouth

Right now i hope that its just worms and nothing more complicated and that deworming pills might help.


Btw, when i was buying deworming pills and explaining situatuion to vet she suggested that i give deworming pills to other 2 kittens too just in case so i gave them too

 

[mschauer]

Today i tried again feeding him trough syrnige and i can barley get him to eat anything, i have tried warping him in warm towel but its still verry hard to feed him as he mostly keeps his mouth tightly closed and sometimes spits anything i put in his mouth

I've had success with breaking the feeding into many small stages. Each stage involves holding them and giving them a small, possibly very small, amount of food and releasing them for several minutes. After you release him play with him, pet him, cuddle him, or what ever he seems to like. Then repeat the feeding followed by releasing. The feeding time should be shorter than the released time. The idea is to keep the time when he is restrained to be short enough that he doesn't get too desperate to be released. And after the release time he might not fight you so hard. Basically it is less stressful for him. It can take a long time to get a significant amount of food in him using this technique but you may be able to get more into him than you currently are.

 

[Furballsmom]

Huge thanks for support and all links and info i will make sure to read and check everything and see what i can find and try
Btw, hope everything will be fine for you with your car, in this day and age you really need to have car for everything

Hi! Thank you

How are things going for you?

 

[Crazygamer2018]

Hi! Thank you

How are things going for you?

Hi, yesterday i contacted my friend to ask if he could borrow me some money for vet and unfortunately he could not so i proceeded to call my dad but he couldnt help me either

Kitten was only getting worse and was even drinking less water and yesterday late at night he was constantly trying to walk but after few steps he would just fall, as i couldnt afford the vet i knew it was over but he just kept trying to go after other 2 kittens but would always fall and he fell in small puddle of water from rain in backyard so i picked him up to dry him with the towel and he calmed down and just keept looking at me and his eyes were all teary

I kept him in my arms until he fell asleep and i made him small bed from box and put him inside it with small blanket so he wouldnt be cold during his last moments, and one of his siblings lay down next to him (it was already late and it was time when they usually sleep so he was going to sleep too), to be honest knowing there is nothing left to do since i cannot afford vet i tought this was last time he will go to sleep and that he wouldnt wake up anymore

Early morning next day sadly he died, i have found him dead next to some flowers in backyard
i guess he got out of his small bed and tried to walk around backyard and fell and couldnt get up anymore and just died there

I am sad that he is gone and im barley holding tears as im writing this but then again i think hes at least not suffering and in pain anymore

I still fell awful and guilty for not being able to help him and get him to the vet

I feel like i still didnt do everything to help him, if only i was able to get him to the vet.....


In the end i put him in shoe box that i found and burried him in my backyard and put some flowers on his grave

Rest in piece, i will miss you

 

[Furballsmom]

hes at least not suffering and in pain anymore

I'm so very sorry!! You were there to give him warmth and love, and that really matters, I promise, it does.

RIP sweetheart, you didn't have much time here, but your grace and joy have been returned to you and you will remain in someone's heart

 

[mani]

C Crazygamer2018 the team at TCS are very sorry for your loss.
Out of respect, we lock threads where a cat has passed, but you may like to start a tribute thread to him in our Crossing the Bridge forum.


........................................ RIP little one
........................................


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