The First Night With The Kittens
It was a long night! I am exhausted but the kittens are doing well. With each feeding, they gain strength and confidence. I set the kittens up in a bathroom. They sleep in a large carrier lined with towels. Under one end, I placed a heating pad. This allows the kittens to choose how warm they want to be. I keep them locked in the carrier between feedings to promote a sense of safety.
The buff kitten is an outgoing boy. He boldly goes where the other kittens won't. The tabby kitten watches him to see if he should follow. I think of him as a cautious explorer. I am concerned about the black kittens. After a meal, they crawl back into the carrier and hide. They are smaller in size than their brothers and emotionally less mature. They seem to be taking the loss of their mom hard. I will spend extra time with them to help build their confidence.
At the 5am feeding, I decided to introduce real food. I made a gruel out of canned canned kitten food and kitten milk replacer . The buff kitten dove right in. He buried his face in the bowl with gusto. Since he seemed happy, the tabby kitten decided to give the new food a try. He took a small taste and loved it. Everything went well until he put one of his front paws into the bowl. When the gruel oozed through his toes he shrieked and headed back into the carrier.
When the bigger boys were finished, I introduced the black kittens. The short haired one wanted no part of the gruel. The long haired one thought it was great. He formed a perfect 'O' with his mouth and slurped up the gruel. The consistency did not bother him. He stood in the middle of the bowl and vacuumed the bottom. When he finished, gruel coated his hair. He did not appreciate the post-meal bath.
Overall, I am thrilled with their progress. My only concern is that no one has had a bowel movement yet. I will keep you posted.
The buff kitten is an outgoing boy. He boldly goes where the other kittens won't. The tabby kitten watches him to see if he should follow. I think of him as a cautious explorer. I am concerned about the black kittens. After a meal, they crawl back into the carrier and hide. They are smaller in size than their brothers and emotionally less mature. They seem to be taking the loss of their mom hard. I will spend extra time with them to help build their confidence.
At the 5am feeding, I decided to introduce real food. I made a gruel out of canned canned kitten food and kitten milk replacer . The buff kitten dove right in. He buried his face in the bowl with gusto. Since he seemed happy, the tabby kitten decided to give the new food a try. He took a small taste and loved it. Everything went well until he put one of his front paws into the bowl. When the gruel oozed through his toes he shrieked and headed back into the carrier.
When the bigger boys were finished, I introduced the black kittens. The short haired one wanted no part of the gruel. The long haired one thought it was great. He formed a perfect 'O' with his mouth and slurped up the gruel. The consistency did not bother him. He stood in the middle of the bowl and vacuumed the bottom. When he finished, gruel coated his hair. He did not appreciate the post-meal bath.
Overall, I am thrilled with their progress. My only concern is that no one has had a bowel movement yet. I will keep you posted.
Haha..I love that.
At this stage, the kittens need lots of holding, getting in their faces (literaly) and breathing on them, coo'ing at them, etc. I like to put them on my chest so they can hear my heartbeat. If you don't get them socialized right now at this age, the chance of them staying feral is pretty high. Lots of love and kisses will do the trick.
I had a similar call one night several years ago. It was one 4wk old, covered in ringworm..the only survivor of her litter that drowned in a rain storm.
I put her in a carrier and took her to work with me for a month so she could be held and fussed over and so I could feed her several times a day. She was also "adopted" by one of my neutered males, Rusty, who used to wash her all over every night before bed.
"Baby" is now 4yrs old and a beautiful orange longhair. She's quite something.
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Dr Nelson, I realize your post was nearly 5 days ago, and by now hopefully the kittens have had a BM. They wouldn't produce right away post-capture due to the abrupt dietary change from virtually nothing to formula and kitten food/formula. This happens almost all the time. Oftentimes I use a small dab of Laxatone for each individual kitten (a dab on your finger), given by mouth twice a day until stool is produced, and always make sure the formula is warm when poured over the kitten food. A 1/2 cc of warm water given orally with the Laxatone sometimes works like a charm. (that warm water seems to push the Laxatone through, making transit somewhat quicker).
4 tiny babies, they're going to keep you busy! And MJ is right, her prior post about all the attention given them is right on, they need to feel your warmth and heartbeat, they'll start feeling more secure with each passing day.
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Thanks for the valuable comment! I tell my clients the same thing when faced with a constipated kitten. Although my training taught me that a starving animal will not have a BM for several days, it is hard as the concerned caregiver not to worry. Thanks again for your supportive comment.
P.S. The kittens are doing well.
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I know that inescapable feeling of worry, hard to get around that with tiny, newly developing little ones. What you're doing is wonderful, I'll bet they thrive right before your eyes.
I love the pic you took (they're so adorable!), that's exactly how I feed orphans, just put it all on a shallow plate and let them explore, just watching them is precious!
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