4 week old kittens

Hi! I am new to this site. I found it while completing a google search about KMR. I recently bought a house with my fiance. Apparently the house also came with kittens. After living here about a month, we were wakened by kitten meowing below our bedroom window. Turns out there were a litter of kittens in the leaves on the side of the house. The kittens meowed throughtout most of the night and well into the next morning. (I did not interven in during the night assuming the mother was around.) In the morning when the meowing continued, we both went to take a look. Under the leaves were 3 very small kittens. All three were very cold and did not look well at all. Their eyes were still closed, they did not have very much fur and their umbilical cords were still attached. My fiance also found another very small kitten that did not survive. Because there was one dead kitten, I knew the mother could not have been around. All three of them fit in my hand. I took them to the vet and had them looked at. I was told they were only about 2 days old. The vet said they also looked as if they had not eaten hardly anything. Of course, I purchased the famous KMR to nourish, a heating pad, towels and a carrier. I am happy to say all three kittens are doing fine (4 weeks later). Now, here is my question. The vet said I should start to ween them. Well, they have been receiving stage 1 KMR through a bottle. So I have mixed stage 2 KMR with stage 1 KMR and water so they get used to the taste (the container said to do that). However, my one boy (black and white named him Boomer because he is the loudest, we are keeping him) has had nasty diarrhea for the past two days. I am putting him back on the straight KMR stage 1. As for the other two (girl and boy identical grey striping named Ty and Kobey by my bother in law who has agreed to adopt them) they love the bottle and absolutely refuse to lick the mixture from a plate.

The actual question is in two parts. 1) Is it normal for Boomer to have such bad diarrhea from the slight change in food? If so, will putting him back on the straight KMR stage 1 have a worse effect?

2) Will the kittens eventually begin licking their food? Is this something they will just do? or Do I have to force them some how?

By the way, the feedings, changings, and cuddling have made me realize that I can wait a while after getting married to have children.

Any instruction or insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

on the food thing....I foster for Siamese Rescue and we have a yahoo support group (for the fosters) there is one foster person who had to take 2 week old kittens away from their mom cause the mom had an URI really bad. The kittens are just starting to be weaned and she had problems at first...they seemed to enjoy sucking on the wet food and "making bread" in it making a helluva mess.

She was advised to give them tiny bits of wet food so they would stop sucking on it (like they were trying to nurse it) and kneading it.

They are starting to get the hang of how to eat without sucking. Have you tried mixing the KMR with the wet food - making it really soupy?

Check out Tally's Basic Cat Care site - lots of info on raising orphaned kittens.

And a big hug to you for doing this - their mum was probably killed.

 

Thank you Mary for getting back to me so quickly. I will definitely check out the site you recommended.

I am mixing a tablespoon of the stage 1 KMR with a table spoon of the stage 2 KMR and then 3 tablespoons of water. It creates a paste like substance. When I left it on a plate the two grey ones only sat in it. I am back to the bottle feeding. I mix 1 tablespoon of stage 2 KMR with 2 tablespoons of stage 1 KMR and then 5 tablespoons of water. The end result is a liquid substance they all can suck through the bottle. I'm hoping it gets them used to the taste of the stage 2 KMR.

Do you think I should just begin giving them small bits of real kitten food instead of making this pasty mess? Do you suggest a good kitten food for kittens in their 4th week?

Thank you again.

 

The kittens I had showed interest in their mothers food around 3wks of age. At that point I started offering them dry kitten food soaked in warm water and Iams canned kitten food. Most of them ate right off the plate on their own. Maybe you can mix some canned kitten food and KMR onto a little plate and take your finger tip to rub a little bit of food on their mouths from the plate. Once they get a taste they might attempt to eat it from the plate themselves.
Your little guy with diarhea might just have an extra sensitive stomache. Maybe you can just phone your vet and see what they say about it...maybe they can give you some tips on weaning him without upsetting his tummy.
Best of luck.

 

I don't have any advice to give as I don't have a cat, but well done for helping these lovely little furbabies have a chance at life. You'll have to post some pictures when you can. Best of luck and keep us updated.

 

dont get me started on the diarrhea thing.... :shock:

stop! stop! i am stopping myself!

hi jennyret! and welcome to the site :0018:

we are very glad you are here...and that we have a new meowmy in our midst. there are alot of people who will give some great advice on the little ones...bellack1 has a tiny one who just opened his eye...not sure if the other eye is open yet. she found him when he was two days old.

i am very sad that the mommy kitty has disappeared. broke my heart to hear mary say she might have been killed.

hi from max and myself...just dont get me started on diarrhea...max has had it since the day i got him...but little babies...i dont think it is unusual especially if they got worms from the mother kitty or change in diet.

good luck....pictures????

lynn and max

 

I've had my fosters since they were about 4 weeks old (maybe a bit more we went according to their weight to determine their age) and since their mom had been PTS they were only canned/dry kitten food only. They did fine and continue to do fine. I have 2 left - other 3 have gone to their homes.

The shelter they were at must have started them on kitten food so I don't kow what they did but I'm told the shelter is extremely overpopulated and understaffed so they most likely weren't able to take the time to help them adjust to the new food.

 

I can't give you much advice right now b/c I wont start to wean Bobo until the 17th-he'll be 4 weeks old then. When I do I'm sure we will be in touch with the problems I'll have and you'll have. Good Luck!

 

Welcome to the forum! Looks like you're getting some wonderful advice here. Good luck with the kittens. Pics please. We love pics!

 

HOw are the babies? I bought all the supplies to start weaning and litter training Bobo.

 

The babies are good. I am overwhelmed by the repsonses and support I have received. Thank you very much. It is extremely encouraging.

I went to the vet today because they had stopped eating yesterday. Turns out they had upset stomachs from the change from KMR 1 to KMR 2. The advice I recevied from the vet is to skip KMR Stage 2 altogether. She suggested I use Gerber stage 2 chicken/turkey/beef for a day or so. Well, they did not like the turkey much. Once I opened the chicken they went to town. Also, she told me to use Pedialyte in a bottle (non flavored) for a couple of days. They had fluids today from the vet because of all the diarrhea. They are much for lively now. The vet also suggested I mix kitten chow dry with alot of warm water, friskies kitten moist, and gerber baby rice cereal. I will try anything to get them to eat more.

I also have my cat, who I rescued when I lived in my apartment. She was my neighbors and when he died, the family was going to put the cat down. I took her in. Her name is Weiner. She comes to her name so I did not want to change it. No one is sure how old she is. She was an outdoor cat, but I have converted her to indoor and she loves it. She is a 22lbs calico. Then there is my fiance's dog, Jager. 110lb white german shepard. The cat and dog get along wonderfully. The dog is a bit jealous of the kittens, but she is coming around. The vet told me to keep Weiner separate from the kittens until their 1st set of shots, which will be in about 2 weeks.

I am not going to start litter training for another week or so. The vet suggested to use a clay litter (never clumping). She said that cedar litter could cause allergic reactions.

Once I have pictures I will load them to the site. Thanks again for all the wonderful support and interest. This is probably one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.

 

hi jennyret! oh i am so glad things are going well. and the little ones are thriving. interesting idea about the baby rice gerbers...hadnt heard about that one and wish i did.

anyway...cant wait to see them...goodness, you do have a menagerie dont you? lots of activity. sounds like vene, marynh, and nerns households...and others...just cant think of who it is. hang in there!!