Raising Orphan Kittens Part 2

Stimulation

Mother cat knows best

The kitten’s biological mother takes care of her kitten in many ways than we know. She stimulates her baby kitten’s bladder and bowels by licking his abdomen. The surrogate mother cat must carefully rub the baby kitten’s tummy with a moistened cotton ball with warm water. Do not overdo it, rub only enough to stimulate the kitten to discharge waste. Watch out for chafing which is an indicator that you are rubbing too hard. 

Keep the baby kitten and the area clean. Wash their fur all over as the mother would do, using short strokes with a barely damp cloth. This gives them a feeling of attention and well-being too. If the kitten has caked stool on his fur due to diarrhea, it is best to wash him in warm water. Do this quickly so as not to make the baby kitten cold. Pat him dry.

The kitten may feel frustrated by the lack of his mother’s breast and cause him to suckle his litter mate’s body parts which may result to irritations. Satisfy his oral need by caressing his mouth with a soft cloth or your finger. 

Fleas

Morphology of a flea

As soon as abandoned kittens are found, they must be cleaned and get rid of fleas to avoid Flea anemia. Flea anemia can interfere with your attempt to save any abandoned kitten and fleas carry tape worm eggs. There are flea sprays at the vet which can be used on kittens. Adams flea spray has been found safe to use on kittens and effective in killing fleas. Once the kitten has rid of fleas, bathe him in warm water with gentle soap or surgical soap if there are flea sores present. Dry him immediately to avoid getting chill. You can also use hair dryer if the kitten is 1-3 weeks of age. Be careful not to blow in their face and keep the level of heat tolerable. Older kittens are usually scared of the noise of the hair dryer, you may opt to just towel dry them and then place them in a container in a warm place such as next to a refrigerator. You may also put the towel dried kitten inside a pet carrier and then use the hair dryer letting in some warm air to the bag.

Weaning

Start weaning by giving the kitten
formula in a bowl

You may begin weaning the kitten at the age of 4 weeks if necessary. You may begin by providing him formula in a bowl. Later on, gradually introduce solid foods. Some baby foods that work well are strained baby food or Hill’s brand. You can also moisten dry kitten food with water or formula because young kittens cannot chew dry kitten food. This takes time so do not expect him to be weaned right away. 

Reduce the bottle feedings as he eats more often from the bowl. You can also give canned kitten food to introduce solid food to the kitten. Check the instructions on the container. Much of what is sold in supermarkets is junk food so try buying high quality food from the vet or pet food stores. Changes in foods or diet may cause diarrhea which can be life threatening to a baby kitten so it is important to keep an eye on the stools.