Baby Kittens

I raised a litter of kittens from about the same age. Great suggestions here so far. I would hold the kittens in my palm on their backs to feed them. I used cotton balls that were slightly dampened with warm water for helping them go potty, then I didn't have to clean a messy towel.

Having grown up on a farm, I saw this a lot, especially with first time moms.

I would visit your local vet and get baby kitten formula, a dropper or bottle and supplies to keep them very warm if you don't have it. I am not sure of the instructions on feeding, but I do know that you have to be careful to feed them in a certain manner to avoid having them ingest the formula. Your vet should be able to help with this.

Kittens are very difficult to keep alive without a mother, so you may also want to prepare for the fact that you could lose part or all of the litter in the next couple of weeks. Good luck.

You could try putting your pinky finger in the milk, and then try and get them to suck off of your finger.

If you do find the mommy kitty, perhaps you could kennel her in with her kittens so she'd nurse them. I don't know, I think you need to consult a professional about this. I bet there is a veterinarian out there who would make a house call. Also, don't forget to spay the mommy...she may be too distracted by her freedom to be as attentive a mommy as her kittens need.

Call your local humane society!

Make sure you are using a milk supplement for kittens..If your using regular milk that could cause problens since cats are "lactose intolerant" to the milk we people drink. Also, the mama could of been out hunting too. Keep looking for her. Offer the kittens a warm place to lay (maybe a heating pad under neat a blanket for them to lay on). Contact your vet for assistance if the do not nurse from a bottle.

J.,

First thing is to keep the babies warm and make sure their body temp doesn't drop. To bottle feed try to start with an eye dropper or medicine dropper and position it near the back of the tounge. You can get kitten formula or goats milk from the local vet or down at Pet smart in Ankany. Cows milk is too rich for them. At 2 weeks try to get then to eat a little bit or so every 4 hrs. If they are only 2 weeks you may have to stimulate them to potty as well after feeding with a warm damp cloth.
I hope this helps and good luck with the little ones.
Brightest Blessings
T. M.

lakeland animal shelter will take them just call them

If you do not plan on keeping the kittens, contact a shelter or the ASPCA. If you plan to adopt them out yourself, find a vet who may be willing to cut you a deal on vaccinations etc.

In the interim, do not give them cows milk, whatever you do. You need to buy special formula made for newborn kittens. Goats milk is okay too. Kittens can have serious complications if you give them regular cows milk. They need to be on this formula for at least 4 weeks, just about the time their mother would wean them. You can use a dropper to give them the milk. Check the website below for amounts. But as general rule 2-4 oz every 4-6 hours. Avoid overfeeding as kittens can easily get food in their lungs and develop pneumonia.

At about 4 weeks, start feeding them kitten chow softened in milk (special kitty milk). They can also start to have water. (No canned food! This too is bad for kittens and their metabolism. They can develop diabetes and other problems) By 6 - 8 weeks, switch them totally over to dry cat food.

Keep them warm as possible. Make a nice box with blankets or cedar chips and put it somewhere out of the open like under a porch or in a shed or garage where they can go in and out, and mom can find them if she comes back. The kittens are in real danger of hypothermia during the first two weeks. Considering the weird weather, consider a heating pad and a visit to the vet if necessary.

Watery, yellow stools or no stools at all are danger signs to watch for.

For more information on warning signs, and caring for kittens check out:
http://www.2ndchance.info/orphankitten.htm
http://www.tundraco.com/dlaweankit.html

Good luck.

Hello! I have raised a few litters of abandoned kittens and here is what has worked for me. First make sure that they have a nice box to stay in. Then, what I did was put a ziplock bag (gallon size) with hot water in it and covered it with a towel (simulated mama) just make sure that they don't touch it and get burned. They will let you know when they are hungry (as you probably already know) so you need to have a bottle, preferably one that is for a baby kitten, to feed the little guys with. I found the bottles much easier to feed the babies with than droppers. Here is the formula that I used with great success, simple but works, and it is much cheaper than buying formula (make sure to mix it well).

• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 teaspoonfuls of Karo syrup

Don't make too much because it should only be stored for 48 hrs after being refrigerated. Make sure the refrigerated milk is warmed up prior to feeding. You might need to squeeze the bottle to get them to eat, it is sometimes hard for them to get the milk out of the bottle without a little bit of help. While feeding the babies have them on their tummy or what worked for me was I held them up, but not on their backs. All of the kittens that I have raised lived long and healthy lives.
After feeding the little guys then make sure that you take a warm wet towel or cotton ball to their little bottoms and make sure that they go potty, this is what mama would do for them. They will most likely go back to sleep after feeding and potty time. Just watch out for their little claws because they can hurt while feeding since they are used to kneeding on mama's tummy to get the milk out.
When they get to be about 4-5 weeks old then I started to feed them with canned kitten food mixed with the formula until they got used to the food. When they were finally taken off of the formula then I got dry food and moistened it until their teeth could handle eating the food totally dry. About this same time I got a small litter box and started putting them in it until they got the hang of what it was to be used for.
Last thing is enjoy them, it is a lot of work but very much worth it. If you have any problems then call the vet and they should help you.
I would not return the kittens to mama if she has abandoned them. A friend of mine tried this with her kittens and mama saw them as a threat and she killed all of them. They deserve better than that. Good Luck!

Hey J. -- I'm the queen of getting strays *LOL* Use an eye dropper or the dropper from a children's motrin/advil bottle and use that to get the babies to start eating/drinking. I always warmed up the milk/food too. I used carnation evaporated milk and watered it down a little until they got used to it. Once they get the hang of that it is easier to switch them to the bottle. After a few weeks I'd take a teaspoon of canned food and mix it with the carnation milk and feed that to them in the bottle - you might need to cut the hole in the nipple just a little bit more when you do this though. Make sure you massage them frequently especially after feeding as that is what the mom would do. Keep 'em warm and they should be fine.

Hope this helps and good luck!
D.