Needing Advice on a New Baby Kitty

You could try some canned food for kittens...they also make a milk for kittens and cats that's in the pet-food aisle that might be nice to mix with the food (either wet or dry). Then water can be offered in a bowl on the side. We had a kitten that liked to suck/nurse and we would dip a facecloth in milk or water and she would suck forever on that thing. They say regular milk isn't good for cats, but all my kitties have always loved it as a treat. I dunno'...I'm not an expert. He's going to be fine with whatever you do, but with little baby teeth, softer food is best.

As for the ferret, I would do a face to face intro with one of you holding the ferret and one holding the kitten...let them see/smell each other...the kitten will grow up knowing the ferret is a friend, so its up to the full-grown animal, the ferret, to get acquainted/accustomed to the kitten. I have seen people have both ferrets and cats in the same house, but I don't know how long it took for them to be okay with each other. I would keep kitty's things and food bowls far away from the ferrets things so territory issues don't start..and have frequent meet 'n greet sessions between both animals with supervision. Good luck!

I would make an appt w/ your vet your kitten needs to be tested for worms especially since you have a child you don't want him catching anything and you can speak to them about your concerns. As for the ferret and kitty they will adjust eventually just give it time.

You've got some great responses so far. I think the kitten milk is a good idea as well as seeing a vet. When we adopted our kitten last Nov, the Human Society told me to give him wet food while he was young as they tend not to drink the water much. We did even though we saw him drinking. He soon moved on to the dry food. Our kitten had worms too, so pills were needed at our first vet visit.
sorry to hear that vet appts. take so long where you are. I have an animal hospital on my street that's open 7 days a week and takes walk ins. Unfortunately, I am not in your area.
Good luck with the kitten. I'm sure he will do fine. He's lucky to get a home. Many don't.

Hi
It may take up to 3 weeks to get a veterinarian appointment so call today. Many kittens have worms or bacteria in their stool so keep the litterbox well away from your young son. And be sure to scrub your hands well after changing the litter.

As for feeding you can soak dry cat food in an equal amount of milk but don't mash it. I used to keep a large tupperware container in the fridge with enough food for a week and pop a little in the microwave for a few seconds to warm it up. That way he will learn to chew rather than lap up mush. He should only need that for about 2-3 weeks then switch to all dry food. Its better for his teeth. He will also drink water if you leave it where he can get to it. He doesn't need anything more.

Some cats like to nurse and knit (move their claws in and out on a soft object) all their lives. its cute!

Seven weeks is young , yes, but then, it used to be common to take kittens and puppies home at six weeks old.
The problem your kitty is having is that he has never been weaned. He sorta knows how to eat but not really.
It will take a little bit of time. I used to wean my kittens with baby cereal and warm milk.
Perhaps a saucer of warm milk would be welcome to your kitty but not too much or he may get diareaha.
Kitten chow is fine..again it will take him a bit of time to aclimate to eating on his own.
You could "shave" or chop some raw meat for him...only a little at first.
I personally would not give him tinned food and set a precedent . Kitten chow for now..dry food later.
If his weight gain is not good then he may need tinned food if he is to be an inside cat. My cats hunt so I go with bit of tinned food or meat only in the winter.
I have had ferrets and kittens...your kitty is very young...cats are naturally curious and would normally explore the outside of the ferret cage, getting aquainted with the ferret at the same time.
Think I would be cautious about this because you want them to be playful friends...they do originate from the same family...bring the kitten to the ferret cage slowly and let them get used to each others smells ect.
At best they should start by trying to play through the mesh of the cage. When the kitten is comfortable with this then perhaps a brief time with both animals outside the cage.
The thing you need to be concerned about considering the tender age of the kitten is that he does not become frightened of the ferret and thereby destroying what has the potential to be a good playful relationship .
Best wishes and God bless
Grandmother Lowell

Congratulations on your new baby. Our baby kitty is now 10 months old, and she still nurses/suckles. We got her when she was just 6 weeks, which I think was too young. We were told she was 7 weeks, but when we did the math after finding out the birth date, we realized they were off by 1 week. The vet said some cats outgrow the suckling, and some don't. I guess ours won't. She certainly does it less than she did. She also did a lot of chewing on things until she lost her baby teeth, at about 6 months.
Your kitty probably was raised on wet food, and so that's all he wants. Give him wet food, specifically for kittens, until he's 6 months or so. You can buy it by the case at PetCo, and it's a bit cheaper. Keep offering him the water-fresh, daily. Even if he doesn't drink it right away, he'll be getting a lot of moisture from the wet food. He'll drink it eventually.
Our kitty missed her litter-mates, and tried to "rough house" with us a lot. So it may be good for yours to have a ferret to play with. If the ferret will tolerate it. I've always wondered how cats and ferrets would get along.
Have fun, and be consistent with any training you want to do now. It'll pay off later when he's a well-behaved cat.

We raised kittens from 4 weeks -- it was a challenge, but rewarding. You can find kitten formula and bottles (should you need them) at places like PetCo or PetSmart. The links should give you a good idea of some of the things you need to plan to do -- you'll need to litter train your kitten and teach them how to eat solids. We used chicken baby food mixed with the kitten formula and gradually increased the thickness of it as they learned how to eat. If he's trying to suckle and nurse, I'd suggest trying some kitten formula at least until you can get him/her to your vet. You don't want to withhold nutrients that your little kitty needs.

http://www.feralcat.com/raising.html
http://www.rescueguide.com/orphkits.html

Hey J.,
I would contact your vet and ask them. Good luck! They are so cute when they are kittens!

Congratulations on your new family member! Your son will have some great playmates.

7 weeks is slightly young for a kitten--a bottle with kitty replacement formula and water is very comforting for a kitten that age--you can get these items easily at Petco. I have one cat we found who was a round 3.5 weeks when we got him and he had a bottle twice a day and then ate kitten food softened with water or kitten formula. He is now 10 years old. You might want to try shredded chicken breast/thigh with no salt or ground chicken/turkey with no salt added. Cook it in water and drain the fat.

Also, since this kitten is from a stray litter I would have him checked out by your vet just to rule out any illnesses--

As far as ferrets go, cats and ferrets are from the same family and generally get along wonderfully. The ferret will probably be initially happier than the kitty (!) I would introduce them in a closed room, supervised, for a short amount of time. One of our boys got a kitten when he had 3 ferrets. To this day the cat thinks he IS a ferret--he hung out with them and played with them. Our other cats also liked the ferrets.

An adult ferret trains a younger ferret by dragging him around and other "rough" behavior---you want to supervise your kitten so that the ferret does not decide to put him through boot camp!

Best of luck with your 2 and 4 footed family members--your son is going to have a ball.

C.