11 Day Old Sickly Kittens

Hi everyone! I’m new here, but for the past 11 days I’ve been religiously reading the posts in the chat to help with these little kittens I rescued.

On January 18th an office cat outside my sister’s work had kittens. This was her fourth litter of kittens by the office. A neighboring woman decided the best time to trap the cat to be spayed would be right after she gave birth to her kittens. The mother grabbed one kitten and ran off, leaving three behind. By late evening the kittens had not been moved, fed, etc. by the mother cat since she had run off. The temp was supposed to be chilly so my sister picked up the babies and brought them to me.

I got them with umbilical cord still attached, and presumably without mom’s first milk. I’ve been bottle feeding since day one, with KMR. Originally the kittens were looking great, eating, using the restroom regularly when stimulated, and sleeping well.

On day 6 I brought the kittens to the vet to check on their progress and he said they were doing well. The boy had some diarrhea and I alerted the vet and he said I shouldn’t be worried because sometimes the KMR can have that affect. I took them home, took a short nap, and when I went to feed them again, discovered the one boy had passed. It was devastating.

On day 7, one of the girls girls began to to have diarrhea. In a panic I took them to the ER. They gave both girls dewormer and then gave #1 fluids under the skin. It was recommended I mix in a teaspoon of Pedialyte in with their formula to ensure they’re not dehydrated.

On day 9, both girls were taken back to my normal vet due to constipation and girl #2’s eye looked sealed (it previously did not look like this). The vet once again said they were fine, the eye was fine, and sent me home. That night girl #2’s eye began leaking a great deal of thick white fluid. I rushed them off again to the ER. The doctor was immediately worried because they had distended bellies. I explained there had been diarrhea that was followed by the constipation. She was able to stimulate some poo, but not much. She also put fluids under the skin of girl #2 and gave me antibiotics for her eye. She recommended I purchase Karo syrup and place 1 to 2 drops per bottle in order to promote restroom use.

It is currently day 11. I am exhausted beyond belief. I am caring for them alone, feeding and stimulating every two hours. I am doing everything I can to ensure they’re kept healthy and happy.

Currently girl #2 with the rough eye has been temporarily ‘Complicated’ (she is not a fan of bottle bottle feeding, stimulation, etc.) and #1 is ‘Simple’ (loves bottle feeding, water, vet visits, etc.)

Complicated’s eye is doing better, but she hasn’t pooed in 24 hours now. I am concerned since they are receiving Karo syrup shouldn’t there be some response? She also makes some very weird noises in her belly right after feeding (almost like tummy grumbling but I’ve never heard that in a cat before).

Simple is also doing a bit better, but again, hasn’t pooed. Should I be taking my girls to the vet again to see if they can make them poo? Should I be concerned about the grumbly tummy noises?

Sorry for the crazy long post. I just wanted to ensure all the details were out there. I also haven’t really been able to talk to anybody about the craziness, because no one understands! Thanks so much for all of the help and advice, I really appreciate it.