Feral Kittens — Concerned about the runt

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  • #835391
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    Hello. Let me start by telling a little about myself and my experience. I have 4 adult cats that are all very happy and healthy. One of those four was a feral kitten (she’s now 11 and my “youngest” adult), so this is not my first experience with feral kittens.

    We had seen the mama cat off and on for over a year, but we didn’t know she had babies until we saw her with one in tow. So, I set out to try and keep an eye on her and the 1 baby that we knew she had. About 2 weeks ago, my husband saw the mama cat with about 4 males after her (none of these cats are ours). We have not seen the mama since then.
    A little over a week ago, my husband and I were outside when 5 babies literally wandered out of the woods behind the house. One of them even came to me out of curiosity. They were all covered in fleas, had ear mites, and were very hungry.
    In another life, long ago, I was a vet tech. So I have treated them for fleas, dewormed them, and gotten rid of the ear mites. They are all happy and healthy babies, so I have not taken them to the vet, due to cost. (I can purchase all shots except rabies at my local co-op). I am guessing that they were about 6-7weeks when we caught them. They were all weened.

    My concern is this, they are all thriving and adjusting well to becoming “pets.” However, the little runt is not putting on weight as well as the others. This past week the others gained anywhere from 5-7oz, and she only gained 2.5oz. I have been giving her wet food and feeding her separately. She does play, but generally not as hard or as long as the other. When we caught her, she had an injury to her neck. It was an “old” injury and had already closed up and was starting to heal. I monitored her very closely this past week, and she does not seem to have any issues eating or swallowing. Should I be concerned that she’s still so small? Can anyone suggest anything else that might help her gain a little more weight? Her litter mated are all over 2lbs, but she’s only 1lb 7oz.

    #835398
    Cheri Hoyt
    Participant

    you can get nutrical at the pet store. also, people on this list give goat’s milk to their kitties. it can be purchased in the grocery aisle or the baking aisle. the baking aisle one is concentrated so dilute 1 to 1 with water or pedialite. I once gave my little kitty full fat cottage cheese and/or yogurt and she loved them. good luck with the runt…

    #835409
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Hi Kristen, bless you for taking such good care of these kittens! I’m not a vet, but have had good results with the goat’s milk and kittens. I don’t know why the runt is not gaining, other than that she is small to begin with and will probably always be that way. Since there are no obvious signs that she is ill, that would be my only guess. The goat’s milk has good probiotics for their gut and no lactose to cause irritation and diarrhea. Good luck with your new babies, keep us posted on how they are all doing!

    #835412
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Just a thought that it’s possible the other sibs are pushing her out. Since she’s the runt, she may not stand up to them.

    #835420
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    The week and a half that I’ve had them, I’ve watched for that. The biggest kitten originally was a bully, but once he realized that more food was going to be available, he stopped trying to push everyone away.

    I’ll try and get some goats milk to try. She likes the wet and dry kitten food pretty well, so I’ll also continue that. She’s just so tiny.

    #835422
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    This is a picture of her yesterday. I have named her Hope.

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwgx8Po-aTBtMXB1MlhFVDhJQlU/view?usp=sharing

    #835427
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    This is Hope last week, the day after the had wandered out of the woods.
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwgx8Po-aTBtUDZCeDd0TzVKbFU/view?usp=sharing

    #835436
    katzenjammer
    Participant

    Having no experience raising newbie kits I have no advice for you Kristen, you’ve gotten some good tips above from other TDKers. But I must say that Miss Hope is absolutely adorable. Her huge ears with those tufts make me think that there might be some Maine Coon in her genetic makeup. Blessings on you for rescue and that this teensy kitty catches up soon! And for posting pics onsite you need to store your pics to an upload site and then copy/paste them here. Many of us use Photobucket, free and relatively user-friendly.

    #835439
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    OH MY GOODNESS, she is beautiful! Squeeeee, makes me want to snuffle her!

    #835440
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    These are 4 of the 5. Even though little Hope is smaller, she is still relatively the same overall size.

    #835443
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    This is the 5th kitten, and he’s HUGE! He’s over a pound bigger than Hope. I’m still not 100% convinced that he’s their littermate, but I’m not sure what other explanation there could be….. Maine Coon?

    #835446
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    Thanks everyone for all the good tips and kind words. I’ve always loved cats, but I have never had this many babies at one time. All four of my adults were fixed ASAP, and I never dreamed that I would still end up caring for a litter of kittens.

    This guys are all super sweet, and at this point I believe that at least 3 (if not all of them) have found permeant homes with my husband and I. I’m a total sucker for calicos…

    #835447
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    Because everyone needs a “little” hope. 🙂

    #835450
    katzenjammer
    Participant

    Goodness gracious this could very well be the cutest kitten clowder ever!!!! I’m slowly coming ’round after passing put cold from the sheer cuteness of these kitties. Awesome pics, I can easily see why you and hubby are reluctant to give a single one away! They all seem to have that Maine Coon look. Meaning that in due course they’ll be big kits! More to love!

    #835451
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Yes, they definitely look like there is Maine Coon involved in there somewhere! They are ALL adorable, and really very healthy looking, clear eyes and everything! Very lucky for you too. Yes, I believe that I would have to keep some of them too, I could become over run so easily….. 😛

    #835454
    Kristen McBurnett
    Participant

    These babies are not my first feral kittens. This big girl was feral and probably about 10-12 weeks when I first managed to catch her. I put my hand on her and she “exploded” into a ball of hissing and spitting fur. She bit right thru my thumb… and she was so covered in fleas, that when I bathed her I thought she was going to bleed out. It was awful. However, as you can see she is now very happy and healthy and is my youngest adult at age 11. Her name is Fidget.

    #835456
    Kittyzee
    Participant

    Love the story of her *capture*, not so good for your thumb though! She is beautiful and looks very well loved!

    #835458
    katzenjammer
    Participant

    Miss Fidget is one beautiful callie girl! Soooo much fur!!!!!! Glad that at 11 yrs old she’s settled down and your poor thumb is no longer the subject of attack!

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