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.