Need help ASAP! newborn kitten is dying!

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  • #54483
    Sora
    Participant

    Hello,

    My mother cat had her first litter yesterday morning. Three kittens all seemed healthy since last night until today i came back home and noticed one of them is acting very strange!! the two kittens all looked normal except him! he’s putting his head backwards and keeps swinging his hands like he’s swimming or something!! thought maybe he’s hungry so I’ve tried to push his head to mama cat’s nipples but he refuses to drink although he was drinking normally last night. Other thing worries me, the three kittens are fighting over two nipples and don’t want to drink from the rest, is this considered as problem? plus i can’t afford KMR which is kitten’s milk as i read in webs, can’t find it anywhere! :'( is there an alternative? for example if i gave a two days old kitten human low fat milk, is it going to harm him????

    Please help me ASAP

    am super worried T.T

    Thanks in advance

    #769619
    Buttons
    Moderator

    Do not give cows milk it will cause diarrhea in the kitten.. See if you can get goats milk.. I’ll be host it doesn’t sound good.. He needs a vet.. Sometims the runt of the litter won’t survive.. The other kitten might be fighting over the nipples if the ones they want have more milk flow in them.. If sick kitten isn’t getting fluid he won’t last much longer..

    #769620
    anncetera2
    Participant

    Try lining him up to lie on his belly, mouth lined right up to one of the nipples.

    If he doesn’t want to drink from that nipple, try him on a different one.

    Go through all her nipples this way, if you need to, to find one that he likes.

    If that doesn’t work, take a warm, damp washcloth and wipe down each of the mama cat’s nipples. That may help reduce any scent-based territorial behavior. Then try him on one nipple at a time, until he finds one he’ll start nursing from.

    Be gentle and unobtrusive in all of this. Talk gently and soothingly to the mama kitty, pet her and tell her what a good kitty she’s being.

    An alternative to cat’s milk is goat milk, usually available canned. If all else fails, try rubbing a few drops of goat milk on one of the mama’s nipples, and see if he’ll go for that.

    If not, you can try to feed him on goat’s milk, just keep in mind that mama’s milk is always better for kittens. And he’ll need feeding every couple of hours – the rest of the time the mama should be taking care of them.

    Make sure they’re all warm, too. Kittens that are cold cannot digest food.

    Good luck!

    #769621
    anncetera2
    Participant

    Kittens that are hungry typically flail about until they find something to knead on! It sounds like he’s very hungry, and just trying very hard to find an available, acceptable nipple to nurse from. Keep trying with him, and if he really can’t nurse from any of her nipples well, get ready to do supplementation with goats milk. (Mama kitty may just be taking a little while to ‘let down’ her milk to more than a couple of nipples – be sure to feed her as much food and water as she wants, wet food especially will be appreciated.)

    #769622
    Pavi712
    Participant

    Check if the kitten is breathing properly. See if the nose is running , if so you have to help it breath properly by clearing the blocked nose

    #769623
    Sora
    Participant

    Thanks for replying all of you.

    I called d vet right after i posted here and he asked me to bring them all. So i brought them, he checked mother’s breasts and they were full of milk as he said. then asked him to check d kitten.. he just observed him and said he’s too weak, picked him and tried to put his head next to mama’s nipple but sadly d kitten refused drinking again. Vet couldn’t do anything except advising me to feed d kitten myself!

    the kitten who does strange thingies, suddenly started to open his mouth and stick his tongue out!! so i gave him human low fat cow milk as d vet suggested.. its d only available alternative anyway..

    He calmed down a little bit. Tried again and putted his head next to mama cat’s nipple, he drank for like less than one minute and stopped.

    Sorry for bothering you all, one more question

    when i put away d other kittens for a lil while to give d strange one a chance to get d nipple he wants, they walk like turtles with closed eyes until they reach mama cat’s nipples themselves! however, d strange one doesn’t seem to act like them at all! He tries his best to walk like they do but he ends up falling on his side with head backwards. Any idea why is this happening and what can i do to let him act normal?

    Thanks again

    Appreciate your help guys, you are d best!

    #769624
    Buttons
    Moderator

    Sounds like possibly a neurological problem… If mother had a difficult birth he could have been starved of oxygen which can cause brain damage.. I once had a cat with this problem he definitely never acted like a cat should..

    I would maybe get a second opion from another vet about the cows milk… If he’s taking the nipple.now that’s a good sign btw you’ll have to help him and make sure the mother doesn’t reject him…if you can over he next few days put some none together and get KMR kitten milk asap… And start him on that .. Or goats milk if you can’t get KMR

    #769625
    Pika007
    Participant

    Low fat cow milk for a kitten? that’s as bad as it gets.

    Kittens need LOTS of nourishment, and low fat isn’t going to cut it. Consult another vet.

    First choice is a formula (KMR is not the only choice), second choice is goat milk.

    Of course, above all, he should nurse from the mother.

    Now, about kneading- kittens do that either when they’re hungry, or when in discomfort/in extreme cases when near-dying.

    Try to let him knead your hand and see if he’s putting a little power into it or just moving very weakly.

    In your state, if he doesn’t start to nurse properly in a day, i’d start bottle feeding him.

    #769626
    Pika007
    Participant

    Low fat cow milk for a kitten? that’s as bad as it gets.

    Kittens need LOTS of nourishment, and low fat isn’t going to cut it. Consult another vet.

    First choice is a formula (KMR is not the only choice), second choice is goat milk.

    Of course, above all, he should nurse from the mother.

    Now, about kneading- kittens do that either when they’re hungry, or when in discomfort/in extreme cases when near-dying.

    Try to let him knead your hand and see if he’s putting a little power into it or just moving very weakly.

    In your state, if he doesn’t start to nurse properly in a day, i’d start bottle feeding him.

    #769627
    jcat
    Participant

    You can also try kitten glop, which is based mostly on evaporated milk or condensed milk. Here is the recipe from Messybeast:

    ‘If commercial kitten formula is not available, a suitable feed mixture for healthy kittens is 1.6 ml evaporated milk, 1.6 ml cooled boiled water, 1 level teaspoon glucose, 1 small egg yolk (no white at all). One recommended by a veterinarian is 3 oz condensed milk, 3 oz water, 3 oz plain full fat yoghurt, 3 large or 4 small egg yolks (no whites).

    Another recipe for glop from messybeast:

    KITTEN GLOP

    Kitten Glop is a suitable feed mixture for healthy kittens and is also good for lactating queens. Most recipes refer to American brand names which are not understood outside of the USA/Canada. I have converted these to generic terms and noted alternatives.

    Ingredients

    1 envelope unflavoured gelatine

    water per gelatine package directions (approx 12 oz)

    1 12 oz can whole evaporated milk (not skimmed) See notes

    3 tablespoons plain yoghurt (not low fat)

    3 teaspoons clear corn syrup See notes

    3 tablespoons mayonnaise

    1 or 2 raw egg yolks (optional) See notes

    Notes

    If you have canned goat’s milk available, use this instead as it reduces the likelihood of lactose intolerance problems. Sheep’s milk is even higher in fat but not generally available in cans.

    Some recipes use 2 tablespoons mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons plain yoghurt and omit the corn syrup entirely.

    Clear corn syrup (e.g. “Karo” brand in the US) is a concentrated glucose solution. It contains 15% – 20% dextrose (glucose), a mixture of other types of sugar and may be flavoured with vanilla. Dark corn syrup is made with molasses and is more strongly flavoured. Glucose solution may be used instead.

    Raw eggs can be a source of salmonella. Do not use any egg white in the mixture, it can prevent other nutrients from being digested.

    Kitty vitamins and/or acidophilus are sometimes added. Only add vitamins if the diet is deficient in them – vitamins can be dangerous in too high quantities (hypervitaminosis) and vitamin imbalances affect development.

    Method

    Boil the water and mix in gelatine powder. Add the other ingredients in the following order, mixing well after each addition: half of the canned milk, corn syrup (if used), mayonnaise + yoghurt, egg yolk (if used), remainder of the canned milk. Use either an egg beater or a blender set to low speed.

    Serve the glop at room temperature or slightly warmed since the kittens will be used to warm milk. Warming the mixture makes it more pungent and therefore more appetising. Do not pour back unused portions into the stored mix as it may introduce contaminants.

    Glop sets into a jelly when refrigerated. It can either be stored in the fridge in a covered container for up to 2 weeks or frozen into individual portions in ice cube trays and defrosted as needed. Freezing it is very convenient.

    Note: gelatin, since it’s made from cows hooves etc, is chock-full of protein; it gives kittens the amino acids they need.

    #769628
    jcat
    Participant

    And and here are links for more recipes, hopefully there will be one you can make from what you already have in your pantry or can get from the store/supermarket.

    http://www.hdw-inc.com/glop.htm

    http://www.all-about-cute-kittens.com/kitten-formula.html

    Try googling ‘kitten glop’ for more.

    #769629
    Sora
    Participant

    He just couldn’t make it…

    Although d rest two are perfectly healthy!

    gained weight, drinking from mama’s milk themselves then sleep like babies then wake up again struggling and crawling till they reach mama’s nipples and so on~

    Aghh may him rest in peace. will bury him as soon as sun comes up! :'(

    Must spay mama cat once her kittens are weaned to prevent this from happening again..

    Thank you guys for your help, can’t thank you enough!

    God bless you.

    #769630
    CheetahBoysmommy
    Participant

    You did all you could, and kitty spent his brief life being loved and cared for. Sometimes there are just problems you can see or fix. RIP, little one.

    #769631
    anncetera2
    Participant

    I’m so sorry he couldn’t make it. Sometimes kittens are born with problems that are insurmountable; even cleft palate can be fatal, if the kitten cannot suckle.

    You and your kitties are in my thoughts.

    (Whenever I’ve had an unfortunate kitten die young, I’ve always buried them not far from the house, then planted a bleeding heart plant on top of them, to help me remember them for the few short days or weeks they had.)

    #769632
    Sora
    Participant

    Million thanks for your supports. Didn’t expect this much of help when posted d question. :’)

    This little kitten was first one dies between my hands, won’t forget him for sure! buried him next to the house too.. Hope his soul super healthy and in a beautiful better place now! <3

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