I would like to start off by saying that I am not a veterinarian, the information I give here is from personal experience I have gained by raising foster kittens for the Human Society. If you have a very sick kitten or kittens you should see your veterinarian for professional advice.
I can think of nothing more rewarding than fostering these tiny souls and letting them grow to an age where they can be adopted in our home instead of spending their first 8 weeks of life in a cage at the animal shelter. It is so sad to know that many kittens are put down because of sickness or injury and never have a chance at a normal life full of love and affection. I do have to say it is fun sitting down in a comfortable chair in the room with them and having them sitting and sleeping on you while you watch a bit of TV (of course you have to watch out for the toe nibblers, they always nibble toes). It can be hard to have to let them go after raising them but there are usually more waiting to be helped out, not to mention that we get to play with cute kittens fairly often. It can be a lot of work, especially if you foster orphaned kittens without the mother.
| Your cat is pregnant | Orphaned kittens | Determining Age | Health Problems |
Your Cat is Pregnant:
First of all if you have a pregnant Queen (this is the term used for a pregnant cat) you should place her on a diet of kitten food as soon as you know she is pregnant. Your vet should be able to provide you with a good quality kitten food formulated for kittens and pregnant and nursing queens. As her time approaches you should prepare a quite corner for her away from household traffic, you can try setting up a cardboard box of sufficient size that she can comfortably lay full length in, cut a hole in the side large enough for her to move through and place newspaper on the bottom. If she has a favourite blanket you can place it in it the box as well.
Keep children away from mother and her kittens, you will stress her and she may move the kittens somewhere else to try and get a little privacy. As a general rule don't let people bother her and the kittens until they are out of the box and playing with each other.
As for the birth itself, if mommy is in good health and has been eating well there should be no problem. She really doesn't need any help, the birth process is a natural process and instinct will set in. To be quite honest in most cases you will probably arrive and find the mother nursing the little ones. At this point you should change the bedding to give them a clean dry nest, be very careful as these are delicate creatures (you may have a bit of a hard time replacing the bedding if the mother tries to keep putting them back in the box though). If you want more information on the birth process there is lots of information available on the internet.
The Kittens have arrived:
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If the mother is nursing and in good health there is really not much you need to do other than keep fresh water, food and a litter box nearby.
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IMPORTANT If you find kittens alone somewhere and they look fairly healthy, be sure the mother is not around, she me be hunting and they can be away for a few hours. If you are there she may not come back so retire to a distance where you can observe them and see if mommy will come back . Without their mother you are reducing their chance to survive and it is a lot of work raising orphaned kittens, they must be fed and cleaned every two to three hours. If you do see the mother and she is not approachable right away, leave food near where they are. If the spot is not very protected, leave a box of some kind with bedding (old towels) in it near the food, she might move in to it. IMPORTANT |
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If the mother does not show up and the kittens are indeed orphans you should place them in a box with a blanket or towel and take them to your vet or local humane society for help.
Kittens should be alert and warm to the touch. If the kittens are cold and listless, they must be warmed up immediately, seek veterinary advice. Chilling is the major cause of death of newborn kittens, and can happen in just a few hours. Do not attempt to feed chilled kittens. Place the kittens in a box or pet carrier with a towel under and over them. if you have a small heating pad cover it with a towel and set it on low heat. Place the kittens on the towel, be sure the heating pad covers only half of the bottom of the box, the kittens must be able to move off the heating pad if it becomes too warm for them.
Do Not feed the kittens cows milk, this will give them diarrhoea and can lead to severe dehydration. Go to your vet or a pet store and by milk replacer for kittens, if you cannot immediately get to somewhere which has milk replacer then use the recipe below for emergency milk replacer. This recipe is not meant for long term use, only to feed the kittens until you can get a proper milk replacer.
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Emergency Milk Replacer |
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4 oz. Evaporated Milk (DO NOT use low fat or 2%) 4 oz Water 2 Egg Yolks 1 teaspoon corn syrup 1 capsule cod liver oil (2 or 3 drops if in a bottle) |
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Mix the ingredients well in a sterilized container. |
When feeding kittens you should use bottles with small nipples, most pet food stores carry these bottles and will also carry the kitten milk replacer. Warm the milk replacer, it should not be too hot or too cold, test it on your wrist the same as with baby formula. When feeding the kitten keep the head elevated and if possible ever so slightly stretched forward to aid in drinking. Make sure you provide support for the kittens head.
Kittens need to be fed about every 2 to 3 hours during the first 2 weeks of life, in the 3rd and 4th weeks they can be fed ever 3 to 5 hours. After they eat, kittens 3 weeks of age or younger need help to urinate and defecate. To do this, moisten a cotton ball with warm water and gently rub the kitten's anal area, you will see when they start peeing and occasionally pooping. At this point waste will be mostly liquid. Be careful this is a very delicate and sensitive area. Around the beginning of the 4th week you can start introducing them to the litter box. The kittens may have a few accidents before figuring out the litter box, don't get mad it always happens. Immediately clean up accidents as kittens may think it is ok to go there. A word of warning here, never use clumping litter with kittens. If they eat any, it may swell up in their throats and they can choke to death. Starting the 4th week you can try getting them to eat a quality canned kitten food, at the beginning mix it with a little warm water to get them to eat it. Once they are eating the canned food you can also start leaving a bowl of dry cat food around with lots of fresh water.
One of the things we try occasionally with the Humane foster families when orphaned kittens are found is to try to get a nursing queen to adopt them. In about 90 percent of cases if you can slip the orphans into the middle of her kittens she will start taking care of them, she might growl a bit at the beginning but keep an eye on her and it should work. That being said, the queen should not have more than 8 kittens to take care of, it will tax her too much. It is also important to make sure the kittens are not already sick with an infection, they can spread it to the other litter and this can result in the death of all or a requirement to euthanize them if they become too sick..
Determining Age
| Under one week |
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Eyes shut, ears flat to head, skin looks pinkish. Part of umbilical cord may still be attached. |
| One week to ten days |  |
Eyes beginning to open, ears still flat. A kitten this age is smaller than your hand. |
| 3 weeks |  |
Eyes are fully open, ears are erect, teeth are visible. Kittens this age are just starting to walk and will be very wobbly. |
| 4 to 5 weeks | Eyes have changed from blue to another colour and kittens have probably started beginning to pounce and leap. At this point they should be starting to eat solid food and using a litter box. | |
| 6 weeks |  |
Time for their first vaccines and worm treatments. See your vet for more info. |
| 8 weeks | Kittens this age weigh approximately 2 pounds. If they have not been exposed to humans they will probably be feral and unapproachable. This is the earliest time you should consider adopting you kittens out. Once all your kittens are adopted you should have the mother neutered to avoid her getting pregnant again. |
Health problems
Besides cold, there are other conditions which must be treated as soon as possible;
