Is it ok If a kitten is not fed for 8 hours =(?

Question

I am at work and cant feed it every two hours. I fed him in the morning and now am thinking what to do =(

Its 2 weeks old maybe and not old enuff to have anything on its own. I fed it in the morning and played with it and snuggled it up in a mini blanket. Its sleeps most of the time.I will try to feed it at night so that it sleeps in the morning. Will that work ?

Answer 1

Why not leave out a bowl of food during the day?

Answer 2

How old is the kitten? Feed kitty 1/2 a can before work. Let him eat what he will. Then when you get home, give him the other half. Is there a reason you cannot leave food out for him? Can he be blocked off in another room if you have other pets that may eat his food? If he's like 8 weeks old or so, yes, he'll be fine until you get home. Remember out in the wild mama cat has to go hunt for food; she may be gone for a bit of time before babies can eat again. Kitty will be fine.

Answer 3

2 weeks is to young to wait 8 hours, need to feed at least every 3-5 hours. While dehydration is a concern, a bigger concern at that age is hypoglycemia, or too low blood sugar. If this happens the kitten could go into seizures. It is not old enough yet to eat on its own or take only solid food.

Answer 4

It probably isn't the healthiest thing, but it should be OK.

You know those water containers that fill up the dish on it's own? (The dish has a little part where you can screw in a 2L bottle of water and it fills itself throughout the day.) Your kitten probably eats little cat food, so maybe using one of these water dishes would be ok for food? Maybe not but it's the best thing I can think of. Try asking the vets if there is some sort of thing that would be similar to this. Good luck!

Answer 5

If the kitten is able to walk and get to a food tray, you should just leave enough milk or whatever you feed it to last all day. I had a tiny kitten once and I used butter bowl lids to put the milk in since it was so tiny and the lids don't have a high rim. You can put moistened food in the lids too! You could also try one of those water bottles they use for hamsters and stuff like that to put the milk in and your kitten won't be able to spill it!

Answer 6

A 2 week old kitten isn't big enough to feed himself yet, so he really depends on you to give him his milk. Kittens don't require 2 hourly feeding though...every 4-5 hourly is sufficient, as long as you allow him to drink his fill. It's not so much about starving here though....it's really more about the danger of dehydration, as he's not old enough to drink by his own, and most newborn kittens only get their fluid intake through milk.
I would suggest you make a trip home to feed him during your lunch hour to attend to him. If you've got someone who loves cats, and who is available to look after him for you while you're at work, I would suggest that you arrange for that person to kitten-sit during your working hours. Kittens are like human babies,,,,you can't feed them at night, and expect them to sleep all day long, and only wake up to play and feed at your convenience.
Alternatively, try looking for a pet hotel that accepts unweaned kittens, and that knows how to take care of them, and book your kitten in for the hours you're not able to be with him to tend to his needs....at least till he's fully weaned, which can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months of age...your kitten will let you know when he's ready for solid food in this case. It's expensive, but you've got the health and welfare of your furry pal to think about here. Your reward will be a healthy, contented, well-adjusted cat in future.
Good luck.

Answer 7

Depends on how old the kitten is. If he or she is old enough to have food down at all hours then do so. But if he's two young to eat moistened or dry food then I suggest to take him to someone who can feed every two hours while your at work. Like get a trusted neighbor or friend who doesn't work to do it. Good Luck and congrats on your new kitten!

Answer 8

Yes. In fact, a lot of vets recommend you fast your cat for 48 hours once a week. They would not eat daily in the wild.

And, contrary to earlier responses (and I'm sure later responses as well), leaving food out all day is not good for your cat. It won't kill it, but it is not the healthist option. You should feed your cat only once a day.

I am not a vet, for the record, I've just done a lot of research and my own cat seems healthier and more alive for the changes I've made to his lifestyle.

Regardless, your cat will be fine. It's only a day.

Answer 9

you can buy a self activating feeder thing for cat food. Your local pet shop will know all about them. If the kitten isn't old enough to feed itself, how on earth did you get it? It should be away from its mother at eight weeks, not before.

You could also get a friend/family member to feed him for you, this sounds like the best course of action for you.

Answer 10

If the kitten is so young that it must be fed every 2 hours, this is entirely too long to leave it without food.I was in your situation before and I took it to a neighbor to "kitten sit" during the day until it was able to eat moist by it's self.

Answer 11

The kitten is too young to help herself with self-feeding.
Why don't you ask a vet if and how to solve this problem?
If she has to be fed more often, I would even consider to bring her to a vet or cat pension during the working hours!