What can you find around the house to feed [and care for] a 2 week old kitten?

Question

My brothers cat had kittens 2 weeks ago, and since all but one of them has died (the latest only hours ago).
I believe the mother has been killing them. She's been refusing to feed and when I found the latest dead kitten he had been squashed underneath her.
Anyway, I've taken the care of the final kitten into my own hands and since I can't afford to take him to the vet I need all of the easy-to-find/ cheap/ household things that I can feed him, and use for his general care.
please help.

-Jayde

Answer 1

try some condensed milk or just regular milk heated a little bit...put it in a little bowl and lead it to it, by putting some on your finger and show it the bowl...good luck : )

Answer 2

As far as food for the kitten, you'll have to get a milk replacer at Petsmart or a good pet store. This will provide the kitten with the nutrients it's not getting from mom's milk. You will have to bottle feed the kitten and at 2 weeks old you're in for late hours. The kitten should be fed at least every two hours around the clock. If it only eats a little at first, try again in an hour or so. It may not take to being bottle fed very well, or you can use an eye dropper to fed it. There's nothing around the house that you can fed a 2 week old kitten, like you wouldn't have anything around the house to feed a 2 week old baby. Do not give it milk, canned or otherwise.

You will have to stimulate him to pee and poo. Do this after it's eaten by taking a warm soft paper towel or wash rag and genlty wipe his butt until it pees and poos. This is very important because the kitten will not go on it's own. Keep it warm, temperature is also important. Find a box or plastic tub, line it with a towel and use another towel to swaddle the kitten with (wrap it around it's body, not it's head). The kittens eyes may be open, but it's vision is not great yet.

You don't need to take the kitten to the vet, search on-line for care of orphaned kittens and you'll find lots of great info.

If this was the mom's first litter could be the reason why the other kittens died, some first time mom's will try but instinct doesn't always serve them right. As for the smothered kitten, sometimes a mom will try to move her litter to a safe place this reverts back to the wild when it was important to keep the den clean and free of disease, not to mention the smell of blood that will attrack predators. It could have been the kitten was crying because it was hungry and to quiet the kitten she inadvertantly smothered it.

Good for you that you are willing to take on this big responsibility, but I do encourage you to research caring for the kitten, and great success!

Answer 3

Wow, I wasn't going to answer but seeing as every suggestion above (except that made by Old Cat lady) will harm the kitten and/or make him very sick, I guess I'll step in.

1- NEVER give kittens or cats plain cow's milk. They are lactose intolerant and will devellop diarhea. Not that big a deal in an adult but a kitten with diarhea will rapidly dehydrate and they can die.

2- At 2 weeks old, he cannot eat anything solid. So NO tuna, ham, chicken ! Would you feed tuna to a 2 month old human baby ? No cause it can't eat solid foods yet, same with a kitten ! Hhe only thing it can eat (drink) now is milk. It's mother's milk is obviously best but barring that a good kitten-replacement milk (aka KMR) will do.

You need to check out this web site for terrific info on hand-raising kittens

http://www.kitten-rescue.com/

You will need to feed him every few hours (feed a replacement milk) from a bottle that they sell with a special small nipple at the pet store or a syringe (no needle).

You will need to stimulate him to go pee/pooh after every meal as they are unable to "go" by thenselves until at least 3 weeks of age.

You will need to keep him warm and tach him all the "kitten" stuff later on like litter training and eating solid foods.

Keep in mind though, with all the stuff I've mentionned above and with all the effort you put into it, it's quite possible that the little guy won't make it anyways. If the mom is rejecting it, it may be because she knows he's sick even though he'd not showing any signs and she is refusing to feed it for that reason. I'm just saying this so you don't think it was "your fault" should the worst happen.

And please stop this from happening again by spaying the mom ASAP !

Good luck

Answer 4

You've taken on a big job. Keep the kitten warm in a blanket lined box. Temperatures in the box should be about 81-86 degrees reducing gradually to about 70 at about 6 weeks.

You can make up a nutritious milk by mixing three parts unsweetened evaporated milk with one part boiling water. Put this in the refrigerator, all early feeds should be at body temperatures.

A small medicine bottle with a rubber bulb or eye dropper works well. Hygiene is important, you must sterilize your equipment and/or utensils each time they are used and fresh milk must be made up each day. Kittens fed from mother's milk acquire antibodies that protect them from most infections, hand reared infants are not protected

You need to feed the kitten every 2 hours for the first 3 weeks, although feeds every 4 hours are usually adequate at night after the first few days. After about 3 weeks old you can mix in a little baby cereal or dissolved meat jelly (from any good quality canned cat food), leading to weaning as with normally reared kittens.

Is there a foster mother available?

Hope this helps, good luck

Answer 5

If the mother is still around let it go back. It is not the best scenario, but it is better than it starving to death. Water mixed with hard food is not going to be enough. A 1-2 week old kitten needs a lot of work and care. It is better off with some food from its mother than none at all. You could also try calling around to local rescues, they may be able to help. I raised two abandoned kittens last September, and it was a lot of work. I was feeding round the clock every few hours, stimulating them to go to the bathroom, burping them, etc. They required hundreds of dollars in vet care for fleas, respiratory infections, eye infections. One was later diagnoses with FIV. It is probably too much work for a child that does not have the support of their parents, or the proper food.

Answer 6

I have picked a best answer.

This kitten HAS to have special milk replacer formula you can get in a pet store, maybe even in a drug store.

He must be fed every two hours 24/7. He has to be stimulated with a soft warm cloth on his bottom to release his urine and bowl movements.

You are looking at at least a month of doing this before he will be weaned. It is a heroic undertaking.

I am sure you will receive many answers that include spaying of the mother cat and I have to add mine to these recommendations.

Answer 7

A kitten should be fed only mother's milk for the first three weeks of his life. At three to four weeks of age, kittens will start to nibble solid foods. At that point, you can keep a very small amount of moistened Purina® Kitten Chow® brand Kitten Food available at all times. Change the food frequently to ensure freshness.

Answer 8

Take the kitten and be the mother. You have to care for and love that kitten. I had to do that with my Goldie, she was three weeks when I got her. I bathed her, bottle fed her, and woke up in the middle of the night to change her bed and give her what she needed when she cried. It is just like having a newborn baby.

Answer 9

I wish you luck in taking care of this kitten. It really needed the antibodies in the mother's milk. I am guessing the mother cat was too young to know how to take care of her babies. The suggestion to buy cat's milk by someone else is a good one. I saw it in PetSmart.

Answer 10

The mom cat may have killed the kitten on puppose or accidentally. Like a mom dog accidentally without realizing it slept on her puppy and didn't feel a thing beneath her (it was a runt). But they make formulas for kittens and puppies at the pet store.

Answer 11

use an eyedropper to feed it. get a box with low sides and fill with dirt for litterbox. get a basket or another box and put a blanket in it for a bed. underneath the blanket put a clock that tick-tocks so the kitten can lay its head by it and it sounds like its mother's heart. For toys use milk jug rings, strings, or empty thread spools.