I have 5 four week old kittens who refuse to feed.HELP!!?

Question

My cat(Princess) had 5 kittens 4 weeks ago.Everything has gone perfect so far and up until a few days ago the kittens were thriving and healthy.
Princess then developed mastitis and can no longer nurse the kittys...I purchased a tin of lactol and kitten bottles but the kittens simply refuse to feed.I have tried everything i can think of...i've tried weaning them onto kitty food(complete kitten food moistened with warm water-refused! moistened with lactol-refused! jellied kitten food-refused!).
The kittens were starting to explore their surroundings and were becoming mischievous up until Princess stopped nursing...now they generally sleep most of the day.
I am really desperate and worried that the kittens may die unless they start eating or drinking.Does anyone have any suggestions??

Answer 1

kittens will not feed from a bottle unless the bottle smells like the mother's scent. another thing is the nipples on the bottles that came with it, are the wrong type, go to a mejiers store, and check to see if they have a longer nipple on the bottle. if it does, buy several of them immediatly. this is the correct nursing nipple, and the closet one that resembles, momma cat's teet. when u get it home, use kitten replacement milk with the hottest water from the tap, mix well. test milk. take bottle the bottle to mom cat, and rubb the bottle against mom cat, before u put milk in it. get a towel or something that mom cat has slept on, and wrap kitten in it, open kitten mouth, squeeze a few drops in mouth with the milk, while supporting the head. this will take several tries to get it right. be patient, and u must have patients. keep trying this. the bottle depends on the nipple on the bottle, if it is too short, the kittens will not feed. always make sure the nipple is about 1-2 inches long, cut the tip off little by little, until a small hole appears that is not to big for the kitten to swallow milk from. u should make the whole no bigger than that of a salt shaker. use scissors to do this, never use a hot needle, i did this and it burned me, and i never got the correct size of the whole. make sure the kitten is laying on it's stomache, never on the back. this causes indigestion, and choking. the kitten will asperate (asperate-meaning choking of fluids in the lungs). u must be extremly carefull that this doesn't happen, if this does, take the bottle away, lightly tap with two fingers kitten on sides of lungs and rub kitten to stimulate breathing, most of the time the kitten will have automatic reflex to do this on their own. only use this step if the kitten struggles more than a minute. i have raised a total of 3 litters this way, and they turned out fine. if u are in doubt for any reason, contact any of these places below on how to correctly bottle feed any kitten or dog.

just remember to have patients, research, and the correct nipple that is about the correct measurements that i stated. too short, kitten will not feed. i know this thru experience !!!! use all of your resources to find out how to correctly bottle feed. if u need to get ahold of me, contact me at yahoo messenger, my id is katty_ferguson.

NEVER EVER USE COW'S MILK AS A REPLACEMENT FOR FEEDING KITTENS, THEY ARE LACTOSE INTOLLERANT !!!! THIS WILL CAUSE INDIGESTION, DIARRHEA, AND CRAMPS !!!!!! NEVER USE A SYRINGE, THIS CAUSES TOO MUCH AIR TO BE SWALLOWED AND THE KITTENS WILL ASPERATE !!!!!

Answer 2

Princess and all the kittens should see the vet this morning. It's possible that the mastitis was caused because the kittens stopped nursing instead of the other way around. Kittens go down hill fast. Since you've done all the reasonable thing on your own, see the Pro. One thing though, they are very sensitive to the temp of the food, a degree too hot or too cold and they don't seem to recognize it. I should know the normal body temp of a cat but I can't think right now and I know the vet can tell you even over the phone. With luck the next answer will have that info.

Answer 3

Get a baby syringe--the kind that is used to feed babies their medicine, with the tube on the end, not a needle. Put the kittens' formula into the syringe and force-feed them. Stick the tube into their mouths and slowly, gently push the syringe pump. If they are struggling to swallow, stop and let them swallow and then restart.

I had to do this with baby birds once. It's not quite the same, but the same basic principle applies. Do make a vet appointment on top of this. He can quickly rehydrate them if need be.

Answer 4

this is what i would suggest. go get you come canned food for kittens and mis some of the supplement milk in with it and let them at it. they should be big enough with encouragement to eat the food. this is probrably the best bet... good luck

i also wanted to throw this in. i was told by a friend who was a breeder that if you have a weak kitty or puppy that wont eat (due to weakness) that taking your finger and dipping it into some karo syrup and put it in the animals mouth and this provides some needed energy!!

Answer 5

Call a vet for advise asap. In the meantime, I had some kittens that were abandon and I used a formula a dairy farmer told me of.....mix milk, egg and a little bit of karo syrup. The karo syrup makes it sweet like their mothers milk. They loved it and all grew to be healthy cats. Hope this helps. BOL

Answer 6

You need to get a surenge, hold there mouths and force feed, or they will die. a bottle wont work because they wont suck, with a surenge you can shoot it down there mouths and they have to swallow. My cat died at birth, so I had to do the same. 1 kitten died but the other 2 are alive and well with me. and you gotta do it every 2-4 hours. then they will get used to it and start eating solids in 1-2 weeks.

Answer 7

You need to take them to the vet asap. They are probably dehydrated and need immediate attention.

I'm sorry your cat ran into this problem. After they have seen the vet and received some attention you should be able to bottle feed them at home (I've done it more times than I'd like to remember, lol).

Best of luck to you and your kitties!

Answer 8

I often wet the food and put it in the microwave. as it cools the babies smell it and start to get hungry. Have they had any food?? If not you need to get to a vet. Animals just like kids do go through spells of higher appetite and lulls in appetite

Answer 9

I dont know much about cats and how they feed or whatever but i would rather give them to a vet or something that knows till they are old enough to be fed cat food

Answer 10

then get her mastitis stripped out or cleared up so they can feed- call the vet or take them there- kitties can't go that long without food, the vet can help