Found a NEWBORN kitten, days old with umbilical cord?

Question

She (?) is tiny. eyes are closed with a dried umbilical cord. She can make a few sounds. I am trying to feed her MRL or MLR, whatever, but isn't suckling too much. I am squirting in her mouth, then she swallows, so on. I don't know how much she should be suckling at this age, ie days old. she is also very explorative, wriggly. Vet s closed, called another vet, and was told to feed the milk, not much else help. I have also stimulated her "bits" so she has peed. any other help

Thank you to everyone who is helping, I really appreciate it. I called a few vets and a "crazy cat lady" all of them said the same thing. feed KLR, keep warm, hope for the best. I will take her to Dr. Marmesh's office tomorrow. I am just worried about her eating, she only swallowed a few squirts, she is so little and weak so maybe she needs a dropper. thank you all again!

Ok, I put her to bed, with a hot water bottle and plenty of bedding. And out of reach of my other 3 cats, who are lessed than pleased with the new arrival! She also has the fuzzy insides of a sweatshirt. I really hope she makes it, My hubby found her in the trash on a construction yard, they looked for more, but found only her. Wish me luck

Answer 1

That's pretty good care, well done. Also keep kitty warm with a hot water bottle (covered) and lots of towels, but I expect you know that! Other than that, feeding about every 2-4hours and stimulating toilet each time afterwards is all (!) you need to do.

Looks like you might have a cat for life! :-) You can start offering her soft kitten food from about four weeks old. Well, you can try 3 weeks really - whenever she takes it, that means she's ready. The umbilical cord should drop off by itself - if it's dried, you can trim it to about a half inch if it's long, so it doesn't catch on anything.

Chalice

Answer 2

If You are squirting milk in to her mouth make sure that it dose not go into her lugs or it will make her really sick. An eye roper is the best we had some kittens and had to feed them by hand every two hours we all had to clean their private parts with a warm wet watch clothe could they can't go to the bathroom. Can condensed cream works well because of all the fat in it. Or you can call around and see if any neighbors have a mommy Cat they will usually let the kitten nurse just watch really close so mammy cat dose not get mad or call Vets around they area and see if they know anyone with a mommy cat. GOOD LUCK

Answer 3

I have been in the same situation. Like everyone said keep it warm feed it every 2-4 hours even in the middle of the night. It's a pain at first but it is way worth it. Mine is now 2 years old. The best formula to feed it is kitten replacement milk. It has all the vitamins and everything it needs. You can get it at just about any pet store. You can buy powder or liquid. I think the powder is better. GOOD LUCK!!!

Answer 4

I'd call as many vets as I needed to to get her in to be seen. Or just take her in as a walk-in. If you can't afford a regular vet, there may be a Humane Society animal hospital or veterinary college nearby that you could take her to. She needs some medical attention to assure she's okay.

In the meantime, keep her warm - wrapped up in a soft towel or blanket. You could put a hot water bottle or heating pad in with her too - just be careful that that heating pad doesn't burn her. She will, of course, want to wriggle. She's new to life and wants to stretch out! She won't be opening her eyes for a while - a couple weeks possibly. She's still developing. You can also try putting the milk on your little finger and let her suckle that. That's also something she's learning; so it could take a while. Good luck!

Answer 5

I would try to find either a nursing mom asap or a rescue shelter centre where they can find a nursing mom cause if that poor kitten doesn't get a nursing mom she will not make it. They need a mothers milk for certain anti-bodies that is carried in the milk of a mother cat. milk replacement will not help her. believe me i have been threw this just a week ago with a 4-5 week old kitten the whole litter died cause the mother stopped feeding them. I hope this gets to you in time and i hope i helped out alot. I found that the vets didn't help or the pounds you need to find a rescue centre or a nursing mom. you got to get her nursing moms kittens scent on the kitten you found for her to be accepted. hopefully you will find one in time. Don't shoot the milk into her mouth cause if she swallows it inot her lungs she could dye that way try to feed ehr threw a new born kitten bottle which vet places have. good luck!

Answer 6

OMG, Sweets and trust your instincts on your feeding, especially your squirts. Keep her warm and offer the formula at least every 2 hours. Her activity suggests strength, health and a will to live and the fact that she responds to her "bits," gotta love that term, being stimulated tells you "all systems are go:" of course pun intended, how else does one deal with such a tiny miracle? You probably found her around her 5th-7th day of life, no older and continue to skew the statistics, will ya? Just keep doing what you are doing because you may be part lioness yourself as I get these images of the Sarengetti while talking to you. You have been chosen no doubt and faith is important to you for a grand reason. Eyes will open around day 9 so you'll have a good idea (give or take 24 hours) of her actual DOB and don't give her the car keys until she is 16 (14 if you are rural). Keep a watch on her, "Mom," and at 4- 5 weeks you can make a thin gruel of Gerber's rice pablum which can be delivered via bottle as a supplemental feeding. At 6 weeks, you can introduce her to solid canned cat food such as Science Diet Growth for newborns. Check her bed for tiny stools which ordinarily the mother cat "disposes of," as you'll want to know if her systems are still "go." Continue to utilize Yahoo Answers to ask or inform us all of her progress and check profiles of those whom respond to your initial question as some of us are on stand-by and inclined to pray as well as flap our jaws.

Answer 7

The vet is the best answer. As soon as they open take the kitten in or take it to a shelter. The vet may want you to pay for their services to take care of the kitten. So it depends on if you want to keep the kitten. I tried to take a dog that we found on the side of the road that had been hit to the vet, and they wouldn't take it becasue we did not have the money to pay for its medical needs. Another suggestion if you know of another cat that just had a litter she may take it in, but be careful if the cat doesn't accept it she could kill it. Another suggestion is call the SPCA and ask for suggestions or even a petsmart or petsco store.

Answer 8

All of the above suggestions are really good. Any animal that young is going to be a challenge to keep alive without a mother. Try maybe calling a local shelter, if they have had any cats give birth lately, you might get lucky and have the mom adopt your little kitten and treat it like its her own. But that can be a difficult thing to find, and there is no guarantee that the cat will be willing to accept her, but it might be worth a shot.

Answer 9

Just keep an eye on her. If she's eating..thats always a good sign with animals. I would just keep feeding her and trying to do as much as possible. Kittens are hard to take care of when so small. But don't give up on her..she might just make a super pet!

Answer 10

Ummm, theres no reason your kitten won't make it. it sounds like you are doing the right things. It seems like every spring people bring me newborn kittens they have found. They've all done fine. The most important things are keep her warm and feed her slowly and not to much at a time cuz it can go in their lungs, Good luck!