Birth Defect?

[Shaun]

My cat just recently had a litter of 4 kittens. They are a little over a month old. We notice one of the kittens sleeping away from all the other kittens and one morning, our family woke up to it dead. Now we are noticing another one doing similar things. The kitten seems lifeless and sleeps away from the other 2 kittens and it's heart rate seems really fast. This is what the other kitten was experiencing before it passed and we don't have money for the vet, we really don't. We called the animal hospital anyway and they said if the first one died, it could be a birth defect. My sister is in the other room trying to give it water and keep it alive but I fear that won't last too long.

Could it be the mother's milk? Is it a birth defect? Are all the kittens going to die as well? If it is the milk, should I get an alternative milk?

[critters]

Anything's possible, but a birth defect would be last on my list. Mom may not have enough milk, or the babies might've caught something. A vet visit really is in order, and you should look into low-cost spay options for mom.

[Biscuit's Mom]

I hope the baby is still alive, but they are SO fragile at this age. I don't know about birth defects or the fate of the other kittens but you can go to:

http://www.kittenrescue.com/

That should give you lots of advice as to how to help the baby.

I hope this helps.

Robin (AKA Biscuit's Mom)

[moosmom]

Sounds like distemper to me.

[jennielynn1970]

So sad... hope you can get it to a vet, maybe make payments??? Definitely inquire about spay/neuter if you can't afford to take your animals to the vet, it's really not fair for a cat to be sick and not be afforded health care. Hope that your financial situation will improve and they can go.

[rpcathouse]

Anything is possible with young kittens. Infections, viruses, and yes birth defects can make a one month old kitten die. Are they crying or meowing alot like they are hungry? Do they have a temp? How is the mom's health? Are there cleaners, chemicals around? Do you keep them seperate from the rest of the house in a room that only the mom is allowed in? Many factors can be the cause of a death of a kitten. Lungs not developing the same with the heart. Have the kittens been sneezing? Are their eyes watery or have goop in them? I hope that you can get them to the vet before anything else happens. And YES, get the Mom spayed and the Dad neutered. Breeding has its rewards if you have healthy litters but then something happens and you have something like this happen. I have been breeding for a while and only once had a kitten fade at the age of 7 weeks old and it was his lungs were not developing as they should have. Mother nature can be cruel and wonderful at the same time. Good luck with the kittens and keep us posted on them.

[Jessika]

Were the bellies of the kittens who passed away very large and round/distended? Did they seem lazy or have a hard time breathing?