Help Needed Asap! Tiny Kitten!

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Help - I have just been given a very tiny little kitten, and I have no idea what to do with it - I've never had a kitten this little and I don't know what to feed it! It has stinky greenish diarrhea right now, so I don't want to upset it's tummy any more.

My daughter and I were just at the pet store about a half hour ago, and there was a lady wandering around in there with this kitten. She asked us if we knew whether the pet store "takes animals", and said she wanted to give them the kitten which she had found on the side of the road while doing her paper route.
She didn't want to take it to her local humane society because they charge $40 to drop off animals. We said we'd take it, because I thought it should go to a humane society, not a pet store. However, when we got home, it was too late to get to our
humane society to drop it off! So now I gotta keep this little guy/girl for the night- help! What do I do???

[lailamara]

Oh dear. Not sure what to do ?? It must be weaned. Maybe you could check some internet sites to find out what to feed since you probably don't have kitten food. I don't suppose you could keep the kitten??????Poor little mite.:eek:

[Edwina's Secretary]

At Petco or any pet store they have a kit....it has kitten milk and a bottle for feeding the kitten.

Good Luck.....

[Soledad]

How tiny is it? Do you have any idea what age it is? Maybe a picture would help. ;)

[moosmom]

First of all, STAY CALM!! Are the kitten's eyes open? If so, then it is at least 3 weeks old. Go to the pet store and buy a can of KMR kitten formula (get the stuff already mixed as it's less of a hassle) and a kitten bottle (they should be near the KMR). Fill the bottle up with formula and warm it in hot water in the sink. Puncture a hole in the nipple of the bottle with a sewing needle. Do it a couple of times then squeeze it to make sure formula comes out. Hold the kitten in a towel in an upright position (the same position as it would be in as if nursing from it's mama) and put the nipple in it's mouth. If the kitten is as young as I think, you're probably going to have to feed it every 2-2 1/2 hours. When you finish feeding it, take a soft towel/cloth and rub it's bum (just below it's tail) until it pees and poops. You'll know because the towel/facecloth will get wet. You MUST do that in order to make the kitten pee and poop.

If you have a veterinarian, call them in the morning and see if they can take it and have the staff feed it until it's old enough to eat on it's own.

I admire you for taking this precious thing in. Please keep me posted.

[Desert Arabian]

Here is a picture. The kitten is a boy...we checked. lol. We gave him some kitten replacement milk, he is so cute.

http://members.aol.com/OrliBloom177/kitten.jpg

[wolf_Q]

Oh my, he sure is CUTE!! I'm so glad both of you took him in....I hope you end up keeping him, I bet he's a total sweetheart! :D

[NoahsMommy]

What a total doll! I don't have any advice, but I'm sure you'll get a lot here.

You'll be in my thoughts tonight. :)

[zippy-kat]

Awwwww..... what an adorable little face!

I, too, was going to suggest taking him to the vet. Good luck guys! It's going to be a L O N G night with 2hr feedings! (but well worth it, don'tcha think? ;) )

[aly]

ACGAS - here's a copy of the email I just sent ya. I just saw the pic of the kitty and he looks about 3 weeks old. I was thinking he was a bit younger. Green diarrhea is bad. It could be Giardia or Coccidia. It might be nothing though... only a fecal could tell. If you guys have some Pedialyte, that would help rehydrate him.

Hi!

How old is the kitten? If you're not sure, send me a pic and I can tell. You should feed the kitten KMR formula through a bottle or syringe. Since the pet stores are closed, there is a recipe for homemade baby formula:

3 oz. condensed milk
3 oz. water
4 oz. plain yogurt (NOT low-fat)
3 large or 4 small egg yolks

The kitty should eat every 2-3 hours if its under 2 weeks old. Be sure not to overfeed though. It is better to underfeed. If you don't have a bottle or a syringe, you can use an eyedropper. Just put it in boiling water for a minute to sterilize it. The kitty formula should be room temperature or a little warmer - test it on your wrist. After the kitten eats, take a warm, damp cloth or paper towel and stimulate him to potty. I usually hold them over the trash can for this part in case of dribbles :)

Set up a crate or box with towels and a stuffed animal and a heating pad if you have one. Put it on the lowest setting and wrap it tightly with a cloth so the kitty can't sit directly on the pad. I also play classical music or talk radio softly.

I'm going to try to catch you on AIM to see if you have any specific questions!

[aly]

Since he looks to be 3 weeks old or a little over, you won't have to feed him every 2 hours. Every 4-6 hours would be fine. Thanks for taking the little guy in. I hope your humane society will have someone to foster him.

Going to look for ya on AIM now!

[shais_mom]

AAWW!
What a cutie!
Will be thinking of you!

[marysmerrycats]

you could take it to an open all night vet.. here's some links I found... good luck, he sure is cute!

http://www.kittenrescue.org/handbook.htm
http://www.fanciers.com/cat-faqs/orphans.html
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ridge/2969/baby.html
http://www.petstation.com/kittencare.html
http://www.safehavenforcats.com/newborn.htm

[Vio&Juni]

When I was still a student, me and my bf found a little kitten just like this (size), he was totally black. He also had diarrhea.
I don't remember anyhing about the food we gave him, but he got better very soon and I kept him. I had to fight with the management, but I kept him. And I named him Kuzea.

I hope this little bundle of fur makes it and he gets a good home :)

[ramanth]

He's adorable! Good luck with him! Keep us posted. :)

[All Creatures Great And Small]

He made it through the night OK (I guess, since he didn't wake us up), and has enjoyed 2 bottle feedings this morning and a little soft food. Just a moment ago he took his first wee in his litter box, but he still has not had a BM, which worries me. When we got him yesterday, he had residue around his butt and tail from diarrhea, but he hasn't made anything since being here. I am going to set up a vet appointment for tomorrow when I have a day off, to check him over and make sure everything is working.

Dudley is just furious about this new, loud creature in the house - he refuses to come up and sniff the kitten, just keeps hissing, growling, and backing away! If I let Dudley smell my fingers with kitten smell on them, THAT sets him off too. He's so territorial, I just don't know how this is going to work out. It really is hilarious to see him having such a fit over such a tiny, harmless little fluffball. :rolleyes:

And I still have the little matter of explaining this to hubby when he gets home........oh well, I usually have the final say anyway, so it's a done deal ;) :D Cats are pretty low-maintenance, so he won't add too much stress to this already chaotic household, unless he and Dudley can't ever learn to get along.

I'll try to post some more pics later.

[Cataholic]

ACGAS!!! Thank you for coming to this little kitty's rescue! He looks a tad older than 3 weeks (since you could sex him, he is prolly older), so, keep up with the feeding, really as often as he seems to want it. I would still stimulate him bum for poop purposes, but, he should be alright, if he is peeing on his own.

Please keep Dudley away from him, and your own hands! I would wash, wash, wash both before and after contact with the kitty to reduce any possible exporsures to both YOU and Dudley...you never know....

USUALLY an introduction between a baby and an adult cat is not an issue. So, once little kitty is vet checked, let Dudley see what all the fuss is about, with supervision, of course.

Good luck and way to rescue!

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Well, he made a nice firm poopy yesterday evening, so I don't have to worry about diarrhea! I've been feeding him little bits of Dudley's soft food, but today I will head to the pet store to get some actual kitten formula food. Last night at work I picked up a bag of kitten kibble, and the pieces are pretty tiny, but the poor guy just couldn't manage them with his little teeth - luckily we have a coffee bean grinder, so I put the kibble in there and ground it up real small, and he munched a bunch of that. He doesn't seem to know how to suckle from that bottle, but if we pour the milk replacer onto a saucer, he can lap it up pretty good without snuffling his nose in it.

He is just adorable, and I can see already how some of his markings will be - he has pretty arm stripes, and rings on the end of his tail like a rattlesnake :D - I can't wait to see what color his eyes will be, since they're still kitten blue.

Dudley is still really cheesed off about this whole thing, and he has been king of the roost for all of his 5 years, so I don't blame him. Once the vet gives us the green light, I'll keep trying to introduce them to each other. I've been holding Sammy while talking nicely to Dudley, encouraging him to come in the room without hissing - we've gotten as far as Dudley smelling the tip of Sammy's tail when Sammy isn't looking :rolleyes: , and then dashing out of the room when Sammy turns around. :D (He's such a puss!) Here's Dudley checking out the terrifying beast that has come to live with us :rolleyes: :

[Vermontcat]

LOL!:D I love the photo of Dudley looking at tiny little Sammy!:)
Really Dudley, there's nothing to be afraid of, he's just a little fluffball!;)

[kimlovescats]

How adorable! Dudley will learn what FUN truly is again in no time at all!!!! :D

[shais_mom]

Great pic!
he is sooooo cute!

[Rhiannon]

What a cute picture!

I've taken in over 40 kittens (not all at once!) and that one looks to be about 4 weeks old. Usually by that time, it's hard to get them to suckle from a bottle. I use syringes. That way, I can control the flow and I can keep better track of what actually made it into their stomachs.

Is his belly very round and a little on the big side? If so, he probably has worms. Once an infested kitten is dewormed, their appetite goes way up and they start putting on weight. And since he seems to eat just fine from a plate, you can just mix his kitten milk in with the kitten food. I would hold off on too much dry food just yet since it sounds like he only has very small milk teeth. Plus most of that dry stuff has too much fiber for a baby that young.

I think someone touch upon this already, but don't let your big guy eat or drink from the same bowl as the baby, and don't let him use the same litter box. The kitten could be carrying, among other things, distemper, feline leukemia or feline AIDS. I would test for them as soon as you can.


Well, that's all, I guess! Sorry if I repeated anything anyone else said. And sorry if my posts tend toward the verbose side. I am just in a rambling mood today!

[moosmom]

He looks wonderful!!

Word of caution: Please wait till you have your kitten tested for Feline Aids/Leukemia. You don't want Dudley being exposed.

Sounds like you're doing everything right. One suggestion is to mix a little KMR with canned kitten food. He may walk in it (it's not a pretty picture) but at least he'll be getting the nutrition he needs. This way you won't have to bottle feed him.

That's a great picture of Dudley looking at the kitty. I wish I could come up with a caption for it. :D

[Kirsten]

He looks so sweet in the pictures! :) Will you keep him?

You've got a lot of helpful advice here already, and he seems to much better meanwhile! :)

Any idea how old he is? From the pictures, I would say 3 - 4 weeks?

Kirsten

[bluekat]

OMG, he is so cute! I didn't read the other posts, did you take him to the vet? I'm just wondering, not sure if you did.
BTW, I'm so glad that you took him in, its way better than a pet store. And at such a young age, I don't think he'll like the shelter.

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Thanks, everybody, for all the great advice so far! We just got back from the vet, and the most surprising thing we learned is that Sammy is........a girl!:o :D I thought I saw "bumps" back there, but I guess it was just some fur or something - we're still going to call her Sammy though, but now I keep getting mixed up and saying "him" - it will take me awhile to readjust. Everybody at the vet's office was fussing over her - she must be as cute as we think she is! (One lady there said to the kitty, "hey, these people even buy antibiotics for rats - you'll be in good hands!" :D )

She is a very healthy little stinker - no ear mites, no sneezing/discharge, no goopy eyes, and her appetite is VERY good! She eats pretty well from her plate, and really chowed down on the ground up dry food this morning - she even kneaded and made little kitten sounds while she was eating it!
(She eats with her entire head - I have to get some waterless shampoo to clean her off with between meals!)

I got her to drink a little water, and the vet said there's no harm in still giving her kitten milk, but she's old enough to not really need it as much as water. She was still too young to test for FeLV, but will be tested in 3 weeks, along with a second worm test. Apparently it's a good idea to do a series of worm tests in case there was a false negative the first time around. She does have a round, fat belly, but the vet didn't think it was anything unusual. We have some dewormer to give her for the next 5 days, so we're on the right track. She'll be getting all the vaccines an outdoor kitty would, on the off chance that she would sneak out of the house on it (it's been known to happen :o ), and she'll be given Frontline and Heartgard when she's old enough.

We're using one of the old rattie cages with carpeting in the bottom as her "crib" while we're not home, since she's VERY curious and would get into heaps of trouble! It's 3 feet by 3 feet, and about 18" high, so she will have room to beat the crap out of glitter balls in there. ;) :p We also plan to keep this cage in a separate room from the mean old big brother, who really doesn't want to get anywhere near her anyway, until we get her test results back.
(The little peach fuzzball in the front is Sammy :D ) We're heading to the pet store now to get some properly-sized food and water dishes, and a litter box. (And probably some toys, and 10 or 20 totally useless but cute things..........)

[bluekat]

Have you decided to keep her? I would, she is so cute! She is very small compared to that cage! That first pic is so cute too!
Good Luck with her!

[moosmom]

Did the vet say how old she was? My estimate is about 4 weeks old. That picture is hysterical!! ROFLMAO!!! She sounds lik a keeper to me. I'm sure once hubby gets home and takes one look at her, he'll fall in love. I know I have!! ;)

[Desert Arabian]

Yes!! We are keeping her. We decided to keep her 3 hours after we got her...:p


We got back from PETCO about a half hour ago...we bought her another green fleece bed, water and food dishes, 6 more ball toys (glitter, foam, etc), a periwinkle collar (not putting it on her now...to small), and some other goodies. The rats and Dudley are getting a little jealous. lol. :D :D


The vet said she was 4 weeks old.

OH YEAH I ALMOST FORGOT...ha ha ha...this is funny. Right after we got done at the vet we went up to our local pet store called Animal House, (this the pet store where Sammy came from) to pick up some kitten goods. When we went up to the counter, the manager lady was up there and she kept on giving us "looks" and seemed kind of mad. She looked in the carrier and said "that's the cat". HA HA HA- we took the cat from her....and they couldn't sell it....HA HA HA. When you think about it that is EXTREMELY sick and wrong that they were going to sell a stray cat with no medical backgrounds at the pet store. SUCKERS!!!! We saved the kitty from the pit!! We're not going to that pet store again...now that PETCO opened!!! :D :p

[All Creatures Great And Small]

Well, she managed to step square in the middle of her milk dish and get her whole self sticky, so - her 2nd bath in 2 days!
Then, after she's all dry and fuzzy - time for bed:

Sigh........I had forgotten how much fun "babies" are........;) :)

[Soledad]

OMG - I'm so in love!

[Vio&Juni]

Originally posted by All Creatures Great And Small
Then, after she's all dry and fuzzy - time for bed:

Sigh........I had forgotten how much fun "babies" are........;) :) [/B]

My eyes are in tears now, she's SOOOOOOOOO cute. AHHHHH, I wish I were there to smooch her

[PayItForward]

This thread should have an Cuteness warning. :D

[ChrisH]

Originally posted by Soledad
OMG - I'm so in love!
Originally posted by PayItForward
This thread should have an Cuteness warning.
Ditto to both!!:D

[Cataholic]

WOW, she is soooo adorable! I love the pic with her eyes closed...she is very 'seepy' isn't she? I just know Dudley will fall in love with her, just like we have.

[green_chameleon_girl]

you probably dont have the kitten anymore but if you ever get another kitten that small you have to make sure it goes to the bathroom every 30 to 45 min to do that you have to take a warm cloth that is damp and rub the kittens bottem my friend just found a kitten that size in a feild last week! Be sure to wash the kitten with warm water and dry it off. Always keep the kitten warm..if you do im pretty sure it will be ok.

[Desert Arabian]

Originally posted by green_chameleon_girl
you probably dont have the kitten anymore but if you ever get another kitten that small you have to make sure it goes to the bathroom every 30 to 45 min to do that you have to take a warm cloth that is damp and rub the kittens bottem my friend just found a kitten that size in a feild last week! Be sure to wash the kitten with warm water and dry it off. Always keep the kitten warm..if you do im pretty sure it will be ok.

Did you read all 3 pages? There are a lot of updates, pictures, and other information. As answered on previous pages: we kept her, she does not need to be stimulated to go to the bathroom, etc.

Check out the pictures, they're pretty cute.

[lizbud]

OMG, this little one is just too cute for words.:) :)

I'll be by to pick her up in the morning.:D J/K...I Loved all
her pics.I would guess Sammy to be on the younger side
of 4 weeks. Sooo tiny. Great cage setup you have for her.
Looks very comfortable & roomy. Hugs to the baby girl.:)

[Cinder & Smoke]

:D

Sammy appears to be a SERIOUS Eater! :p

[Cataholic]

I DEMAND A DETAILED FILLED UPDATE OF THIS KITTY!!!!!!!! OR I WILL SUE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!:D :D :D :D :D :D

[All Creatures Great And Small]

OMG - I can't afford a lawsuit right now, so here ya go! You know, she keeps me pretty busy, just like a human infant! The little "Sam-inator" is doing very well, as can be expected
in a house where kitties are spoiled rotten ;). She's not only a serious eater, she's also a serious sleeper:

She also enjoys frequent bouts of thumb-wrestling:

and washing her little paws (she only washes paws and feet so far; she hasn't figured out how to wash her incredibly messy face and body):

But by far, her favorite thing to do is - FART! http://www.click-smilies.de/sammlung/sprachlos/speechless-smiley-002.gifhttp://www.click-smilies.de/sammlung/sprachlos/speechless-smiley-003.gif Wow, she can drop some bombs!

She makes such a mess out of her food, water, and kitten milk, that I finally had to put the kitten milk in a rodent-type drinking bottle and put it on her cage, and she is happy to lap the milk from there. Otherwise she would stand in the middle of the dish like she's wading in a pond - same with her dry and moist food, too. I got some birdcage-type cups that hang from the side of the cage, so that she can stand and eat from them but not climb right in :rolleyes:. She's about a week away from the age where she should be weaned, so I have mixed the milk half and half with water, to make sure she gets enough fluids. I bought some non-clumping litter as suggested by Aly, because I had forgotten that they shouldn't breathe in the dust from the clumping. She was also getting it stuck to her nose a lot when she would go back to check her masterpieces, and she could possibly ingest that and it will clump in her digestive tract. She's only in the cage at night and when we're all gone during the day; otherwise we are holding her or keeping an eye on her as she explores the territory. Dudley has finally stopped hissing and is into the fascination stage - yesterday he was hanging upside down-ish off of the chair next to the cage and staring at her like a giant goof. If she walks up to him now, he just backs away without hissing. I still don't want them touching each other until she's been tested, so it's just as well that he doesn't want to smell her or anything.

My husband called tonight from Virginia and asked if there was anything new - I said no, not really............heh heh heh. I want it to be a visual surprise, so he will be put under her spell immediately ;).

We took her outside today for a short romp in the grass, so later I will try to edit the silent video and see if I can upload it to the web. We've been recording some of her meows, too, so maybe I can add that as a "soundtrack".

[krazyaboutkatz]

She's adorable. I'm so glad that everything is working out. :D So is her name still going to be Sammy?

[Vio&Juni]

She has such a cute dirty face. I guess, it's from the milk or wet food.
I love Sammy :D

[ChrisH]

She is so adorable!!!!!!:) Thanks for the update, I am so glad her being there is working so well for you all. Love the cage idea, keeping her safe when when no one is at hand, and the birdcage cups and rodent water bottle, very clever!:D

Sending kisses for Sammy, and a hug for Dudley too. :)

Chris

[smokey the elder]

I love the pic with her head in the food cup! What a little piggy.:p

[Cataholic]

She is just adorable! Those pics of her sleeping, with the one paw covering her eye...what did you do, keep her up all night?

I think it would be nice to get your husband's reaction on video...that would be worth watching!!! He he he...

[kimlovescats]

Sammy is tooooooo adorable! Love that head first food bowl pic.... what a little piglet!!! :D

Who can resist those sleepy time pictures either????? ;)

So happy that she is doing so well, congratulations to you both!
Please keep those precious pictures coming!!!!

[Cincy'sMom]

How adorable!!!!

[Russian Blue]

I've been away and look what I miss! OMG!!!! That kitten should be the poster kitten for the term adorable!! What a total cutie pie!

:D :D

Your doing a great job with the little one! Can I come over for a visit?

;)