Not growing

Hi,

Approximatley 2 months ago I found a kitten in downtown Calgary. When I first found her she went to the vet who said she was perfectly healthy. She has now had both sets of shots, and been dewormed. She seems healthy enough, her fur is shiny and she is playful. She is full of energy and doesn't seem sick. However, she does not eat alot. I feed her a quarter of a can of food twice a day and she ussually consumes about half of this. She does eat some bisquits as well but I a worried about her because she doesn't seem to be getting very big very quickly (she is 4 months old now)

My other cat is a bit older than her (6 months) and I rememeber he was quite large after four months. He had lost his fluffy kitten coat and his tail was big like an adult cat. Jezebelle still has her skinny kitten tail and she is still quite fluffy, she has grown but not very much. I am worried that maybe she is malnourished, although she seems active and healthy.

Has any one else experienced something like this, where their kitten just doesn't seem to be growing?

Each baby is different. Your kitten could just have it in her genes that she be a small kitty.

My Samantha is very small to me, she is the smallest I have at 8#, Chester is is only several months older weighs in at a whopping 17#. Her bone structure is smaller, she is not as tall or as long..... but she isn't skinney looking. BUT she is the most playful of my 4 and she is not napping during the day while the rest are. (she is to busy watching for me to sit down so she can get in my lap)

She could just be a smaller kitty. My Samantha is the smallest I have weighing in at 8#. Chester who is just a few months younger weighs in at a whooping 17#, but his bone structure is totally different than hers. He is bigger boned, taller and longer.

As with humans, the family genes decide which are big and which are small. Samantha plays a lot and hardly naps during the day and is far more entergetic than the rest. She jumps high, runs a lot and is just sooooo playful! Maybe that is how your baby will be and there is nothing wrong with it. As long as the vet isn't worried, there is no need for you to be either.

I got this off a site that will help you to know more about feeding your kitten.

Feeding Kittens

After weaning, your kittens can be fed any of the specially formulated kitten foods. They are available in many different flavours and textures. At three months of age, your kitten is still a baby and requires three or four small meals a day. To avoid finicky eating habits later, you should feed various flavours of foods during this time. If you switch between food types, you must always do so gradually, by mixing the original food with increasing quantities of the new food.

As it grows older, meals should become larger and be less frequent. At twelve months your kitten is considered an adult and should be fed only twice a day. It is good to feed your cat a variety of foods, using a mixture of canned, dried and fresh foods if possible not forgetting to always read the label on the food container, as some foods are only supplements and not complete diets.

You should feed your kitten with kitten/growth cat food until it is one year old. At that stage, gradually change the diet into regular cat food. The accelerated growth of kittenhood is usually complete and the cat should adjust to adult cat food and regular eating habits.

Pouncer Came From A Pet Store, And I Thought She Want Growing, Until I Got Mr Scrappy, And I Realized How Big She Was Compared To Him.
At The Found Cat Hotel Diane, Precious, Rocca Are All Petite, All About 7 Pounds And All At , Or A Bit Over Ten Years Old.
She Might Just Be A Small Cat.

Our Hope Simone is nearly 7 months old, and is probably about the size of a 12 week old kitten!!! Like several have posted, perhaps your baby, like Hope Simone, will just be petite. I call Hope Simone my " forever kitten." Just give lots of LOVE!!!

Thanks for everyone's advice. It actually seems like she has grown a bit this week. She has also discovered a new skill, she can jump on on very tall things now. She seems impressed with this discovery.

If she's acting like a kitten, I wouldn't worry. My punks from hard circumstances--starvation, disease, disability, etc.--seem to stay a lot smaller than a sib from a healthier beginning. Since your baby was a homeless child, she might've had stuff in her background that doesn't show now. Sassy, who's mom had 6 babies with mastitis, hemobartonella, etc. is a sole survivor and is quite healthy at 4 pounds full-grown.