How to feed kittens without a cat? Artificial feeding of kittens. Feeding kittens without a cat How to feed a kitten from birth without a cat

- big event. Small newborn kittens are completely helpless and constantly require increased attention. Sometimes a cat does not have enough milk, or she herself refuses her kittens after a while. There are cases when a cat dies, people take small kittens from the street. How to feed a newborn kitten, really help it and not cause harm? Remember the advice, proceed with caution, be sure to consider the age of the kittens and carefully monitor the babies. Then you will be able to replace the kittens’ mother and raise them strong and healthy.

The birth of kittens
Babies are born in different numbers, and their condition may differ. Pay attention to all the nuances at once.
  1. Quantity. In one litter, 4 to 8 kittens are most often born. Sometimes one kitten may be born, and there are litters of more than 12 kittens. Decide right away how many kittens you are going to keep. Then taking babies away from their mother is much more harmful than immediately after birth.
  2. Condition of kittens. Kittens are sometimes born with a paralyzed rear end. In such cases, it is better to immediately save the baby from suffering, since development with such a disease is almost impossible. Check carefully whether the back of the body is truly atrophied if you have any doubts about this.
  3. Conditions for newborns. Children should not be disturbed. Sharp sounds and bright light are harmful to them. It's not worth picking them up. When you have already dried them and put them in the nest, leave the rest to the mother cat.
  4. Reasons for breastfeeding. It may be necessary to feed kittens if there are too many babies and the cat cannot cope. Kittens need complementary feeding already at 3-4 weeks, even if they feed on their mother's milk.
  5. Feeding babies. Baby teeth begin to appear as early as the 3rd week. From now on, it’s time to gradually feed the babies. Start introducing to other foods with powdered milk. Dilute it with water, add a little sugar. It is better to drink from a spoon. Feed kittens meat from 4 weeks. Form a small ball of boiled soft meat, the size of a pea, and place it in the baby's mouth. After two weeks of feeding, start creating a more varied menu. Add chicken yolk to the meat peas. Prepare porridge from chicken and beef with rice water. You can give boiled entrails and medium-fat cottage cheese. Kittens need milk in the first four months of life.
Kittens without a mother. Nest
Are your kittens left without their mother? Try to find a feeding cat. Perhaps she will agree to feed the babies for a while so that they grow up a little. If such a cat is not found, take matters into your own hands. Take care of the nest first.
  1. Warm. The nest must be maintained at a certain temperature. Prepare a thermostat or heating pad or heating device. You can purchase a special incubator. If you warm the nest with a heating pad or device, do not keep it directly in the nest - place it nearby. Otherwise the kittens will overheat. Temperatures in the first week should be from 30 to 32 degrees, in the second - from 28 to 30. Then it should not fall below 24 degrees.
  2. Air. Babies need fresh air. After arranging the nest, provide for air flow. You cannot close the box, leaving only a tiny gap, as stagnation will begin.
  3. Peace and comfort. The box should be slightly covered at the top, but leave good openings for air to enter. Cover the walls and floor with soft, warm cloths. Provide peace for the little ones: do not pick them up in vain, do not take them out and do not illuminate the box if this is not necessary. Bright light is harmful to kittens' eyes.
Feeding kittens
To feed a newborn kitten, it is very important to correctly create a menu and not disrupt the meal schedule. Otherwise, the baby will develop poorly, may get sick and die.
  1. We prepare food supplies and feeding items. Buy a special bottle with a nipple. You can feed babies from a plastic pipette, but this is not very convenient. The fact is that kittens must learn to suck, and from a pipette you will simply “drop” milk into them. A supply of food can only be prepared for one day, and it must be stored in the refrigerator. Sterility is important. The bottle and nipples should be washed and boiled regularly.
  2. Nutrition. Please note an important point: kittens should not be fed cow's milk! It is very poorly digested, coagulates in the baby’s stomach and forms a lump. As a result, the baby may get sick or die. Use only baby formula or powdered milk for cooking. It should have a temperature of about 30 degrees. There is no need to overfeed the kitten - in the first few days it is enough to give 1-2 teaspoons of milk every 2 hours.
  3. Feeding process. Take the kitten in your arms. Carefully insert the tip of the pacifier into his mouth. If the kitten does not understand that it needs to suck, lightly moisten the outside of the nipple with milk. Try not to scare the animal, act without haste. Hold the kitten carefully, in a straightened position. The baby will need to regurgitate the air trapped during feeding. Do not try to pour milk into the kitten’s mouth or feed through the wide holes in the nipple. The animal may choke, and liquid will enter the respiratory tract, blocking it. Remember: you can’t give hot milk, the baby will get burned.
  4. Feeding schedule. Until the kitten is a week old, it needs to be fed every two hours, day and night. Then night feedings are carried out every four hours. From four weeks of age, you can feed your baby once a night, but there is no need to reduce daily meals.
  5. Vitamins. From the eighth day of life, the kitten will need liquid vitamin complexes. Be sure to consult your doctor, he will prescribe the necessary medications for you.
  6. Stimulation of the ejection reflex and general massage. In order for food to be well absorbed and the kitten to develop properly, you need to massage and form the elimination reflex. Gently massage the kitten's entire body with a soft cloth. Take a damp cotton swab and massage the kitten’s tummy and anus and genitourinary opening after eating. Each feeding of the baby should end with this procedure.
  7. Digestion. Artificial nutrition often causes loose stools or constipation. In the first case, it is necessary to reduce the proportion of water in the mixture. If the kitten suffers from constipation, give him enemas, from 1 to 5 milliliters. To do this, it is good to use a syringe, lubricating the cone with Vaseline.
Be caring, careful and closely monitor your baby. You will be able to feed a newborn kitten on your own and ensure its proper development.

Childbirth in cats does not always end happily - an adult animal may die or become ill. Not knowing how to feed a kitten without a cat, owners are often confused and sometimes take the wrong actions. Both an experienced breeder and an ordinary lover of cute animals need to know the rules for feeding a newborn kitten left without a mother.

Not knowing how to feed a kitten without a cat, owners are often confused and sometimes take the wrong actions

Feeding a newly born kitten is the most important and responsible stage in caring for an animal. Here, the best way to solve the problem would be another nursing cat. Animals often willingly feed other people's cubs. But if they can’t find such a cat, the owners can only decide on the choice of milk substitute.

How to choose a milk replacer

Many people believe that newborn kittens can be fed with cow's milk. But veterinarians categorically do not advise doing this, because it has a completely different composition than cat’s mother’s milk. Cow's milk contains much more glucose and less protein. Moreover, newborn kittens are not able to fully digest such food.

Feeding a newly born kitten is the most important and responsible stage in caring for an animal.

The best thing for feeding babies is special milk substitutes, a wide range of which is available in pet stores and veterinary pharmacies. Such mixtures are as close in composition as possible to cat milk.

If for some reason it is not possible to purchase such a substitute, you can try to feed the kitten with a formula intended for infants up to 6 months. It contains a cow's product, but thanks to additional enriching substances, the mixture is more suitable for a fragile baby than pure cow's milk.

You can also prepare formula for newborn kittens yourself using the following recipes:

  • dilute cream with 10% fat (250 g) with boiled water in a ratio of 1:2;
  • Mix goat milk with egg white in a ratio of 4:1 and beat until smooth.
  • Mix condensed milk without sugar and boiled water in a ratio of 5:1, add 1 tsp to the mixture. spoon of bone meal.

Feeding newborn kittens (video)

Feeding regimen and rules

In order not to harm the digestive system, it is necessary to feed and care for babies in strict accordance with the recommendations of specialists.

Feeding kittens without a cat must follow a certain regimen, which is strongly recommended by both experienced breeders and veterinarians. Its principle is as follows:

  1. During the first 15 days from birth, kittens need to be fed at least 12 times a day. This means that they need to be given food every 1.5-2 hours, including feeding at night.
  2. Over the next 10 days, gradually increase the time interval between feedings to 2-3 hours. During this period of life, kittens' need for nighttime meals decreases and they can be fed 1-2 times a night.
  3. Towards the end of the kittens' first month of life, you can take breaks between feedings of 3 hours, and at night it is enough to feed them once.

In addition to the need to adhere to the regime, it is also important to know how to feed kittens so as not to harm them by improper actions:

  1. The formula for feeding must be freshly prepared. It can only be stored in the refrigerator for 6 hours.
  2. It is important to monitor the temperature of the mixture. In the first 3-4 days of a newborn’s life, the milk replacer must be heated to 36-37°C. Then you can reduce the temperature to 30°C. It is strictly forbidden to feed babies cold formula, as it can lead to hypothermia and indigestion.
  3. Massage before feeding. This is an imitation of cat behavior. Carry out the massage with a sterile napkin, stroking the baby’s back and forehead. This action helps improve digestion and stimulates the sucking reflex.
  4. You should not stop feeding your kitten until he is full. You can understand that the baby is full by its enlarged tummy and behavioral characteristics: the baby does not squeak, does not crawl, but immediately falls asleep. After feeding the animal, you should carefully place it in a vertical position - this action will help remove air from the stomach and improve digestion.

You need to understand that you will have to feed small kittens both during the day and at night, and the process itself can take about 30 minutes. Therefore, the owners will have to significantly adjust their personal time schedule.

In order not to harm the digestive system, it is necessary to feed and care for babies in strict accordance with the recommendations of specialists

How much food is needed to feed kittens?

The daily portions should be the same as what the cat would give when feeding the young on her own. A proper dosage of food will contribute to the baby’s good health, and overeating or, conversely, too small portions will cause anxiety in the kitten. Once every few days you need to increase the portion sizes.

In order not to make a mistake in determining the optimal amount of food for an animal, you should adhere to the following scheme:

  1. From the moment of birth until 5 days of a kitten’s life, the daily volume of food should be calculated as 30 ml per 100 g of animal weight.
  2. Over the next 10 days, food portions must be gradually increased, bringing their total daily volume to 38 ml per 100 g of weight.
  3. Starting from the 15th day, you can increase the daily volume of food to 45 ml per 100 g. Give the kitten this amount of food until the 24th day of its life.
  4. Then, over the course of 30 days, the dosage should increase to a total volume of 55 ml per day.

Mandatory and unconditional compliance with the above scheme is not required at all. Animals, like people, also have individuality, which is why the volume of portions eaten by kittens born from the same cat can differ significantly. By carefully observing your pet and getting used to it, you can determine how much food it needs.

How to feed a baby kitten (video)

Feeding equipment

It is also necessary to take care of how to feed the kittens using improvised means. Experienced breeders recommend using the following items for this purpose:

  1. Special nipple. It can be purchased at a veterinary pharmacy chain or at a pet supply store. Many people consider this device the most suitable for a small kitten. But it is worth considering that nipples are made, as a rule, for older kittens who are already starting to be fed.
  2. Pipette. Thanks to this device, the mixture is supplied in doses and the kitten can swallow small portions of the mixture without any problems. It is important to remember here that air should not be allowed to get inside the pipette to avoid problems with gas formation in the animal.
  3. Spoon. Often, from the first days, kittens learn to lap up the mixture from a spoon. As a rule, this causes loss of sucking reflexes and difficulties in further feeding.
  4. A syringe without a needle of any volume. It is necessary that a dose of the mixture equal to one division gets into the baby’s mouth. This is the most suitable option of all feeding devices, since the kitten has the ability to suck the syringe like a cat's nipple.

When the baby reaches one month of age, you can start feeding him porridge cooked in milk or water. Gradually, crumbs and vegetables should be introduced into the diet. After 8 weeks have passed since the birth of the kitten, it is necessary to completely transfer the animal to self-feeding.

Of course, artificial feeding and human care will never replace the affectionate care of a mother cat for kittens. But perseverance, great patience and love for babies are guaranteed to help successfully feed orphans left without a mother.


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Newborn kittens are often left without a mother. This happens for various reasons: the nurse may die or get sick, sometimes the cat refuses to feed the kittens on her own. If a person takes on all the care of a newborn animal, he must first figure out how to feed a kitten without a cat.

Of course, in an ideal case, you can find a healthy nursing cat and place the baby on the new mother. Usually such animals easily accept other kittens. But such a chance comes extremely rarely.

Feeding a newborn animal on your own is not so difficult if you know some basic rules. A person accepting newborn kittens into a home must provide them with comfortable living conditions, namely:

  • feeding identical to cat milk;
  • proper care taking into account the age and needs of the animal’s body;
  • device of a convenient “nest”.

How to determine the age of a kitten?

In order to better understand the kitten’s needs and understand how to organize its feeding, it is worth determining the baby’s age:

  1. From 0 to 3 days. At this age, an abandoned kitten has its eyes and ears tightly closed. He also has a fresh umbilical cord visible. The baby squeaks loudly - this means that he is hungry. In this case, he needs to be fed urgently. A blind kitten must be bottle fed. It is very important to feed the baby until 3 days, since it is during this period that the probability of death of the newborn is high.
  2. From 1 to 2 weeks. The one-week-old baby still squeaks loudly when he feels hungry. The shape of his eyes is visible. At the age of the second week, the baby already opens his eyes.
  3. From 2 to 3 weeks. At the age of the third week, the animal’s eyes are wide open and its ears begin to perk up. The front teeth are coming through. However, at 3 weeks the kitten still does not eat on its own; it requires feeding.
  4. From 4 weeks. The baby is already walking independently and making attempts to play. His fangs are erupting. Such an animal is able to eat on its own.

Feeding

Even experienced breeders sometimes find it difficult to answer when the question arises: how to feed a newborn kitten without a cat. Feeding is the most important stage of caring for an orphan.

Nursing cats produce colostrum in the first days after birth, and only then does milk appear. The first nutritional fluid contains the most important elements to protect the baby from numerous infections. If a cat has abandoned kittens, then in the first days of life it is important for them to receive food similar in composition to colostrum.

Many mixtures sold in pet stores are relatively expensive. Not every owner has the opportunity to feed small kittens with expensive products. Therefore, many owners who are still deciding what to feed their newborn kittens have the idea of ​​feeding.

Is it possible to give this product to a small animal? In its pure form it is undesirable. Only whole goat's milk, undiluted, can be given to newborn kittens. However, a variety of mixtures can be prepared from cow's milk.

Mixture with milk and yolks:

  • 2 chicken yolks;
  • 0.2 l cow's milk;
  • a drop of Trivit vitamins;
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil.

Mixture with condensed milk and flour:

  • condensed milk without sugar;
  • water at the rate of 1 part liquid to 5 parts condensed milk;
  • 1 teaspoon bone meal per 1 liter of water.

All ingredients must be mixed until the lumps disappear.

Formula for weak newborns:

  • 1 yolk;
  • 0.1 l of fat milk;
  • 20 ml 5% glucose.

Food servings per day for kittens:

If it is not possible to purchase formula at a pet store, you can pay attention to baby dry formulas without additives. It is important to know that a newborn kitten does not eat solid food.

Now it’s clear what to feed kittens and in what portions. However, you should also take care of the frequency of meals. Kittens from 0 to 3 days old should be fed every 2 hours. A kitten needs round-the-clock care, so it is necessary to give it food both day and night.

Feeding devices

Until the baby begins to feed on his own, it is necessary to provide him with feeding. A variety of auxiliary devices are suitable for this - a bottle, a pipette for feeding kittens, a syringe with a special latex pad, a nipple for animals.

For any baby, both at one and at 2 weeks, underfeeding and. It is important to correctly calculate portions for small kittens, and give them food only in the required doses. From a small amount of food, the animal will not gain weight and will become lethargic or restless. Eating too much will lead to bowel problems. The kitten may refuse food if it is already full.

Owners need to pay attention to the animal's stool. If it is yellowish in color, it means that the baby is being overfed slightly. Constant overfeeding causes animals to have gray stools. Sometimes the kitten produces white stool. What to do in this case? It is best to consult your veterinarian as soon as possible regarding possible infections.

It’s not a rare sight in the city - very small blind kittens crawling near a garbage dump or simply lying on the road and squeaking. Some even kill newborn kittens. This is how some people, although I don’t consider them people, they have only one name – murderers, get rid of unnecessary offspring. All abandoned kittens are doomed to death. Such kittens can only count on the kindness of the people who found them. If the kittens did not have time to become hypothermic, then they can be saved and raised as healthy, beautiful animals. It is very difficult to feed a blind kitten; he can only suck. He also needs conditions for the nest and special care.

Food for newborn kittens.

  1. The ideal option is to find a nursing cat.
  2. Regular cow's milk is strictly prohibited! The kitten will not be able to digest it and will die.
  3. For feeding kittens, goat's milk, cat's milk replacer (sold in a pet store) or powdered infant formula (diluted with 2 times more water than for feeding a child) is suitable.
  4. You can store the prepared mixture in the refrigerator, but no more than a day.
  5. Do not feed the kitten mixture from the refrigerator, it needs to be heated.
  6. The food temperature should be 30 – 36 degrees Celsius.

Feeding technique.

  1. You can feed a kitten using a pipette, a syringe (without a needle), a catheter (at the end of the catheter there are holes through which the milk mixture flows, a syringe is put on the other end), a drop bottle with a narrow spout (rinse thoroughly beforehand), or you can Buy a special bottle with a pacifier for kittens at the pet store.
  2. The kitten should be fed so that it lies on its belly, otherwise it may choke.
  3. Control the supply of milk mixture.
  4. Do not use wide openings as this may result in liquid entering the respiratory tract.
  5. You can only help the kitten to absorb the milk itself; you cannot let it lose its sucking reflex.
  6. The bottle should be held at a 45 degree angle, not horizontally.
  7. A one-week-old kitten should be fed every 2 hours, in the second week every 3-4 hours, and in the third week 5-7 times.
  8. The kitten should receive about 5-6 ml per feeding. In the second week, double the norm. In the third week - twice more. The dose can be easily measured using a syringe.
  9. It takes about 5 minutes for a kitten to eat.
  10. A sign of satiety is that the kitten sucks sluggishly and begins to fall asleep.
  11. If the kitten cannot eat as much as you give him in one feeding, then increase the number of feedings. Don't force your kitten to eat.
  12. After feeding, gently stroke the kitten's tummy, this is necessary so that he burps and air bubbles come out of the esophagus.
  13. When artificially feeding kittens, it is necessary to maintain sterility of equipment and cleanliness of the room.
  14. There should be no drafts.

Caring for kittens.

  1. The kitten gains weight by 10-15 grams per day; to control its weight, it must be weighed every day.
  2. Since the kitten's digestive system is weak, he needs help with the toilet. To do this, after each feeding, massage the kitten’s tummy and anus with a cloth or cotton wool soaked in warm water. Usually the cat always licks the kittens after eating.
  3. If you do everything correctly, the kitten will relieve itself 3-4 times a day.
  4. The stool should be light brown. If you overfeed your kitten, the stool will be yellow and runny. Gray or green diarrhea is systematic overfeeding, this leads to loss of fluid, and subsequently to the death of the kitten.
  5. Be sure to wipe the kitten twice a day with a damp cloth, do not forget about the face.
  6. Kittens should be toilet trained when they begin to eat solid food.

A place for kittens.

  1. The kitten's house should be placed in a secluded, quiet place, avoiding drafts.
  2. In the first week, the kitten should be kept at a temperature of 27-30 degrees, in the second - 26-29 degrees, then the temperature can be reduced to 24 degrees Celsius.
  3. There are special incubators with an infrared lamp for heating kittens. But you can get by with a cardboard box with high edges.
  4. Place something very warm at the bottom of the box; woolen items work well. Lay a towel or diaper on top and change it when it gets dirty.
  5. You can place a heating pad under the bedding to keep the kitten warm.
  6. Place a soft toy in the box so that the kitten can cuddle up to it as if it were its mother.

Kitten feeding schedule.

Every day the kitten gains 15 grams in weight, for each added gram the amount of mixture increases by 4-5 grams.

A week

Day

Quantity of food

Temperature

mixtures

Feeding schedule

from 1 to 4 days:

30 ml. per 100 gr. weight

on the first day

38-39 degrees

Every two hours and at night

Every two hours and at night

Days 3, 4 and 5: during the day they feed every 2 hours, at night - every 3 hours

from days 5 to 13: 38 ml. per 100 gr.

from 5 pm – every 4 hours

every 4 hours

from 14 to 24 days: 46 ml. per 100 gr.

every 4 hours

From this day on, kittens can begin to be fed additionally.

You can let the kitten lap up formula milk on its own from a saucer or spoon.

every 4 hours

From 3-4 weeks, kittens should be fed other foods.

53 ml. for 160 gr.

It happens that a kitten has a mother, but for some reason he does not suckle her milk. The problem can be in both the kitten and the cat. If the problem is with the kitten, then you will have to feed it yourself; you can milk the mother cat’s milk and collect it in a bottle. Your cat may also have problems, such as hard, congested nipples. In such cases, the kitten will not suckle, and the cat may develop mastitis. In such cases, you need to milk the milk, and then apply a cabbage leaf, softened with a hammer, to the cat’s nipples (so that the juice is released). The cabbage leaf can be fixed with a postoperative bandage. The cat's chest will become soft, and the kitten may begin to latch on.

When kittens are born, it is very important to properly care for them. They are born deaf and blind, but from the first days they already have a keen sense of smell and touch.

It is important that they are near their mother. If you get kittens without a cat, you will have to care for them yourself.

Arrangement of the place and its heating

It is better to purchase a bed or incubator for kittens in advance

It is necessary to prepare a comfortable place for the kittens in advance. An incubator or a special bed is suitable for this. You should not place it close to heating devices or a radiator, as kittens can quickly overheat. Also, you should not heat the area with the crumbs with lighting fixtures. This can have a bad effect on the children's vision and affect their fragile eyes.

Useful information: A heating pad is best for heating the area. Take a simple bottle and fill it with warm water (up to 35°), then wrap it in a towel and place it in the bed. In the second week of life, you can gradually reduce the water temperature to 28°, in the third – to 24°. There is no need to add colder water.

What to feed a newborn kitten?

While feeding, hold the kitten in your palm and give it a bottle with a nipple or a pipette

Of course, the best food for newborn kittens is mother's milk. But sometimes you have to feed the babies yourself. However, even if the cat feeds her children herself, then already at 4 weeks of life you will have to feed the babies. A few spoons of milk per day will be enough. Kittens can also be fed milk powder. To do this, dilute it with honey and a spoonful of sugar and pour in water.

In the first month of life, it is better not to feed babies too rich milk. Gradually increase the amount of complementary foods, and in the second month you can start giving liquid milk porridge. If you feed kittens yourself from the first days of their life, then get ready for some difficulties. The fact is that this must be done every 2.5 hours, including at night. The most convenient way to feed kittens is with a bottle with a nipple or a pipette. It is better to make a little milk mixture so that there is no excess left, since it cannot be stored for a long time in its finished form. The bottle must be sterilized and cleaned before each feeding.

Useful information: If you feed babies with a pipette, do not put it deep into the kitten's mouth, as the liquid may enter the respiratory tract. We advise you to hold them in your arms in a straightened position. This will make it easier for kittens to eat, and they will also be able to burp air.

In the second month of life, you can also add meat, ideally dietary meat, to your kitten’s daily diet. Moreover, it can be given both boiled and raw. Roll the meat into a small ball and place it in your baby's mouth. After the kitten has tried the new food, you can introduce liquid chicken or fish puree mixed with rice into the diet. Beef will also work. When introducing new products into the diet, you should not stop giving your babies milk porridge. Without it, it will be difficult for the kitten to go to the toilet (constipation will form). Feed your babies cottage cheese, and already at 9 weeks you can gradually switch them to food.

At birth, kittens weigh up to 120 g. With normal development, they will add 100 g every week. Moreover, boys gain weight a little faster than girls. If you notice that the weight does not increase over several weeks, consult your veterinarian. Perhaps the kitten is sick and needs help.

What to do if your cat has mastitis

Mastitis can be life-threatening for cats and kittens. At the first symptoms of the disease, kittens must be weaned and the cat must be shown to a veterinarian

If a cat has mastitis, the kittens will have to be switched to artificial nutrition. This disease occurs when milk stagnates in the mammary glands. To avoid mastitis, the cat owner must ensure that the kittens suckle from all nipples in turn. If the disease has already manifested itself, you need to immediately relieve the pain syndrome and in the future ensure that mastitis does not worsen.

For treatment, you can use camphor oil. To do this, apply it to a scalded cabbage leaf and apply it to the sore nipples. In advanced cases, septic mastitis appears. It differs in that bloody purulent discharge appears from the nipples. In this case, you must definitely contact a veterinarian: such a condition can threaten the life of a cat and even kittens.

How to care for your baby?

When kittens become active, spend several hours a day playing with them.

It is worth remembering that babies develop very quickly. They open their eyes for the first time on the 8th day of life, and in the second week they begin to hear. At this time, it is important to carefully monitor the cleanliness of the bed, babies and cat. It is important that kittens' ears and eyes are always clean.

Useful information: If improper care is taken, purulent discharge may appear. In this case, be sure to invite a veterinarian to your home. Do not take children out of the house under any circumstances, because infectious diseases develop quite quickly in a weakened body.

Of course, newborn kittens need to gain strength so that they grow up healthy and active. Therefore, you should not disturb them unnecessarily. From the 3rd week they begin to walk independently, and they will have to devote a lot of time. Play, pet and pick up the kittens more often. So the babies will grow up very playful and affectionate, they will be attached to their owner. Children who have not been given enough attention will become aloof and wild.

Can it be washed?

Newborn kitten after washing

Regardless of whether the kittens have a mother or not, you will have to wash them yourself. Even if the cat copes with its responsibilities on its own, this will be a good help for it. This does not mean at all that they need to be bathed intensively; it is enough to wipe their fur daily with a damp cloth.

Toilet

Start toilet training your kittens as early as possible

It's quite easy to train kittens to use the litter box. The main thing is to start doing this as early as possible (you can even when they have not yet been weaned from their mother). From the 8th day, the kittens' eyes are already open, and the babies are actively moving. If their bed is located close to the litter box, the cat will help them move there to relieve themselves. If you raise babies yourself, then you will have to take this care upon yourself. Until the baby is 3 weeks old, his toilet must be organized after each feeding. This needs to be done gradually:

  • First, wrap your baby in a slightly dampened cloth. Linen is ideal. This will be, so to speak, an imitation of licking by a cat. During this procedure, gently massage the kitten's tummy to improve its digestion.
  • Massage your baby's inner thighs as close to the urethra as possible.

If you follow these tips correctly, no problems will arise. You should know that newborn kittens pass stool once every few days. Urination should be more frequent. If your kitten can't go to the toilet and is constipated, change its diet. Give only liquid milk porridge or food that is familiar to him. Just chop it finely and mix with warm water.

Make sure that kids do not eat litter from the tray. This may harm their health. Many litters contain chemical compounds, and when dirty, they become a source of infection.

Removing fleas

There are not many ways to remove fleas from kittens. These include:

  • Combing with a comb and mechanical destruction of insects;
  • Bathing babies with special shampoos;
  • Using flea drops.

Single preparations that can be used for kittens under two months of age should be used only after they are weaned from their mother, just like shampoos. Otherwise, the chemicals will be licked off by the cat and then end up in the baby's body.

If a kitten’s eyes do not open for a long time, the veterinarian will solve this problem in a few minutes

It happens that the baby is born very weak. To grow it healthy, you need to carefully monitor any changes in its condition. Keep an eye on the following details:

  • Eyes. If they have not opened before the 17th day of life, then you need to consult a doctor for a simple operation.
  • Sky. Sometimes kittens have a congenital defect - cleft palate. If milk leaks through the nostrils when the kitten drinks, unfortunately, the animal is doomed. It will not be able to eat normally in the future.
  • Limbs. It often happens that newborn babies have paralysis of their hind legs. This disease occurs when muscles degenerate.

Eye problems can be easily resolved with the help of a veterinarian. The last two, unfortunately, cannot be eliminated in any way. They will interfere with the kitten's normal life. However, if you can take care of it, the animal will grow up loyal and happy.

Video. Caring for newborn kittens

To ensure your kids grow up healthy and active, you need to provide them with proper care. By following our advice, you can raise just such kittens. And remember: the most important thing is to give them your love!



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