Post by simplynaturalfarm on Jun 20, 2007 8:21:24 GMT -5
Being the kind soul I am *G* when the senior vet at the clinic phoned and asked if I would "babysit" a new kitten I right away said "yes". I said as long as DH new what to do I could take care of it. Well DH is gone early ultrasounding heifers and I am mumbling under my breath because I'm sure I'm going to kill this thing and wish I hadn't taken it. But taking a lesson from myself who has been preaching "be faithful in every task" to my 2 year old, I'm going to do the best I can to keep this little male kitten alive.
She sent some bulb pipettes and KMR liquid kitten food. I'm getting contradicting opinions on how much to feed on the internet. It is very small, eyes not open, ears not up and so far I have to pretty much "force feed" carefully as he doesn't suck from the end of the pipette. As he fights it quite a bit (since yesterday around 6pm) I never know if he is still hungry or if I'm doing something wrong. I followed internet advice to put him on a towel and then carefully open his mouth and drip it in, stopping if there are bubbles and making sure he is swallowing each drop before adding more. Most resources suggested the pipette or syringe instead of a bottle for kittens this age. I can get about two 3ml syringes into him at a time, but it takes a good while for me who has never done this before.
What else do I need to do besides the using cotton swab to stimulate it to go and cleaning it? I have two little water bottles that I'm keeping mildly warm (I'm so afraid I will scorch the kitten that I'm sure he is cold instead of warm) and any advice would be greatl appreciated. I have taken care of day old chicks but they can scratch, eat and so on. Day old calves bounce around and I can tell if they are sick. Young kittens can barely move and look like they are on the verge of death all the time with their mewing and such.
Also, how often should I feed the little guy? I feed him when he cries or every 3 hours except for at night which I gave him 8 hours because I get up for my little baby and that is enough. The vet said he is probably close to 2 weeks (they rescued him from a building at one of the farms they were working on), but I have never had kittens before so I don't really know (adopted ours when they were several months old)
What can I use besides KMR when this can is gone?
Heather
She sent some bulb pipettes and KMR liquid kitten food. I'm getting contradicting opinions on how much to feed on the internet. It is very small, eyes not open, ears not up and so far I have to pretty much "force feed" carefully as he doesn't suck from the end of the pipette. As he fights it quite a bit (since yesterday around 6pm) I never know if he is still hungry or if I'm doing something wrong. I followed internet advice to put him on a towel and then carefully open his mouth and drip it in, stopping if there are bubbles and making sure he is swallowing each drop before adding more. Most resources suggested the pipette or syringe instead of a bottle for kittens this age. I can get about two 3ml syringes into him at a time, but it takes a good while for me who has never done this before.
What else do I need to do besides the using cotton swab to stimulate it to go and cleaning it? I have two little water bottles that I'm keeping mildly warm (I'm so afraid I will scorch the kitten that I'm sure he is cold instead of warm) and any advice would be greatl appreciated. I have taken care of day old chicks but they can scratch, eat and so on. Day old calves bounce around and I can tell if they are sick. Young kittens can barely move and look like they are on the verge of death all the time with their mewing and such.
Also, how often should I feed the little guy? I feed him when he cries or every 3 hours except for at night which I gave him 8 hours because I get up for my little baby and that is enough. The vet said he is probably close to 2 weeks (they rescued him from a building at one of the farms they were working on), but I have never had kittens before so I don't really know (adopted ours when they were several months old)
What can I use besides KMR when this can is gone?
Heather