7 Tips on How to Feed and Care for Orphaned Kittens

Cats are one of the most social animals who are loved by many all around the globe. There are thus many out there raising kittens that have been orphaned. Raising a kitten in the absence of the mother though not very difficult, but is a task that requires a lot of patience and time on part of the individual.

The kittens must be ushered with adequate amount of love and must be cared for particularly well in the initial weeks. Here are a few tips that will help you feed and care for the orphaned kitten.

how to feed and care for orphaned kittens

  • The cat mother spends a lot of time with her kittens inside their nest so as to keep them warm. Hence the first step in caring for an orphaned kitten is to make sure that the kitten gets a warm environment. To do so make a small nest, for example, with a shoe box by lining its inside with towels or t-shirts. It is important that the kittens stay warm for their bodily functions to work right. Also check the kittens for fleas and either pick them out on your own or take a trip to the vet if needed.
  • To keep the kitten warm for the first 14 days is most essential because they are not able to shiver for the first two weeks. Hence place a heating pad (set at the least level)/ a heating lamp below or by the side of the nest. Make it so that the nest is only mildly warm.
  • Get a good kitten nursing bottle with only two minute holes punched in the nipple so that only very few drops fall out. Alternatively use a syringe (needleless of course) or an eye dropper to feed the kitten.
  • The kittens must be fed when resting on their stomach not when they are in an upright position. Also make sure that the KMR formula is freshly prepared and is only slightly above the room temperature when fed it to the kitten.
  • It is better to underfeed the kittens and never over feed them. This is because sometimes the milk enters the lungs of the kittens instead of going through the stomach causing a row of problems.
  • In first week kitten must be fed 32cc of formula per day spread over feeding spaced about 2½ hours apart (about 10 feedings), 2nd week consumption increases to 55cc/day, 3rd week 80cc, 4th week 100 and 5th week 125cc/day.
  • Burp the kitten after feeding. Hold her keeping her stomach against you shoulder and pat the back.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

15 + eighteen =