What To Feed Newborn Kittens Abandoned
Orphaned kittens should be fed on a strict schedule preferably every 2 4 hours.
What to feed newborn kittens abandoned. Do not feed cow s milk since the sugar or lactose will likely upset the kittens stomachs. The hydration newborn kittens need from their mother if the kittens have their mother she will be in charge of feeding them. Do not feed a kitten until it is warm since it can t properly digest when cold. If you re caring for a newborn orphan kitten syringe feeding might be a good option but you want to make sure you re doing so carefully.
You can stop the feeding when the kitten begins to slow down the consumption or becomes disinterested. Once they get the hang of it the kittens should consume the milk replacer greedily. The best food for the kittens is their mother s milk. This is the cat equivalent of infant formula with the same composition milk from the kittens mother.
Buy powdered cat milk replacer like cimicat from the vet clinic major pet stores or the internet. The mother cat offers her newborn kittens their best chance for survival so wait and watch as long as you safely can for her to return before removing them. Instead you will need to purchase kitten milk replacer sold at most pet stores or feed stores. Remove the kittens only if they are in immediate grave danger.
Newborn kittens may nurse about every 1 2 hours. Contact your veterinarian if the kitten does not eat for more than six hours as hypoglycemia can occur quickly in young kittens who are not getting nutrition. Small breed kittens should be limited to 10 15ml per feeding during the first week of life in order to prevent diarrhea. At about three to four weeks old they can be offered milk replacer from a bowl and then small amounts of moistened kitten food four to six times a.
Normally all water needs should be covered in their entirety by breast milk during the first weeks. Stimulate the kittens to go to the bathroom. A newborn kitten can only digest milk and more specifically the milk from a female cat. Many veterinarians have incubators to warm a chilled kitten.
She should breastfeed them at least until 8 weeks old. Kittens up to two weeks old can generally consume their daily intake in 4 5 meals per day. It is okay though to syringe feed a few drops of 5 sugar water or to rub a little bit of karo syrup on the kitten s lips. Feeding the wrong sort of milk such as cow s milk can have short term and long term effects including diarrhea dehydration nutritional deficiencies and long term health problems due to poor growth.
If the mother cat returns.