Kittens by the baker’s dozen

It started with one little 3 week old tabby found on the side of a street one rainy cold day.  Kermit was brought into the shelter by a loving stranger who couldn’t take her home and wouldn’t leave her there to fend for herself.  I walked into the shelter two hours after she had been brought in.  Kermit was sitting in a shoe box( yes she was that tiny) on the desk. When I looked into the box she jumped up and tried to get over the side to me while she made a froglike croaking sound.  Of course I took her home. 

Two days later a friend who had found a two week old kitten asked if I would babysit for a week as she had to visit her ill mother.  Of course, I said sure. Kermit could use a buddy to snuggle and learn to play with.   So now I had two bottle babies.

Three days after that I got the call that someone had found a box of kittens with their dead mom on the side of a road in a rural area. Was there any chance that I could take the babies since there were SEVEN of them and they were only 1-2 weeks old and still in need of bottlefeeding?  The babies arrived filthy, covered in fleas, screaming and in need of baths.  There is alot of discussion in animal circles as to whether bathing kittens is advisable. My vote is a very strong YES. Get the filth off them as soon as possible so that they can start growing and healing without anything being absorbed from the outside in.  I will give you my protocol for bathing kittens in the next post.  The poor littles had spent enough time with their mom that they smelled like death.  What a horrible experience for them.  I took them home, bathed them, gave them a bottle and put them in a clean warm carrier.  And waited for the next feeding.

TWO days later three more babies were brought into the shelter.  There are certain times of the year, in this case May, when kittens are in abundance.  Mothers move the litters and drop one when startled or abandon the weakest one or in the case of the special seven something tragic happens. 

So, the head count was now twelve… well for one more day… then Elvis was found.  Thirteen kittens were now calling me mom.

My routine at that time became quite chaotic.  Because all of the kittens were undernourished they were on a “want to eat” or every two hour protocol.  When you have bottlefed as many kittens as I have you begin to develop routines for doing it in the most efficient manner which in  this case was holding two bottles and two kittens at time.  When the kittens have gone through the routine one time they know when food is on its way.  Meaning, the minute you start making a move to pick up the formula either to mix it or to warm it, they start the “I want it now” scream and dance. Doesn’t matter how old they are.. could be four days could be older.. they KNOW. 

The easiest way to do handle multiple kittens is to have two or three in a carrier during feeding.  That way they are not under foot or hurting each other to get to your leg, which they will climb. 

Part of the routine  after giving the baby as much formula as he wants at the time, is to burp him.   Their mom does it while bathing them.  It is important when bottle feeding because you are often holding the kitten upright which is not the normal way for them to nurse.  To burp them you gently rub or tap on their backs.  Within a minute or less they will burp.  At that point they may take a little more formula.

Another important part is to stimulate them to potty after eating.  If you have ever watched a mother cat or dog with their babies you will have noticed that they are obsessed with cleaning the baby’s rear.  That activity stimulates the kitten or puppy to poop or pee.  In the foster world you accomplish this by taking a warm, damp cotton ball, kleenex or towel and lightly dabbing the area. If you have a fussy kitten or puppy  and it has recently been separated from its mother there is a very good chance that it has to go potty but can not do it by itself. 

Luckily the “Terrific Thirteen” recovered from their early traumas quickly and were ready for mush and potty boxes within a week.

I was thrilled to sleep an entire night.  But what fun!

later,

charlie