Last Thursday while I was away my husband and son rescued a tiny kitten that was stuck between two walls, very distressed as she had obviously been trapped all day. They have been feeding her special formula for orphans and even learnt how to help her go to the loo.
Any advice please, for raising her (we think she is a she, hard to see yet) bearing in mind she is unsteady in her legs with just 4 tiny teeth we think she is around 3 weeks old. Also, we have a 14 year old tom and a 6 yr old tom (both neutered) who are not terribly happy about the situation - but what can you do!
You also need to rub their anus to encourage defaecation. Female cats do this with their tongue. Fortunately human tongues aren't rough enough! One summer in France we hand reared a little one on cat formula which came complete with biberon. It actually proved a good reason to slide out of social events early. Sorry we've got to go kitten feed at 11pm! She grew into a lovely cat who we rehomed with some friends who unlike us at the time were permanent residents.
I've just hand reared 8 kittens, the formula is cheaper from www.zooplus.fr, about 12.90 as opposed to 22.00
I rubbed tummies with a flannel until they peed, moving it around as it got sodden. At about 4 weeks they discovered the litter tray and for the most part are pretty clean although bottoms need cleaning from time to time.
They can lap, in theory, from about 3 – 4 weeks old and can eat BabyCat croquettes (Royal Canin) at the same age. Once on to solid food the burden of responsibility and fear that they might die lessens.
Mine are now 7 weeks and nothing is sacred, in particular my legs which appear to be more fun than a scratching post.
He / she will be too young to de-flea with a regular spray or pipettes, but Zooplus sell one called Exnor which works quite well and is harmless to young kittens.
Weigh him every day at the same time to ensure he's gaining, and you should be fine. The other cats will come round when he's a little older, perhaps keep him in your bedroom for now so that he's got someone to cuddle at night?
Lol, the never ending pursuit of knowledge. You could write what I know on a stamp but we somehow muddle through. I have an image in my head of Tracy's husband bottle feeding the baby. Lovely.
Than you Lynn, will do. Apparently hubby went to the SPA but they just said what a pretty cat, you can buy the formula from the pharmacy! So not only did he have two kids to look after while I was away, he was bottle feeding the kitty all night.
Hi Tracy, drop me an email at the Cat Rescue and Rehoming Charity, chatsduquercy@gmail.com, I'll send you our fact sheet and you can always contact us for advice on 05 63 94 73 97