What To Feed Orphaned Kittens

Kittens under three weeks old can t control their body temperature.

What to feed orphaned kittens. This is very time consuming for someone who is bottle feeding a newborn kitten so if at all possible you will want to try to keep the kitten with its mother or a surrogate lactating cat who can nurse it. Mix up the milk replacement formula using a little whisk to get the lumps out. Hold them upright or over your shoulder and pat their back. Kittens 7 weeks and older should eat mainly dry kibble.

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. Position the kitten similarly to the way he would nurse from his mother with her head straight feet down and stomach resting. Feed your kitten a food that is made specifically for kittens. Prepare to feed the kittens.

Make sure you keep a fresh supply and not too much at one time. Pet food labels are required to carry a statement identifying the life stage or stages for which the food is intended. Sterilize the bottle and nipple in boiling water then let them cool completely on a clean towel. Kittens that are bottle fed should consume about a tablespoon or 15 ml of special kitten formula at each feeding.

Mix the wet food with water until it achieves a soupy consistency and consider warming the mixture before serving. When attempting to feed your kitten for the first time get a drip of milk on the end of the syringe or teat. Commercial kitten milk replacers are recommended as they are superior to cow s milk and home made mixtures. When the orphaned kittens reach about 3 weeks of age you can start providing watered down meat based kitten food for them to nibble on.

Do not feed a kitten until it is warm since it can t properly digest when cold. 5 kittens found on street april 12th they were about 10 days old i feed them every 6 hours. Choose a food that is intended for growth. How to feed orphaned kittens the kittens will need to be burped during and after each feeding.

Compared to cow s milk queen s milk contains more than twice as much protein which helps explain why cow s milk is not ideal for feeding orphaned kittens. Many veterinarians have incubators to warm a chilled kitten. Kittens have nutritional needs that are different than those of mature cats. Sit in a comfortable chair with a towel folded on your lap.

You should warm the milk up to 95 100 degrees before feeding it to the kittens. Bottle or tube feeding needs to be done very carefully to prevent aspiration of the supplement with subsequent aspiration pneumonia or drowning.