Newborn Kittens How To Care For Them
Contact veterinarians and no kill shelters to see if they have a nursing mother cat to adopt the kittens or experienced volunteers available to offer advice or even help bottle feed the kittens.
Newborn kittens how to care for them. Chilling is one of the most critical dangers to newborn kittens. Newborn kittens may nurse about every 1 2 hours. As a general rule kittens should be fed 8 milliliters of formula milk for every ounce of body weight in a day. So a kitten weighing 3 ounces will need about 24 ounces of milk replacement every 24 hours.
Orphaned neonatal kittens require around the clock care so you ll want to establish a routine of care every 2 4 hours the younger they are the more frequent the intervals between feedings it s normal for the kittens to sleep just make sure they are in a safe and confined space. Mix up the milk replacement formula using a little whisk to get the lumps out. Ask for help with neonatal kitten care. On the first week of the newborn kittens life they should be fed every two to three hours.
You should warm the milk up to 95 100 degrees before feeding it to the kittens. For instance a kitten weighing 4 ounces should not consume more than 32 milliliters of formula in a day. When the kittens are 1 2 weeks old bottle feed the kittens every 1 2 hours with a commercial milk replacer formula. When the kittens are 3 4 weeks old provide formula in a shallow dish as well as some kitten food that has been softened with water.
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. Heat bedding for newborn kittens. Provide blankets a heat lamp or a heating pad to ensure the kittens stay warm. Use a large enough box to comfortably hold the mother cat and her kittens.
If you are committed to helping the newborn kittens and become their surrogate mother then you will need to provide a safe warm home for them. You can use a box or small crate with plenty of dry clean bedding. Sterilize the bottle and nipple in boiling water then let them cool completely on a clean towel. Stack clean towels to line it.
Prepare to feed the kittens. Do not give cow s milk to the kittens because it is too hard for them to digest.