What To Feed Baby Kittens Without Mother

To feed a baby kitten without a mother feed it a kitten milk replacement formula using a sterilized feeding bottle.

What to feed baby kittens without mother. Newborn kittens typically nurse every one to two hours. Kittens under three weeks old can t control their body temperature. For example if you have kittens less than one week old they will need to be fed and stimulated every three hours. Instead keep the kitten s feet down and it s head straight as though she s nursing from her mother.

Over 4 weeks need a combination of kitten chow and kmr until they are at least 8 weeks. Each week increase the amount of formula you re using and after 4 and a half weeks gradually wean the kitten by introducing it to moist food. Never hold a kitten and feed it like a human baby. No human food for kittens.

Hold her by the scruff of her neck and place the nipple into the side then center of her mouth. Don t squirt or force the milk into her mouth. The teat is long and narrow which is ideal to fit inside the mouth of a newborn kitten. Depending on it s age the kitten may need to be stimulated to urinate and defecate will need an alternate heat.

A heating pad on low a warm water bottle or even a sock filled with rice and put in the microwave can all provide a steady but mild heat source to a cold kitten. The kitten will adjust it till it s comfortable for her let the kitten control the suction from the bottle. They might be able to find a foster mother cat to feed the kitten. Many veterinarians have incubators to warm a chilled kitten.

Kmr is the best food for 4 weeks and under. If you can t find a foster buy a milk replacer designed specifically for kittens. A few cattle feed shops sell nipples hooked up along with plastic material beverage bottles which may be utilized whenever there s the litter associated with kittens. Neonatal kittens under four weeks of age cannot eat solid food not canned not dry and cannot urinate or defecate on their own so you must bottle feed them around the clock and stimulate their genitals after every feeding so they can eliminate.

Be aware that there is far more to raising a kitten than feeding it. Before hand raising a kitten contact local veterinarians animal shelters and rescue groups. If possible you should use bottle and teat set specifically designed for use with kittens such as the catac bottle and teat set. The cat bottle may have an inferior nipple which the kittens can drink.

For a particularly small kitten you may want to use a syringe or dropper to feed it instead. At 3 to 4 weeks old they may need to eat between four and six times a day. You can do it but you ll want to know some tricks so you don t hurt them. You should feed the kitten for 5 10 minutes every 2 hours and never go longer than 4 hours in between feedings.

And this how to feed a newborn kitten with a bottle choose the best kitten feeding bottle rather than the regular baby bottle. Don t give a kitten cow s milk which can cause gastrointestinal upset. Do not feed a kitten until it is warm since it can t properly digest when cold. The bottle itself is very small and it has an open end at the top so the you can place a thumb over it to control the flow of milk if it is dripping too fast from the teat and overwhelming the kitten.

Always sterilize bottles and nipples after each use. To feed your newborn kitten you will need some sort of feeding device.