1 Week Old Bottle Baby Not Eating Help*

[Sarthur2]

Goats milk is perfectly fine for him and very nutritious. You can use full fat fresh goats milk or a powdered version. Either is fine. Just make sure it is FULL FAT and not low-fat. Some kittens do much better on goats milk. I hope your little guy does! How soon can you start him on it?

 

[samanthalogan]

Goats milk is perfectly fine for him and very nutritious. You can use full fat fresh goats milk or a powdered version. Either is fine. Just make sure it is FULL FAT and not low-fat. Some kittens do much better on goats milk. I hope your little guy does! How soon can you start him on it?

I will go out tomorrow and get some!!

 

[samanthalogan]

Thank you all for your help! I’m back with more questions. I just so happened to find some powdered goat milk in the back of my fridge from my last batch of kittens. I then went to go feed my two boys and found they now BOTH have diarrhea. I think the boy who was healthy before maybe has diarrhea from the overly watered down formula? I was giving it to him too, thinking it couldn’t hurt. For my own sake, do you think it would be alright to put them both on goat milk? Or should I keep the other baby on KMR? It’s will be a pain to have to make two separate bottles but I will do it if you guys think I should!

 

[StefanZ]

Did they got diarrhea before they began with the goats milk? If so, proceed with the goats milk as planned.

But if they began with diarrhea after they got the goats milk, it may be so the old package got unfresh, and you must use new bought goats milk...

Goats milk as such is usually OK to use, safer than most random kmr. (even if I HAD heard about brands of goats milk which were inferior).

 

[Sarthur2]

Put them both on goats milk. If the diarrhea persists, ask for a round of Albon for each kitten.

 

[catsknowme]

Put them both on goats milk. If the diarrhea persists, ask for a round of Albon for each kitten.

I have had many ferals do poorly on whey based formula. And Sarthur2 is spot on about the Albon because if it is coccidia, you don't want to risk losing time on treating it. Thank you for keeping us updated!
Prayers and vibes that your kittens improve rapidly and have clear sailing from here on out

P.S. For the goat milk formula, I use the recipe at www.kitten-rescue. com, usually with the powdered but the canned works fine too. Ideally, if you can get fresh, raw from a good source (such as a 4Her or FFA student), you can use that straight across or add the egg yolk. I gently rinse off the raw egg yolk under a slow stream of cold water to remove all the raw egg yolk. I use organic Greek yogurt, full fat, and pet vitamins from the vet. I add a capsule of acidophilus per batch but for my latest kitten, a preemie with no maternal interaction, I added BenebacPlus to her protocol.
Bless you for doing so much for those cuties! You are doing a great job

 

[catsknowme]

Another tip - are you using the mini Miracle Nipple? they cause less gas and the holes are pre cut. Plus their rubber texture is more readily accepted by kittens used to mom & their tender baby mouths are much less irritated than they get with the usual plastic nipples.

The Miracle Nipple Brand

 

[danteshuman]

How are they doing? Do they need to go to the vet? Please watch them closely for signs of dehydration! (I’m sure you are hovering already like any good mama would!)

People have kept kittens alive for a few days on unflavored pedialite & smearing their gums with karo (corn) syrup or honey. So if they get worse you can do that on the way to the vet.

I’m really hoping the goat milk works! If it does you might try adding fortiflora (or the yogurt) to build up their good gut bacteria. Also if their runs continue please call the vet and besides the antibiotic ask for anti-diahria medicine. In our case we were instructed on how much over the counter kaopectate to give each kitten. Before that we tried unflavored baby rice cereal added to their milk. It helped but the kittens were having very bad runs so they needed the medicine to (to stop their bloody runs. The poor dears behinds were bleeding from all their runs before the baby cereal.) I used over cooked white rice mixed with formula and wet food for a 6 week old kitten with the runs and it worked for her to until she was all on solids and no longer had the runs.

In your case I would try the baby rice cereal added to their goats milk (or overcooked super mushy white rice, mushed/blended into a watery paste with their milk and mushed some more until they can drink it.)

Hopefully they are doing better

 

[samanthalogan]

Hello all!! Sorry I haven’t gotten back to you, these babies keep me very busy. They were both put in metronidazole and panacur, about 4 days ago. Since then, they are significantly better. They still have diarrhea, it’s not as extreme though. I also just started them on propectalin (a probiotic) hoping it’ll help firm up their stool. They are both eating great. Gaining weight. The doctor put them back on KMR since the goat milk didn’t seem to be working. I have 2 questions.

One of the babies seems to be choking on his milk when feeding. We use a miracle nipple. It almost seems like he’s eating too fast. He’ll be eating and then suddenly stop, and he’ll sneeze milk out if his nose. I immediately stop, wipe his nose and gently hold him upside down trying to get the milk out of his nose. I know what a problem this can be so I’m keeping a very close eye on him. Any idea why he’s doing this? Or how I can prevent him from doing this?

Second question, they seem to keep peeing themselves between feedings. I’ll go to feed them and them and there bedding will be all wet! I do stimulate them at feeding time. Is there anything I can do to prevent them from peeing on their own? Could it be that I’m not stimulating them long enough? Or maybe it’s too warm in there?

 

[danteshuman]

How old are they now?

 

[samanthalogan]

They are about 2 1/2 weeks.

 

[danteshuman]

I would feed him very slowly, a drop at a time. I would also call your vet first thing in the morning.

Please start watching the kitten lady videos on caring for kittens with pneumonia (since that is the biggest risk with the milk not being swallowed properly.) Knowing how to give the kitten an inhaler or oxygen can save him. I’m really hoping it is just a cold making him sneeze but somehow I doubt it.

 

[danteshuman]

A quick google will tell you to turn him head down and rub his back/clearing his mouth/nose. Also you need to take him to the vet to get some antibiotics because it invariably “leads to pneumonia .”

If needed you or another foster or the vet can syringe feed him. Again I would use a tiny needless syringe and just feed him a few drops at a time for days/a week. I’m not sure how you are positioning him but that can be a factor. There are how to videos (I think you know how to already.) He might just be so desperately hungry that he over eats and wants to eat faster than he can swallow. Perhaps feed him every 3-4 hours if you are feeding him every 6 hours? It might be worth a try to see if it works to get him to slow down while eating.

 

[Sarthur2]

Are you holding him upright on his tummy to feed him? That is the correct position. Make sure the hole in the nipple is not too big. Let him suckle, then pull the syringe or bottle away so he can swallow. You need to slow him down. If milk gets in his lungs he will definitely get pneumonia.

As far as peeing on their own, there is nothing you can do but clean them up and change the bedding. It just means they are maturing.

samanthalogan

 

[catsknowme]

danteshuman is spot on! Position is the first factor to consider and then suckling speed. I try to keep the kitten at a 45° angle or less, so I feed them on my tummy (once I hit 58, I finally had a ample stomach ) but another member here began putting the baby on her thigh so it can self-burp.
I have not heard of Propectalin - from the name, it sounds like it might have kaolin and pectin in it (like the old formula for Kaopectate - the new formula cannot be used on cats anymore because it now uses bismuth subsalicylate). If they have combined probiotics with antidiarrheals, that would be convenient and a great addition to a Kitten Kit.
An important note for both kitties and people: do not administer antibiotics within 4 hours, either way, of probiotics. The antibiotics kill off the probiotic bacteria as well as the bad ones.

 

[samanthalogan]

danteshuman is spot on! Position is the first factor to consider and then suckling speed. I try to keep the kitten at a 45° angle or less, so I feed them on my tummy (once I hit 58, I finally had a ample stomach ) but another member here began putting the baby on her thigh so it can self-burp.
I have not heard of Propectalin - from the name, it sounds like it might have kaolin and pectin in it (like the old formula for Kaopectate - the new formula cannot be used on cats anymore because it now uses bismuth subsalicylate). If they have combined probiotics with antidiarrheals, that would be convenient and a great addition to a Kitten Kit.
An important note for both kitties and people: do not administer antibiotics within 4 hours, either way, of probiotics. The antibiotics kill off the probiotic bacteria as well as the bad ones.

Wow! Thank you for the great tip on the probiotics/antibiotics! Yes he is fed belly down, with a miracle nipple. He is fed every 3 hours, and he eats like a pig. I will just have to try to get him to eat slower. I will take him to the vet today to get him on a medication for the aspirating.

Thank you all so so much for the advice! I truly appreciate it.

 

[samanthalogan]

Guys!! These babies have siblings in a different foster home, they are the same age, 2 1/2 weeks. Their foster parent started them on soft food today!!!! That can’t be good for their systems right??? Please tell me I’m not the only one who thinks it’s crazy to be feeding 2 1/2 week old kittens soft food.

 

[Sarthur2]

They are too young. They do not even have teeth yet. Perhaps the foster is making a slurry for the syringe?

 

[samanthalogan]

They are too young. They do not even have teeth yet. Perhaps the foster is making a slurry for the syringe?

No, I don’t believe so. She says she is feeding them straight canned.

 

[Sarthur2]

Are they eating it?