A Few Hours Old Abandonded Kittens

Libby.

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Thank you, I would hate to lose any of the kittens, so I'm prepared to go to any length. I'll see if the mother can be cought and spayed. I spay all my female cats but don't neuter the males, ever since I saw a neutered male that was so overweight and had no energy for anything. The owner said his character has changed since.
All of my male cats have been neutered. Never changed their personality or their energy level.
 
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Kypros

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Thank you all for your lights, I'll call my vet about it. One more question please. How long and often should the new kittens sleep for? I noticed if I keep the box lid shut, they go to sleep, presumsbly because it becomes dark inside. Their eyes are stil shut but they seem to be able to distinguish light from darkness. If they are next to me the crawl all over the place and don't go to sleep.
 

danteshuman

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Newborn kittens need to be fed every 1-2 hours. For great how to videos look up the kittenlady on YouTube! Also ideally you want to keep them at 85-90F the first couple of weeks. So if you can keep the room around 80F plus give them heating pads they can get closer to/further away from , they should do great! If you don’t have one, the miracle nipple (they sell it on amazon) works great. Also there are how to videos on how to use the kittens in a carrier & a catch them alive trap to catch the mom. However since she doesn’t appear to be bonded, a catch them alive trap to TNR her might be best. (Many areas have TNR programs and will help you/loan you traps to catch cereals.)

* I free fed both my neutered boys dry food and they got a wet food dinner. They each weighed around 14 pounds. I noticed they were getting kinda chubby in their middle age (11 & 12 years) so I put them all on diet. I basically eliminated all their treats. That was it. Both cats lost about a pound in one year. After that they got treats about 1-2 times a week. They stopped gaining/loosing weight. Yes a neutered cat may weigh slightly more. However how much your cat weighs is directly because of how much you feed your cat, what you feed them, how much exercise they get & if they have health issues (thyroid.)
 

Kflowers

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They need to sleep a great deal. When they fall asleep let them continue until the next feeding. At this age their lives are eating, being washed, and sleeping.
 
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Kypros

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They need to sleep a great deal. When they fall asleep let them continue until the next feeding. At this age their lives are eating, being washed, and sleeping.
Being washed? I'm supposed to give them a bath?
 

war&wisdom

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Neutering doesn't radically change a cat's personality or activity level. My boy (neutered, of course) is INSANEly active and loving and remains fit and muscular.
 

danteshuman

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I placed a blanket over my guys bunny pen to keep them warm (leaving one end open a little for ventilation.) You could try throwing a towel over their box instead of a lid (with holes in the box for air or a little corner folded open.) I will add that you need a large crate or bathroom to contain them once they start walking/climbing (escaping!) The bunny cage was a godsend to contain them while I slept! Plus we used a metal pen like a baby gate to contain them to the living room with supervision. (The pen I had to chip clip on a blanket on top to keep them in by 5 weeks. So at 6 weeks they were contained to the living room using the pen like a gate.)
 

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Kypros

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The kittens are doing fine, today all of them shed the umbilical cord. They eat more as well and are active when they are not asleep.
 

danteshuman

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Congratulations your kittens are now exactly 5 days old (so you know their birthday! :)) Kittens loose their umbilical cord on the 5th day. Everyday they make it & gain weight is a win! You are doing great! ( & caffeine will get you through the next couple of weeks of sleep deprivation. ;)) I can’t prove it but I think kittens thrive better when allowed to sleep on your chest/belly under/over a blanket as much as possible when little. That way they get your heartbeat plus lots of pets/grooming. You can try a finger in a wash cloth or new cheap toothbrush where you do short J strokes like a mama cat’s tongue.

Take tons of pictures and videos. They grow up so fast! I took a hundred pics and found myself wishing I had taken more videos. I took pics of them next to the same object every week/month to chart their growth. Of course we all love seeing cute kitten pics if you ever want to post them.
 
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Kypros

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Horrible news, one of the kittens died this morning. He was all right last night when I fed them all, but this morning he seemed a little sluggish in his movements. although he ate a little. On our way to the vet he died. I'm devastated as I grew to love them all very much. Now I'm worried sick about the other two. They are kept well fed, warm and clean all the time. I handle them as they seem to like it and stop crying when I do. Please is there anything I can do to assure the other two make it?
 

Libby.

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Have they been checked by the vet? I fostered a starving mamma cat and her six 10 day old kittens. I lost one too. I should have taken them all to the vet as soon as I got her but they all seemed to be doing well until little Angel died. I took her and her babies to the vet and they were all treated with antibiotics and dewormed. They all survived and thrived. I have the momma cat as my brother adopted her and one of her daughters. He gave the daughter to his girlfriend. He came to live with me over a year ago to get treatment for stage 4 cancer of the tongue. He lost the battle last October. I now have custody of Gracie, Budley, and Petey. My mother got two of her sons. They're thriving and doing quite well. Gracie's kittens are now about 11 years old. Gracie is around 12 or 13 we think.
 
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Kypros

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Have they been checked by the vet? I fostered a starving mamma cat and her six 10 day old kittens. I lost one too. I should have taken them all to the vet as soon as I got her but they all seemed to be doing well until little Angel died. I took her and her babies to the vet and they were all treated with antibiotics and dewormed. They all survived and thrived. I have the momma cat as my brother adopted her and one of her daughters. He gave the daughter to his girlfriend. He came to live with me over a year ago to get treatment for stage 4 cancer of the tongue. He lost the battle last October. I now have custody of Gracie, Budley, and Petey. My mother got two of her sons. They're thriving and doing quite well. Gracie's kittens are now about 11 years old. Gracie is around 12 or 13 we think.
Really sorry about your brother's loss. It seems this dreadful disease is spreading at an alarming rate. I don't know of a family including mine that have not suffered the loss of a loved one at one time or another.
I took the kittens to the vet the following morning I adopted them, he checked them, gave me the formula and said there is no reason they shouldn't survive.
 

Sarthur2

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So sorry to hear this. I know it is upsetting. Sometimes there is no real reason other than fading kitten syndrome. It just happens. There is no reason to think the other two kittens will not be okay though.
 
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Kypros

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So sorry to hear this. I know it is upsetting. Sometimes there is no real reason other than fading kitten syndrome. It just happens. There is no reason to think the other two kittens will not be okay though.
Thank you for your comforting words, the remaining two kittens have just been fed and are falling asleep on my chest,sucking on my fingers.
 
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