Foster Cat Had Her Kittens This Am!

[ileen]

I know you can't officially change mama's name, but I took the liberty of looking up a list of the largest seeds. List of largest seeds - Wikipedia
I'm partial to Coconut or Mora.

 

[laurenfosters]

I know you can't officially change mama's name, but I took the liberty of looking up a list of the largest seeds. List of largest seeds - Wikipedia
I'm partial to Coconut or Mora.

I love both, but especially Mora! If my parents adopt her, and I really hope they do, I will suggest that.

 

[laurenfosters]

My vet, who I absolutely love, and who did not even charge me when they examined and had to euthanize Sesame, sent me this in the mail. Made me tear up all over again. Those precious little paw prints.

 

[laurenfosters]

Well, it looks like the honeymoon's over. Mom went back into "kitten" mode last night and decided she wanted nothing to do with the babies no matter how loud they cried. Broke my heart.

I did some "facilitated nursing," but when it became clear that she just wasn't having it, I decided to try the bottle with them while they still had the muscle memory of it from the vet. I got up about every 2-3 hours overnight for feedings.

Good news is that they took the bottle with Miracle Nipple pretty well and I was able to get 5-10 mL in each kitten in each session. As of this morning they've gained some weight over yesterday, so it looks like we're doing well. This is going to be a long road but I'll do whatever it takes!

 

[ileen]

What are their weights today?

 

[laurenfosters]

What are their weights today?

As of 6am today they are up to 211 (Olive, from 200), 211 (Chickpea, also from 200), and 212 (Lentil, from 203). Pretty good I think! These weights are as compared with the weights the vet took yesterday morning. In the late afternoon and early evening things were looking very stagnant so I decided to supplement overnight when it became clear that mom just wasn't in the mood. They are 12 days old today, do these weights seem healthy?

 

[laurenfosters]

Just now, she nursed them for a good amount of time, so I am going to hold off on anymore supplementing for now. I'll weigh them again in the afternoon and re-assess at that time.

 

[orange&white]

Oh good news! I was hoping Momma Cat would be willing to nurse some to give you a break from the somewhat grueling schedule of bottle feeding. It's certainly a labor of love and well worth the rewards though. Those kitties are so lucky to have you as their foster mom.

 

[laurenfosters]

Oh good news! I was hoping Momma Cat would be willing to nurse some to give you a break from the somewhat grueling schedule of bottle feeding. It's certainly a labor of love and well worth the rewards though. Those kitties are so lucky to have you as their foster mom.

It sure is exhausting, but boy is it cool...especially in those moments when they truly "latch" on the bottle and then you get the purrs, and the ear wiggles...suddenly the fact that I've barely slept doesn't even matter anymore. Melts my heart!

 

[dustydiamond1]

It sure is exhausting, but boy is it cool...especially in those moments when they truly "latch" on the bottle and then you get the purrs, and the ear wiggles...suddenly the fact that I've barely slept doesn't even matter anymore. Melts my heart!

 

[laurenfosters]

Kittens are doing great. I have a question for all. They will be two weeks on Sunday AM and are becoming surprinsingly mobile. They're obviously not walking yet but their crawling is seriously impressive! My current set-up is that mom and kittens are in their own room (our "foster room"), which is cat-friendly and private and away from my other cats. It's the size of your standard small extra bedroom.

Within that room, I have in one corner a cardboard box turned on its side that's been serving as the "nest." The box has a heating pad, set to low, with varying thicknesses of blankets and towels on top of it so that the kittens move if they become too hot or too cold. I have created a "soft border" of blankets at the edge of the box so that mom can still come and go as she pleases, but the kittens are still somewhat contained. Unfortunately, it's not containing them anymore. Twice now I've come into the room and found them outside the nest, granted not far, but still...one time mom was with the kitten, one time the kitten was alone.

Mom is doing an okay job but she just is not super diligent and I don't trust her to be able to come to their aid and take them back to the nest when they are at risk of exploring too far.

The only bad things they could get into are the litter box and the water bowl, both of which are as far from the nest as possible. The room is very cat-safe and has minimal clutter beyond blankets and toys.

My question is, do I need to think of a better containment solution, or is it okay to let them explore a little bit? I'm struggling to think of a way to contain them that still allows mom easy access in and out, and because she gets a little hyper at times, I feel like trapping them all in a small space (i.e. a kennel) isn't a very good idea.

Current set-up:

The thing next to the box is a cushion that I've covered in a blanket. I sit there when I visit and bottle-feed, and mom sits there sometimes when she wants to keep an eye but doesn't want to be in the nest. She doesn't lay with them much when she's not nursing, but with the heating pad and the cozy surroundings they've been staying plenty warm.

Exhibit A: Olive the explorer

Aaaand she's out.

What do you think??

 

[kate187]

They are sooo beautiful!

Sounds like when we had puppies and as they got bigger they overcame every barrier we put up!

First they got out of the box.

Then over the barrier.

Then over the bigger barrier!


As they are so little could you just make a similar barrier a little way past the nest, so they can explore but not the whole room? You could use planks etc covered in blankets?

 

[laurenfosters]

They are sooo beautiful!

Sounds like when we had puppies and as they got bigger they overcame every barrier we put up!

First they got out of the box.

Then over the barrier.

Then over the bigger barrier!


As they are so little could you just make a similar barrier a little way past the nest, so they can explore but not the whole room? You could use planks etc covered in blankets?

Oh my god how ADORABLE are they!

I might explore a way to do something similar! For now I am making an effort to pop in regularly and check on them. Since I'm supplementing with the bottle, I'm in that room all the time anyways, so I'm watching closely.

 

[dustydiamond1]

Kittens are doing great. I have a question for all. They will be two weeks on Sunday AM and are becoming surprinsingly mobile. They're obviously not walking yet but their crawling is seriously impressive! My current set-up is that mom and kittens are in their own room (our "foster room"), which is cat-friendly and private and away from my other cats. It's the size of your standard small extra bedroom.

Within that room, I have in one corner a cardboard box turned on its side that's been serving as the "nest." The box has a heating pad, set to low, with varying thicknesses of blankets and towels on top of it so that the kittens move if they become too hot or too cold. I have created a "soft border" of blankets at the edge of the box so that mom can still come and go as she pleases, but the kittens are still somewhat contained. Unfortunately, it's not containing them anymore. Twice now I've come into the room and found them outside the nest, granted not far, but still...one time mom was with the kitten, one time the kitten was alone.

Mom is doing an okay job but she just is not super diligent and I don't trust her to be able to come to their aid and take them back to the nest when they are at risk of exploring too far.

The only bad things they could get into are the litter box and the water bowl, both of which are as far from the nest as possible. The room is very cat-safe and has minimal clutter beyond blankets and toys.

My question is, do I need to think of a better containment solution, or is it okay to let them explore a little bit? I'm struggling to think of a way to contain them that still allows mom easy access in and out, and because she gets a little hyper at times, I feel like trapping them all in a small space (i.e. a kennel) isn't a very good idea.

Current set-up:

View attachment 214984

The thing next to the box is a cushion that I've covered in a blanket. I sit there when I visit and bottle-feed, and mom sits there sometimes when she wants to keep an eye but doesn't want to be in the nest. She doesn't lay with them much when she's not nursing, but with the heating pad and the cozy surroundings they've been staying plenty warm.

Exhibit A: Olive the explorer

View attachment 214982

Aaaand she's out.

View attachment 214985

What do you think??

Can you elevate the litter box and food? Gypsy feeding station for water & dry is on a 40 gal tote and wet is atop her computer desk

 

[dustydiamond1]

Kittens are doing great. I have a question for all. They will be two weeks on Sunday AM and are becoming surprinsingly mobile. They're obviously not walking yet but their crawling is seriously impressive! My current set-up is that mom and kittens are in their own room (our "foster room"), which is cat-friendly and private and away from my other cats. It's the size of your standard small extra bedroom.

Within that room, I have in one corner a cardboard box turned on its side that's been serving as the "nest." The box has a heating pad, set to low, with varying thicknesses of blankets and towels on top of it so that the kittens move if they become too hot or too cold. I have created a "soft border" of blankets at the edge of the box so that mom can still come and go as she pleases, but the kittens are still somewhat contained. Unfortunately, it's not containing them anymore. Twice now I've come into the room and found them outside the nest, granted not far, but still...one time mom was with the kitten, one time the kitten was alone.

Mom is doing an okay job but she just is not super diligent and I don't trust her to be able to come to their aid and take them back to the nest when they are at risk of exploring too far.

The only bad things they could get into are the litter box and the water bowl, both of which are as far from the nest as possible. The room is very cat-safe and has minimal clutter beyond blankets and toys.

My question is, do I need to think of a better containment solution, or is it okay to let them explore a little bit? I'm struggling to think of a way to contain them that still allows mom easy access in and out, and because she gets a little hyper at times, I feel like trapping them all in a small space (i.e. a kennel) isn't a very good idea.

Current set-up:

View attachment 214984

The thing next to the box is a cushion that I've covered in a blanket. I sit there when I visit and bottle-feed, and mom sits there sometimes when she wants to keep an eye but doesn't want to be in the nest. She doesn't lay with them much when she's not nursing, but with the heating pad and the cozy surroundings they've been staying plenty warm.

Exhibit A: Olive the explorer

View attachment 214982

Aaaand she's out.

View attachment 214985

What do you think??

,

 

[dustydiamond1]

They are sooo beautiful!

Sounds like when we had puppies and as they got bigger they overcame every barrier we put up!

First they got out of the box.

Then over the barrier.

Then over the bigger barrier!


As they are so little could you just make a similar barrier a little way past the nest, so they can explore but not the whole room? You could use planks etc covered in blankets?

,

 

[laurenfosters]

Can you elevate the litter box and food? Gypsy feeding station for water & dry is on a 40 gal tote and wet is atop her computer desk

Great idea! I actually switched her to a high sided litterbox that I'm positive the kittens couldn't get into, but I'm going to find a box or small piece of furniture to put her water dish on.

 

[ileen]

I'm not familiar enough with kittens to offer any advice, sorry. At two weeks old, they're good with regulating their own body temps, right? Seems like there shouldn't be an issue of them wandering in a safe room, especially since you check in on them every couple of hours or so. Maybe at night you can hem them in a bit better when you won't be checking as often?

 

[laurenfosters]

I'm not familiar enough with kittens to offer any advice, sorry. At two weeks old, they're good with regulating their own body temps, right? Seems like there shouldn't be an issue of them wandering in a safe room, especially since you check in on them every couple of hours or so. Maybe at night you can hem them in a bit better when you won't be checking as often?

According to what I've read, at two weeks they are better at staying warm than they are when they are newborn, but they can't fully regulate until 4 weeks, I believe. So them staying warm is certainly important. I bottle feed them every 2.5 hours during the night because that's when mama cat is most disinterested in nursing (I call it her "witching hour"). So they never go more than a couple of hours without a check. Funny that she nurses them somewhat diligently during the day and then basically "clocks out" around 8PM! She's young, though, and I think it's just overwhelming for her.

 

[Sarthur2]

Kittens cannot maintain their body temperature the first 3 weeks.

Kittens can drown in the water bowl, so it's good you moved that higher.

Exploring the room is good for them as long as it's kitten proof. They will be out of the nest most of the time after they hit 3 weeks!