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You may need to supplement the littlest ones. Be sure to weigh them daily, and step in if they aren't gaining at least 6-10g per day.
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Hot Pepper Is Due Any Day Now And...
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talkingpeanut, I had to pry myself away from their nestbox to go to sleep, I’m watching them so closely. I was worried the tiny tortoiseshell wasn’t latching but she did, and nursed intensely for a couple minutes. Then, when I got up to leave, Hot Pepper got up too. She tried to follow me out the door and yowled for a bit when I didn’t open up.
I’ll weigh everyone again in the morning. I’m most concerned about the two smallest, the torties. In my head, the fact that the third-smallest kitten is over the 80g threshold means s/he’s in a safe zone. 80 - that’s a solid B-!
Is it normal for some kittens to sleep while the others nurse?
I’ll weigh everyone again in the morning. I’m most concerned about the two smallest, the torties. In my head, the fact that the third-smallest kitten is over the 80g threshold means s/he’s in a safe zone. 80 - that’s a solid B-!
Is it normal for some kittens to sleep while the others nurse?
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Hi everyone!
I’m concerned that Hot Pepper is not attending to the kittens enough. She spends a lot of time out of the nest and out of the room, and if I close the door to try to encourage her to be near the kittens, she starts yowling and I can see that she’s staying right on the other side of the door.
Several of the kittens have lost a few grams since last night. I don’t know what is the normal range for that slight dip in the first day after birth.
I just ran down to the pharmacy to get a heating pad to keep the nest box consistently warm. Heated bean bags weren’t cutting the mustard.
I’m concerned that Hot Pepper is not attending to the kittens enough. She spends a lot of time out of the nest and out of the room, and if I close the door to try to encourage her to be near the kittens, she starts yowling and I can see that she’s staying right on the other side of the door.
Several of the kittens have lost a few grams since last night. I don’t know what is the normal range for that slight dip in the first day after birth.
I just ran down to the pharmacy to get a heating pad to keep the nest box consistently warm. Heated bean bags weren’t cutting the mustard.
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Can you spend time with her and the kittens today, just sitting in the room?
She's been through an ordeal.
She's been through an ordeal.
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Hey all,
I’ve kept Hot Pepper and her kittens, in a large dog crate in our spare bedroom, with nest box, heating pad, food, and a litterbox for mama. I let her out regularly for water and one-on-one time, when the kittens are asleep. She’s nursing them a lot more under these conditions, although when I checked in most recently she suddenly got very agitated and pushed all of the kittens off. Maybe she just needed a moment, ‘cause she repositioned and they went back to nursing. Goodness knows the first few days nursing can be difficult and uncomfortable!
I gave all the kittens a little drop of corn syrup mixed with water when I was moving everyone over to the new set-up. Then I fed the smallest kitten some KMR. She seems weak but a bit better now. Hot Pepper does not show as much interest in her as she does in the others, though, and that has me worried.
I’ve just gotten my son down for his nap, so I’m going to spend some more time with Hot Pepper and her kittens now.
We were going to name them all after veggies but now I want to give them all stronger-sounding names.
I’ve kept Hot Pepper and her kittens, in a large dog crate in our spare bedroom, with nest box, heating pad, food, and a litterbox for mama. I let her out regularly for water and one-on-one time, when the kittens are asleep. She’s nursing them a lot more under these conditions, although when I checked in most recently she suddenly got very agitated and pushed all of the kittens off. Maybe she just needed a moment, ‘cause she repositioned and they went back to nursing. Goodness knows the first few days nursing can be difficult and uncomfortable!
I gave all the kittens a little drop of corn syrup mixed with water when I was moving everyone over to the new set-up. Then I fed the smallest kitten some KMR. She seems weak but a bit better now. Hot Pepper does not show as much interest in her as she does in the others, though, and that has me worried.
I’ve just gotten my son down for his nap, so I’m going to spend some more time with Hot Pepper and her kittens now.
We were going to name them all after veggies but now I want to give them all stronger-sounding names.
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Update: six of the kittens are gaining well and at healthy weights for day-old kittens. The runt, the little red-faced tortie, has neither gained nor lost any weight since her weigh-in this morning. I was really worried about her most the day, because Hot Pepper was pushing her away and not responding when she cried. She seemed quite weak mid-day and I gave her some KMR and some corn syrup mixed with water. She pepped up and nursed well this afternoon. She seems more lively now, and Mama Cat even came to her rescue when she mewed during mid-day weigh-in so I’m optimistic. I’ll keep watching and supplementing. She’s not out of the woods yet.
ileen, yes, my son will be two in a little over a month (and I swear he was a newborn himself just yesterday!), and we haven't introduced him to the kittens yet. He loves Hot Pepper, though. He strongly preferred cats to dogs until recently, much to the disappointment/relief of our Labrador mix.
ArchyCat, thank you. Our Maine Coon breeder friend tipped us off to positioning the hot pad so there is a warm spot and a room-temp. spot, so we’ve done that already.
I weighed everyone again to get an official 24-hr gain/loss noted for each of them.
Big Black gained 8g and is still the largest
Orange gained 10g and is still 2nd largest.
Red gained 15g and is still 3rd largest.
Torti w/ Sleeves & Mask gained 14g and is still 4th largest.
^ I'm pleased with these four and feel they are doing well.
The three littlest ones are still worrisome. After weigh-in, I put the big ones outside the nest box, on a warm towel over the heat pad, and put the three smallest back in with mama. Two nursed vigorously for a few minutes, but one just cuddled up and snoozed. However, that one is the only one with a near-normal gain, so I’m not panicking over her yet.
Little Black is still 2g less than his birth weight, but up 1g from 12 hours ago. He nursed well after weigh-in.
Torti w/ Chin Patch gained 5g over her birth weight, but did not nurse after weigh-in.
Torti w/ Red Face, who was 3g under birth weight all day and being rejected by mama somewhat, is back up to her birth weight of 60g and nursed really well after weigh-in.
I’ll keep a close eye on these three. I need to get more KMR in the morning.
Does anyone know how soon after giving birth a mama cat should have a bowel movement? I know all the pushing during labor can lead to constipation, but I want to make sure Hot Pepper stays healthy too and noticed she has yet to poo!
ileen, yes, my son will be two in a little over a month (and I swear he was a newborn himself just yesterday!), and we haven't introduced him to the kittens yet. He loves Hot Pepper, though. He strongly preferred cats to dogs until recently, much to the disappointment/relief of our Labrador mix.
ArchyCat, thank you. Our Maine Coon breeder friend tipped us off to positioning the hot pad so there is a warm spot and a room-temp. spot, so we’ve done that already.
I weighed everyone again to get an official 24-hr gain/loss noted for each of them.
Big Black gained 8g and is still the largest
Orange gained 10g and is still 2nd largest.
Red gained 15g and is still 3rd largest.
Torti w/ Sleeves & Mask gained 14g and is still 4th largest.
^ I'm pleased with these four and feel they are doing well.
The three littlest ones are still worrisome. After weigh-in, I put the big ones outside the nest box, on a warm towel over the heat pad, and put the three smallest back in with mama. Two nursed vigorously for a few minutes, but one just cuddled up and snoozed. However, that one is the only one with a near-normal gain, so I’m not panicking over her yet.
Little Black is still 2g less than his birth weight, but up 1g from 12 hours ago. He nursed well after weigh-in.
Torti w/ Chin Patch gained 5g over her birth weight, but did not nurse after weigh-in.
Torti w/ Red Face, who was 3g under birth weight all day and being rejected by mama somewhat, is back up to her birth weight of 60g and nursed really well after weigh-in.
I’ll keep a close eye on these three. I need to get more KMR in the morning.
Does anyone know how soon after giving birth a mama cat should have a bowel movement? I know all the pushing during labor can lead to constipation, but I want to make sure Hot Pepper stays healthy too and noticed she has yet to poo!
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Thanks, ileen. I did some reading on this site and elsewhere and it sounds like it’s also not unusual for mamas to not go for a day or two. She didn’t eat much placenta - she licked them all a lot but didn’t chew or swallow any of the meaty bits - but she did have loose stools fairly consistently prior to giving birth (hence the special diet, the probiotics, and the de-wormer). It looks like she had a small bm this morning so that’s getting somewhere.
At morning weigh-in, I only have three concerns:
Orange, one of the biggest, lost 3-4g overnight (the scale flickered between 104 and 105). This is the first he’s lost weight.
Little Black stayed at 78g, still 2g under his birth weight but so close to the normal weight range for nb kittens.
Tiny Tort is gaining. She went from 60g at birth to 57g the morning after to 60g by end of day, and now weighs 61g. I know she still might not make it, but she’s gaining, and that’s a good start.
At morning weigh-in, I only have three concerns:
Orange, one of the biggest, lost 3-4g overnight (the scale flickered between 104 and 105). This is the first he’s lost weight.
Little Black stayed at 78g, still 2g under his birth weight but so close to the normal weight range for nb kittens.
Tiny Tort is gaining. She went from 60g at birth to 57g the morning after to 60g by end of day, and now weighs 61g. I know she still might not make it, but she’s gaining, and that’s a good start.
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Tortoiseshell w/ Sleeves and Mask
Tortoiseshell w/ Chin Patch
Black Kitten
Orange
Red
Hi everyone.
Something has gone wrong. The smaller black kitten is dead, and the tiny tortoiseshell is nearly gone, too. I came in to check on everyone and noticed small spots of blood on the sheet in the nest box. After checking everyone over, I found that it’s coming from Tiny Tort’s mouth. She is so weak and Hot Pepper isn’t doing anything for her - she’s watching and sitting nearby but not trying to nurse or clean her. I’m scared to supplement her (or any of the other kittens) any more in case I somehow injured her or the little black kitten (and we re-calibrated the scale so it is accurate and the other kittens’ weight all seem realistic).
Big Black, Red, the Tortie with the Sleeves and Mask, and the Tortie with the Light Chin are all still gaining well. Orange is also fading - birth weight 98g, Thursday 99g, 102g, 107g, 108g, today 104g, 98g (but my scale was acting up at this afternoon’s weigh-in so I’m not 100% sure that stat. is accurate), and just now 97g, below birth weight.
This is happening so quickly. Hot Pepper was indifferent toward Tiny Tort from the beginning, and Little Black was third-smallest (and then second-smallest), but Orange was second-biggest and so vigorous.
I will be waiting at the vets’ door in the morning. I’m pleading with whatever forces are at work that Orange will still be alive and we can help him. The vets said to expect 10-20% mortality in the first 10-14 days but I’m terrified that they are all going to succumb to whatever went wrong for their siblings.
With a heavy heart and a worried mind, I ask everyone to keep these kittens in your thoughts tonight.
Tortoiseshell w/ Chin Patch
Black Kitten
Orange
Red
Something has gone wrong. The smaller black kitten is dead, and the tiny tortoiseshell is nearly gone, too. I came in to check on everyone and noticed small spots of blood on the sheet in the nest box. After checking everyone over, I found that it’s coming from Tiny Tort’s mouth. She is so weak and Hot Pepper isn’t doing anything for her - she’s watching and sitting nearby but not trying to nurse or clean her. I’m scared to supplement her (or any of the other kittens) any more in case I somehow injured her or the little black kitten (and we re-calibrated the scale so it is accurate and the other kittens’ weight all seem realistic).
Big Black, Red, the Tortie with the Sleeves and Mask, and the Tortie with the Light Chin are all still gaining well. Orange is also fading - birth weight 98g, Thursday 99g, 102g, 107g, 108g, today 104g, 98g (but my scale was acting up at this afternoon’s weigh-in so I’m not 100% sure that stat. is accurate), and just now 97g, below birth weight.
This is happening so quickly. Hot Pepper was indifferent toward Tiny Tort from the beginning, and Little Black was third-smallest (and then second-smallest), but Orange was second-biggest and so vigorous.
I will be waiting at the vets’ door in the morning. I’m pleading with whatever forces are at work that Orange will still be alive and we can help him. The vets said to expect 10-20% mortality in the first 10-14 days but I’m terrified that they are all going to succumb to whatever went wrong for their siblings.
With a heavy heart and a worried mind, I ask everyone to keep these kittens in your thoughts tonight.
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I’m basically re-posting my update from the thread “Hot Pepper is Due Any Day Now And...” in the hopes that someone will see this post’s title and have some advice.
First off, yes, we will be at our vets’ office first thing in the morning.
We are caring for a stray cat who gave birth to eight kittens (seven living, one stillborn) on Wednesday. Four were within the range of normal birth weights; three were on the smaller side with the runt being only 60g. The three smallest were not gaining well yesterday, and despite my attempts to supplement with KMR and a couple drops of corn syrup, two began losing weight and died tonight. The third runt is actually gaining well on her own now and is 94g.
My main concern is for the third fading kitten, our orange fellow (I think he’s a boy). He was the second-biggest at birth. His weight has gone from 98g to 108g but he’s now 96g. He roots around but doesn’t latch (although he was nursing fine yesterday). I just hope he survives until morning when I can take him to the vet.
I am trying to keep him warm and keep him near Mama’s nipples, in case he does summon the will to nurse. Mama does not push him away and does respond when he cries, clean him, etc.
What could I be missing? Please advise in any way you can.
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I’m so sorry to hear about this. I’m glad that you’re going to be able to get him checked out at the vet in the morning. This article is a good resource to get you started: Fading Kitten Syndrome: 11 Things You Need To Know
Please do keep us updated. Thanks for caring.
Please do keep us updated. Thanks for caring.
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Thank you for the link. I’d already read that article but it doesn’t hurt to be thorough.
Hot Pepper has done an alarming thing a few times that I’ve seen now, since beginning to nurse. She’ll be on her side, with several kittens nursing away, and then suddenly she’ll start growling and yowling, and twist and turn until all the kittens are dislodged from her nipples. She’ll then continue meowing angrily and flop onto them - it looks as if she’s trying to crush them. It’s happened maybe four times? I don’t know what to make of it, but of course now I’m worried to leave the room for fear that she’ll hurt the kittens. Why would she be doing this?
Hot Pepper has done an alarming thing a few times that I’ve seen now, since beginning to nurse. She’ll be on her side, with several kittens nursing away, and then suddenly she’ll start growling and yowling, and twist and turn until all the kittens are dislodged from her nipples. She’ll then continue meowing angrily and flop onto them - it looks as if she’s trying to crush them. It’s happened maybe four times? I don’t know what to make of it, but of course now I’m worried to leave the room for fear that she’ll hurt the kittens. Why would she be doing this?
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Hot Pepper has done an alarming thing a few times that I’ve seen now, since beginning to nurse. She’ll be on her side, with several kittens nursing away, and then suddenly she’ll start growling and yowling, and twist and turn until all the kittens are dislodged from her nipples. She’ll then continue meowing angrily and flop onto them - it looks as if she’s trying to crush them. It’s happened maybe four times? I don’t know what to make of it, but of course now I’m worried to leave the room for fear that she’ll hurt the kittens. Why would she be doing this?
She is perhaps beginning to get mastitis and her teats hurts?
Can you get raw goats milk? May be better than Kmr.
Continue to smear a sweet solution of honey or caro on the lips of the weak one.
Can you get raw goats milk? May be better than Kmr.
Continue to smear a sweet solution of honey or caro on the lips of the weak one.
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Do handfeed the weak one if you arent sure he gets from momma.
Get home flavorless clear pedialyte for babies.
Or make your own with honey or caro.
IF any kitten is dying cease the kmr proceed with just pedialyte.
Because digestion stops in the dying and kmr just rottens inside.
While glucose sugar in pedialyte goes straigh in and hopefully buys you time.
The same with cold kittens!
You cant give them kmr but you can give pedialyte while you are warming them up.
Get home flavorless clear pedialyte for babies.
Or make your own with honey or caro.
IF any kitten is dying cease the kmr proceed with just pedialyte.
Because digestion stops in the dying and kmr just rottens inside.
While glucose sugar in pedialyte goes straigh in and hopefully buys you time.
The same with cold kittens!
You cant give them kmr but you can give pedialyte while you are warming them up.
