mother biting at new born kitten!

[kaybellee]

Okay i have my cat she is a first time mum now and she isnt really catching on.. i found the kitten this morning and she hasnt taken off the umbilical cord. Its so tiny and she keeps biting its tail and paws to the point the kitten is screaching! She is picking it up by its umbilical cord and by its back legs im honestly scared shes going to hurt or even kill it
Please help i dont know what to do

 

[talkingpeanut]

How old is your cat? Is the kitten premature? Is she done having kittens?

 

[kaybellee]

Im not sure how old she is as she was a rescue cat and was pregnant when i got her, but she is a very small bread of cat she is kind of half size they told me she was around 4 years old though, i can still feel a kitten in her stomach as far as i can tell

 

[Sarthur2]

Do not let her hurt the kitten! I will write more in a moment.

 

[Sarthur2]

K kaybellee

She is probably being rough with the kitten because she is still in labor to have another kitten. How long ago was this kitten born and has it latched on and nursed yet?

In the meantime, please tie off the cord with dental floss and cut it about an inch or so away from the naval. Dry the kitten by rubbing it gently with a towel, then keep it warm in a box with a heat source such as a heating pad on low under a blanket, a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel, or a raw rice sock warmed up.

It is important that the kitten latch and suckle as soon as possible. If not, you will need to feed the kitten yourself, which we will discuss shortly.

Sometimes the moms do not want to nurse the kittens until all are born, so it's best to keep the kitten separate but nearby while the mom is still laboring. But do not let the mom be rough with the kitten.

 

[kitty kisser]

when I was a child we had a large ranch with several cats one of the females ate her kittens soon after they where born!

 

[Sarthur2]

K kaybellee

I read that you found the kitten this morning. If the kitten has not been nursing already, you need to feed the kitten yourself with a needleless syringe and kitten formula.

This is very important. Has the kitten been nursing? Do you have kitten formula or can you get it right away? If not, I can tell you what to feed in the meantime, but newborn kittens will not survive without food!

 

[kaybellee]

It would have been born last night, it has nursed and the cord is dry, she is walking around fine and eating now she keeps crying for it but if i let her in with it she is back at biting it and being really rough

 

[kaybellee]

I also foster cats i have one that has already had kittens over a week ago but she is in a different part of the house so if worst comes to worse should i see if she will feed the kitten?

 

[Sarthur2]

Your kitten needs to eat 1 mL of food every hour around the clock if mom is not feeding it. If you have no syringe you can use a dropper, but I need to know what's going on first. But please separate the kitten from mom and I'll tell you what and how to feed once I hear back from you. Without proper care and food, the kitten will die quickly.

 

[Sarthur2]

YES!!!

Put this kitten with the other mama cat NOW!

 

[kitty kisser]

When I was a kid we had a cat with brain damage from getting caught in a car fan belt. She wouldn't take care of her kittens after that. Luckily our other momma cat would have kittens around the same time! We would give all the kittens to Jenova to raise she was an awesome momma!

 

[Sarthur2]

For now, put the kitten with the other mama cat. You can always move it back to her birth mother later.

Does mama cat appear to be laboring? Do you have her in a safe, private place in your house? Sometimes they are rough with kittens when they do not feel safe and are still in labor. But kitten needs to be safe and nursing the other mama for now.

 

[kaybellee]

Okay baby is with the other mumma now and feeding straight away and getting cleaned!

 

[Sarthur2]

And please let me know if the other mama has accepted kitten for now, and how the birth mom is doing also.

 

[kaybellee]

I had her in a cat bed in the spare room in my house which i had been putting her in for the past two weeks every night so she gets use to it, i have felt her stomach more throughly and i dont think their is any more babies she isnt showing any signs of labor

 

[Sarthur2]

Okay, I'm pleased to hear that Kitten is doing well with other mom for now.

We will have to wait and see what is going on with birth mom. She may or may not have another kitten, but she cannot harm her little one for now.

Is birth mom calming down some now? It may be her hormones. It often takes a new mom 24 hours or so to calm down after birthing. I'm hoping she'll be calmer soon.

She may simply not know what to do and be in pain still. Every cat is different. Perhaps you can sit with her awhile. It sounds as though she has her safety and privacy, and may just need time and comforting.

 

[kaybellee]

Yeah she was meowing all morning but now shes stopped im trying to calm her now ill keep you all updated

 

[Sarthur2]

Okay, sometimes there are after pains, and young, new moms are very frightened over it all.

You are doing a swell job of keeping everyone sorted for now. Mom needs to settle, and kitten needs to stay warm and nursing.

All sounds well. I'll look forward to updates.

 

[donutte]

Oh wow, just saw this now. I hope all is going well with mama and baby! So nice the foster mama was there (and is willing) to take care of the baby while birth mama is recovering.