Need Advice Asap On Feeding Starving Kitten!!!!!

[di and bob]

He does look a little better! No meow because he most likely meowed himself raw when he was sick, or he is still too weak. A proper meow will be another milestone. That grinding would be something to have checked out by the vet the next time he is in, you could video it and bring it to the vet too. It usually means jaw/tooth problems but at his age I doubt it. It may indicate he is still just to weak to even chew properly, see if thinning his food would help a little and it would get more water in his diet too. I had a cat that lived to sixteen who did it all his life, so after checking it out it would make you feel better to know nothing physical is wrong. Good job! He is looking so much better!

 

[StefanZ]

Silent meows arent unusual. Many cats must learn to meow aloud.

This with treeths may be worrying. Toothache???

 

[StefanZ]

The shipdoctor on Star Trek, wasnt he nicknamed Bones?

Also a female detective / forensic specialist in a tv- serie is called Bones. The serie is named after her.

 

[mazie]

Sooo cute he is. Yes he does look much better! He is going to be a fluffy big kitty when he grows up. He has a lot of growing to do to fit those sweet big ears! So darling.

 

[Kitty0619]

Yes! I love the show Bones, and I thought of that when I named him bones. I still haven't changed it yet, but I'm thinking of new names. He is doing ten times better and I have all of you to thank for your great advice because yall literally saved his life. I finally saw him playing with my other kittys tonight and I've never been so happy! I will post the pics I took of him playing just a few minutes ago. The grinding his teeth thing he was doing has stopped, so I think the member who mentioned he was too weak to chew his food correctly was right. He still isn't meowing, but he could very well have a silent

Thank you all again for all the advice, encouragement, and love for Bones, because without yall, he would not be here right now!

 

[Kitty0619]

Hello!

I wanted to give all you wonderful cat lovers an update on the kitty yall helped me with. He is doing GREAT, and he is one big ball of energy running from one end of my home to the other. The only "problem" he has nowadays is he wants to eat all the time, and he is constantly begging me for food. The vet said that's something he sees in animals who where so severely starved as he was, and he said to keep him on the portions recommended for his age and that his appetite should decrease over time, which I haven't seen yet. He still can't meow, but the vet said that some cats cant meow, and that it can be common for kittens who were malnourished during the critical development stage. When he purrs, I cannot hear a sound, and the only way I know he is purring is because of the vibrations. I will include resent pics of him so y'all can see how well he is doing, and I wanted to say thanks to all of you again. Without the info you all gave me, he probably would be dead, because I didn't know what to do to help him. And, you all helped any future kitty I find that is in the same horrible condition, because I will know what to do now thanks to the very valuable info all of you gave me

 

[ileen]

Go, Bones!!! He looks amazing, still hasn't grown into those ears. Maybe he will always have large ears, like the adorable January on this site.
Congratulations to you, Kitty0619 for all your hard work, which has definitely paid off! How much does Bones weigh these days?

 

[Kitty0619]

Go, Bones!!! He looks amazing, still hasn't grown into those ears. Maybe he will always have large ears, like the adorable January on this site.
Congratulations to you, Kitty0619 for all your hard work, which has paid off! How much does Bones weigh these days?

Ileen, I am so sorry it has taken me so long to reply to you! December was a hectic month for me, and I had no extra time what so ever to do anything. But Bones is doing great, and no, he still hasn't grown into those ears haha. I'll include some pics of him that I just took this morning. I never changed his name, because by the time I picked out another one, he had already learned Bones and I didn't want to confuse him. And I think the name is kind of funny now since he's so fat! At his last doc appt, he weighed 4 pounds, but I think he's 5 pounds now because of his enormous pot belly. I've never had a cat that begs for food worse than a dog, but Bones sure will. When I cook supper, he is at my feet the whole dang time rubbing on me and swishing his tail, while doing his little hoarse sounding meows to get food. My husband says he's the ugliest little cat he's ever seen and that he looks like a dumpster cat, but I think he's adorable and he has the best little personality too. I am definitly proud of the little bugger, and I am very grateful to all of you who gave me great advice and encouragement!

 

[talkingpeanut]

He's so sweet! Has he been dewormed? And how much are you feeding him per day? Kittens need A LOT of food.

 

[Kitty0619]

He's so sweet! Has he been dewormed? And how much are you feeding him per day? Kittens need A LOT of food.

He is so sweet and he's so loving! And he is on a dewormer regimen. I am giving him Ivermectrin, and he is on flea treatment, so I don't give him anything for tapeworms. He was getting the Ivermectrin every month, but now that he's 6 months old, I will only give it to him every 3 months. The beginning of December, I switched him to Blue Buffalo Healthy Growth Kitten and one cup of that equals 439 Kcal, so I give him half a cup three times a day and sometimes a little more when he's really hungry which is often! But he's doing very well and I'm so thankful I found him

 

[talkingpeanut]

Was he ever treated for tapeworms?

 

[Kitty0619]

Was he ever treated for tapeworms?

Yes, I gave him Bayer tapeworm treatment the very same day I brought him home and then once more time three weeks later. It was horrible the amount of worms that came out of him the very first time I dewormed. I seen none the second time but the first was horrible

 

[ileen]

Hooray for Bones! He looks darling, especially with your other cats - guess they get along pretty well. I love that snuggling photo. Keep those updates coming!

 

[golondrina]

Hi Kitty0619, I have just read through this thread and wish to congratulate you on the marvellous job you have done for this lucky kitten. Bones is very lucky that you found him as are his mum and siblings. They all look beautiful.

 

[Kitty0619]

Hi Kitty0619, I have just read through this thread and wish to congratulate you on the marvellous job you have done for this lucky kitten. Bones is very lucky that you found him as are his mum and siblings. They all look beautiful.

Golondrina, thanks so much, and he is a very lucky baby! But, to be honest, I couldn't have done it without the help I received from the members of this website. I wasn't totally ignorant when it came to caring for a sick animal, but when it came to helping Bones, I couldn't figure out what to do to help him. He was only eating about a tablespoon or less of food a day, he wouldn't drink hardly any water, he was very lethargic, and his eyes had this blank death stare to them.

After the other members told me to give him Pedialyte and Nuti-Cal, I could see a significant improvement in him the very next evening... It was truly amazing. I also learned how to do the dehydration test on kitties, and when I first did the test on Bones, it took forever for the skin on the back of his neck to go down, so I knew then that he was severely dehydrated. So if it wasn't for the wonderful people who gave me all the valuable info, Bones more then likely wouldn't be here today to aggravate his brother and sisters.

That info will also help any future kitties I find that is sick like Bones was because I will know what to do now. I know I've said it many times, but Bones, me, and any future sick kitties I find, want to thank you all again. We couldn't have done it without y'all