Newborn kitten

[Sarthur2]

Kittens do tend to have round little bellies until they grow and elongate. Has the umbilical area fully closed and healed?

 

[Cattycoves]

Kittens do tend to have round little bellies until they grow and elongate. Has the umbilical area fully closed and healed?

I think so? It’s just it made like a little button on the outside and got bigger over a few hours, unsure what a healed one looks like

 

[StefanZ]

I think so? It’s just it made like a little button on the outside and got bigger over a few hours, unsure what a healed one looks like

Sounds not necessarily good.
Maybe a hernia??

Minor hernia is not unusual, is seldom serious, and doesnt need immediate surgery. The most common is they do surgery when they are spayed / neutered, when they are anyways at the vet for surgey, thus cutting the cost and trouble.

 

[Cattycoves]

Sounds not necessarily good.
Maybe a hernia??

Minor hernia is not unusual, is seldom serious, and doesnt need immediate surgery. The most common is they do surgery when they are spayed / neutered, when they are anyways at the vet for surgey, thus cutting the cost and trouble.

I took him to an ER vet and she said to just keep feeding and everything I’m doing, I dunno something just doesn’t seem right for his belly to look like it does, but she also thinks it’s a hernia like I initially thought, I had a older girl with it, was super easy to correct when she got spayed. Gussy will just get it fixed when he’s neutered I reckon, she said it was too dangerous to deworm him so we weren’t left with much, vitals were good as well. Super responsive the whole time still is, he’s currently 126g I think now I’m gonna try Sarthur2 ‘s suggestion of the gas relief drops I picked up the brand equate (pic attached) how many drops do I give Gus? I think gassiness may be the issues possibly, id like to try it anyway.

 

[Cattycoves]

So for Gus’s 6pm feeding all was normal, except at the very end of his stool.. kind of.. red. Is it blood.? The doc did put a thermometer in his rectum.. but that was around his 12pm-2pm feeding, could that be the cause? He cried out when she did it.. maybe it hurt him? He was in much discomfort to say the least, If I see it again he should go back to the vet yeah? He’s 129g
First pic is how his poo was then the last few wipes was the red/blood.

 

[Sarthur2]

Blood was probably from the rectum check, which is unusual for a kitten his age. Use the gas drops for now to see if they help the bloating. Just keep doing what you’re doing for now. See how things go for a day or two.

 

[Cattycoves]

Blood was probably from the rectum check, which is unusual for a kitten his age. Use the gas drops for now to see if they help the bloating. Just keep doing what you’re doing for now. See how things go for a day or two.

How much should I administer? And how often? Can I give it to him right on the tongue, or does it need to be in the formula?

 

[Sarthur2]

It’s 2-3 drops added to each formula feeding.

 

[catmom102618]

So for Gus’s 6pm feeding all was normal, except at the very end of his stool.. kind of.. red. Is it blood.? The doc did put a thermometer in his rectum.. but that was around his 12pm-2pm feeding, could that be the cause? He cried out when she did it.. maybe it hurt him? He was in much discomfort to say the least, If I see it again he should go back to the vet yeah? He’s 129g
First pic is how his poo was then the last few wipes was the red/blood.

One of my kitties also had this really light spotting when their poos were runny, I think for me it was from all the frequent runny poop irritating its bum. So could be contributing to it on top of the thermometer check. I never saw blood again and after changing formula theyre having normal toothpaste poos probably should keep an eye on it though, I dont think blood should continue.

Mine also has the little bump at umbilical site and vet wasn't concerned so I'm assuming it's somewhat common. However it hasn't gotten any larger for me. Would also watch it to make sure it's not growing too much or looking more irritated, maybe take pics of it whenever you weigh him so you can have reference and watch for any change?

Please update if the gas drops work

 

[Cattycoves]

So I’ve been doing the gas drops all night I’m unsure if they’re doing anything for him, I think my next stop is changing formula, for those who remember I got this powder kind for sweet toast before he passed, is it a good brand of formula.? Should I try something else? I can’t really think of what else to try lol pics are more than 12 hrs apart the first one is his belly at 12am the second is at 2 pm both after feeding

 

[StefanZ]

So I’ve been doing the gas drops all night I’m unsure if they’re doing anything for him, I think my next stop is changing formula, for those who remember I got this powder kind for sweet toast before he passed, is it a good brand of formula.? Should I try something else? I can’t really think of what else to try lol pics are more than 12 hrs apart the first one is his belly at 12am the second is at 2 pm both after feeding

If you want to try something else, I would suggest goats milk (preferably raw), or a formula based on goats milk.

 

[Sarthur2]

I’m not familiar with the formula in your picture.
Walmart carries goat milk and also the PetAg powdered formula in the can.

Is the kitten peeing and pooping regularly?

 

[Cattycoves]

I’m not familiar with the formula in your picture.
Walmart carries goat milk and also the PetAg powdered formula in the can.

Is the kitten peeing and pooping regularly?

Yeah he is it’s just almost liquid everytime, it’s not paste like at all it’s almost like soup consistency with little spots in it, I think tho the gas drops may be doing something but I may just try another formula than what he’s on maybe it’ll help his poop, a lot of people swear by breeders edge is that any good to move him on ?

 

[catmom102618]

Yeah he is it’s just almost liquid everytime, it’s not paste like at all it’s almost like soup consistency with little spots in it, I think tho the gas drops may be doing something but I may just try another formula than what he’s on maybe it’ll help his poop, a lot of people swear by breeders edge is that any good to move him on ?

Hmmm I heard good things about nutrivet as well! But as I’ve said before, this is my first time raising kittens I’ve just done a looot of research. First I would double check, is the powder meant to be refrigerated after opening? And you’re discarding unused formula within 24hrs?

The formula that my kittens have started doing really well on is only available in Canada (Grober Pets KittenGro), however, I did just compare the ingredients in mine to breeders edge for you and the first 6 ingredients are identical. Could be worth a shot?

The rescue also did recommend goats milk, and could definitely be worth a try as others have mentioned!! Pretty sure it is cheaper as well.

I didn’t have much luck with KMR powder and it did not mix up very well, there were always specks of the powder no matter how I mixed. First ingredient in the PetAg KMR powder is skim milk, which my rescue and vet agreed is not ideal, a lot more watery and less dense than powdered whey (first ingredient in the one I use as well as breeders edge). After switching them off that they started gaining 14g+ daily, a significant change from the 7-9g they were gaining on the powdered KMR alongside gas bloat and constipation. Your kitty may be different!! But it seems KMR is a lower quality formula than nutrivet in general so personally I don’t think it would be my first choice.

The rescue also did suggest goats milk, would have been my next step had this new formula not worked with them. I could definitely be worth a try as others have mentioned!!

With all the diarrhea I’d try to prevent dehydration. I will attach a photo of the papers the vet gave me for a recipe for fluids from his personal notes, essentially the same as what they would give in IV or subcutaneous injection for dehydration! There’s some math involved for the dosage so please be mindful of that. You could try clear pedialyte also, I’m not sure if you have done that yet.

 

[Sarthur2]

I think a vet visit with this kitten is in order to make sure things are okay.

 

[Cattycoves]

I’ve ordered the breeders edge formula if that doesn’t help his tummy I’ll try goats milk, gussy has a vet apt next Monday I personally think he’s got a parasite or worms, but he won’t be at an eligible age for treatment until next Monday. He’s still gaining weight we got stuck at the 130’s and 140’s for awhile but he’s now 147g a week old today, I can see his little peepers starting to attempt to open. I feel like the gad drops maybe did a little something but I’m just unsure. If something comes up I’ll just take him back to our er vet. But so far so good, he’s a fighter.
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If you remember puddles she’s now 6 1/2 weeks old she’s beautiful, spunky, and such a little spitfire she loves her big bro po cat. I did have a playpen for her but by some magic the wee thing kept jumping out and I figure to avoid harm to her let her have more space.. aka the whole room po is super gentle with her and is so happy to have another cat around I couldn’t be happier with puddles she’s come a very long way. She’s 1.5lb now she’s almost fully on regular food now with a bottle only once in awhile. She’s just a big girl she can have regular litter now and OH does she L-O-V-E toys. She is just amazing. I’m incredibly smitten with her.

 

[catmom102618]

How is your Gus doing? did you end up changing formulas?

 

[Cattycoves]

How is your Gus doing? did you end up changing formulas?

Yes!! I changed over to breeders edge and at first (23rd &24th) I was really nervous because he hadn’t pooped since I changed it and I thought I made a poor choice doing that because he just wasn’t going anymore but to be fair he was having diarrhea every feeding with Kmr, so I called the er vet and spoke with the same doctor who saw him the other day for his gut (which by the way is completely normal now) and she said to give it a day or so I was a bit skeptical but I said alright I’ll see what happens low and behold!! at his 12pm feeding he had a poo! And it was normal!!! At least I think anyways lol it’s like a paste, He’s 172g now his little peepers are opening gussy is doing very well incredibly active and still responsive. I can’t talk much around him anymore he thinks it’s time to eat again gussy really is a fighter

second picture is him demanding his bottle

 

[cmshap]

gussy really is a fighter

This is all great news. I love fighters.

My cat Willy was a fighter before I found him, or he wouldn't have survived long enough to be rescued. He endured starvation and other illnesses while outside as a young cat, but fought his way back.

Glad your kitten is doing well!

 

[kashmir64]

I’m not familiar with the formula in your picture.
Walmart carries goat milk and also the PetAg powdered formula in the can

This is exactly what I was going to suggest. Use the powder but instead of mixing with water, mix with goats milk.
I'm personally a little concerned with the color of the poop. I'm having flashbacks of when mine were 14 days old. (they were found in a bowl on the hwy at 10 days). But the Giardia that they had was more orange. Keep an eye on the color of the poop.

You are doing very well with him.

BTW, they were able to be wormed at 14 days with a mild powder wormer I just mixed with their milk. Unfortunately, my old mind just can't remember which wormer, but ask your vet and worm as soon as he is able to withstand it.