Please Help!

ninjitsukitty

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A few days ago, during work, a co-worker of my boyfriend's brought in a tiny kitten. It had been outside dodging traffic in the pouring rain. They brought it to the SPCA and they were going to put it down so my boyfriend took it in. I am not a good judge of cats, so I don't know how old it is. It's eyes are open and it can eat dry kitten food, but it is awfully small. The poor thing must have been abandoned or lost, because it is so -terribly- skinny.

My questions are:

#1. It is awfully smelly, and it's rump is quite messy. It might have gotten into something, so we thought that at the risk of it being mangy, we should bathe it gently today. The only thing is, we don't have cat/kitten shampoo. Would simple mild soap be alright? Or just lukewarm water? Also, would it be dangerous/bad to use Dog shampoo?

#2. How can I tell if the kitten is wild? It is litter trained, and very friendly, although it is quite skittish and hasn't come out of it's box since it ate. I am assuming that since it is very cuddly that it isn't wild, and simply got lost.

Any tips/help would be much appreciated. Thank you.
 

hissy

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First off I would get the kitten to a vet and have him check it over and test it for standard dieseases. He will also be able to help you with a good diet program to put weight on if it is healthy. Until you know the age of the kitten (the vet will tell you) it wouldn't be a good idea to use any type of shampoo on the kitten. You can use a few drops of DAWN dishwashing lotion in warm water, but kittens catch their death of cold easily so you have to be sure to keep this little one warm after you bathe it. I use towels cycling in the drier when I bathe young ones and keep them snuggled to me afterward until they stop shivering.

But really the wisest thing to do is to take this kitten to the vet.
 
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