I have a young kitten that was left between my kitchen stove and counter top two days ago. I have been trying to let it lap or lick some milk but no luck. The eyes are not open but I do see some black area so it is only a matter of time before the eyes open. I take a paper towel and wet it with water and milk then stick it in it's mouth and hope he takes some in. The kitten does not seem to be starving or hungry. The mother is sneaking in late at night through plumbing under my bathroom vanity. I have heard another kitten cry but it was muffled and probably outside under the place. I have no idea why this one kitten was left alone unless the mother was in the middle of moving more. I hate to set it back due to so many strays and Toms not to mention other assorted animals. I tried finding a bottle of eye drops that I could put milk in and see if it would try and take it from the bottle but no luck, after trying that it still does not take anything by mouth. Any other suggestions as to how you would feed one so young. I never had any trouble with young kittens in the past but they did have their eyes open and all I had to do was put a thin layer of milk onto a plate and just set them on the plate, they knew right away what to do. I hate to see the little cat die from starvation.
You could get a baby bottle with a nipple and press the nipple to it's mouth. I'm not a pet owner so that's my thought. It would probably go for it's mother's teat right off I am assuming.
If it were me, I would search for the other kitten, make sure that it is in a safe place and then move the kitten that is in the house to the same place that the other kitten is at. I am not sure why the mother cat is keeping them in separate places, if she can come in at night and feed the one in the house. As long as the mother cat is feeding the kitten, then you should not need to feed it yourself; but if you do have to do that, you can get the little plastic eyedropper like they use for babies, or go to a pet store and get a small bottle made for feeding infant pets.
So far the little kitten is hanging in there. I have been able to get a small amount of water and milk into it's mouth. It seems to be learning how to lap my finger so hopefully it will survive long enough to eat on it's own. One person mentioned getting a baby bottle but I'm afraid the mouth is much too small for a baby bottle tip. I have much better luck just using the paper towel with a good twist to make it smaller. That is getting some nourishment into it's system. I've noticed no matter if kittens are sleeping they still cry. It's like a built in beacon for a mother cat provided by mother nature. Not so good on humans trying to sleep heh
Maybe try an eye dropper from an old bottle of medicine? And some broth (without salt) instead of milk? Sometimes cows milk doesn't agree with cats. It seems to depend on the cat. Good luck, Thomas.
Good luck with the kitten, Thomas. I was thinking the same as Nancy; that you might need some different type of food for the little one. A vet or a pet store might have some type of "milk" that is better suited to a kitten.
A syringe Without a needle may be a good option as well ( if needed ) here in Aussie land we can buy them in several sizes from a chemist . Any I’ve bought have never had needles in them ( I’ve used them to give medicines to pets via mouth as well as ear drops ) @Thomas Stillhere
I got broth and two small syringes and that worked great. It was easy to get some nutrients into it's mouth, also more water but not to much. She's sleeping now and quiet and later today I will give her a bit more. Probably will keep it, hard to find good mice traps. The neighbor kids little cat is jealous now because he isn't able to take his nap on my bed as usual. I call him lightening because he never misses a mouse, such keen hearing too. If one is sneaking about he can be stretched out napping and his ears pop up.
That worked like a charm, got unsalted broth and gave it a little not over doing it. The right eye is opening more after I put a little water on it yesterday and this morning. I think it might have received a claw below the eye because it was swollen just a bit and may be the reason this eye was slow to open. Now that it will get nourishment she will soon be able to eat and see.
Sad news this morning, at 3:20am my little sweet kitty passed. Everything seemed to be alright yesterday after I gave her a little broth. I lay down and put her on my chest under my chin and we rested almost 4 hours. She started going downhill around 3pm and it progressed until she passed. I actually think she might have had kidney failure the way she acted, losing breath and gasping, only difference is she wasn't bloated but then she is just a week and possibly some days old. We have rain forecast this morning but if it holds off I will have to run to the hardware store and get a shovel. I could have had a lot of company with the little kitten.. My last dog has been gone over a year and she was born deaf so I brought her home from work so she wouldn't get slaughtered on the road in front. It was especially hard to have a totally deaf dog because I couldn't take her with me in the truck cab, she just would go crazy and barked at everything. I knew when she was gone that was the last pet I will have. I am too old to try and take proper care of another. I never liked the idea of dying and leaving a pet behind to be abused or worse. Not many people here take care of their dogs, they let them stay out in freezing cold and feed them when they happen to think about it. I would never wish my dog to be treated like that. A cat is pretty resourceful and can adapt better especially in cold weather, they can find those warm heated cubby holes like hot water heater nacks and such.
Aww... I'm sorry to hear that Thomas. They say mama cats can sense when a newborn is not healthy and not likely to survive, and will abandon them. Maybe that's what happened to this little one. We had a cat do that once to a litter that appeared to be slightly underdeveloped. Maybe premature. The little kitty was lucky you found it and took care of it. You did all you could.
@Thomas Stillhere - so sorry for your loss of little kitty. You are a very caring and nurturing person, maybe you have met you late life calling in caring for sickly and wounded animals.
Update on the kittens, got 3 healthy ones now and pretty sure that is all of the litter. I kept hearing one when I would go into the kitchen to make coffee. Finally I looked down the narrow space between the stove and counter and was able to get two and get them in a nice box and fed. It was next morning before I finally was able to find the other, the mother had moved it after finding two were missing. They are healthy eyes open and eat well from the syringe, the larger one is already able to eat from a small coffee container lid. The other two are smaller and have not been able to understand about eating from the lid. The big one is really pretty, dark black stripes mixed with a lighter dark color but it has white booties. The first one I was able to get is already climbing up onto my bed, hard to believe they climb so well to be so young. I have to be very careful when I let them scamper about to exercise, my knees won't bend and I have a hard time walking around them. They love to be near me and get under my rolling chair so I have to look under the chair all four corners before I move. It won't be long and they will be old enough to chill.