Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Orphaned kittens
Although we are a tiny organization, we can often find ourselves caring for literally dozens of kittens all at the same time. The other day one of my colleagues, Angie, was asked to take a litter of three new-born kittens whose mother had rejected them - poor thing, she was only a kitten herself (six months) and couldn't cope. This meant the kittens all had to be hand-fed. Angie is very good at this and loves doing it, but it is a huge amount of work. They need to be fed from something like an eye-dropper or a doll's feeding bottle - something small they will suck from. Cow's milk is NOT suitable - a special replacement formula must be obtained from the vet. In the first two weeks of life they need to be fed at least five times daily but Angie sometimes finds she is up most of the night! They often take a very long time to finish so by the time all three are done, it is time to start again!
After feeding it is necessary to clean the area under the kitten's tail with a piece of damp towelling, to stimulate it to urinate and defecate. This is what the mother would normally do, and it mimics the action of her tongue.
Sometimes despite her best endeavors, she will lose a kitten, but many of Angie's hand-rears grow up to be healthy cats!
After feeding it is necessary to clean the area under the kitten's tail with a piece of damp towelling, to stimulate it to urinate and defecate. This is what the mother would normally do, and it mimics the action of her tongue.
Sometimes despite her best endeavors, she will lose a kitten, but many of Angie's hand-rears grow up to be healthy cats!
# posted by bizwrite @ 7:49 AM
