To ensure its survival, a newborn kitten needs to consume enough nourishment. However, on occasion, a mother cat becomes unwell and is unable to care for her young, or she rejects a kitten from the litter due to a condition or disability.
The kitten should be placed face down on your lap. This typically entails bottle-feed your newborn kittens until it is strong enough to eat regular cat food.
How to Prepare Your Kitten for Bottle Feeding
Depending on its size and health, your newborn kitten will require nine to twelve feedings every day. Throughout its first two weeks of life, you should prepare to feed the kitten every two hours during the day and every four hours at night.
If you wish to bottle-feed the kitten, you’ll need to gather a few supplies. While most pet stores provide newborn kitten bottles, nipples, and commercial formula developed especially for kittens, normal human baby bottles will likely be too big for them. If your kitten is a preemie, you will need to dropper-feed it until it is strong enough to sip from the bottle. Always be sure to talk to your veterinarian if this is the case.
What you need
- Kitten’s nipples and bottles as a newborn
- Dropper, if necessary (if needed)
- Kitchen scale, the kitten diet Soft washcloths and towels
Prepare the formula.
Like with human babies, it’s essential to feed your cat from sterile bottles and to warm the formula before feeding it to the kitten. If you take the time to carefully prepare everything, each dinner will go a little more smoothly.
- Sterilize the baby bottles and nipples in a hot water bath for about five minutes. Let them air dry on a clean cloth before using.
- If a nipple is being used, make a little hole on the tip of it. To stop the formula from escaping too quickly, keep the opening as small as possible. Cuticle scissors are used to remove the tip of the nipple. When held upside down, the formulation should pour out.
- Place a large towel, a washcloth, and a bowl of warm water next to a comfortable chair on a table.
- Combine kitten formula and pour it into a bottle as directed on the box.
- You can warm the formula by placing the bottle in the bowl of hot water.
- You should apply a few drops of water on your forearm to check the temperature. Body temperature is the ideal temperature; if something burns, it’s too hot.
Give the kitty some formula.
Take a seat in the chair with a towel folded in your lap. The kitten should be placed face down on your lap. You can cover the kitten in the towel to keep it warm as it eats.
Without moving the kitten’s head, place the nipple in its mouth. The kitten should instinctively start sucking right away. Feed the kitten until it begins to pull away.
Increased Elimination
To stimulate elimination, the mother cat licks the anuses and vaginal area of her kittens with her rough tongue. By using a warm, damp washcloth to the same approximate area and gently cleaning, you can mimic this procedure. Wipe gently; rubbing the area too vigorously will irritate the delicate skin there. Don’t give up; it can take a few feedings to start seeing benefits. It can take much longer to urinate.
Sleeping the kitten
Your kitty will probably go asleep after nursing. Put the kitten in a warm cat bed and leave it alone while it sleeps.
The Kitten Burps
Kittens need to be burped after nursing, much like newborn humans do. The most effective approach to do this is to gently touch the kitten’s top back while placing one hand under the kitten’s belly. But be gentle—you don’t want to make the kitty throw up. Don’t worry if it doesn’t burp right away; just on to the following action.
Tips
- Whether using a bottle or a dropper, feeding your kitten properly is essential. Aspiration of formula into the kitten’s lungs via raising its head or putting too much formula in its mouth could be fatal. Pay attention, and let the activities of the cat serve as your guide.
- Check the nipple once more if your cat isn’t sucking or is having problems receiving milk. To trigger the nursing reflex, you can also try softly rubbing the animal on the back or petting its head.
- To keep track of your kitten’s growth, weigh it every day on a kitchen scale that is covered with a fresh towel. For the first two weeks, it should gain half an ounce per day. Call your veterinarian right away and ask for guidance if your kitten doesn’t make any progress. Your kitten might require IV supplemental feeding.
If you suspect your pet is sick, call your vet immediately. For health-related questions, always consult your veterinarian, as they have examined your family pet, know the pet’s health history, and may make the best recommendations for your pet.
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