they both look gorgous! Way to go on those two. I think that we will all see a huge change in the way people in Taiwan treat their pets, it may take a bit of time, but I know you guys are making a huge difference.
This is our first time taking care of kittens this young – they’re less than one week old. We’ve had them checked by the vet, who says they seem healthy, and they’re on special kitten formula. We’ve got soft cloths to keep them warm, and a hot pad on low next to, not under, their box, so they can move away from it if they want. They’re feeding every couple hours, energetically competing for the nipple, and they’re pooping fine. Two males and one female. [color=#BF0080]Is there anything else we should know? [/color]
Don’t feed them on their back like a human baby, feed them on their front like a cat, or the milk may go the wrong way.
And rub them underneath at the back with a folded up tissue to encourage it to come out the other end. The mother would usually do that by licking.
[quote=“Big Fluffy Matthew”]Don’t feed them on their back like a human baby, feed them on their front like a cat, or the milk may go the wrong way.
And rub them underneath at the back with a folded up tissue to encourage it to come out the other end. The mother would usually do that by licking.[/quote]
Thanks for the tip on feeding them.
I already helped them with their big p and small ps, not by licking, of course. 
Thanks, BFM. So far so good. We’ve had them since 1:30pm today. We have them at a constant 29 degr. C, and are weighing them and monitoring their intake. The three have eaten more than the formula lists for the average, although that was mostly two of them. Originally there were four, abandoned in a box left on a scooter. 
Down to three now, Bandito, Negrito and the weakest one, Sox. C’mon Sox, you can make it!
I’ve hand reared a lot of kitties in the past couple years. Just finished rearing some a few weeks ago. You can’t feed them much more than the recommended amount or they’ll have really bad poops. It’s just too hard on their little systems if they intake too much. Feed little bits but often. At this age, every 1.5 - 2 hours they’ll need a feed.
I agree that KMR is the best powdered kitty milk out there. But the very best you could do for these kitties would be to quickly contact an animal rescue org and ask them if they have a lactating queen. If they are all taking the bottle then you are very lucky! If they don’t take to the bottle very quickly, then their chances of making it thru the night are slim. If Sox doesn’t get enough milk you may have to use a syringe to feed him. Be very careful how much you squirt into his mouth, tho. Add a tiny bit of Karo if you have, to the milk. It’s like glucose and will give him a bit of a boost.
Great job! The very best of luck with those three cuties!
EDIT: added photos
First there were 4 (approx 7 days old):
Then there were 2 (Little Burrito and Pumpkin at 4 weeks old):
Now there is 1 (Pumpkin at 6 weeks old):
Do not let your other cat near them. At that age, it’s really tough without the mom.Their immune system is next to nothing. Wash your hands before handling, them, etc.
The very best of luck to the Bones family.
marboulette
Thanks, Ladybird! Those are some real cuties, too!
We’re feeding them about every 2 hours. We’re not trying to urge the two good eaters to eat more, but they just seem naturally very active and hungry. They’re pooping ok, though. They seem quite vigorous and healthy, so we’re not too worried about them. We’ll keep an eye on the recommended amount, though.
We’re much more worried about the weak one, Sox, who’s not eating the recommended amount – maybe half or a third of it. They are all taking the bottle; it’s just that Sox is very reluctant. We are managing to get the tip into his mouth and then a gentle squeeze of the bottle puts a bit in his mouth, as a syringe would, and (easy does it!) we give him no more than he can manage to swallow. He sometimes sucks at it weakly and sometimes doesn’t suck at all, but he’ll swallow what we inject. If he remains reluctant we’ll add a touch of Karo – thanks for the tip! We’re giving them frequent, gentle massages in the hopes that this will simulate a mother’s tongue baths. I was thinking a toothbrush would simulate the roughness of a mum’s tongue, while remaining gentle. I’ll try that tomorrow. So far so good. It will be a long night for the first few nights, though, as we’re assuming we should get up at least every 2-3 hours to feed them all night long.
We’re using a French-made Ormilak kitten formula designed for this purpose. I hope it’s ok. Damn, these little things are cute. And so fragile!
Thanks marboulette, that’s good advice too. We figured that they’re not getting their mum’s antibodies, so we’ve had them isolated from our diabolical trio from the get-go, and we’re washing hands before and after. When we picked them up, we thought about the low survival rate at this age, which we were already aware of thanks to hanging out with good people like you, havilina, littleyellowdog, straymutt, ukbikerchic and their ilk, and tried to identify some potential causes: not taking to the bottle, lack of antibodies, temperature, lack of stimulation, and so on. I’ve tried to prepare Dragonbabe for the likelihood of one or two not making it, as well. She’s a softie, y’know.
I hear ya. The first two pictured above never made it past the first night. They just wouldn’t eat. It was especially hard on Ladybird because the two remaining ones were doing really well for over two weeks. Their eyes opened and soon after they were ripping around the room like kittens do. But they suddenly came down with a cough and the weakest one of the two passed away within 4 days despite being looked after by our best vet. We buried him in our backyard and Ladybird bought a Franjipani(SP?) tree and we will plant it there.
From reading your posts, it sounds like you guys are just about as informed as we are on the subject, if not more. I think the kitties are in as good hands as they can be short of being in an incubator, and then again, you are also controlling the temperature. You’re doing great, guys. There is only so much you can do, and I think you’re doing it all. Fingers crossed for Sox. 
Get as much sleep as you can between feedings, and take them to the vet as soon as you wonder if you should. Keep us posted.
On a positive note, Marmalade, the kitty in the OP (Yes, I am bobepine), made it, thanks to Ladybird, and she is now our cat(she never made it onto the adoption list). Maybe we’ll post pics later, although it’s embarrassing because she’s too fat. 
marboulette
Here she is
And here’s what Marmalade has to say about that 
LOL. I like Marmalade’s attitude. What a winner!
Got some questions here about kittens. Found one two days ago and it’s been so long I’ve had one I’ve forgotten what it’s like.
According to the vet, he’s one month old. He supposedly can eat food, but I was thinking if it could help if I gave him kitten milk too, or is it unnecessary? AFAIK, kittens keep on drinking from the mother’s faucet until, well, she is pissed off and bails them out.
He lapped some human baby food the firts day, but lasta night and today he was not having anything, so I gave him some broth with a dropper. I’m concerned about dehydration -actually, right now I am worried sick because he has no water in his isolation cage, as he tended to immerse his whole body.
The meowing is also a bit cumbersome. Any ideas on how to minimize the sound machine?
Thank you for any suggestions.
ps.
He’s really cute, and as soon as he’s plump and ready I’ll be giving him to a good home. Really, there is no way he can stay with 4 adult cats 10 times his size and a blind dog. So pass the word. He’s a tuxedo cat, with a touch of Angora.
You probably know all this since you already have 4 cats but here goes…
I’m guessing that he’s meowing because he misses his mommy, he’s hungry or he’s got gas.
If he’s not taking the kitty milk, then try a few other things. At 1 month old, I start to offer them a variety of foods along with kitty milk to see what they like but not dry kibbles; too hard to digest for a 1 month old kitty. I use a canned food that is specially for kittens under 45 days old and I haven’t had a kitten refuse it yet. I don’t know the name but I can find out and let you know. Another option is to feed human baby food like you have been but dilute it with milk. I use the Gerber chicken and gravy and they all seem to like it. I use a syringe or dropper if they are getting dehydrated and I may add a small drop of Karo to the mix. I’ll give them small doses of this several times a day. And a third option is to soften some kitten kibbles in water or kitty milk. I offer all 3 at once and see what they like best then stick with that for a while.
If you think he’s meowing because he missed his mom, you could try to put a small, soft teddy bear next to him in a little box. I use a tissue box lined with a towel and put a small soft toy in there and kitties usually find it very cozy and curl up quietly.
If you think he’s meowing because he has gas/ bloating, try using a warm, damp cloth to rub his belly. It will feel like his mom is cleaning him and it may clear up any gas he has.
Great job on the rescue! Hope this helps.
Natasha@BARK-Taiwan.org
wow… good thing to know in case i ever rescue a cat !!! i have no idea about cats…
thx Ladybird and nice job Icon
The last kitten I rescued is now 7 years old… I’m a bit rusty.
Well, I went to buy the kitten milk, but it was a bit too expensive. Furthermore, the clerk introduced me to the canned kitten food, and I decided to give it a try as Tuxedo Kitten -no name yet- was having Gerber’s baby food.
Absolute success. I had the lack of mind to put it on my finger and kitty almost ate through it. 
Auch. Anyway, he had like a teaspoon yesterday -the vet warned me about overfeeding, some broth in the middle of the night, and again some more kitty canned food this morning. So, him eating seems not a problem.
In general, he’s very active and evergetic, looks fine and healthy to me. I have also discovered that he meows if he sees me or hears loud noises -like the dog barking. So basically if everything’s silent, he’s too.
Poor thinghie, I guess he misses his mama and really needs some company.
Question:
Kitty -now Mittens- keeps on waking me up at 3 or 4 am. He’s not hungry, he’s not cold, he wants out of his isolation chamber (his crate, quite big if I may say, Toto was in it).
Any ideas? He looks OK, has been doing his #1 and #2 regularly, does not seem in pain, but does not stop meowing when I hold him.
Any help will be appreciated. I already took two days to finish a video transcription, and at the rate things are going, I will soon not be responsible for what I write… and the neighbors are not happy, either.
Does he stop meowing after you cradle him in your arms for several minutes? Some animals don’t stop making noise immediately because they’re excited to have gotten your attention, but then they settle down into contentment. Our current three fosters (age 9 days) get even more excited when picked up and held, then quiet down after being fed, having their bellies stroked, being stimulated to eliminate, and then being held and stroked and cuddled again. It takes a couple minutes for them to settle down. They also quiet down more after all of that if they are covered with a towel while being cradled.
Oh, I want my sleep back. 
[quote=“Dragonbones”]
Oh, I want my sleep back. [/quote] Only 9 days… Not going to happen for a while yet. Icon, what dragonbones said. The kitty may also have gas, and stroking the belly toward the tail might help passing them. A warm cloth works well. You could try keeping him in a bathroom at night to give him more room to roam around. That should also help keeping the noise down a bit.
marboulette
One of ours, Sox, is only taking 2-3ml of formula at each feeding (sometimes just ONE!). He/she was originally the smallest, weakest one too. While Sox has gained a little weight (now at 160 gms, 9 days old), this is also slower than what online sources say. We feed Sox very often, though, to try to make up for this, and adding the record up, I see that he/she consumes about 43ml of forumula per day. That’s not too bad, is it? Sox seems active, has a plump belly, and purrs a lot when cuddled – essentially healthy in appearance and behavior, except for being small and slower to grow. How worried should I be? Is this just a healthy but small one?
EDIT: Just back from the vet, who says Sox seems ok, and maybe he/she’s just a small one.
He’s the runt. With continued good care as he has been receiving, his chances are just about as good as the bigger ones. Just don’t get lazy about sanitation and quarantine from the other felines until all of them are much stronger and fully adapted to eating on their own. Preferably until they are old enough to be vaccinated.
My 2 cents.
marboulette
[quote=“marboulette”][quote=“Dragonbones”]
Oh, I want my sleep back. [/quote] Only 9 days… Not going to happen for a while yet. Icon, what dragonbones said. The kitty may also have gas, and stroking the belly toward the tail might help passing them. A warm cloth works well. You could try keeping him in a bathroom at night to give him more room to roam around. That should also help keeping the noise down a bit.
marboulette[/quote]
Thanks DB and Marb for the advice.
Well, the crate is quite big (over 1 meter long, 1 meter wide), but he still wants out.
I know he’s lonely and probably bored, poor thing. He’s already in the bathroom at night. That means Toto barks at the door. :no-no: At 3 am. Me no happy. I can make Toto stop barking but kitty goes on meowing on and on and on… :no-no:
He looks pretty strong, big belly. Eats like a horse.