Rory's Guide to Raising Orphaned Kittens

I'm no expert at this yet, but here's a bit of information I've picked up by being an handraised kitten myself!   Take from it what you can, and explore other resources too.  The link from the main page is a terrific place to go after reading this!
 

So, you've come across a feral or abandoned kitten.  The first thing you need to do is BE CAREFUL WHEN CAPTURING IT.   I can't stress this enough.  If it's big enough to be challenging to catch, then it's big enough to hurt you pretty badly.   Feral kittens need to quickly learn to fear humans for their own survival.  Their moms teach them this well and early.  If you're dealing with a barely mobile 3-4 week old kitten, this isn't such a big deal.  The kitten may hiss at you and try to act fierce.  You'll probably be ok if you just pull up the hem of your shirt and tuck the kitten in there.   But an 8-10 week old kitten can give you a very nasty bite if it's frightened.  Use utmost caution.  Try traps rather than hand-catching them.

The next thing to determine is whether or not capturing the kitten is a good idea.  This is a hard one for my mama, who feels very bad taking little kittens when their mamas are alive, well, and taking good care of them.  After all, the best mama for a kitten is a cat, and the best food for any baby is their own mama's milk.  The mortality rate for bottlefed, people-raised newborn kittens (about birth - ten days) is very high.  On the other hand, a feral kitten left with a feral mama is probably going to live a very miserable life.  Most do not live to adulthood, males will have to fight to the death for territory, females will have to endure un-ending pregnancies and litters, and there are the dangers of cars, cruel people, and disease to contend with too.  And of course, the cycle of feral breeding cats will continue.   It  is also very hard to catch and tame kittens if you wait until they are really old enough to leave their moms.   A great solution to this is to capture both the mama and her kittens while they are young and have her raise the kittens herself, but this can be difficult to do, especially on the spur of the moment, when you don't happen to have a trap on you.    So the best advice I can give in this case is to capture the kittens even if the mom is around if their eyes have opened.   If the eyes have not yet opened and mama cat is still around, consider whether you will be able to keep an eye on the babies and capture them at a later date (keeping in mind mama may move them).  If this seems quite likely, maybe you'll decide to let them be for a week.  If not, then it's probably better to take them now.  But please, if it all possible, take mama too.  And remember, even if you take the kittens without the mother, she needs to be spayed as soon as possible.  If you've found your kitten in a dumpster or other such place, then this is not an issue.  Just get that kitten taken care of as quickly as possible!

Age

It'll be important to know how old your kitten(s) are.  The guidelines for determining this vary on the source you're looking at.  The best way to find out will be to take your kitten as soon as possible to be examined by a vet, who can tell you the age.   But in all likelihood you may not be able to make an immediate appointment, so here's a very rough guide.
 

• Eyes shut, ears flat, umbilical cord sometimes attached -  under one week
• Eyes opening - 10 days
• Wobbly walking - 3 weeks
• Walking, jumping, pouncing - 4-5 weeks

Warmth

The first thing to do upon finding a kitten is to get it warm.  Hold the kitten to your body, wrapped in the hem of your shirt.  As soon as possible, set the baby up with a hot water bottle or heating pad set on low.  Cover the heat source with a towel or blanket to avoid placing the kitten directly on it.  Make sure that the kitten can move off the heat source if it gets too warm. Only if the kitten is warm should you attempt to feed it.
 

Feeding

Before the age of 3-4 weeks, kittens will need to be bottlefed, unless you can find a nursing mama cat who can be the kitten's "wet nurse".  Cow's milk is for baby cows, not baby cats.   It can give a kitten diarrhea which is very dangerous.  Use a kitten formula like KMR or Just Born, which should be available in pet stores.  Either the powdered or the liquid forms are ok, but my mama thinks the liquid smells much better (it costs more too!).  You'll also need a nursing bottle, also available in the pet store.  You need to make the hole in the tip of the nipple.  The technique for doing this is a point of contention, depending on which source you get your information from.  My mama's experience was that, rather than a pinprick hole, she needed to use scissors to make a small 'X' in the nipple.  The pinprick was just too small and I couldn't extract any milk from the bottle that way.  Be sure that milk does not run out of the hole you've made in the nipple.  You don't want a fast flow to cause your kitten to aspirate milk into its lungs!! A very slow drip is ok when the bottle is held upside down.

Hold the kitten with its tummy down, not cradled like a human baby, as you give it the bottle.  Make sure the formula is warm but not hot.  My mama liked to place me on her chest and let me kneed while I sucked from my bottle.  Put a dab of the milk on the kitten's lips to give it the idea.  Nuzzle, snuggle and pet the kitten while it feeds.  You can use the directions on the formula container as a guide for how much to feed, and you can also take your cue from your kitten.  Stop when it doesn't want to suck anymore.  It's abdomen should look plump afterwards, but not ridiculously large.  Make sure to pat its back after it finishes until you hear a burp!  As for feeding frequency, my mama fed me on demand, and at least once during the night even if I didn't wake her up (she set an alarm).  Really young kittens may feed as often as every 2 hours.  Older kittens may be able to go up to 6 hours, and may not need night feedings.  Watch your kitten closely to see how it responds to its feeding schedule, and adjust accordinly.

If the kitten is reluctant to feed:  This was a big problem for me!  I just did not want to drink from that bottle after having 2 weeks of the real thing from my cat mama!  There are several things to try.  You can wait a couple hours and try again, since the kitten may have recently fed from its mom and just not be hungry.  You can put a dab of corn syrup on the kittens lips to give it a jump start of blood sugar and to get its hunger going.  If these fail, you can use a syringe (without the needle) to put milk into its mouth.  Be very careful to go slowly with this method.  Too much milk can cause the kitten to aspirate liquid into its lungs.  If all else fails, seek the advice of a vet - my mama and daddy ended up at an emergency vet with me, since it was a Friday night and no regular vets were open.  They were very kind and helpful.

If the kitten is 3-4 weeks, try some formula or some canned kitten food in a dish and see if the kitten understands what to do.  It may take to this immediately and your job will be easier.  However, keep in mind that a kitten who doesn't complete its "sucking quota" (that is, one that is prematurely weaned from nursing or bottlefeeding) may develop a sucking fixation later, sucking blankets, other pets, its own nipples, your hair, etc.   If it seems to want to suck, I recommend you let it bottlefeed.  This doesn't guarantee it won't develop a longlasting sucking habit because of the premature weaning from the mother, but it may help.

If you've been bottlefeeding your kitten, you can begin to introduce solid food around 4 weeks.  Follow your kitten's lead with this.  If it really prefers the bottle, don't withhold it.  Let it take its time getting used to big kitten food.  Remember that the first introductions to solid food are just that - introductions.   Use good quality canned kitten food.   You can mix a little formula into it to make it soupier.  If you want your kitten to eventually eat dry food, you can start this around 6-8 weeks.  Start by moistening it with water or formula, and you can gradually wean off this.

After you feed your kitten, clean its face with a damp cottonball or tissue.  There will most likely be milk on its face as well as a bit of eye goop when it squeezes its eyes shut in bliss as it sucks (a small amount of goop this is normal in young kittens - if it looks copious, it may be an eye infection and you should call your vet).   Mama cats lick their babies after they eat, and you should be trying to simulate what she would do.  This is how your kitten learns to keep itself clean.
 

Toileting

After being fed, the kitten needs help urinating and defecating.  Mama cats lick their babies' abdomens and genitalia to get them to go.  You can simulate this with a damp cottonball or cloth.  Get it nice and damp with warm water, hold the kitten's back, and rub it gently on its tummy and genitals with the cotton.  It can be tricky learning to rub vigorously enough to get the kitten to go, but gently enough not to cause irritation.  Check the area often to make sure you're not being too rough, and adjust accordingly.  It's also tricky figuring out exactly the motions to use to elicit elimination in the kitten.  Experiment a bit.  When you're successful, you'll see the cotton tinged with light yellow, or see it dripping on the floor.  I always squealed like the dickens during this operation, so don't be alarmed if this happens with your kitten.  Just be careful you're not being too rough.  Also, don't be alarmed if you don't see any feces for a few days.  This scared my mama a lot, but it turned out that I was fine.  If it's been awhile and you're worried, call a vet and maybe get an exam to ensure the kitten is not constipated.  You might also try feeding the kitten a bit of canned pumpkin off your finger.  This works as a laxative.  But the kitten probably just doesn't have to go.  I didn't really poop any significant amount for close to a week!

When it comes time for the litter box around 4 weeks, don't be overly concerned about "training" your kitten.  They are remarkable in how quickly they take to this, even without a mama cat to show them.  Provide a shallow litter pan, with sides short enough that your kitten can get in.  You can perform the toileting procedure described above while standing the kitten in the litter, and you can scratch its feet in the litter as well.  One day, your kitten will climb right in and do its business without a hitch, and you'll be amazed!  Don't be surprised if it doesn't cover its product - this instinct doesn't seem to kick in for a few weeks to come!  Make sure your kitten always has access to its box.  If it has an urgent need to go, and can't find its box, it may scurry off to a corner and do its business there.  Don't scold the kitten for this - it was just looking for a place to go.  Clean up the mess well so it doesn't think this new place is an appropriate place to go next time, and make sure the litter box is nearby from now on.  You will probably have to help your kitten clean itself after it uses its litter box at first.  They tend to step in their mess and forget to clean their rumps.  You can help out with a cottonball or a bit of toilet paper.  They'll get it eventually.

General care and socialization

This is a very important part of raising a little kitten.  The age of the kitten will affect how you need to approach socialization.  If it is a young kitten and is quick to accept you, love it and cuddle it as much as you can.  Remember that you're its surrogate mother and act accordingly.  Simulate as much cat behavior as you can.  Make sure you wipe the baby down with a warm damp towel often (like a mama cat's tongue), but be sure to keep it from becoming chilled.  Don't take the kitten out only to feed it, especially if its an "only child" and has no sibs to snuggle with.  Remember that its natural environment would be snuggled up with a warm mama and squirming siblings.  My mama liked to carry me around in her shirt, her overalls' bib pocket, or a makeshift sling as much as possible.  Pet and caress the kitten a lot.  Purr to it if you can!  Make it feel the way a kitten should feel - surrounded by body warmth and able to feel and hear a heartbeat.   Be careful if you take your kitten to bed with you (my mama did once I grew to about 3-4 weeks old!)  The kitten will crawl deep under your covers and snuggle up against you.  You don't want it to suffocate.  They're so tiny it's easy to lose them and squash them.  It's a good idea to put the kitten in a cat bed or box with low sides in your bed next to you, that way the kitten is protected by the sides of the cat bed but is still able to be close to you.  Or, if you're too nervous about the kitten being in your bed, just put it in its box with the heat source on the floor next to your bed.

Older kittens are trickier.  They will probably require taming.  There are many places on the web to learn about how to do this.  One such place is  here.

Special Care

Fleas can be a big problem with feral kittens.  They can cause anemia in a tiny kitten, so it's important to get rid of them if you see them.  But using over the counter flea dips and powders is
not safe for young kittens!  First try using a flea comb to comb the fleas out.  If this doesn't work, consult your vet.  If the kitten is old enough to tolerate a bath you might try my mama's trick - a warm bath using Dr. Bronner's Eucalyptus Castille Soap.  Fleas hate eucalyptus.  If you go this route, be sure to put a ring of soap around the kittens neck to keep the fleas from jumping onto its head to get away out of the water.  And be absolutely sure to keep the kitten warm!  It's so important not to allow the kitten to get chilled!
 

You'll want to get your kitten checked for diseases as soon as possible.  Feral kittens can carry all sorts of things.  On the other hand, my mama has found that the feral cats from my colony are Supercats - in order for us to have survived, we've developed immune systems that are seemingly impervious to everything!  But that's definitely not always the case, and a veterinary exam is in order as soon as possible.  If there are other cats in the household, you'll want to keep your kitten away from them until it has a clean bill of health.  Wash your hands and change your shirt after handling your kitten.

That's the basic information about handraising a little kitten!  Good luck in your endeavor, and thanks for caring about these tiny babies!
 

 Back to the main page