Friday 12 April 2013

How To Take Care Of A New Born Kitten

9 comments
I have written these post on my personal experience of fostering a new born kitten.


How to take care of a new born kitten
My Kitten (Tinu)
A new born kitten, like most animal lovers know are very vulnerable to many small things which may skip our mind as a potentially deadly element for the kitten. I would like to share some of the important factors that may come in handy while taking care of a kitten, specially when fostering an abandoned kitten still dependent on its mother.

1. Body Temperature:
A new born kitten is very much dependent on its mother to be kept warm and this would be the first thing to check. You can check its temperature by touching its stomach. A warm belly implies good health whereas a cold belly means need of immediate attention.

a. You can fill a hot bag with warm water to be placed besides the kitten providing it with warmth.
OR
b. You can hang an electric bulb at sufficient height over the box in which the kitten is placed.

PS: Replace the water in the hot bag according to need. If using an electric bulb, be sure to switch it ON and OFF to maintain the temperature so that the kitten doesn't get dehydrated.

2. What to Feed:

People get very confused as to what can be fed to a new born kitten. Many may have come across the idea of feeding it Cow milk, honeyed water or sugar sweetened water. What people don't know is that this may lead to the death of the kitten as their tiny body is not yet developed to digest these products.

Instead you can buy a pack of Nestle Lactogen 1 milk powder and administer it to the kitten in luke warm water (read the instruction on the box). Be sure to feed it 2 - 4 ml at a regular interval of 2 hrs. Increase the quantity of the feed as it grows.

PS: While using a bottle or a dropper make sure you sterilize it in boiling water for a couple of minute.

3. Throwing out the waste:

Many don't know the fact that a kitten does not urinate on its own till its a bit older. The mother cat licks the genitals with her rough tongue to stimulate the excretory system causing the kitten to urinate. So, you have to replicate this action using a piece of warm wet cloth and rubbing it slowly at the genitals. It may take a minute or two for the kitten to pee.

PS: Use a good piece of cloth to avoid infection.

4. Other Precautions:

Kittens are very cute and these may lead to their downfall as people love touching their nose and letting them suckle on your finger or even kissing them. These may lead to infection. So, please be careful till they grow a bit and then you can cuddle them all you want.

I tried to cover what I knew. If you think I missed out on something please take a moment to comment and also share it as it may save a kitten.


9 comments:

  1. Krishna Sharma11 May 2013 at 11:22

    This post has been really useful. I did not know that the mother cat makes the kitten urinate by licking. The lack of just this information can be fatal to the kitten.

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    Replies
    1. The cat i have found in my hostel is very small. And I don't know where is its mother. I have no idea about feedin a cat. Will lactogen 1be a good choice??

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  2. after reading this post, i got to know a lot about kitties!!

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  3. Hi folks.,
    I recently bought two pairs f love birds. Two blue color cere and two has white color cere. Green love bird (blue cere) is always being loved by the other three (two white &blue cere) . If one s getting loved by green bird others are getting possessive and they r fighting for the green bird. Even the blue cere bird s behind the green bird (blue cere) . I'm confused did I buy the correct sex f birds and 'll they really pair up ?

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  4. Is lactogen 1 safe for kittens as cats are lactose intolerant

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  5. Whelping box This is my first time visit to your blog and I am very interested in the articles that you serve. Provide enough knowledge for me. Thank you for sharing useful and don't forget, keep sharing useful info:

    ReplyDelete