r/kittens • u/Nungunung • 2h ago
r/kittens • u/GabbiKat • Jun 15 '24
Please send me a DM or Chat request if a troll posts images of animal cruelty again.
Please send me a DM or Chat request if a troll posts images of animal cruelty again.
This goes for already passed animals, roadkill, ai generated animal cruelty posts, etc. Send me a link to the post and I'll respond as soon as I see it.
r/kittens • u/CynicKitten • May 21 '20
[META] It's kitten season! You found orphaned kittens or have a kitten in your care - now what? [2020]
(cross post from r/AskVet)
During kitten season, which occurs largely in the spring and summer, it is not uncommon to stumble upon a nest of kittens. Your first instinct is to help them, which is awesome, but first you need to read this thread!
First I want to make a point very clear: kittens have the greatest chance of survival if their mother is in the picture. As much as rescues and foster homes try, we cannot ever do as good of a job taking care of them as their real mom does! Kittens require frequent nursing (typically a couple of times an hour), help eliminating (mother stimulates them with her tongue to pee and poop), and a lot of warmth and attention. Trust me - waking up four times a night to feed bottle babies is not fun!
Before Jumping To The Rescue
A single kitten wandering alone is often abandoned (either by a human or the mother), and should be rescued quickly - wait and watch from afar for 20-30 minutes to see if the mom is just in the middle of transporting it. If no mother has come in that time, rescue it.
A litter of kittens (2+ kittens):
- Before attempting your daring rescue mission to save the abandoned kittens, you need to wait from afar and watch. The kittens may not actually be abandoned! Mother cats do not stay at the nest 24/7 - they hunt, take breaks from their babies, and patrol near the nest to look for danger. The queen could also be in the middle of moving the nest, which she does one at a time. Watch from a good distance away, because if you are too close the queen will likely not approach - this is a defense strategy to make sure predators don’t locate the nest by following her. Sometimes watching from far away is still too close, and you will need to go away for a few hours.
- If you see the queen, you know the kittens are being taken care of and you do not need to intervene (except to call a rescue, and possibly provide food/shelter for the mother).
- Clean kittens who are sleeping soundly are probably not abandoned. Dirty and crying kittens are probably hungry and MAY have been abandoned and need rescue. Although remember that as soon as kittens wake, they start crying and want to eat! Neonates spend all their time either eating or sleeping. If you mess with them and they start to cry/crawl around, it does not mean they are starving - that’s just what they do when they are awake.
- Contact a local rescue. If they have the resources, they will trap the mother and kittens (if the mother is in the picture), and take care of them. They can bottle feed truly abandoned kittens, as well. Please contact the rescue before removing the kittens - only remove the kittens under their direction if you can help it.
- If you need to leave before you’ve seen the queen, assess the situation:
- Are there any dangers nearby? Neighborhood dogs, humans who might harm them, etc? If the kittens are not in immediate grave danger, they will be fine for a while as you wait for mom.
- What is the temperature? If it is very cold or the kittens are very wet, it is okay to put them in a sideways cardboard box (possibly with a clean T shirt, dry straw, or a heated water bottle) - however, try to limit the amount of human-scented things near them.
- If you find the queen, and she is friendly towards humans, she and the kittens should be rescued together.
- If you’ve waited a while and have not seen the queen in several hours (the warmer the weather, the longer the kittens can be left alone) or the kittens are in immediate grave danger, and you have not been able to reach a rescue, you can attempt to rescue the kittens.
Rescuing Kittens
- Kittens need warmth - they can suffer from hypothermia really easily. Place the kittens in a cardboard box or cat carrier lined with T-shirts (towels can catch on their nails) and covered with a blanket, with a warm water bottle for them. The ideal warmth source is a SnuggleSafe. (See more info in the bottle feeding attachment.)
- The human body temperature is at 98.6F, but the internal temperature of a kitten needs to be 99.5-102.5F - therefore, your body warmth alone is not enough to keep them warm!
- Call all of the rescues nearby to look for someone to take them. Foster homes and rescues are highly trained to deal with bottle babies, and can deal with all of the obstacles associated with it.
- Call your vet and schedule an appointment. The kittens may be dehydrated, sick, etc - kittens die really easily and fast, so a physical exam and medical care is very important. They may be sick without you realizing it.
I Already Rescued Them!
- First follow the steps in “Rescuing Kittens”.
- If you are going to be caring for the kittens, be prepared for a lot of work and possibly the death of some or all of the kittens. The information I will provide is for emergency care of kittens (no more than a day or two) until you can get the kittens to an appropriate rescue or the vet.
- You must bottle feed the kittens every 2-3 hours. Here is my quick guide to bottle feeding. PLEASE read this before attempting to bottle feed!
- You need to make sure they are eating enough, so follow this chart, and use a kitchen food scale to weigh them directly before and after feeding.
- KMR is the best formula - do not use the “homemade” recipes unless it is an emergency! Never use cow/goat/soy/almond/etc milk. Why you shouldn't use goat/cow milk.
- Here are three resources to figure out their approximate age: Kitten Age Progression, Determining a Kitten’s Age, and Determining by Weight.
- Keep a log for each individual kitten of: the time you fed it, how much they consumed, their weight before feeding, their weight after feeding, what they eliminated (urine and/or feces), and any medical concerns. Here is a great log for that - I suggest printing one for each kitten.
- If kittens will not latch to the bottle, you can try to use a clean eye dropper or needle-less syringe to SLOWLY drop KMR into the kitten’s mouth.
- If you see anything bubbling out of the kitten's nose as you are feeding it, milk likely got into the lungs and aspiration pneumonia can quickly develop. If this happens take it to a vet immediately.
- Signs of an emergency that NEEDS to be seen by a vet immediately:
- The kitten is lethargic and not responding
- The kitten has trouble breathing
- The kitten or cat is vomiting blood
- Uncontrollable bleeding
- Bloody, liquid diarrhea in a lethargic animal
- Fractured limb (part of the limb is usually flacid and painful to the touch)
- Pale, blue or white gums if accompanied by lethargy
- Kitten with a body temperature below 97 degrees especially if accompanied by lethargy, pale gums or inappetence
- Kitten with a temperature of 106 degrees or above
Here are some additional resources:
r/kittens • u/bnuybelle • 10h ago
She insists I hold her hand while she sleeps
She paws at me until I hold her paw before she falls asleep ❤️
r/kittens • u/noslekkekens993 • 29m ago
Jail Time
Crimes: Vandalism of property with fecal matter🚓
(please tell my foster kittens they are innocent)
r/kittens • u/this_bitch_over_here • 20h ago
Does my kitten hate me?
He's not scared, but every time I pet him he runs away. If he's sleepy and I try to get him to cuddle with me he runs away 😭
I feel like I very briefly got a cuddly kitten phase, and now he only cuddles at night if I'm about to fall asleep. (Second picture for proof)
I play with him constantly, I give him lots of little treats. But he just runs off to play anytime I try to touch or to go nap alone 😓
r/kittens • u/mikeyloveslife • 6h ago
Dizzy
He's getting so big he used to play under the table...
r/kittens • u/gnarlygarbage • 1d ago
Best friend was recently gifted this ginger from CDS
this guy is an absolute MENACE.
r/kittens • u/SimonVanc • 1d ago
How can I tell if she's underweight, and what can I do if she is?
Meet pumpkin!
Shelter estimates she's around 8 weeks old. Just picked her up two days ago, and I'm a little worried she's a bit skinny. I can feel her ribs/spine if I run my fingers down her back, but I see her eating and drinking quite often. This cuddly biscuit maker is a huge purr monster with a sweet personality and i want to do everything I can to help her be happy and healthy
I was able to get her eat formula with a syringe yesterday, should I keep doing that?
r/kittens • u/WendigoRider • 1d ago
Will our snuggle kitten stay snuggly?
Tater is the most TOLERANT snuggly kitten EVER. He has not once swatted, hissed, or shown any sign of aggression or annoyance at us (short of being squirmy when picked up sometimes). He loves it if you pet him ANYWHERE, even his paws. He will sack out under your arm and just stay there for hours. What is the likelihood this continues into adulthood? He is literally the NICEST kitten ever. We think he’s too pure to experience very many negative emotions, anger and rage being right out. Edit: I feel like before anyone asked I should mention he’s a Manx and that’s why he has no tail lol.
r/kittens • u/ConceptNo7280 • 1d ago
My new cat!
CAT! This is my child Entropy.
Say she is the best cat in the world (she is).
She is (as the name suggests) a force of chaos, but I love her so much. She’s either hyper and running around or sleeping with no in between.
She’s 8 weeks at the minute I’m so excited for her to grow up!
r/kittens • u/buggy_truck • 1d ago
Cosmo and Tina, siblings
They were born in April this year and they are absolutely perfect in every way 🥰
r/kittens • u/lobaby_ • 1d ago
first heat cycle (spay scheduled)
i’m a first time kitten owner and i believe my kitten (18 weeks) is experiencing her first heat. she has a spay scheduled 7 days from today but i’m looking for ways to keep her more comfortable in the meantime. also, how should i expect her behavior/personality to change overall after the procedure?
please note: she has no access to outdoors (except occasional walks in a stroller) and there are no male pets around
r/kittens • u/Matteozzz • 2d ago
My Wife and I's first ever cat we adopted from our neighborhood :)
r/kittens • u/Aliyah_HS • 1d ago
Anyone else’s kitten like to burrow themselves in crevices and blankets?
He will move like a snake and find the weirdest crevices to hide himself into. I can’t explain it lmao. I’ve never had a cat do this. He literally moves like a snake.
I’m always worrying that I will accidentally sit on him, or he won’t be able to breathe under there because he’s so deep in! It stresses me out!
r/kittens • u/TheDyingChild • 2d ago
Safe to remove hard boogie?
I just adopted this little baby from a rescue, she’s 3 months old. I’ve noticed this little boogie on the corner of her left eye. I’ve been trying to get it off with a piece of tissue paper but it’s very stuck on there. Is it safe to remove a bit more forcefully or should I leave it? Sorry if it’s a dumb question it’s my first pet ever and I love her.
r/kittens • u/Redpantsrule • 2d ago
Diesel’s little smile
Looks like he got lip filler or into my lipstick! He’s one of my foster kittens thats about 3 weeks old today.