How and how to feed a newborn kitten?

Like all living things in the world, a cat is not safe from death during childbirth, sudden loss (if the animal is beautiful and even thoroughbred - it can be taken away), falling under the wheels of a car, diseases, etc. But the kittens that she managed to produce on light, lurking danger from other animals, such as hungry dogs, as well as death from hunger and cold. Kittens are lucky if there were compassionate and caring people nearby or neighboring cats who have not yet been born, but have not rejected the helpless kittens of others.

A cat produces special milk; it is noticeably lower in fat content than cow.

It contains:

• 80% of water;
• 11% protein;
• lactose (sugar) - 3%;
• up to 6% fat;
• a small amount of vitamins.

This is the optimal ratio of water to the nutrients dissolved in it, chosen by mother nature for growing cats and cats. A serious violation of such a balance in a kitten’s nutrition increases the likelihood of a slowdown in growth and weight gain, significantly reduces the life expectancy of an adult animal, and leads to the appearance of chronic diseases.

A kitten is born blind and helpless, weighs only 100 grams, in size - no more than a rat. In the first week he is not able to move far, because in addition he still does not know how to walk. The remainder of the umbilical cord through which he received nutrients in the womb may persist for this week. After two weeks, his eyes open slightly, but not immediately - only by the 21st day of his life he is able to open them wide. The weight of the kitten doubles. By then, the ears are also completely straightened. Around the same time, he demonstrates his first teeth. By the end of the month, they all appear.

If the cat rejected the kittens or died during childbirth, contact your veterinarian immediately. He will adjust the nutrition of newborns, bringing his recipe as close as possible to the natural composition, which will make it possible to feed babies without cat trouble. Repeated treatment will be required when the kittens will not gain weight and become ill. An ill kitten is transferred to a somewhat special feeding regimen.

Try to find another lactating individual - nevertheless, the natural diet surpasses the one created by people. In other cases, the owner will have to temporarily become a substitute for the disappeared cat-mother, organizing at home the kitten’s access to nutritious mixtures.

If the kitten is not even a month old, then the following fixtures:

• syringe set - they perfectly dose the injected mixture;
• unbreakable dropper - suitable for targeted administration of drugs taken by mouth;
• pacifier bottle - you can use the nursery, if there is no vet shop nearby, any "drinking bowl" with a narrowed nose will come down;
• measuring glass and spoon - the prepared mixture must be strictly dosed, avoiding starvation or overeating of the kitten;
• small bowl - the kitten will soon grow up, and he will need "adult" feeding.

Shop milk (cow), whether it’s dried or bred, including dried cream, kefir, etc., will not work for a small kitten. As for cats and cats of the Sphynx breed, they, even as adults, will soon become sick from its use. The remaining breeds of cats accept cow's milk and its derivatives, but only interspersed with basic nutrition, and not on an ongoing basis.

Use special nutritional mixtures that are extremely similar to cat's milk in composition. They spur the growth of kittens significantly. Good products are delivered, for example, by Royal Canin, Hartz or Katzenmilch, often using compatible substitutes suitable even for ferret puppies and cubs. But these eminent manufacturers supply expensive products. Fortunately, there are alternative options, for example: diluted unsweetened condensed milk with the addition of bone meal, milk-egg mixture (without proteins) with a small amount of vegetable oil, and some other options.

Be sure to wash (if possible - sterilize) all dishes, as if you were feeding infants. Wash hands thoroughly.

Before feeding, the mixture must be carefully prepared, following the recipe. Thicken the mixture will lead to indigestion, too watery composition - to premature starvation, malnutrition of the kitten and, as a consequence, to its slow growth.

After 6 hours, the prepared mixture becomes overexposed - even when frozen and re-thawed, it will lead to biological stress when absorbed. The temperature of the mixture cannot be lower than 37 degrees. If it is not, heat it.

For best results, massage the kitten for several minutes, stroking it on the head and back. Best of all, the kitten will eat, or rather, drink this mixture from the nipples. It is not recommended to dissolve it with a “naked” syringe or using a drinking spoon: it can choke when swallowed. Exception: your actions must be so accurate that in one go you will introduce a kitten no more than 0.1 “cubes” on the scale applied to the syringe. If the syringe is so bad that the piston jerks every time you press and creates fountains, replace it or use a pacifier.

Continue to feed him until saturated - he will calm down and fall asleep after receiving the mixture. The mixture should not be aerated (air). After feeding, you should hold it vertically for several minutes - the remains of the mixture swallowed by the kitten completely drain from the esophagus into the stomach.

The feeding schedule is reduced as the kitten grows up:

• the first 4 days of life after birth, feeding is carried out every 2 hours for 1 ... 1.5 ml, the rest of the first week give 4.5 ml 7 times a day;
• in the second week, the kitten drinks 9 ml 6 times, in the 3rd - 15 ml 5 times, in the 4th - 20 ml also 5 times;
• in the 5th and 6th week, relies on 25 ml of the mixture 4 times a day.

After this, the kitten is gradually transferred to a general cat's diet, and night feeding is finally removed from the schedule. Maine Coon, savannah, pixie-bean or Kuril bobtail you can feed several large doses.

The fact that you are doing everything right is indicated by the calm behavior of the kitten. But if you forget to feed him, he will immediately remind you of himself. Track weight gain dynamics with averages.

Newborn kittens who are not even a week old, as well as weakened, sick, can be fed with the Baby formula, using the Nutrilon baby mixture and liquid vitamin complexes in drops to prepare it.

Examples of purchased feline mixtures that can replace the mother’s milk of a real cat:

• vitamin milk with taurine Gimpet Cat-Milk;
• Royal Canin Babycat Milk;
• Nutri-Vet Kitten Milk;
• Kittenmilch CdVet;
• Gimcat

From one month of age, kittens can be fed, while feeding should not be interrupted. First, baby puree with the addition of chopped meat is suitable. Although the cat is a predator, do not rush to give it natural meat or fish until it can digest it.

After 1.5 months of the kitten’s life, the nutritional mixtures can be canceled, replacing them with ordinary milk, grated and boiled vegetables, softened black bread. It is not recommended to give him white bread and egg white, rolls and sweets - the digestion and metabolism of a cat is significantly different from human. Although the cat will even eat ice cream from chronic starvation, such barbaric experiments - especially on an empty stomach - will soon “plant” her liver and pancreas, and without immediate treatment the animal will soon wither. If the kitten is thoroughbred, look for an alternative food: his body is unlikely to cope with such products as raw meat or fish, milk and bread - the kitten will simply vomit from such food. In no case do you overfeed the kitten at any age with solid food, such as dry food, leaving the open bag in an easily accessible place for him. He will overeat (cats don’t know the measure), and this is guaranteed to cause constipation, the help of a veterinarian will already be required here.

If you have the opportunity to buy real dry food, and not cheap fakes for it - take this opportunity. Poor nutrition, as well as an overdose of the daily feeding rate, will lead, for example, to premature liver hypertrophy and cystitis. Also, the kitten should receive enough water - do not forget about it.

See below for feeding kittens.