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Kitten not gaining weight

I am fostering some abandoned kittens for a local shelter. One of them has not gained any weight but otherwise appears normal both physically and behaviorally. She was estimated to be 5 weeks old (by the shelter vet tech) when she was first found and now is 7 weeks old and still has not gained any weight. I have 2 of her siblings from the same litter and they weigh about 21 ounces, while the runt only weighs 13 ounces. She has not gained any weight in the 2 weeks I have been fostering her. She eats well and is active.  They have now all been weened and dewormed and their stools are normal (firm and brown).  Anything I can do to help gain weight or find out why she isn't?
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7334193 tn?1390179054
Hello my Name is Carrie, I still have the runt from our first litter & she is still small even though she eats like a horse. I still feed her where I can watch over her cause our other 5 other cats in the along with 2 dogs. She will stop eating & let the other 5 cats eat her food and I am having to move her along with the food but, sometimes she won't start eating again but, she plays like there's no tomorrow. She is longer than she is tall she is so cute. I can remember me & my husband getting up and fixing her a bottle cause she was so little & the mother was having a hard time getting her to eat but, the funny thing is her mother wanted her by her side when we got done feeding her so she could bathe her and all that fun other stuff. Her mother still bathes her and treat's her like a new born kitten. Now she is in her favorite place in the world to sleep & that is on me with her little light weight self.
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874521 tn?1424116797
well good for you for trying so hard....is there no way this kitten can see a Vet?
you cannot use oil or just any  products on a cat...without a Vets okay, they absorb these oils also lick themselves and take them in internally...these can be poisonous.

yes it sounds very much like a lack of nutrients also very likely worms...Do NOT attempt to deworm her yourself, she is already weak enough.
Was this actual kitten replacement formula you were feeding her?

have her bones started to form now and are no longer soft? she is not at all in good condition by the sound of it....she is failing to thrive.
without some good medical care I'm afraid she will not ever become strong and healthy.
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Avatar universal
Saved a week old kitten . A dog had  chased it's mother away, so she abandoned it.. Started out fine ,had to teach it to bottle feed from kitten formula. Then even though it was taking the formula till it's belly was fat, it lost a lot of hair and weight.It,s belly stayed big ,but bones stuck out everywhere! I thought it had mange and could not get help from anyone to look at it. They would take one look a cringe and back away. And offer to kill it for me.I raised many animals and I was not going to let this one die with out a fight! I treated her skin with new stock cut with baby oil. But after the fur fell out it was in good condition so I dismiss it was mange it probably was nutrient ion depletion because her bones started folding, her front feet were shaped like sss soft . I got calcium and vitamins' added them to her food, fed her more often high quality can food and wormed her..the thing is  the whole time she ate well, never had diarrhea, or vomited or a temperature,I read everything and can't figure out the thinness, or hair loss or why she,s not growing ? but she is happy and eats well.Shes 6 weeks but is 3 OZ seems fine.







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Avatar universal
We are fostering some 4 week old kittens from a local rescue and they told me to mix plain canned pumpkin (not the pie mix obviously) in with the canned food at a 1:1 ratio. The added fiber helps them not have diarrhea.
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Avatar universal
Hi, I have a kitten that is vomiting and has diarrhea. He is 9 weeks old and was healthy until a few days ago. He was admitted to the emergency room where thy kept him over night and gave him iv fluids. The next day they told me he was okay and better to go home and sucked 600$ out of me. When he got home, he threw up again. Obviously they did not make an effort to help the kitten at all. Now he's losing so much weight. I can see his bones and his vet just keeps saying "bring him in" and when I do, they can't figure out what's wrong with him. The only reason they can think of was my change in food. He went from dry to wet as well as a brand change. He is now on ad but I was wondering how I can help him gain weight again. Thank you
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874521 tn?1424116797
can you tell me what you are feeding? have you tried different foods to tempt her with....?
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Avatar universal
ive adopted 2 kittens 12weeks old 1 kitten eats great /the other kitten dont eat at 1st it licks its food when she eats she eats very little what can i get 2 make her eat
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Avatar universal
My 3 week old kiten is doing the same thing,ok, but not gaining any weight.
Vet today. 8/17.  Tried bottle feeding it with cat milk replacement formula, wouldnt take it.  Lapped a very timy bit.  I have read at about 3 wks they learn to lap.  Put the formula milk on a heavy paper plate and get its paws wet, rub some on its mouth.  Try alot, eventuall they learn to lap. Got 2 lappers in my 4 kit litter.  Best wishes.  I am going through the same thing.  Just read your early blog.  I own Himalayans.
danieltabby
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2 Comments
Three weeks is way to early to expect them to lap. You need to buy a small bottle, I think they only cost $1, or use a syringe, but be very careful with a syringe because they could aspirate it and die of pneumonia.  Always feed kittens while they are feet down, never upside down like a human baby.
Three weeks is way to early to expect them to lap. You need to buy a small bottle, I think they only cost $1, or use a syringe, but be very careful with a syringe because they could aspirate it and die of pneumonia.  Always feed kittens while they are feet down, never upside down like a human baby.
541150 tn?1306033843
aw...
I understand how you feel. One can't help but to get attached to those animals. He'll be ok, and someone will definitely adopt him and he will go on to living in a good, loving home :-)

PK
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Avatar universal
Feels strange not having the 4 babies around.  I especially miss Sky, partly because I had him the longest, and partly because he has those expressive eyes that told me he wasn't happy when I left him.  The 3 smaller ones are still together, but Sky was put in one of the fancy tower cages out front in the adoption area with 2 other kittens that were strangers to him.  He is very adaptable though, so I am sure he is buddies with them by now.  
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Avatar universal
Yes, fostering is very rewarding, as is all of the work I do as a volunteer for shelters.  It's a bit sad when I have to take them back and when we occasionally have to put an animal down.  But the up sides are so much greater.  
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242912 tn?1660619837
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hi Nancy, I wasn't able to bring up your link either so I'm glad you posted the pics here.  The kittens are precious and little Jess is looking so good.  Yours has been an exciting story with a happy ending.  

Fostering must be the most rewarding experience.  And yes, Sky will be snapped up in a heartbeat...she is absolutely Darling.
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Avatar universal
I am hoping that Sky can get neutered and have his microchip implant tomorrow, so he can be shown for adoption this weekend.  If he is adopted this weekend, that means he will be gone when I get back and I'll probably never see him again, but on the other hand, it means he will spend very little time at the shelter caged up.

Yes, especially this time of year, the shelter takes in new kittens and puppies almost every day, so I'm sure they will have some they want me to foster when I get back, whether I bring Jess, Jo Jo, and Toby back, or whether they have younger ones in greater need.
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541150 tn?1306033843
hehehe those kittens are too cute!!!

Sky will probably find a home a minute after he gets to the shelter you'll see!! He is a charming little fella!
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874521 tn?1424116797
oh I love you''re photos, all the kitties look so happy and well cared for.
I can understand how hard it must be to give them up now....but Nan you've given them a good start and a 'chance' now of a good life. I hope they all find good loving homes, they just are so darling....that sky and jess are heart breakers...
give them a hug from me...perhaps some will be waiting for you to come pick them up next week??
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Avatar universal
Today is a bittersweet day.  I am taking Sky back to the shelter today.  He is big enough to be adopted.  I'm taking the other 3 back as well because I will be out of town for a long  weekend.  Not sure yet if some one else will take them home while I am gone or if they will stay at the shelter.  The shelter doesn't make them available for adoption until they weigh 2 pounds.  I won't know until I get back if I'll be bringing those 3 back home or if they have others that are in more critical need of fostering.  In any case, those 3 seem to be over the hump in terms of the critical period from the time they were found abandoned, to now where they seem to be completely healthy and developing on their own.  Those 3 are now 8 weeks old, and while they are still a low weight, they have been gaining steadily since the end of last week.
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Avatar universal
I found where I could upload photos here, so if you click on my name it should bring them up.  I've also added some of my older cats, Zylo, Zena, and Zany.
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541150 tn?1306033843
It's a shame I can't see the picture. I bet she is very pretty :-)
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541150 tn?1306033843
I KNEW IT!!!! I knew she was going to pull through. This is such good news. I'm so happy for this kitten. I truly hope she'll find a good home.
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Avatar universal
A milestone this morning!  Jess is now a pound!  16.4 ounces to be exact.  She is almost caught up to her sister, Jo Jo, who is just over 18 ounces, and her brother Toby who is 21.5 ounces.  Sky, who is a week older and from a different litter,  wouldn't sit still this morning so couldn't get an accurate weight on him but he hit the two pound mark almost a week ago.
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Avatar universal
Sky is the gray tabby and he is the only known survivor of his litter.  He has a great personality and very playful and sweet.  The other 3 are from the same litter, but interestingly one is a long hair while the other 2 are short hairs.  Their black heads and silver gray bodies are gorgeous, but I have been told that will fade as they grow and they will probably end up being solid black.  Jess, the long hair is the little runt that is so tiny.  The other 2 are Jo Jo and Toby.  Those three are real talkers, especially Jess and Jo Jo (the 2 females, go figure...LOL).  

Jess is the one I have been talking about mostly here that was so little and not gaining weight.  She is the one in the photo on the color blocked carpet and in most of the photos with Sky.  The last two photos in the album are Jo Jo and Toby, respectively.

Jess is still doing well today.  I weigh her each morning and she has finally gained over 2 ounces in the last 3 days.  

I have obviously become quite fond of all of them, but my job is to make sure they are healthy and hardy enough to be adopted and litter training them and socializing them to improve their odds of adoption.  Kittens and puppies usually go pretty quick, so I am confident all of these little guys will find homes fairly quickly once I take them back to the shelter.  And when one of the animals that I have fostered or trained gets adopted that just makes my day and that makes my efforts and the bittersweet need to give them up all worthwhile.  One of the many reasons I foster and volunteer for shelters is that it gives me the opportunity to work with a lot of different animals that otherwise I wouldn't be able to.  I do have 3 older cats of our own that have been with us for many years.

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874521 tn?1424116797
Oh that sure did work.....those kittens are gorgeous!!.....that little tabby has such a beautiful face, how could one not love it....and the one with the black face and grey body, that is sure unusual coloring I think that one is adorable too. I have an all black cat but colors ar enot whats important, its the personality isn't it.
How on earth do you foster these little guys than give them up??? don't you become attached?
God I know I end up keeping them all, are you considering???
Which one is the one thats not eating/gaining? and how is she doing today?
bless you!
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Avatar universal
Not sure if this link will work from here but these are some photos of my 4 little guys in a facebook album.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1573952358&ref=profile#!/album.php?aid=2046421&id=1573952358
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541150 tn?1306033843
I agree with Opus. Volunteering is an act of kindness which only God would be fully able to reward. One of my cats comes from a rescue organization which has a no kill policy. My other cat comes from the county shelter. I'd rather adopt my animals from places like that than buy one from a breeder. Shelter cats/dogs turn out to be the best pets in the world, from my experience. That kitty will turn out to be beautiful and healthy, and will live for many, many years. I hope you'll find her a good home soon. She must be so cute after all.  And I can tell she is learning fast and has a strong will to live. This is such good news.
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