Essentials for Raising an Orphan Kitten
Published on May 02, 2014
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Kitten Scale and Notebook
My kitchen scale does double duty when we are raising kittens. Not only do I use it for cooking, but I also use it for keeping tabs on the kittens’ weight, which is essential to monitor food intake. We keep a kitten-sized cardboard box to hold the kitten safely on the scale during weighing. Each kitten’s weight is recorded in a notebook, and a weight gain of 10 to 15 grams per day means success. I like to use a 5 cc syringe to feed my kittens and typically use kitten milk replacer mixed with a high-calorie cat food formulated specifically for syringe feeding.Kitten-Safe Toiletries
Like most children, kittens are messy, but orphan kittens have no one to clean them up but you! Without a feline mother, kittens are prone to diarrhea because they don’t get the special immune system boosters contained in the queen’s (mother’s) milk and may need bathing more than once a day. Because lavender has calming properties, I keep pet-safe lavender shampoo on hand for daily bathing of dirty kittens. For spot cleaning, I use unscented pet wipes.Kitten Palace
What new baby doesn’t deserve a safe and cute bed? We use a collapsible puppy playpen, affectionately called the “kitten palace,” as the safe space for our kittens. The palace has mesh walls, the floor is impermeable to spilled water or litterbox misses, and it features a front and back zippered door as well as a zippered, retractable roof for easy cleanup. When kitten season is over, the palace is folded up into a briefcase-sized bag and stuck in the back of a closet until the next set of kittens arrives.
Kitten Linens
No layette would be complete without linens. I have a washable, round fleece bed about 12 inches in diameter with a low rolled edge. Every single kitten residing in our kitten palace intuitively knows the fleece bed is for sleeping, and if it is fresh out of the dryer, they like it even better. I also keep a pile of well-washed hand towels nearby. These are multipurpose and can be used as a whole-kitten “bib” during feeding or to dry off a wet kitten after a bath.Kitten Dinnerware
I have tried a variety of dishes for kittens: little ceramic ramekins, empty takeout containers and paper plates. The problem is, kittens don’t understand that food and water bowls tip over when you walk through them, so spills can be frequent, messy and time-consuming to clean up. You can’t keep kittens from walking through their bowls, but you can keep them from tipping them over by using a very helpful product called a Neater Feeder or some other similarly stable product. This bowl system that I use is so stable that despite the fact that my recent litter of three kittens used it as a jungle gym, it never tipped over.Kitten Toys
Young kittens can entertain themselves with simple toys like toilet paper tubes or a paper bag. Two essentials in my kitten toy box are fur mice to entertain the little predators in them and a scratching post, mat or board to make them good citizens in their new home.Kitten Love
While all the items I have listed above make raising kittens easier, there is one item that cannot be bought that orphans need above all else, and that is oodles of love and attention to make them wonderful pets in their eventual forever home.More on Vetstreet.com:
