Bottle-Feeding & Care of Orphaned Kittens: Part 2 - Feeding & Weaning

Last night I attended a class by the Mayor's Alliance for NYC Animals called Bottle-Feeding & Care of Orphaned Kittens. It was hosted at the ASPCA's lovely midtown offices. I learned so much in those 2 hours, this will require a couple posts to cover the topics. Click here to read my previous post on Kitten Supplies.  

This topic: Feeding and Weaning!

The first step after finding a young kitten is to determine its age.  Kittens develop at their own speed based on environmental and genetic factors. These photos and descriptions should help you determine how old your kitten is:

First Week

When kittens are born they are blind and deaf. They cannot urinate or defecate on their own (until 4 weeks). The umbilical cord may still be attached (up to 4 days).  A one week old a kitten's eyes are still closed, ears are folded over. It cannot walk. It sleeps 90% of the time, nurses 10% of the time.

Feeding 1-2 Weeks:

• 1 part KMR Formula + 2 parts Pedialyte (or water).
• If kitten gets diarrhea increase the Pedialyte. If diarrhea persists more than 2 days, contact the vet!
• Kittens can be fed every 4 hrs but schedules vary. Keep them on a steady schedule.
• Burp and stimulate after every feeding. Sometimes they'll eat more after that.
• Always test warmed formula on your wrist before feeding!

Second Week

Kittens gradually become more aware of their surroundings and interact with each other. Their eyes will open around 10 days. By the end of the second week their sense of smell is developing, they will hiss at unfamiliar scents, and interact with each other. Their ears will uncurl during this time, and they will begin to crawl and knead.

Feeding 2-3 Weeks:

• 1 part KMR + 1 part Pedialyte (or water)
• Same as above but kittens may go longer between feedings.
• Note: Kittens will be much more active at this stage and climb out of everything. Their claws cannot retract.  Make sure your box has a cover, or better yet use a carrier.

Third Week

By now you can clearly determine if kittens are boys or girls. The teeth start coming in, and their walking becomes more confident.  They are just beginning to play and develop fine motor skills, and their eyesight improves.  By the end of the third week formula can be supplemented with solid food.

All kittens have blue eyes for at least the first few weeks.

Feeding 3-4 Weeks:

• Time to start weaning and litter training!
• Continue bottle feeding, but supplement with baby food - chicken or turkey baby food mixed with formula can be spoon fed to kittens 2 or 3 times a day. Baby spoons are great for this.
• Place kitten in litter after each feeding and move their paws to demonstrate digging. Soon they will use the box on their own.
• Kitten's stool will start to get more solid after a few days of baby food. Continue to stimulate if kitten does not use the litter.
• Tip: Once a kitten starts chewing a bottle rather than suckling, it's time to give up the bottle.

Fourth and Fifth Weeks

By now most kittens will eat and use the litter on their own, although you should still place them in the litter box after each feeding. They will play with their littermates, explore, learn to dig, and can roll over and get back up.

Feeding 4-5 Weeks:

• Some kittens may still want the bottle, but most will be eating and using the litter on their own.
• This is a good time to start regular pate cat/kitten food.
• If you have more than one kitten a Frisbee is great for feeding since it is low, easy for them to access, won't spill, and keeps most of the food off the floor. They will crawl through it though!

Important Tips

• NEVER feed a kitten that is too cold. Temperature should be 98-101 degrees. Warm a cold kitten immediately using a heating pad wrapped in a blanket, or wrap and hold against your chest.
• Never feed a kitten cow's milk.
• Never feed a kitten on its back, like you would a human baby. Kitten should be upright or on its stomach and leaning forward. 
• If you pull the bottle away a tiny bit, this may encourage suckling.
• Resist the urge to overfeed at one sitting to avoid diarrhea.
• Any lack of eagerness to suckle and failure to gain weight require IMMEDIATE veterinary attention!
• Track your kitten's weight: a 4 week old kitten should weigh around 1 pound. A 12 week kitten should weigh around 3 pounds.

In the NYC area and want to attend the next Bottle Feeding workshop? 

Click here to sign up! (next one is on 10/7/14): http://bit.ly/BFK1410

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Sergeant Frank Praytor looks after a 2 week old kitten (named "Miss Hap") during the height of the Korean War in 1952.

Bottle-Feeding & Care of Orphaned Kittens: Part 1 - Supplies!

Kitten Season is in full swing. It starts in spring, peaks through late spring and summer, and ends in the fall.  Shelters around the world are currently inundated with kitten orphans, many of whom are younger than 3 weeks old, also known as "Bottle Babies".

Last night I attended a class by the Mayor's Alliance for NYC Animals called Bottle-Feeding & Care of Orphaned Kittens. It was hosted at the ASPCA's lovely midtown offices. I learned so much in those 2 hours, this will require a couple posts to cover the topics.

This topic: Kitten Supplies!

Click here to read my post on Kitten Feeding and Weaning.

A woman named Iris taught the class. She is a very knowledgeable volunteer and longtime cat/kitten foster at Animal Care & Control of NYC.  She said she elected to volunteer there 8 years ago, because she knew they needed the most help. (Click here to learn more about volunteering at the AC&C).

She told us that the AC&C used to get 40,000+ animals through their doors each year. Now thanks to TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) efforts in the city, particularly by the NYC Feral Cat Initiative (NYCFCI) of the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals, that number is down to a little over 30,000 per year. Still an incredibly high number, but at least it's better than it was.

Iris set up this display of everything you might need if and when you ever find or foster a baby kitten.

The brown thing in the lower left corner is a wool sock stuffed with uncooked rice, and tied shut.  You heat the rice-sock in the microwave for 1-2 mins, and it becomes a great homemade heating pad! Kittens snuggle it.

The items in the display (starting in the upper left side):

• Scale - the most important thing is that your kitten gains weight EVERY day. You can find cheap small kitchen scales such as this one, at places like Target.
• Pedialyte - mix Pedialyte with the formula mix for kittens. Also good if you have a sick cat of any age, especially with diarrhea.
• KMR Kitten Formula - available at pet stores. Mix with Pedialyte, put into bottle, and warm.
• Dawn soap - blue Dawn eliminates fleas in kittens. Do not put any chemicals on babies! Can bathe kittens, but don't douse the head. Iris also says a ring of Dawn around the neck and tail area helps.
• Funnel - for transferring mixed formula into the baby bottle.
• Wet Ones wipes - can help wiping down the kitten and small messes.
• White Faux wool blanket - do NOT use this! Some sites and videos suggest using these, but kittens can suffocate because they can't turn their heads among the large chunks of fluff.
• Yellow blanket - an example of a good blanket to use for kittens. Since kittens can't retract their claws even towels aren't the best option, they get caught up in the little loops of fabric.
• Hand Sanitizer - this is for your hands, especially if you have sick kittens you have to be very clean.
• Canned cat food - mix canned (pate) food with formula for weaning, spoon feed if necessary.
• Pee pads - for the kitten's enclosure.
• Baby spoon - helpful with weaning kittens, spoon feed a mixture of wet pate cat food and formula.
• Baby bottles - Iris likes these, they come with extra nipples. Available at pet stores.
• Yellow Duckie - for the kittens to cuddle up to.
• Frisbee - good for feeding weaned kittens wet food. Nice and low, can't spill it, can feed multiple at a time.
• Mederma - good for cat scratches (for your skin, not them).
• Thermometer - Kitten's temperature should be between 98 - 101 F.
• Small Whisk - good for mixing formula.
• Baby nail clippers - for clipping little claws. Good practice to get them used to nail trims early!
• Small syringes, eye droppers - can be used for feeding or giving medicine.
• (Human) Baby Food - chicken or turkey flavors are also good for weaning kittens. Also good for an older cat that isn't feeling well or isn't eating.  Make sure there's no vegetables or anything else in there. Plain chicken or turkey only.
• Rice Sock - I described this above in the caption. Really handy!
• Measuring cup - for measuring formula.

Here are a few of the tips, tricks, and facts I jotted down in my notebook:

• Chicken and turkey flavored baby food for weaning or sick adults. I never would have thought of that before.
• Pedialyte for sick cats and kittens. Another handy item that's easy to get!
• 101 degrees is the usual temperature for a kitten. Any cooler and they probably need to be warmed up (rice sock to the rescue) and any warmer they are running a temperature.
• Mederma is great for cat scratches. 
• Mineral Oil is great for treating ear mites.
• Blue Dawn Soap is great for treating fleas in kittens.
• At 3 Weeks the weaning begins. A kitten should be introduced to a Formula + Baby food (chicken or turkey) + Pedialyte mixture, spoon fed (or your finger) to start the weaning process.
• At 4 Weeks the litter box process begins.  Non-scoopable clay litter is what kittens need.
• You can supplement a pregnant or nursing cat's diet with KMR and Pedialyte.
• Keep cats (outdoor, feral, cord chewers) cool in the summer without using electricity by freezing gallon jugs of water and leaving out for them.

Missed this one? They are offering many more workshops of all types, especially TNR and Kittens in the coming months. Check out the list and RSVP here!

In the NYC area and want to attend the next Bottle Feeding workshop? 

Sign up here (next one is on 10/7/14): http://bit.ly/BFK1410


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Read More Here:

Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals

Animal Care & Control of NYC

NYC Feral Cat Initiative (NYCFCI) of the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals

ASPCA

Bottle Feeding Orphan Kittens

Taking Care of Bottle Babies

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Controversy of Captivity : Behavior Problems

When we think of animals in captivity the first thought is usually animals in zoos. However, there are many more types of abusive captivity out there in which animals are currently living:  puppy mills, aquariums, marine mammal parks, pet stores, factory farming, gestation crates, circuses, and the list goes on.

Animals that live in human care are in captivity.  Dogs were domesticated as early as 15,000 BC, but throughout history not only pets and livestock were kept in human care, but also wild animals in menageries and zoos.

The menagerie at Versailles, constructed by Louis XIV in the 1660's.

Most modern zoos make great efforts to create a habitat as close to the animals' natural environment as possible. However due to the nature of traveling circuses, factory farming, and puppy mills, animals in those situations are trapped in tiny enclosures and abusive environments. Those enterprises use animals for profit, so to maximize profit, they minimize expenses (at the animal's suffering).

Occasionally these captive animals, particularly those non-domestic wild animals, develop repetitive and purposeless behaviors called stereotypical behaviors or zoochosis. These behaviors include pacing, self-mutilation, over-grooming, swaying, head bobbing, and bar biting, to name a few.

If you have been to a zoo, pet store, or circus, then I guarantee some of these will look familiar to you:

Pacing

This is very common, I'd be very surprised if you haven't seen this before.  This usually causes well worn paths in the ground, and is often seen with big cats and wolves in captivity.

There can be a few reasons why an animal might pace, some theories include pre-feeding anticipation, checking on or marking territory, or an old habit ingrained from a previous small zoo enclosure.  However, as in the example in the video below, the enclosures are very small, with no behavioral enrichment opportunities (more on behavioral enrichment further down):

Bar biting

Includes licking, biting, chewing the walls or bars. Often seen in giraffes and primates.

Swaying, Rocking, Head Bobbing

Standing in one place and repetitively swaying back and forth. Seen in many different animals, particularly bears and elephants.





See more Stereotypical Behavior patterns here.

How to combat stereotypical behavior? Behavioral Enrichment!

So, now that we know what to look for, what is the best treatment?  The answer is Behavioral Enrichment.  I give the Sea Lion narration for feedings and enrichment sessions at the Central Park Zoo, and the way we explain Behavioral Enrichment is as follows:

"If you've ever played fetch with a dog or given a cat a scratching post, that is all behavioral enrichment. It encourages animals to do behaviors that are good for both their physical and mental well-being. Behavioral enrichment gives animals at the zoo something active to do and something intellectual to focus on."

Excellent buffalo enrichment for the lions at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
The buffalo was built so keepers can attach meat, rawhide, and play sounds from it, to further enhance the lions' enrichment experience.

Adorable example of behavioral enrichment for a captive juvenile Giant Panda. SO CUTE.

Puzzle feeders, such as the one these Polar Bear brothers are enjoying, are very popular enrichment items.

Most enrichment stimuli can be divided into six groups: Sensory stimulation, feeding, manipulation (by the animal, ie toys), environmental (habitat enhancement), social (interacting with other animals), training, and puzzles.  Enclosures in modern zoos work very hard to facilitate all means of environmental and behavioral enrichment.

Behavioral enrichment in pets

This practice of stimulating animals to prevent boredom and behavioral issues goes well beyond animals in zoos.

An example of enrichment toys for a captive macaw.

As I've learned from Jackson Galaxy on My Cat From Hell, and Cesar Millan on The Dog Whisperer, a host of behavior problems in pets can be resolved through play, exercise, and "Catification" (Jackson Galaxy's term for creating feline-friendly environments in your home to accommodate a cat's natural instincts).  In other words, enrichment.




In this video Cesar talks about how to select the right rescue dog for you, and demonstrates his best dog-walking tips and tricks:



Abusive captive environments lacking enrichment and appropriate husbandry can have long-reaching effects for its former captives, even once they are freed from their prisons.  For example, dogs or animals that originate from puppy mills or pet store breeding-mills have many more behavioral problems than those that come from breeders.

Just another reason to "ADOPT DON'T SHOP"!


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Save Me Sunday: Greasy Pigeon Rescue

I currently volunteer at the Wild Bird Fund, an amazing nonprofit in NYC which provides emergency care for wild birds and animals in NYC.

This (below) is a pigeon I found a few weeks ago in NYC. He was so covered in grease he was all black, and even couldn't fly. What happens in NYC is that when it rains pigeons might seek shelter under a hot dog cart, then they get grease on them and the dirt sticks to the grease, making a real mess that they can't clean on their own.

We saw him in the park one day, saw that he was trying to fly but couldn't (dangerous for a bird!). So we gently caught him using my light jacket, and brought him to the Wild Bird Fund on Manhattan's Upper West Side.

General tip: If an ADULT bird is able to be easily caught, then it is likely it needs medical help in some way. A healthy animal will almost always be able to get away from you!

After a couple of weeks at the Wild Bird Fund, and a few baths (we use Dawn soap), he was all clean, able to fly, and ready to go back to his flock. The whole process takes a couple of weeks because pigeons should only get a bath every 3 days, so their natural oils are not too depleted.  It took him about 4 or 5 total baths, he was so filthy!

BEFORE: Getting his final bath!
We use Dawn soap and a soft toothbrush to get the grease and grime off.

This video below is him getting blow-dried after his final bath. Pigeons are sensitive to the cold, so the water must be 105 degrees (matching their body temp), and then we help them dry by using a hair dryer on low.

You can see he likes it. He is not tame, but we don't even have to hold him. He could fly away if he wanted, but it feels so good!

AFTER: A couple of days later, in his box in a cab, on the way back to his flock.
Lookin' good Mr. Bird!

This is his release! I love how he runs right over to his buddies, he's so happy to be back with his family!

I hope everyone takes advantage of the opportunity to volunteer at their local animal rescue. Be it domestic or wild animals, it is an amazingly rewarding experience!

Find your next volunteer opportunity:

Volunteer with the ASPCA

VolunteerMatch Animal volunteer opportunities

Not into the dirty work of handling the animals directly, but still want to help? Other Ways to Volunteer at your Local Rescue

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Save Me Sunday: Help! I found a baby bird!

Aw, I love Derek!! He always means well. We all do!

Do you know what to do if you find a baby bird?

It is currently baby bird season (spring and summer), so if you live in the city, country, suburbs, or anywhere in between, you are likely to come across a baby bird at some point.  They are so adorable and helpless-looking, if you're an animal lover like me, you will always want to scoop it up and help!

BUT SHOULD YOU?

Before you scoop up the baby, survey the situation and ask yourself a couple of questions (advice via my very good friends at the Wild Bird Fund):

OK so far so good. You've called a rehabilitator like the Wild Bird Fund who can be reached at T: 646-306-2862, and determined that yes this bird DOES need help, and you are just the person to do it!!  Now what??

You can download the PDF version of these tips and tricks for baby birds at the Wild Bird Fund site HERE.

I will definitely be posting more about bird (baby and adult) feeding, care, etc in the future!  Please let me know if you have questions. The Wild Bird Fund is an excellent resource, please check them out. Wonderful people doing amazing work in NYC and beyond!

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