Orphaned Kittens – 7 Essential Lifesavers Found In Your Home
Could you be a kitten’s lifesaver?
Sadly, many newborn kittens are orphaned or abandoned. So what should you do if you find yourself responsible for the life of a tiny and precious orphaned kitten?
You may be surprised to learn that it relatively easy to care for an orphaned or abandoned kitten – the main investment will be your time. There are, however, seven essential items that you will need to help with your task. Primarily, your kitten will need a decent sized cardboard box as its home. Further items will be:
A hot water bottle.
Suitable nesting material.
A regular eye dropper.
2ml hypodermic syringe fitted with 5cm plastic tubing.
Sterilizing solution for a baby bottle.
An old towel.
All the above items will help you ensure that your orphaned kitten will have the basic requirements of life – warmth and food.
Kittens generally get their warmth from their mother and is is essential that your orphan doesn’t become chilled. This can happen very rapidly and you will need to maintain a temperature of 30-35 degrees centigrade in the first week of life and 25 degrees thereafter. Placing your kitten’s box near a radiator is a good way of achieving this.
Alternatively, you can provide warmth by placing a hot water bottle under one corner of the box. This way, your orphaned kitten will be able to snuggle down into its warmed bedding or choose to move to another, cooler part of its box.
When selecting a suitable a nursery box, make sure that your kitten is unable to climb out of it unaided. If your kitten manages to escape its warm home it will rapidly become chilled once outside its secure environment. Be certain to check that the box is big enough for the kitten to move around in freely with enough room to play in, whilst remaining enclosed enough to provide security and retain sufficient warmth. Partially covering the box with an old towel will help retain heat.
As it will be your responsibility to provide all the services that a mother cat would, it will be your job to clean your orphaned kitten’s bedding when it becomes soiled. Old newspaper is ideal for use as bedding material as it can simply be removed and disposed of as necessary.
When your kitten’s warmth and security have been provided for, nourishment will need to be taken care of.
You will need to learn the technique of feeding your kitten with an eye dropper or, for larger kittens, a plastic tube attached to a syringe. Patience and persistence will be the order of the day! You will be able to get suitable kitten formula milk from your vet, together with any equipment you are short of and good pet stores generally have a range of equipment suitable for nursing small kittens. Always remember to sterilize bottles and equipment after each use, just like you would with a baby.
Using an old towel, place it and your kitten on your lap or if preferred, on a firm surface. Gently hold the kitten around the back of its head to steady it and gently introduce a couple of drops of milk into the kitten’s mouth. With a little luck and much patience, your orphaned kitten will begin to suckle. You will need to make sure that the teat is always filled with milk and that you maintain a gentle pressure to match the strength of the kitten’s sucking.
Your vet will advise you on the amount of milk to feed your kitten and always be aware of your kitten’s general health and demeanour. If your orphan gives you any cause for concern, please do call in your vet straight away – small kittens can deteriorate in health very quickly.
As your orphaned kitten grows, you will feel a real, parental pride in your achievements. Your love, care and dedication towards this small bundle of fur will have ensured a happy and healthy future for a tiny creature that would otherwise have perished.
So, yes! You certainly can save your orphaned kitten’s life. But to succeed in this endeavour you will need to learn a great deal about how to give the essential care needed to replace a missing mother cat. It will be necessary to have all the information and guidence to hand and it will be your responsibility to acquire it and put it into practice. Your trouble will be well rewarded in the joy and pleasure of sharing your home with your healthy, loving kitten!
