Orphan Kitten Care

Question

My new baby   Hello! Okay, I'll try to shorten this longs story: My sister found 3 orphan kittens by her house (there's lots of feral and domesticated cats there, so we don't know what these are), they seemed to be about 5-6 weeks.. their lower molars where already there and the upper ones were showing. She kept them for a good week or so, and then something tragic happened and one of them died. So me and my friend took one of the remaining ones and brought it home since my sister's house didn't seem safe. By this my sister already had another kitten, so she had 2 still with her.

Anyway, my friend has 4 cats and 4 dogs, the dogs are very friendly and used to cats/kittens, but the cats (all adults) are not very friendly with stranger kittens. We're feeding him Replacement milk every 3-4 hours since she (the kitten, sister named her "Unwanted") is still suckling on anything she can get a hold of. I'm not sure if we're supposed to give her solid food already or wait. And I'm concerned that she will have trouble socializing with other cats since she has no litter-mates. Right now my friend has her in a box with a blanket and a stuffed animal, for her nap time after eating. She doesn't want the new kitten to stress out her other cats and make them aggressive or uncaring of her.

Also, my friend, as loving as she is, can't keep her because she has a lot of school work and has already many animals, so I'm thinking of taking her home. I have a friendly dog, but has never been introduced to other animals. But I would have more time to take care of kitty. We need advice on this one.

Is it feral? Should we still be giving her replacement milk? How can we prevent phobias or social disabilities? Should I take her home with me?... In other words, what's the best way to raise this kitten?? Thanks.

Answer
Hi Vilma,

What a cutie-pie! The only difference between feral cats and domesticated ones is that ferals have not had the human socialization to make them domesticated. Their attitude becomes wild, but because dogs and cats are considered domestic animals and not wild animals, the term we use to describe them when they revert to a wild nature is "feral," rather than wild. So the answer to that question depends completely on the kitty's personality. If she is friendly with people, she is considered domesticated. If she is completely untame and unapproachable, she is considered feral. Since you are able to bottle-feed her, etc., then she would not be considered feral. At such a young age, even if the kitten has begun to turn feral, it is usually easy to tame them.

The best way to keep her socially well-adjusted is to expose her to as many stimuli as you can while she is still young. Have plenty of visitors over that will play with her, take her on car rides, have "play dates" with other cats if possible (but only after she is vaccinated, starting any time), and even see if she can be around dogs who are clearly cat-friendly. If a cat is exposed to these things starting at a young age, she is more likely to accept them.

It would be fine for you to take her home. I strongly encourage people to consider adopting two kittens, though. Even though there are plenty of households with just one cat, homes with two cats often find that the kitties get into less trouble and are happier and healthier. The cats provide each other with entertainment, so they are less likely to be destructive out of boredom. They also encourage one another to exercise, so obesity and diseases the accompany obesity are less common. Anxiety and depression are also seen less often in cats who have feline companions. Even though the two cats bond with each other, it doesn't affect the bond they create with you. It will just provide them with a source of support when you aren't around to keep them busy and fully attended to.

If you do take the kitten home, just introduce the dog very slowly. Be sure he shows no signs of aggression and does not play rough or get too excited with the baby. Often, dogs need to be kept on a tight leash (literally) until they can learn to obey verbal commands to leave the kitty alone, and eventually, they respect the kitty's space on their own. The kitten will also probably swat the dog a few times to establish where her personal boundaries are. This is to be expected. Most dogs tolerate it well and get the picture quickly. I recommend keeping up a baby gate, if possible, so that the kitty can have an area of the house where she can go that's off-limits to the dog for a while.

As for food, she is old enough to be eating some solid foods now. Try offering her some canned kitten food. If she doesn't take to that right away, you can start off with stage 1 meat baby food for human babies. Offer her canned food, and then let her eat what she'll eat from the bottle. You may want to phase out one bottle feeding a day, and increase this each week (2 bottle feedings the next week). When you notice her first two baby teeth fall out in the front, indicating that she is 12 weeks, she is plenty old enough to be off of all formula.

Best of luck!

Jessica