Update on who is the baby momma

Question
QUESTION: Jessica, Just thought I'd update you on the mystery of who gave birth to the kitten. It is.......REBEL!!! She is nursing it and so in love with her baby its amazing to watch. Rebel and Black Kitty are not in agreement on where the kitten should be kept. Whenever Rebel leaves the room Black Kitty tries to move it but Rebel takes over. I just wish Black Kitty would deliver hers so I can find everyone of them safe and loving homes. The bad news is the newborn has a deformity. Its paws turn in at the wrist area so I'm very worried about that now. Do you think that will correct itself??   Cheri

ANSWER: Aww, that's great!  The kitten will not be neglected, that's for sure!  

A lot of times minor kinks do work themselves out.  Right now the bones are pretty flexible, so there is still a good chance that things will set themselves right.  Sometimes things are just positioned in the womb strangely, and once everything is able to "unfold", things correct themselves.  

I did have a kitten myself whose front legs were bent into U shapes when he was born.  It took him a little longer than his siblings to learn to walk, and when he did, he walked backwards at first!  And he walked on his wrists, with his front paws dragging beneath them.  When he was 2 weeks, we started gently coaxing his legs and feet into a normal position with our hands in several short sessions a day.  It was like a massage for him.  At three months, only we could tell he had a deformity when he walked, and at 6 months, an x-ray was completely normal.  Whether the exercises were responsible for his recovery or if he just grew out of it naturally, I couldn't say, but it was worth it, and he seemed to enjoy it.

The only thing is if both parents happen to have extra toes, he might be more likely have a more serious deformity called radial hypoplasia.  In this case, one of the bones in the front legs is twisted, underdeveloped or even missing, and the condition won't improve.  Still, these cats have an excellent quality of life if they can be kept indoors.  I have a 12-year-old cat with radial hypoplasia who's been the picture of health all his life!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Jessica
The little one have talked about for days has died. I don't know what to do. I got a crate for Rebel and Black Kitty and the newborn. I just checked on them again and it is dead. Rebel is still carrying it around. Its is breaking my heart. Should I take it from her. This is really tearing me up. I've never had a kitten die like this. Should I inspect it or anything. There is no blood or injury ..  Its just dead and it seems really underweight but I saw Rebel nurse it. Maybe its paws prevented it from nursing the right way and I didn't notice. I'm so wracked with guilt and I'm not really a crier however the tears are flowing. What did I do wrong? Should I do CPR because its not cold yet just not moving. I'm going to call an ER but please write back asap
Cheri

Answer
Oh no!  That's awful!  I know it's no comfort, but these things happen in nature.  There was an outward deformity, and there may have been deformities on the inside that we couldn't see.  Maybe Rebel hadn't been producing enough milk to support him, as sometimes happens with single-kitten litters.  It's just really impossible to say unless you opt to have a necropsy done by a vet.  

I guess this answer would find you too late for CPR to do any good, and CPR would probably be too risky on a newborn anyway.  Personally, I would allow Rebel to hold onto the baby for a short while until she realizes what's happened, and then remove the body.  Obviously, it shouldn't go on for more than a few hours.

I'm so sorry that things turned out this way.  I hope that things are happier with Black Kitty's litter, and maybe Rebel will be able to help foster them.  If you don't have one, maybe pick up a mail scale from an office supply store.  I weigh all of my babies every day and keep a record of their weights.  I just place a bowl on top of the scale and then zero out the weight, and then put a kitten in the bowl and weigh them, starting at birth.  Each day, the kittens should gain 1/4 - 1/2 ounce.  Any time they don't gain weight, it signals they need to be supplemented with bottle feeding or that they may be sick.  Since monitoring our cats' food intake and litter box habits are our best way to tell if they're sick, and we don't have that option with newborns, monitoring their weight is the best way.

I know this is one of the worst things imaginable.  But I'm glad you chose to get involved with these guys and get them into a safe place and find them homes.  She could have been dealing with this all alone outside...over and over again.  Hopefully Black Kitty's new bundle will renew everyone's spirits.