Only 1 Kitten left. Help if Possible Please.

Question
I have a feral cat that is an outside cat. She is about a year and a month old i would guess and just gave birth 4 days ago to 4 very small kittens. At first I thought they were premies but I looked up some information and wasn't sure because they still had a little fur on their feet and legs. Yesterday two of the smallest kittens died. Today another kitten died so there is only one left. I know she didn't smother the kittens because I had to watch the last one suffer with it's last breath.. It's absolutely devistating and I'm now trying to bottle feed the last kitten...(with kitten formula) Luckily, I think this kitten was the first born because he/she was the biggest of the four. Bad News is I dont think the mother is producing milk.. I see the baby trying and suckling but i can't tell if the baby is getting any. I tried to bottle feed the kitten but it's resisting and I really hate to be forceful. Begging for some help to save the last baby kitten..

Answer
Katie,

Right now you have the right idea. The best thing that you can do for this kitten is to remove it from the mother. Many kittens wont take the bottles sold in pet stores for hand rearing. I usually recommend that you try purchasing a few oral syringes from your local pharmacy. These are the syringes that are used to give human babies medications orally and you can generally find them in the baby section. Be sure that the formula is warm enough, test it on the inside of your wrist to be sure that you dont burn the kitten. I would suggest that you mix the kitten formula according to the package instructions. You will need to make sure that you feed the kitten with all four paws facing the floor as feeding her on her back like a human infant can cause her to choke or inhale her food and drown. I usually place the kitten in my lap facing me and use one hand to hold the syringe and the other to gently hold the kitten, at this stage you will be able to hold the kitten and gently keep her from turning away from the syringe. Gently insert the syringe into the corner of her mouth and slowly depress the plunger. You will want to burp her by either rubbing her belly gently or patting her little back with about two fingers very softly to prevent her from getting gas and having a sore belly. Give the kitten as much as she will take, she will stop swallowing the formula and do her best to squirm away from the syringe. At this stage it is a good idea to pick up a kitchen scale that measures in grams up to two pounds so that you can weigh this baby daily so that you can be sure that she is getting enough formula and thriving. It is important that you are aware that kittens this young must be fed about every hour to two hours when they are being hand reared as they would nurse just about constantly on their mom. The best thing that you can do for this kitten is to make sure that she is kept warm. If at all possible you may want to make sure that this baby is with you at all times during waking hours to keep warm and also so that she can hear your heart beat which will be reassuring to her. Dont sleep with this little one because she could easily be crushed at this age. If you want to keep her close by try having her sleep in a small box (shoebox works well) lined with towels and giving her a small stuffed animal to curl up to. This kitten must be kept warm so be sure that she isnt hanging out in air conditioning. Kittens this young must also be stimulated to urinate and defecate. Normally their mothers would do this by licking them. I suggest that you try using several cotton balls moistened with warm water. It is important that the kitten`s face and body be wiped down frequently so that they aren`t dirty. I recommend that you start from the face and work back along the kitten`s back all the way to the tail. Then you will want to gently use your fingers like mom`s paw to turn the kitten over onto her back (it`s normal for her to complain about it) and use a clean cotton ball to wash her under the chin, on her chest and all the way down her belly to her genitals. The best way to stimulate the kitten to urinate or defecate is to use a clean cotton ball moistened with warm water and wipe her from her genitals to her bottom repeatedly. Most kittens will pee readily, but getting one to poop can take awhile so be patient...I have had kittens poop after 5 minutes of wiping their bottom so keep trying if you don`t succeed right away, you will want to do this after every feeding. Be sure that you don`t allow the kitten to become too wet while bathing her because she isn`t able to regulate her own body temperature at this point and she can get hypothermia easily. I hope that this information helps. If you keep this kitten warm, fed, cuddled and cared for by a vet if she makes it to see one at about 3 weeks of age or so. I will be out for the evening this evening but please feel free to contact me again tonight if you need some further suggestions/guidance. This will be a long process over the next several weeks, if you have any further questions or concerns or you would simply like to send an update (please) or some pictures my way please dont hesitate to contact me again.