nursing mother cat with very sore tits

Question
Hi, My son's cat had 8 kittens almost 4 weeks ago. About a week ago the mother left and did not return for 6 days. In the mean time we have been bottle feeding the kittens. The mother came home skinny and not much milk. The kittens are trying to nurse and mommy is trying to let them but she crys in pain. Her tits are really red and must be so sore. Is there anything we can do to help her build up her milk and help with the soreness. We are still feeding the babies and introducing them to kitten food but they don't seems interested yet. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Answer
Hi Nancy,

I am giving you a recipe for something called kitty glop. It is great for raising kittens on and it is also really good for nursing moms. On the mom's teats I would get something called bag balm. You can get it at most drug stores. It works great when the teats are red like that. Feed the kits the kitty glop to supplement mom's milk. I would feed them 3 times a day with the glop. Use a nursing bottle. Give the mom the glop in a saucer. She will love it. Good luck and let me know what happens.

Ciao, Karen

INGREDIENTS:
1 can evaporated milk (not condensed)
2 tbsp. plain yogurt (not diet)
2 tbsp. mayonnaise (real not light or No-Fat)
1 tbs. Karo Syrup (light)
1 pkg. Knox gelatin
1 egg yolk (beaten, )
1 cup Pedialyte (unflavored)
1 jar stage one baby food (chicken or turkey)
INSTRUCTIONS:
Mix milk, yogurt, mayonnaise, baby food, and syrup together well. Bring 1 cup pedialyte to boil and mix in Knox gelatin. Set aside. Mix egg yolk with small amount of milk mixture and beat well.

Add gelatin and pedialyte to milk mixture and beat well. Add in egg yolk mixture and beat well. Remember to not use egg substitute and keep egg white to a minimum.

Pour into bowl (with cover) and set in refrigerator. Glop will last for two weeks covered in refrigerator or over a month frozen.
Try freezing the mixture in ice cube trays and store the cubes in the freezer, thaw as many as needed.
Always warm glop to room temperature (milk form) before feeding.