Surrogate kitten

Question
Hi Teresa,
Our deaf Persian (Poppy)had a very large single stillborn yesterday(to our distress). We took her to the vet to get checked out - she is okay - and we got a 4-5 week kitten to replace the dead one.  Poppy thinks this is her kitten and wants to nurture it but the kitten is feral and is lively and independent! Poppy tries to pick it up but is rather ruff as she gets the tail or the leg and misses the neck at times! But we think they are bonding as they slept together well last night in the birthing cupboard. But as Poppy is deaf does not hear the kitten cry. The kitten has kitten food (pellets recommended by the vet)and is drinking water, but still has Dioahreah. Q: In your experience do we have a chance that the two will bond? Q2. Is the kitten food too rich for the kitten and should she be having milk?  We live in Qatar so specialised foods etc are not easy to get!  And yes we are getting both cats spayed in 3 weeks!!

Answer
Hi Sally, I would say you have a 99% chance that those two will bond. Even if Poppy is unable to mother this kitten it will be good for the kitten to have a mom figure in her life as she is too young to be on her own. She needs the nurturing and training that a mom cat can provide. The kitten should be having milk but only cat milk, not cows milk so you are better to leave her and hope that she settles a bit and starts to nurse off poppy. If you have only had the kitten for a day it is possible she has diarrhea from just being moved or having a food change. I would not imagine she is having a problem with the food so I would continue to leave it out for her. usually the problem young kittens have with kitten kibble is that they get constipated ! So, my recommendation is to leave things as they are and give these two time to get to know each other. Don't worry about poppy being too rough with her. This is a natural behaviour. If you ever see a litter of kittens playing you would wonder how they don't hurt each other! Also natural moms will pack their kittens around and up and down stairs bumping them on each one.. and the kittens turn out just fine!
Good luck with your 'odd couple' and yes, please get them both spayed...
Teresa