# please help 1 month old kitten or less dropped on door step



## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

hi
get home from setting up a bake table for a spay and neuter shelter fundraiser. 
I did a bunch of baking and sent it there set up and such from my home business.

I get back home and what do you know
1 month of kitten with a sign we know you like animals we've seen you please take care of her.

kitten is obviously TOO young to be taken from mom anything i need to know? never fostered a kitten and i think i will keep her! 

but i need help any suggestions either than warm place to sleep keep an eye, go to the vet and kitten milk?

cant get to the vet until monday


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

Poor thing. Until Monday do your best. Kitten milk and or soupy wet food if she'll eat it. If she can hold out till Monday, great, otherwise a trip to emergency vet is warranted! Welcome to the forum. Keep us posted and a pic would be nice.


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## bibiak87 (Aug 3, 2013)

Bless you for taking care of the little one! 

I have no advice on such a tiny kitten but just wanted to say good luck and wish you the best! 

Please post a picture of the wee one!  Have you thought of a name?


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## emilyatl (Sep 9, 2013)

Definitely get some KMR (kitten milk replacement) which you can find at any pet store. Like Marcia said, try thinning out some canned food with the KMR and see if she'll eat that. Is she peeing/pooping on her own? She'll may need some help cleaning herself up, so try using damp cotton balls/tissues and gently rub her butt after she poops. Keeping her warm is crucial too (not sure where you are, but it's COLD here today). If you have a hot water bottle, heating pad, etc., you can put that in a bed for her, just don't put her directly on it, make sure she's in a towel/blanket on top of the heat source (it's too hot for her to be lying on directly). If you don't have either of those, you can also use old socks filled with rice that you've microwaved for a minute or so (it should be warm, but not hot). They really work well to conduct heat, you just have to re-heat them pretty regularly.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

she is using the litter box just fine. i have been using kmr and wet food she may be a little older? last night when it happened everything was closed and nearest emergency vet is 10 hours away from me i live in the middle of nowhere canada.


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## Venusworld21 (Oct 23, 2012)

If she's using a litter box she's probably older than 4 weeks. My fosters generally hit that mark around 5-7 weeks old. You should be able to tempt her with regular wet kitten food. If she won't touch that, try adding in some meat flavored human baby food (ham has been the hands down favorite flavor for the litters I've tried this on).

If you can get her to eat wet kitten/cat food, then she shouldn't need the KMR. It can cause diarrhea, so I've been told (by some very experienced rescue friends) to not feed KMR if they don't need it.


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

Thank you for taking care of this little one. Any ideas for a name yet? Sounds like you are doing just fine taking care of her. I have never had one that little either. I always say one day I want some really little ones to care for, but I have 3 cats plus a feral I care for and a dog, so I have enough on my plate now. 

I'm sure you will grow very close to her, having her this young, and she will think you are her momma. Enjoy your little baby kitten snuggles, they grow up so fast.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

its not the greatest photo but maybe this can help us gather her age?


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

Oh, she is so cute! I'm not sure about age, I usually find my cats when they are a little bigger, but I bet you she is older, it's just that she is so frail and skinny she looks smaller. Is she black or grey? She has the same exact eyes and expression as my little black kitty Stephano. She is just adorable. Thank you for taking care of her.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

heres a few more


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

shes actually like a chocolate brown with one spec of white on her toe. but my phone sucks for photos


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

My phone takes terrible pictures too. That will be so cool if she keeps that chocolate color, that is so nice. She already seemed familiar with a littler box, like she's been inside before maybe? My sister recently took in a little kitten from the streets, and they thought she was about 6-8 weeks old, she was about the size of this kitty. She is awfully cute and sweet and probably so relieved to be inside a loving home, especially since cold weather is coming. Not sure where you are, but I'm in FL and it's getting chilly even here.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

in canada. lol snow is already here ...cant believe it!

she is very sweet. she is mowing down on some wet food atm.


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## Wannabe Catlady (Aug 6, 2012)

So cute! She looks like my boy when I brought him home. They claimed he was 8 weeks, but I suspected 6 or 7 weeks. 


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

awesome im suspecting 6-7 too. she is agile. she just met my other cat by accident she seems playful my boy cat is taking her to surprise very well he even licked her a bit.

but i will keep the kitten and my dog away from eachother for a bit until kitten is settled down.

still no name im sure it will come


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

hes now showing her how ot use the litter box he nugged her into it than mimicked himself peeing than she did mimicked him

is this normal for a boy cat to do?


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## Venusworld21 (Oct 23, 2012)

I'ts not unheard of for a male cat to want to help with kittens. Having a grown up kitty to teach her what to do (male or female) will make your life much easier, so tell your guy "good boy!" 

Based on the photos, I'd say at least 7 weeks old. Look at those big ears standing straight up on their own. 

Here's some of my current fosters. They turned 8 weeks today (they were born here, so I'm 100% on their age):



By contrast, here's some 4 week olds:






On the 4 week olds the ears are still a little floppy and the heads are larger in proportion to the body. Your girl has very long looking legs and big ears standing straight up. That's what's making me think she's considerably older than 4 weeks.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

awesome so i would say between 6-7 than thanks for the pics for sure helped me figure out her age a bit. awesome glad !
shes eating wet food a bit hard with dry but once it sits in the wet she can eat it. so yay new kitten! shes a sweetie alright thanks so much guys and gals andheres my "momma" cat bailey


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## Venusworld21 (Oct 23, 2012)

I just had another thought....can you weigh her? If you have a postal scale, that's best, but if you can just step on your scale and then hold her and step on it again and find the difference between the two.

Young cats gain about a pound per month. A 1 month old cat would weigh 1 pound, 2 months, 2 pounds, etc. That's not exact, of course, but if she weighs 2 lbs, she has to be at least 2 months old.  That might help you put a lower limit on her age (though it would be useless for an upper limit, especially if she's been starved or malnourished).

Her "mommy" is very pretty.


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## Lamb Chop's daddy (Oct 21, 2013)

Bless you for taking her in. My kitten loves the ham baby food just make sure you read the ingredients and there is no onion or garlic in it and you will be fine just only a tiny bit because probably has sodium. Last but not least I think you are doing a stellar job. Best of luck with the little fur dumpling.


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## emilyatl (Sep 9, 2013)

I'm not sure how big your litter box is, but based on the scale of most boxes, in that one photo, she definitely looks older than a month. She also doesn't look as wobbly as kittens at one month (hard to tell from a pic, but she looks like she's walking straight, upright, etc.). I'd guess about 6 - 8 weeks.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

emilyatl said:


> I'm not sure how big your litter box is, but based on the scale of most boxes, in that one photo, she definitely looks older than a month. She also doesn't look as wobbly as kittens at one month (hard to tell from a pic, but she looks like she's walking straight, upright, etc.). I'd guess about 6 - 8 weeks.


i got a smaller one cause shes little and i wanted her to get into it. but she is for sure walking straight up and upright ect. 



Lamb Chop's daddy said:


> Bless you for taking her in. My kitten loves the ham baby food just make sure you read the ingredients and there is no onion or garlic in it and you will be fine just only a tiny bit because probably has sodium. Last but not least I think you are doing a stellar job. Best of luck with the little fur dumpling.


ham baby food? hmm ill have to check that out dont keep meat products in the house (except the cat food and dog food) as im a vegan with no children


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

I was looking at your picture and thought the kitten looked atleast 8 weeks old. In the future if your without KMR and someone else dumps a kitten on your door step google Kitten Glop and you can make your own kitten milk. Theres lots of recipes on the internet to choose from. 

Hand down all my kittens and adult cats LOVE the Gerber baby food ham too. In fact I just bought some to get some med down some of my adult cats. I syringe it in their mouths to take the nasty taste of the meds out of their their mouths. I keep baby food stocked!

Your new addition is darling. Thanks for rescuing this little one. Shame on the jerk which didn't take responsibility of her. Or even discuss it with you!


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

She is adorable. So glad you took her in and that she is doing so well.


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## emilyatl (Sep 9, 2013)

Yeah, I've never had a kitten refused baby food either. Just make sure it's meat only. I usually buy Gerber. Also, it's not a complete meal, just a supplement (it doesn't have the vitamins/minerals that cat food does). Mine always like the "chicken and gravy" one.


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## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

sunni said:


> in canada. lol snow is already here ...cant believe it!


Yikes! Don't label all of Canada with snow... I hardly saw it at all last year, it was so mild. This year we're about to the end of October and it's hardly even rained.

She is so cute.


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## Surrealle (Oct 24, 2013)

Hey  I'm really glad you took her in and are caring for her well. I'd like to make a suggestion though, based on my own recent experience..

I rescued a skinny, starving kitten two Fridays ago and spent the first week nursing her back to health and putting weight back on her. She bounced back remarkably fast and within a few days was looking gorgeous. I took her to the vet the following Thursday and got a clean bill of health, had her dewormed and given her first shots. The next night she started throwing up and had diarrhea, and over this past week had to be hospitalized with a severe infection of some sort that caused a fever, diarrhea, vomiting, and inflammation in her throat and GI tract. After $1000 in medical treatment and tests, we _still_ don't know what she had. Luckily, she survived and is home now and recuperating, but she lost a third of her body weight and very nearly died from it.

I don't mean to alarm you, but please please consider quarantining your kitten for at least 7-10 days or more to allow for anything she might have to show up. Your older cat may be more resistant to infections than she is, but it's still not worth the risk to their health and your wallet (and stress, heh). 

Best of luck with her, and thanks again for saving her!


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## Cat Lover Lennie (Jan 7, 2013)

I hope you know how special you are for saving this precious baby. All the advice about feeding is good. Does she eat from a dish or need a bottle? She never would have made it outside for much longer. I, too, think she is just scrawny from lack of food. She probably needs to be offered food every 3 hours or so. Probably has worms too. Can't wait to watch her grow up. Does she have a name?


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## Cat Lover Lennie (Jan 7, 2013)

This is Lilah at 6 weeks. Think yours is older.....just malnourished and wormy! Thanks for saving her life!


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

Surrealle said:


> I don't mean to alarm you, but please please consider quarantining your kitten for at least 7-10 days or more to allow for anything she might have to show up. Your older cat may be more resistant to infections than she is, but it's still not worth the risk to their health and your wallet (and stress, heh).
> 
> Best of luck with her, and thanks again for saving her!


good idea. i will keep her alone for now.


as for the rest thanks guy she sure is scrawny she loves the wet food dry food seems to be too hard for her 
im sure ill get some weight onto her she is very very little for now she is confined to my bedroom it isnt the best place.

but its the only place as the other cat has main area and the dog.

however my bedroom is clean and im getting a new bed and matress this week anyways so i can just toss the other one 

I believe for sure she has fleas, im not too worried while pain in the butt my animals are protected, however she is too young for frontline or something? i dont wanna take the chance. someone told me a dawn dish soap bath?
im pretty sure whoever told me that wore a metal suit doing it.

either than that she is very loveable and curled up near me all night last night


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Get rid of the fleas quickly. They can kill her. Wash her in dawn dishwasingliq iiquid and a flea comb. Or have your vet call a flea med company like advantage and they will give the amount for a smaller dose according to its weight.


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## Venusworld21 (Oct 23, 2012)

Frontline should be ok for her. I've put it on cats as young as 5 weeks before (with my vet's blessing) with no ill effects...and she's at LEAST 5 weeks. Probably closer to 8. You just have to reduce the dosage a bit, as they don't need a full size dose.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

okay vet is not open until tomorrow. but i mean ive had my fair share of flea encounters of the last years of my life. and i cannot find 1 flea on her. could there be another reason for the scratching?


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

finally got her to kinda sit still today heres a few pics















you can see how skinny she is but that wil lchange


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## artiesmom (Jul 4, 2012)

ohhhh poor baby! but so cute! Good Luck!!


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## emilyatl (Sep 9, 2013)

Yes, bathing her in Dawn will help with the fleas, it's very effective. You definitely want to get the fleas under control before they get out of hand. With most flea preventatives, they can be used at 8 weeks. I'd probably hold off at least a couple of weeks until she's put on a little weight and gets cleared of any worms, etc. she may have and since it's not really clear how old she is. The Dawn bath should take care of it for now.

She's a cutie!


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## Venusworld21 (Oct 23, 2012)

Yes they can scratch for reasons other than fleas. She could have dry skin, which should improve as she gets a better diet. They make oatmeal sprays also (though good luck getting kitty to tolerate a spray bottle--you'd do better spraying your hand and then stroking her) that can help soothe itchy skin. I use it on our dog, who has very sensitive skin and it seems to help.


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

She is so pretty, and she seems very inquisitive.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

i think she has all the symptons of ear mites. 
she is scratching her head alot and did the shake , she has a dry patch of skin just under her ear around her neck area.

she is very inquisitive, she sleeps curled up beside me


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

You can put some mineral or olive oil in her ears for the mites in a pinch. For fleas, put her on a piece of plain white paper and rub or comb her fur. If comma shaped black specks fall on to the paper, put a drop of water on them. If they turn red it's definitely fleas even if you can't see them. They are lurking somewhere just waiting to multiply and wreak havoc! She is cute - I would guess more like 7 weeks+ than 4.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

little kitten goes to the vet tomorrow i will update than just to let you guys and gals know whats happening!


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Hows your kitten doing. did you resolve the ear mites with the vet?


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

apprently she just has dry skin! so she is doing well eating lots and shes in perfect health aside from the dry skin he thinks its cause they just werent taking care of her properly so she be better soon !


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

I am so glad she is okay! With good quality food,she will get a lot of oils and nutrients her skin needs. Her skin and fur will be nice and shiny!


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

hey guys shes doing very well she is getting better with my dog, who is huge and can be a little goofy and clumsy but they are starting to bond

the cat and the kitten love eachother to pieces.

she is very cute and cuddly and loves me alot sleeps with me every night all curled up beside me







here she is while im playing some video games. LOL!

Odd colors...though never seen an all brown chocolate cat before


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

*Brown cat?*

Im curious as to her colors she is quite literally...brown.

:/

now i know the only true brown cat is a havana brown and i highly doubt she is that























any ideas? is she just a tabby? she has some lighter striping you can see in certain light and if she is standing a certain way


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## zuma (Nov 5, 2009)

I can't help you with breeds, but she's beautiful! 


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

thanks zuma shes been gaining alot of weight which is good cause she was VERY skinny when i got her


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## pkbshrew (Feb 13, 2013)

She is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. She has definitely got some tabby stripes and certainly looks chocolate so maybe she'd be called a Chocolate Tabby... The stripes may become more apparent as she gets older.


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

wow she is beautiful


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

hi gang!

Freya is doing wonderful!
shes sitting on my lap right now shes a purrmachine and loves to cuddle , she also LOVES to play with her big brother bailey , and they often are found sleeping together

she is still a little apprehensive of the dog, but i would be too at her size and how big he is (he weights in at about 55 lbs and is a husky mix) im trying to teach him to be gentle however he is also a new addition only having him for a month before Freya found me on my doorstep so training has been a bit harder


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

hey gang freya is doing great 

odd question though

she smells horrible :/
like almost like she rolled around in poop......


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## NOLAKitties (May 30, 2013)

If she smells bad maybe because she just farted. Look for tapeworm around her butt. Fleas and tapeworm usually form a cycle. Hard to get rid off. My girl cat got them when she was little got lots of fleas too and she infected the boy cat. Careful with the dosage because she is tiny, not all flea meds are good.


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)

thanks for the suggestion she doesnt have fleas or worms we had that all checked out


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## sunni (Oct 26, 2013)




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