How to Hand-Rear an Orphaned Kitten

Mother cats are usually devoted parents, but sometimes a mother rejects her kittens, can’t produce enough milk or, sadly, dies. Sometimes kittens are found alone. Newborn kittens can’t survive without care around the clock, but with the right help, many orphaned kittens grow up healthy. Here’s what you need to know.

Found Kittens? Wait Before You Move Them

If you find young kittens outdoors and they look clean and well, their mother may just be out hunting and could come back. Watch from a distance for a few hours if it’s safe. If the kittens are in danger, cold, wet, crying constantly or the mother hasn’t returned, take them in and call a vet or rescue.

Keep Them Warm First

Newborn kittens can’t control their body temperature for the first weeks of life. A chilled kitten can’t digest food, so never feed a cold kitten: warm it up gently first and call a vet.

• keep kittens in a box or carrier lined with soft towels, in a warm, draft-free room;
• provide gentle warmth, such as a heating pad made for pets set on low and placed under half the box, so kittens can move away if they get too warm, or a wrapped warm water bottle;
• never put kittens directly on a heat source.

What to Feed

• Feed kitten milk replacer (kitten formula), available from vets and pet stores. Read more about kitten milk replacers.
• Don’t give cow’s milk, goat’s milk, human baby formula or homemade mixtures. They don’t contain the right nutrients and can cause diarrhea, which is very dangerous for newborn kittens.
• Use a kitten nursing bottle with a teat made for kittens, or a syringe if your vet shows you how.

How to Bottle-Feed a Kitten

• prepare the formula exactly as the instructions say, and warm it to about body temperature (test a few drops on your wrist: it should feel warm, not hot);
• hold the kitten on its tummy, as it would lie when nursing from its mother, with its head slightly raised; never feed a kitten on its back, as it could inhale milk into its lungs;
• let the kitten suck at its own pace, and don’t squeeze milk into its mouth;
• if milk comes out of the kitten’s nose, stop and call your vet;
• after feeding, hold the kitten upright against your shoulder and gently pat its back to release air;
• wash bottles and teats thoroughly after each feed, and make up fresh formula each time.

How Often to Feed

Follow the instructions on the milk replacer and your vet’s advice for the amount. As a general guide:

• newborn to 1 week: every 2 hours, day and night;
• 1–2 weeks: every 2–3 hours;
• 2–3 weeks: every 3–4 hours;
• 3–4 weeks: every 4–5 hours, and you can start offering formula in a shallow dish;
• 4–5 weeks onwards: start weaning onto wet kitten food mixed with formula. Read more about feeding a kitten.

Helping Kittens Pee and Poop

Kittens under about 3–4 weeks old can’t pee or poop on their own. Their mother licks them to stimulate this. After every feed, gently rub the kitten’s genital and bottom area with a soft, warm, damp cotton ball or cloth until it goes. Kittens usually pee after every feed and poop at least once a day.

Monitor Weight and Health

Weigh kittens daily at the same time on kitchen scales. Healthy kittens should gain weight every day, around 0.35–0.5 oz (10–15 g) a day, and double their birth weight in the first one to two weeks.