Deborah Felin was introduced in Part I as a co-founder of Helen Sanders CatPAWS Cat Protection and Welfare Society<\/a> in Seal Beach. One of the organization\u2019s missions Felin is to pull cats and kittens from shelters to help lower the euthanasia rate and to give as many cats as possible a chance at adoption. This proactively and actively includes orphaned kittens that cannot survive without the substitution of a mother cat\u2019s care and nutrition.<\/p>\n Felin stressed that the care given to any abandoned litter must be immediate and specific.<\/p>\n \u201cKittens won\u2019t eat on their own until they\u2019re about 4 weeks old,\u201d she said. \u201cIf they\u2019re under 4 weeks, the primary considerations are that they must be kept warm, they must be fed at appropriate intervals and amounts, and they must be helped to eliminate because they can\u2019t do that on their own, either. Under two to three weeks old, they\u2019re like little reptiles\u2014they can\u2019t generate their own body heat\u2014they\u2019re dependent on the mother to do that, so you have to keep them warm.\u201d<\/p>\n $<\/p>\n Felin uses the bathtub in her spare bathroom as an initial nursery for newborns, but any place separate from the rest of the house and any other pets living in it will work. It\u2019s essential that the kittens be prevented from escaping. X-pens do as well as the bathtub; they can be obtained at a pet-supply store or online.<\/p>\n Example of an X-pen. This one is sold at PetSmart.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n The kittens must be kept warm\u2014the normal body temperature for cats is between 100 degrees and102.5 degrees. The heating pad should be turned to its lowest temperature\u2014allow for a section where the kitten can crawl off if it\u2019s too hot\u2014and bedding, clean towels or fleece should line the pen or tub. Make sure that they\u2019re not frayed, because kittens can choke on the fibers.<\/p>\n The bedding will need to be changed quite often.<\/strong> When the kittens start eliminating on their own\u2014and we\u2019ll get to that in a minute\u2014it\u2019s everywhere!<\/p>\n Setting up the kitty bedroom is nothing compared to the feeding schedule. You have to expect interrupted sleep for a couple of weeks.<\/p>\n \u201cA newborn kitten\u2014I mean a couple of days old\u2014has to be fed every two hours, which can be a real bitch, actually,\u201d Felin said. \u201cYou have to be up to this. If it\u2019s only you, you just don\u2019t sleep. By the time the kitten\u2019s a couple of weeks old, though, it gets easier.\u201d<\/p>\n The schedule and form of food depends on each kitten\u2019s age and development. Felin says that there are certain developmental clues to figure how many weeks old a kitten is\u2014the shape of the ears and condition of the eyes, for example. Alley Cat Allies offers a helpful chart<\/a>; the kittens\u2019 weight generally determines how many weeks old a cat is (see below). Kittens should be weighed every day and should gain weight every day as well.<\/p>\n Kitten weight\/age chart. Alley Cat Allies.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n Straight cow\u2019s milk is not a substitute for mother\u2019s milk, so you\u2019ll need a specially mixed formula, which is sold at pet-supply stores and online. Felin cites KMR (Kitten Milk Replacement)<\/a> made by PetAg as the most common; it\u2019s available in liquid and powder in several sizes. The feeding schedule is as follows:<\/p>\n $TThe fourth-week feeding is fairly arbitrary and depends on the cat\u2019s development. Felin said that some cats go facedown into the canned-food\/formula mixture and others will still need the bottle for another week or even more. As the kittens grow, start increasing the solidity of the food, and when you think that they\u2019re ready for it, take the bottle away and leave the kitten at the dish to see what happens.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can put a little chunk of the canned food in their little-bitty mouths and leave it there\u2014they may get the taste for it,\u201d Felin suggested.<\/p>\nSome Tools You’ll Need<\/h2>\n
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Warmth and shelter<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/x-pen-sample.jpg\")
<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\nFeeding<\/h2>\n
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![\"Recipe](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Recipe-card.jpg\")
<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n![\"Nursing](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/NursingMother.jpg\")
<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"YEs](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/YEs-position-prone-kitten.JPG\")
<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"no](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/no-photo.JPG\")
<\/p>\n![\"Bottle\"](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Bottle.JPG\")
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