How to feed newborn kittens

I foster bottle-babies for a local nonprofit and they asked me to do a quick instructional video for new fosters! I've got several years of experience caring for kittens and I hope this video helps you care for any kittens you might end up with!
That said, I AM NOT A VET and cannot answer all your kitten care and feeding questions! (Especially since I only check comments on this vid once every couple of months.) I only have practical experience from many years of kitten fostering, and I foster through several shelters and foster systems. If you are unsure about a kitten's health or your ability to care for it, please take it to the vet or a local shelter or rescue!

[@Mouschimooo]

I hope that kitty is one happy grown up now. Thank you for the video :)

[@rudebega]

Both kittens grew to young kittenhood successfully, and were fixed and adopted by loving families!

[@amin11pewe30]

mouschi xnxx

[@barbarafarewell3522]

You have a heart of gold!!!

[@Lorieellesh]

You are good to do this. It is a lot of work, and very time consuming.

[@Rick-S-6063]

You are very patient and kind with the kittens. I'll reach through the screen and give you a high five.

[@wnnabnrml]

Found 3 in a trash bag inside a dumpster. Thanks for reminding me what to do. It's been 15 years since I had to foster.

[@missk8ekat]

Ahhh, thank you for this video! I learned a lot from you and I've bottle fed kittens before. Appreciated!

[@guardemdog]

Just to let people know I followed her directions with a 3 day old kitten and it's been a week and our little guy is still going strong. At this point he is on a bottle. The most challenging issues we have had is pooping and staying warm. I lubricated a q tip with non petroleum Vaseline type stuff and sort of messaged his anus. The first poop was very hard and I had to literally pull the first bit of dry poop out, and then pull the rest out while he pushed. That happened after we watered down his formula a bit. He now poops pretty well. The heat lamp works beautifully, but you have to be really careful you don't over heat the kitten and make sure they have something to crawl under if they get too hot. The damp towel I'm using works for that. My samsung note 2 has a great room temp app, but you just go get a room thermometer. We are feeding every 3 hours now and one 4 hour stretch at night. But we take a lot of time with each feeding, lots of cuddles and letting him crawl around a lot, this little guy would crawl out the front door if we let him, and go for a walk. We don't wipe his butt, we just massage, with a soft damp cloth, I was worried about getting his butt sore. I'm also a worry wort. His pee is so strong he squirted all over my daughter yesterday. Thats a boy for you.

[@ravenbb2441]

Hiii, this comment is pretty old but I am taking care of a very young kitten (cant be more than a week) and for your kitten do you remember if adding water to the formula helped with the constipation or made it worse?

[@guardemdog]

@@ravenbb2441 yes. After ending up paying 200 for an enema in animal er, the vet told me to add some water. It really does help. Just have to make sure they still get enough nutrition. Sometimes a little extra stimulating with a very soft warm wet cloth will help. It is a serious situation if they get too constipated.

[@ah7282]

This was a very helpful video. We found a 2 week old kitten in the left lane of a very busy road, so we've been trying to take care of her. She's now 3 weeks old and happy. Took us a while to get her to poop regularly, even with stimulating, but now shes going like a champ. We ended up putting her butt under warm water and gently massaging. Even after a water enema, she wasn't really 'pooping' anything but a few drops, but the sink did it!

[@yinglingsusan]

Thank-you! This is an awesome instructional video!!

[@benlujan288]

Love those adorable kittens!

[@guardemdog]

I just put a little Vaseline on a q tip and sort of messaged the area and our little guy pooped out sticky stuff I literally had to pull out. I have cut his KMR with water. I am using a heat lamp we used for chicks over a basket (has cloth lining) and then have a damp towel placed over half of it so he can get away if it gets too warm for him. I read they need humidity of 50% and it was a good idea to put a damp towel over half the box. Thanks again for the video and advise. The idea of putting the nipple on a syringe has been great. Minx latched on to it like a champ. He's fed every 2.5 hours, warm, peeing and now pooping is starting, we have done our best. It's better than staying in the middle of our driveway. This is the second kitten I have found in our drive way. The first was around 12 weeks and he ran around for a few days, finally caught him and the poor little guy was skin and bones and had a large pus filled wound. Used some wound wash and slathered the wound with honey till I got him to the vet. We have mama cat somewhere who's mothering skills are questionable, but my god she births beauties. Thank goodness for SNIP. We are on 38 acres and feral's will always be part of our lives, They keep down the rats, but there are around 7 that need SNIP.

[@rorybucy9038]

This helped me thank you!

[@thekisnerlife7290]

Great video, thanks so much for the valuable information. I love your hair and definitely smiled when you said "Poop happens!" ☺

[@abdoulsawadogo3760]

Katie Kolesar uv

[@lisk3822]

I have some fosters and I'm not sure they are getting enough milk from the mom. I'm helping them along thanks to your video. You are very thorough and explain well. Thanks!

[@millennialsinglemom4342]

Thank you so much for posting this video. It is so so helpful.

[@user-hz7el5mg3g]

Vegansinglemum ม

[@lynnc.8833]

Wish I had looked at your video Sooner! Even vets never told me what to do. My 2 day old kitten died.

[@luisalexandermendozaherrer7480]

Lynn C. Wtyuio

[@ZaneMor]

thanks for this video... this will actually help.. momma cat died this evening leaving 4 little kittens...

[@kewl-asian]

That's sad :( I hope you take good care of the little fellas

[@ZaneMor]

+Mac-Aen sadly kittens died few days later, a little bit of two weeks... they wont drink milk from bottle.. :(

[@christyh4035]

Thank you for this video. I am fostering 6 babies right now. 5 are older and on solid food (soft and dry) but one is only about 7 days old now. I have fostered a bottle baby before but she did not survive. She did not have a colon and we prayed for poop for a week before the vet did tests to find out why no poop. I feel more comfortable with the the care I am giving Thor. Thank you

[@savecityofheroessavecityof5838]

SO CUTE!

[@fathernson2904]

Thank you for sharing😊

[@guardemdog]

Thank you so much. I just found a kitten, probably around 3 days, 4oz. I sort of forgot some of this. Just gave him 3 mL, not sure if he burped, but he peed, no poop, and now taking a nap. Your video really put me at ease. Thanks. I'm always a little worried about keeping warm. If he doesn't make it, we did our best. Since he is by himself I'm a little worried about his getting cold.

[@brittneebilliot7477]

I know this is an old video! But it is very informational! I discovered 3 newborn kittens in my backyard. We've had kittens back there before but I watched for hours to see if she would feed them and she wouldn't. she migrated to the next door neighbors house. They cried for hours and she never showed. I even placed them in a warm box in the backyard for both the kittens and the mom. Sat out a can of food for the mom and she still never budged. I got milk replacement. And they're feeding really well. I placed a heating pad in the bottom of the box with a blanket on top for heat. Is that okay?

[@celinamoore2350]

I took my little dog out for a walk this morning..I kept hearing something crying .I thought it was a bird,but it kept getting louder.. I saw this box by these weeds at the back of oour apartment complex..Ity had 5 newborn kittens. I know who the Mom is, but I cant find her..She usually comes out when I take my dog for a walk. I saw her last .Couple days ago she was preggers. Then not..These babies were so cold.When I held them close to me they wouldnt cry. I put them in the box theyd scream their heads off. I called my Mom she came over brought 2 tiny little bottles, creamer.. We nursed kittens when I was a teenager with Pet Milk, and egg from what a vet told us..Me and my mom fed all 5 of them, and I got a fleece blanket and added it to their box..They are sleeping right now..I have been going outside calling and looking for their Mom..I'm gonna keep doing it. I hope she comes out,cause these babies need her.

[@aidenbodkins2161]

I added this to my watch later if it ever comes in handy ;) actually it might sometime soon. My aunt and uncle love cats and i ask for every kitten, so if any kitten ever gets abandoned, it woln't learn to eat hard food too early, and it woln't starve :D

[@HwaWoonKim]

great vid! will have my own kitties soon :)

[@djamelelkolli7565]

u have a big heart i hope the best for you ( kitty lady)

[@switchclicks7587]

i was pretty clueless. thankyou! I just rescued a kitten. I know shes less than a week. I kust want her to make it!

[@Canuckmom128]

Great resource. To your viewers - if you are fostering or rescuing neonate kittens, please check out The Kitten Lady videos and Blog. She is probably the best resource out there for kitten info. I didn't realize til I watched her videos that neo-Nate kittens don't pee and poo on their own - Mom has to lick that area to stimulate them to go - and this video shows how to do this, too. 😻

[@juju4803]

Muito lindo seu gatinho vc cuida muito bem dele , fiquei com dó ele procurando a mãe para mamar dá muita dó , mas vc sabe cuidar bem de gatos , Parabéns

[@madcratebuilder]

great job and yes, poop is good with new born's.

[@1wickedmind]

This video has been a life saver! And I mean that could be literally. I posted videos of my accidental kitty that someone dropped behind a dumpster when it was about two days old and nice construction workers saw it, and brought it to the pound. Well the pound was going to euthanize her and at that time my mom and I were heading out after checking on a cat we put up for a rescue group the week before (health issues and she had just lost her litter of 5 kittens. Mom started watching your videos when we were down to three and we tried to feed them, fading kitten syndrome the vet said). Well lo'and'behold we had the stuff to feed the new kitten just not the milk and one of the guys offered us ten dollars to help pay for the milk because it would be better off with us even if it did die because at least it would have been loved. (Plus our pound charges close to $100 to turn in a stray regardless of circumstances). Mom had this video playing the first two days to make sure we were feeding her right. We tried the bottle, which sucked. And we had an old syringe that she took. Now that she's two weeks old she can suck the milk herself and we bought the children syringe (the nipple fits the tip better) that has the color coded measurements on the plunger end so she downs it like she would with mommy. Between your videos and watching the previous cat deliver and keep the kittens alive for the first week (the last one passed at 16 days), we got to see everything. And I think because of your video this cat has a great chance of surviving. A two day old kitten that we got is now two weeks old and is thriving. Eyes open, purring contently, knows voices and follows them. And reacts to touch. It's amazing. Thank you so much!

[@rudebega]

This made me teary-eyed! I'm so glad it has helped you!

[@thankyouforbeingafriend9632]

I love your hair

[@serenalystar782]

awwww sooooo cute

[@IAmJasonii]

Thank you for this vid. I was having trouble feeding a newborn kitten that I found, it worked. I'm so relieved ty

[@namrakhan8038]

jay w did u found those feeding nipple from where i found soo

[@charleneresch5008]

Thank you for your advice. I have a 3-4week old kitten that somehow ended up in my patio. Tried bottled feeding him he fights me. I'm afraid he's going to die. The mama cat ignores him. What can I do to help this little guy

[@chocomatcha5039]

please tell what brand of milk ? i see the kitten likes it so much.. i wanna buy it too for my kitten

[@xana5649]

Love your hair

[@katerinakoronaiou5604]

Hello, thank you for posting this video.When i came home from work somebody (i suspect a neighbor) had left a crate with 5 newborn kittens in my parking space right outside my house.I took them straight to the vet and she told me they are 3 days old. Gave me formula, instructions and advised me to not get my hopes up because despite best efforts it is very difficult for this young kittens to survive.After the first feeding 3 of them pooped but now after their second feeding neither did.i hope this is not a bad sign.thank you for the instructions

[@rudebega]

Katerina Koronaiou Don't worry, they probably won't poop after every feeding, especially as they get used to the formula--it tends to bind them up a little! Make sure you're using formula that's a little watered-down at first, actually, otherwise they have a higher chance of getting constipated. If they haven't pooped after a couple days (THIS IS GROSS BUT) you can try putting some vaseline on a thermometer and gently probing their lil butts--just pop it in, then back out. You don't have to stick it in further than the nib--it'll stimulate the "push" instinct. Good luck!!

[@bincangsantai]

Katerina Koronaiou

[@pashionpanda8365]

Tyy!! i have newborn baby kittens by my cat but my cat takes alot of breaks outside so i had to go to the vet and buy baby kitten milk ;3

[@naebae5490]

This morning when I was going to school I heard kittens when I was going to check the school bus came now I came from school I still hear the kittens when I went I found 6newborns without food for 24hr idk what to do I cried when I saw them I don't want any animal to get hurt

[@juliefortino2653]

Me and my family found what we believe is a 5 day old or a week old kitten whose mother left him abandoned. We took him in. He was stuck in the insolation under our double wide. We are feeding him straight forward with a syringe and kitten formula. We are doing that thing where we gently massage his bottom with a warm washcloth. Would you think he will survive? Or at least, are we doing things right? Any suggestions?

[@jubnazuzee8686]

thank you very much for this video may Allah show you the right path in ur life

[@chxyxnnx1976]

Today I found a litter of 6 kittens. I have been attempting to feed the for hours, they are being fed baby formula with the syringe. The first 2 times I fed them they were good, eating well, then using the bathroom. At 2 I lost one of the kittens, I plan on taking them to a vet tomorrow. How should I feed them until then, nothing is working? 😣

[@amihargul7436]

if we don't have kitten farmula in that case what should we do?

[@indiaroberts7142]

hi today I found a kitten on my farm but I am only 11and my mum and dad refuse to go and by a cap for the syringe is their a way to make one thxs

[@DaydreamerForever]

Cute

[@cbrrudy2]

GIVE ME THAT CAT!

[@ayaibrahim7161]

HELP my newborn kitten is a runt and he refuses to eat what can I do my former kitten passed because of this. I tried dropping formula into his mouth placing him near the mother's nipple he won't eat. Please if you know anything let me know.

[@krishnakhan439]

I found a kitten yesterday. I bought ready made formula and a little bottle from Wal-Mart. I found the nipple is too big for him. I am going to see if I find him something smaller at the pet store tomorrow. I think he's maybe four day old. He still has his cord. I've been using a baby medicine syringe to feed him. He eats about .3 ml at the most. He's weighing in at 94g. I think he was the runt and the momma left him. I've been holding him the wrong way though. I have been holding him back against my chest, his head is raised. I don't think he has air in his lungs, but I do think he might be constipated. His poo comes out very black and it seems discomforting to him. Is this normal when the baby is so small? Any advice to help him poo better? I have been massaging him a lot. Should I use karo ?

[@Vik-jc5dc]

Mother cats lick their kittens anuses to get the poo out after the feeding, so you might want to rub around that area to get it to poo, I suggest looking up how to do this method :3

[@SuperShandy777]

u found him awwww

[@emilylovestar9940]

where u got the kitten?

[@Nordie69101]

I have a 15 hour old premie who just hasn't really mastered latching on to the mom. I've given it .5 ml twice. I didn't do any more because mom cat was going nuts and he latched on after, but couldn't again.

[@MrThesunda]

HI...thanks a lot for the Vid..I have abandoned 3 days old kitten. I really frustrating how could I care for her. where I live there is no vet store. how could I substitute the formula with..?? please please please....

[@stormhaven6665]

Goat milk if you're desperate.

[@SuperShandy777]

awww

[@miketaylor5212]

my problem is my kitten does not want to eat it is approxamately 10 days old i can get it to potty but it does not want to eat i get a little in and it pushes it away

[@maxi2675]

😍😍😍😍

[@aparnaponraj2845]

I have 7 days old kitten ,his mother is died I don't know how to take care😭it's not eating properly even I don't know wat should be feedded and how

[@amihargul7436]

plz reply I have a kitten her mother has rejected her

[@shaleegibson7054]

I'm having trouble feeding a runt. the had to huge of a litter and can't provide. how can I get him to take a nipple. he really needs to eat. any suggestions?

[@emsrebornpassion1684]

I use miracle nipple minis. If he still won't eat you can ask a vet to teach you how to tube feed.

[@lovelyavery6445]

4:03 Hey! I'm expecting a high five! Where's the hand?

[@vijayalakshmi7345]

Lovely Avery bky

[@cindy19975]

found two new born kittens in my neighbourhood today. someone had abandoned them :\ im gonna try to do this but where i live i can't find formula milk. i only have cartoon milk. im gonna try and raise them until they can eat on their own. any tips other than this? :)

[@SuperShandy777]

awwww bless u

[@SuperShandy777]

***** if u just ring a vet its free

[@emsrebornpassion1684]

Did these little fellows end up surviving? It is so hard to keep them alive despite our best efforts. Great video it moved me to a point where I know do bottle babies for my shelter too. 🐱

[@rudebega]

They survived and were adopted by loving families! I do lose kittens sometimes, but my loss percentage is fortunately pretty low--over the past decade I think I've raised about 300 kittens from 2 weeks or less old, and lost maybe a dozen of them. Stuff like heart defects, or severe URIs ends up being the deciding factor. And sometimes you can do everything right and a kitten will just crash out on you. I really should do a kitten-crash care video one of these days.

[@emsrebornpassion1684]

+rudebega wow that's great and a ton of kittens! I've fostered 54 between 24 hours and 8wks old and lost 1 so far. Really love doing the little ones! Glad they made it! :) thanks for replying!

[@KathyMoreira1]

I'm fostering a mom and her 1 week old kittens and she isn't producing enough milk for all 4 kittens. One kitten isn't getting enough milk so I tried to feed him like you show in the video but the little guy doesn't want to take the nipple at all. Do you have any tips on how to get him to latch on the nipple?

[@ah7282]

+Kathy Moreira If the kitten is still alive, you can try to see if they will suckle on your hands/fingers, and when they're suckling, gently move the nipple in sideways into their mouth. May take several tries but after after a while they will associate the nipple will taste.

[@KathyMoreira1]

+Amanda H thank you, the little guy is still alive it seems as though he's getting his siblings' left overs. I'll definitely give this a try!

[@joeytrevino7809]

I have 4 baby kittens. 3 are feeding from the mother but 1 seems to wonder around and not feed at all. Right now, I just gave the kitten; Kitten Milk from a bottle and she drank it all and I also cleaned her up using Baby Shampoo around the eyes because she had pus. Now she's able to see perfectly.

[@User-kr9sy]

My cat REFUSES to drink what do I do?

[@UnitedTerra2012]

I can't get kitty to do that, he doesn't eat for very long. He ate about 1/10 of that in 2 days

[@laquinocacho5414]

what if I have to go to work I work for 7 hours

[@nanisjvanilla5993]

im trying to save my kittens they need milk and the mother abandoned them and they need milk and i dont have a syringe

[@jihahaa2822]

my newborn kitten just died few hours ago....last night i bottle fed them and immediately milk came out from the nose...i had a feeling this is bad....not good....weird because the kitten suckle on the bottle..i didnt press or give pressure onto the bottle... feeling sad now...like maybe its my fault.. :(

[@rudebega]

Hey, it is not your fault. You did the best you could. The kitten may have had a cleft palate or another opening between the sinus and the throat that caused that to happen, in which case he may not have made it without serious veterinary intervention. Don't feel bad for trying your best to help the helpless.

[@PARTMI0101]

I have a one or two week old kitten he hsnt pooped yet so im really worried he does pee tho but does any one know what I should do

[@Lorieellesh]

PARTMI0101 I believe you are supposed to rub their anus with a cloth, as she does in this video.

[@vipz4bigbang]

My 11 days old kitten is so small..it drinks so little

[@nancytomlinson3523]

you sure that he might still me hungery because he still is squacking.

[@zulylovesdavid]

what do I do if the newborn kitten I am trying to feed doesn't want to stick on the bottle? I keep dripping the formula in its mouth little by little. He or she is a newborn and looks a lot smaller than the kitten in the video. I'm afraid it's dying :'(

[@zulylovesdavid]

*suck, not stick

[@roleplaygirl7552]

my name is Jocelin Castillo I had a kitten to but it did

[@laquinocacho5414]

can you do a video on how to clean newborn Kittens poop please

[@Lorieellesh]

That black and white one is still hungry, I suspect.

[@MaddyLynn___]

I have a 5 month kitten

[@samseffar6936]

My kitten was so hyper when i fed her

[@hanifebilgi3725]

🍼

[@MaddyLynn___]

I have a 5 months

[@micheltack9488]

J espère de tout cœur il survivra

[@catsten1439]

កូនឆ្មា. ស្រែកពិរោះណាស់❤️❤️💦💦🥰🥰 ស្អាត🥰🥰❤️❤️

[@cookiestash]

mine is 4 days old

[@mandoqueen4066]

bu

[@cookiestash]

I ment 3

[@KHALID_KHALID_78]

They generaly oppen eyes when they have more than 7 days old....

[@SarahClaytonSMF]

what if he isn't pooping?

[@ah7282]

+Sarah Clayton Stimulate the butt with WARM WATER (not hot) with 100% cotton pads (like the kind you use to remove make up - find the softest ones you can find, we use the CVS extra large ones), cotton balls (wont hold a lot of poop but may get things going) or soft toilet paper, like charmin. Remember to wet them with warm water, do not let it get too hot. Gently rub in a circle around the butt with only a slight pressure. A little olive oil or vaseline on the butt itself massaged in can help as well. 1 tiny drop of olive oil in their formula can help too. If all else fails, you can try putting their butt under warm water and gently massaging with your hands on their butt hole itself. Be sure to get the kitten completely dry afterwards or you risk it getting chills, which is very bad. A warm towel and a blow dryer on LOW used from a far away distance should dry them in a few short minutes. good luck!

[@SarahClaytonSMF]

+Amanda H thank you!

[@Jackie.cruzxxx]

Does anybody know what I should name my newborn female kitten

[@Lorieellesh]

People should use a pillow for the kittens to rest their paws on. The kittens feel insecure when their arms are grasping at air.

[@michaelsigalet474]

Jonas itakutowa

[@ahmedismail8775]

its not a newborn kitten

[@xedn]

Lines not suckimg the bottle and isn't pooping help!

[@ceciliaampofowaa3201]

Speak up louder no one can hear you other than that nice video

[@elyasssajjad6562]

y r u in the bathroom

[@veronicaarcos5652]

Deja de hablar y dale luego la leche