New kitten....questions & advice (merged)

20vt-rs

Ok guys and gals, I've got my new kitten and he is adorable. However I am a little worried, maybe for no reason but as this is my first I am unsure. Last night he was ill and sick 6 times, really drained and not well at all (I spent most the night with him!). Been fine since Saturday when I picked him up, and tonight he seems much better. But he doesn't seem to eat much at all and doesn't drink water. He only seems to like kitten milk, leaves his dry food and has a little wet food. An I worrying for nothing or should I see a vet?

rita-rabbit

kerri_gt wrote: »

No I didn't say that, if you actually read the post instead of jumping down my throat, what I am suggesting is that until the kitten is neutered, it should not be let out unsupervised (see my very first sentance).

As kiraroo quite rightly points out, becoming pregnant at such a young age is not only distressing but could prove fatal for a cat, if even if the kitten is male, letting him wander to find a potenially un-neutered female is irresponsible as this could also lead to unwanted kittens (yes, in a perfect world, there wouldn't be un-neutered females out either, but sadly not everyone is a responsible owner.

Supervised outdoor time is perfectly fine up until the cat is netered - and this will give the cat time to get acustomed to the outside world - and its a bid old world for a little kitty.

thanks for clarification

rita-rabbit

20vt-rs wrote: »

Ok guys and gals, I've got my new kitten and he is adorable. However I am a little worried, maybe for no reason but as this is my first I am unsure. Last night he was ill and sick 6 times, really drained and not well at all (I spent most the night with him!). Been fine since Saturday when I picked him up, and tonight he seems much better. But he doesn't seem to eat much at all and doesn't drink water. He only seems to like kitten milk, leaves his dry food and has a little wet food. An I worrying for nothing or should I see a vet?

see a vet
see a vet

kerri_gt

I would give the vet a call and make an appointment to see them asap.

Chances are it he is ok, but with kittens so young, they can go downhill quickly and complications can occur easily. Don't be embarassed or think you are over-reacting - you'd never forgive yourself if something happened to him.

I would guess that he's not touching the water much as he's getting liquid in the form of kitten milk. I would also think that he might be a little young for dried food - at least on it's own, was his breeder giving him dry food already? Are you giving him the same food as he has been used to - its amazing how sensitive cats can be to changes in diet. It might also be worth encouraging him to eat his wet food by mixing it with some kitten milk to begin with - if he's ok with that you can gradually reduce the amount of milk and increase the amount of wet food until he's eating the wet food on it's own ok. Another thing is that cats do prefer to eat little and often, my cat is fussy about food that has been out for too long so perhap try putting out less food but more frequently.

You can discuss his diet etc with the vet when you see him/her as well, they will be able to give you lots of useful advise too. Keep us posted on how he's doing x

headpin

kerri_gt wrote: »

btw - .................
Have you considered a Feliway diffuser or two in the house - esp in the room where the kitten will be most of the time. I've seen many a reccomendation from cat owners that they really help to calm cats and ease them into new/potentially stressful situations. This site is quite good price-wise www.vetuk.co.uk

..........

A number of breeders we know have also recommended a Feliway diffuser. You can also get them from http://www.petmeds.co.uk/nsearch.aspx?keywords=feliway where they are slightly cheaper at £18.89. You need to be careful as in a lot of places they are not far shy of £30, including Pets at Home where they retail at £29.59!!! see http://www.petsathome.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?freeText=diffuser&storeId=10551&catalogId=10601&langId=-1

Good luck and enjoy.

20vt-rs

kerri_gt wrote: »

I would give the vet a call and make an appointment to see them asap.

Chances are it he is ok, but with kittens so young, they can go downhill quickly and complications can occur easily. Don't be embarassed or think you are over-reacting - you'd never forgive yourself if something happened to him.

I would guess that he's not touching the water much as he's getting liquid in the form of kitten milk. I would also think that he might be a little young for dried food - at least on it's own, was his breeder giving him dry food already? Are you giving him the same food as he has been used to - its amazing how sensitive cats can be to changes in diet. It might also be worth encouraging him to eat his wet food by mixing it with some kitten milk to begin with - if he's ok with that you can gradually reduce the amount of milk and increase the amount of wet food until he's eating the wet food on it's own ok. Another thing is that cats do prefer to eat little and often, my cat is fussy about food that has been out for too long so perhap try putting out less food but more frequently.

You can discuss his diet etc with the vet when you see him/her as well, they will be able to give you lots of useful advise too. Keep us posted on how he's doing x

Thank you for your advice, it has been very helpful. I called the vet and they said as long as he appears to back to normal and is depositing in the litter tray to just keep and eye on him. He appears much much better this evening, is eating little and often too. I think he's recovered, in fact I am sure as he's climing my legs, biting my toes and pouncing on my hands as I type!!

kerri_gt

Thats good news that he seems back to his usual self now, keep an eye on him (as I am sure you are doing with the joy of a new kitten anyway ) and if you are in any doubt, the vet won't mind a phone call - its what they trained for

Also, you might like to have a look at this forum http://love4cats.darkbb.com/forum.htm There are a number of people on there from a previous cat forum I was part of (which was part of the magazine Cat World but they sadly shut down the forum in a revamp). There are lots of lovely people on there with a wealth of knowledge and cat tales (no pun intended! :rotfl:)

(must be something in the air tonight....my furry one has just started charging up and down the stairs like a lunatic :rotfl:)

20vt-rs

Thank you Kerri, you've been most helpful! I'll take a peek on that site later this evening, if kitty let's me!!!