Well, I've done it again

[Mike220]

Brought home another animal. This one is a day or two old kitten that was dropped off yesterday. We have a momma cat that was recently pregnant (the litter was all stillborn) and is still producing milk. She's feeding the other six kittens but not this one. When it tries to feed, she gets up and moves away. So I started to feed him with a syringe at work. But he'd be dead by morning if left there, so I brought him home with me to take care of. I'm not sure it's going to work, but I have to try. Put him in a clean litter box from work lined with towels and put it in my closet to keep him warm. I won't keep this one, but I'll nurse him until he's able to make it on his own or someone else at work steps up.

[Inga]

Well I have come across this a few times. What worked one time for me is try to get the scent of the other kittens and also the mother cat all over the kitten. Get the scent from around the whiskers and mouth of the mother cat on the kitten. This might work . But if I don't there is kitten formula at Wal Mart or veterinaries.
Feed every 3-4 hours,also after a week or two and in soft food with the formula.Good Luck.

[Chris_]

Oh how sad! 

You are so nice to take care of this kitten!!  I'm sure everything will work out for him.  I've seen many stores that sell things to help nurse a kitten/puppy yourself. 

[true_blood]

Very cool. Good luck. Should be a lot of work, but the reward will be worth it.

[Mike220]

Just got done with the first feeding. Turns out he's a she. It was weird having to wipe her but so she'd pee afterwards. And at some point I'm so going to get crapped on. But it'll be worth it if she survives.

[vesta111]

Quit this behavior now or you will never make it as a Vet.

You cannot house all the animals you fall in love with, any more then if if you were a Doctor working with Orphan children.

Triage, here some you can help, some you can't.  You chose to go into a profession that will break your heart every day, you cannot allow your feelings to get in the way.

You will face early burn out when you allow your emotions to over come your intellect.

No Doctor or Vet will operate on their own family or pets.   Reason for this is they cannot over ride their emotions and look at the patient as just another patient.

Your patients belong not in your home but in the treatment facility.  Remember that Cats bond with their owner and if you are the owner of a home grown cat, to give them away to strangers will traumatize the poor cat for months.

You now have 2 cats I believe, that is good, please don't bring anymore home, Other wise you could end up with too many to care for and like the Crazy Cat Ladys find you are doing them no good service.

[Mike220]

Quit this behavior now or you will never make it as a Vet.

I'm not going to be a vet. So, what does that mean?

You cannot house all the animals you fall in love with, any more then if if you were a Doctor working with Orphan children.

2 out of hundreds. One temporary. Hardly "all."

Triage, here some you can help, some you can't.  You chose to go into a profession that will break your heart every day, you cannot allow your feelings to get in the way.

Again, no shit. And no I haven't.

You will face early burn out when you allow your emotions to over come your intellect.

Huh? You don't know me or my capabilities.

No Doctor or Vet will operate on their own family or pets.   Reason for this is they cannot over ride their emotions and look at the patient as just another patient.

Yet another no shit. I intend to be neither a vet nor doctor. So where's the parallel? My goal is to do research in a lab.

Your patients belong not in your home but in the treatment facility.  Remember that Cats bond with their owner and if you are the owner of a home grown cat, to give them away to strangers will traumatize the poor cat for months.

What patients? What treatment facility? Certain euthanasia Monday morning. I'll take my chances.

You now have 2 cats I believe, that is good, please don't bring anymore home, Other wise you could end up with too many to care for and like the Crazy Cat Ladys find you are doing them no good service.

Just one. Maybe if you read what I wrote, you'll know this is a temporary thing for a few weeks.

And do not ever tell me what to do. You do not know me.

[Celtic Rose]

So tiny!  I hope she continues to do well, she'll be easy to adopt out once she is bigger, and she will be wonderfully socialized 

[Chris_]

Cute little cat.  Hope she's healthy.

[vesta111]

I'm not going to be a vet. So, what does that mean?

2 out of hundreds. One temporary. Hardly "all."

Again, no shit. And no I haven't.

Huh? You don't know me or my capabilities.

Yet another no shit. I intend to be neither a vet nor doctor. So where's the parallel? My goal is to do research in a lab.

What patients? What treatment facility? Certain euthanasia Monday morning. I'll take my chances.

Just one. Maybe if you read what I wrote, you'll know this is a temporary thing for a few weeks.

And do not ever tell me what to do. You do not know me.

True Mike I do not know you, but I do know human nature and it is all so easy to fall into the collector syndrome.

I was under the impression you were going to Vet school. Perhaps I misread your early posts.

Now that I know you wish to do research, this is a new kettle of fish for me.

To get to know you I ask, what kind of research, some go into DNA for the State Police in a crime that animal hair is found.  A biggie is DNA for race horses or Bulls that cost the earth for a rancher.

One of the biggest research programs has to do with Hogs.  Interesting animals and some believe that the kidneys of a hog are so like humans that they may be able to cross the species and use a Hog kidney in humans.

So what holds your most interest for Lab Research ?

Sorry I upset you, can we talk now?

[Mike220]

True Mike I do not know you, but I do know human nature and it is all so easy to fall into the collector syndrome.

I was under the impression you were going to Vet school. Perhaps I misread your early posts.

Now that I know you wish to do research, this is a new kettle of fish for me.

To get to know you I ask, what kind of research, some go into DNA for the State Police in a crime that animal hair is found.  A biggie is DNA for race horses or Bulls that cost the earth for a rancher.

One of the biggest research programs has to do with Hogs.  Interesting animals and some believe that the kidneys of a hog are so like humans that they may be able to cross the species and use a Hog kidney in humans.

So what holds your most interest for Lab Research ?

Sorry I upset you, can we talk now?

Vesta, first let me apologize. I've been a little quick off the handle since I became single earlier this week. That's my bad and you didn't deserve that.

I want to go into medical research. I just changed my degree to a BS in Medical Technology. A lot of chemistry and even more biology. I love chemistry so maybe something along the lines of biochemistry. And there're so many areas there that its not even funny. If not that, maybe something along the lines of microbiology. I've considered moving to Israel when I graduate and there's a big research focus over there.

Guess this means I'll be getting an advanced degree, but that's for the future.

[Chris_]

Just got done with the first feeding. Turns out he's a she. It was weird having to wipe her but so she'd pee afterwards. And at some point I'm so going to get crapped on. But it'll be worth it if she survives.

How cute!  Is she an orange tabby cat?  That's what she looks like in the picture anyway.  I remember reading that almost all orange tabby cats are males.  So if she is an orange tabby, COOL!!!!  I really want an orange tabby, but we have too many cats.

[Wineslob]

Are you using Tiny Tiger kitten formula? Or something along the same lines?

That kitten is adorable. One cat we have (he's now 15) was 1 day old when we found him abandoned by his mother. He did just fine, but as you are finding out, it's work for the first few weeks.

[Eupher]

Quit this behavior now or you will never make it as a Vet.

You cannot house all the animals you fall in love with, any more then if if you were a Doctor working with Orphan children.

Triage, here some you can help, some you can't.  You chose to go into a profession that will break your heart every day, you cannot allow your feelings to get in the way.

You will face early burn out when you allow your emotions to over come your intellect.

No Doctor or Vet will operate on their own family or pets.   Reason for this is they cannot over ride their emotions and look at the patient as just another patient.

Your patients belong not in your home but in the treatment facility.  Remember that Cats bond with their owner and if you are the owner of a home grown cat, to give them away to strangers will traumatize the poor cat for months.

You now have 2 cats I believe, that is good, please don't bring anymore home, Other wise you could end up with too many to care for and like the Crazy Cat Ladys find you are doing them no good service.

Bitch slap, even though I hate the damned karma thing.

Vesta, your pontificating is over the top at times. And yes, I know you've apologized.

Vesta --------> Ready, fire, aim

[Mike220]

Are you using Tiny Tiger kitten formula? Or something along the same lines?

That kitten is adorable. One cat we have (he's now 15) was 1 day old when we found him abandoned by his mother. He did just fine, but as you are finding out, it's work for the first few weeks.

I'm using this.

Ended up with it by default. I got the last can of the last brand Petsmart had. Apparently there's a bunch of hungry kittens out there.

She's still hanging in there though. I'm going to see about getting a bottle tonight. Using a syringe freaks me out, cause I'm afraid of giving her too much at once.

[Flame]

I believe terry has experience feeding a baby kitty, if I remember correctly.  And she was successful in getting the kitten raised, too!

[vesta111]

Bitch slap, even though I hate the damned karma thing.

Vesta, your pontificating is over the top at times. And yes, I know you've apologized.

Vesta --------> Ready, fire, aim

So that's what it is called Pontificating, I wondered how that goes.

Actually I like Mike and I can see just how easy it is to become trapped in the cat collecting business for woman and have seen so very good deeds go all the way to hell and back. I don't know how men get caught up in this or even if men do.

It did not hurt that I watched Animal Cops last week about a woman that 60+ cats in her house.  Neighbors had been complaining for a couple of years about the smell when she only had 35-40.

In away I was voicing my own fears about myself if another stray or kitten were to show up at my back door.

 The Economy is so bad the  shelters are full to overflowing with unwanted cats, and to top it off both my house cats need shots next month and so do my 3 dogs. Thank heavens our birds just sit, eat, sleep poop and sing all day.

Times are getting hard for us, the cost to care for a pet is so high I do not understand how anyone today can afford food, proper medical care, etc. for more then one pet.

I just hope Mike can handle school, work, and waking up every 3 hours to feed the kitten, a labor of LOVE and worse then having a new born child, I don't think anyone can take family leave to care for a kitten, dog or whatever.

Considered me disciplined Good Sir.

[Eupher]

Where is that damned facepalm when I need it?!?

[Mike220]

Don't have to worry about it anymore. She didn't make it. I knew is was a long shot, but I feel good for trying. I feel guilty as hell since I'm not sure if I did something I should, or didn't do something I should. At least she spent her few days of life with someone that cared for her I guess.

I still feel like shit, too.

 

[BEG]

Awww I'm sorry Mike.   

[terry]

Aww Mike, I'm so sorry. 

Flame is right, I did have experience and success with a newborn kitten but the situation was different.

The mama cat in my case was my cat and she was very sick.  She had six kittens, but only one survived.  The mama had a severe infection and was hospitalized and unable to care for the kitten for a few days.  I fed the kitten formula with a syringe every few hours.

The big difference in our situation was, the mama came home from the hospital and immediately took the kitten back from me. 

Mama cat, Bristol is six now and baby, Nessa is 4.  Nessa is healthy, sweet and friendly.  I think Bristol still has some health issues and is a little crankier.

God bless you for trying and I'm so sorry she didn't make it.

[Chris_]

Poor cat.  At least you tried... it doesn't look easy.

[terry]

I think I read somewhere, that mother animals can tell if a baby is sick and not likely to survive.  If the mom abandoned her, maybe there was something more wrong.

For the short time she was here, she was loved and cared for, that's definitely worth it.

[debk]

Oh Mike, I'm so sorry.

You tried, and you gave her lots of love and care. That's a lot.

 

[BlueStateSaint]

H5 for giving the kitten your all.