Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK

Cat Health & Behaviour => Health & Behaviour General => Topic started by: C9FAL on January 19, 2019, 18:48:01 PM

Title: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: C9FAL on January 19, 2019, 18:48:01 PM: Hey,

We have a 6 month old kitten Cleo and on New year's day brought Jessie, a 7 week only kitten into the house. Lately we have been catching Jessie trying to get milk from Cleo.

Is this normal? How do we stop it?

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Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Misa on January 19, 2019, 19:16:47 PM: THAT IS FAR TOO YOUNG TO BE AWAY FROM ITS MOTHER, NO WONDER JTS TRYING TO FEED

YOU NEED TO GET SOME SPECIAL KITTEN MILK , YOUR VET SHOULD BE ABLE TO HELP
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Judecat (Paula) on January 19, 2019, 20:10:31 PM: Having had my Mogwai 20 odd years ago, you need to get to your vets asap, get kitten formula and bottle and then wean properly. Cows milk won't do, not a high enough fat content, as Gill says, way too young to leave Mum, ideal is 12 weeks, by which time Mum will have weaned them themselves. It starts with the bottle and then dried food with milk protein that you reconstitute with boiling water, that is how it was, it may have changed since then.

Not a judgement on you, I KNOW you are doing the best you can for this little soul. :hug: :hug: :hug:
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: C9FAL on January 19, 2019, 21:28:02 PM: We got a text a week early from the lady we were getting Jessie from asking if we could take her a week early as they were all ready to go as they were eating and using the litter tray. I was at the vets this morning with Cleo and whilst there got Jessie booked in for her starter pack and they asked her age and DOB and nothing was said about her age and her being to young to be away from her mum. She is 9 weeks now.

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Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Judecat (Paula) on January 19, 2019, 22:31:25 PM: I am not having a go at you, just suggesting that she may need a bit of a longer weaning period. Like human babies they are all different, weaning is a mix of milk and solids until solids take over. :hug: :hug: :hug:
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Desley (booktigger) on January 20, 2019, 08:07:51 AM: I wouldn't go down the cat milk route now, but you may find the suckling is more a comfort thing rather than needing it - while they may be able to eat and use litter trays that young, they still have a lot of learning to do from mum/siblings, so she might have a few quirks from being taken away too young.
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Sue P (Paddysmum) on January 20, 2019, 09:08:44 AM: I was thinking it might be a comfort thing too. When we had Ross, he used to suckle my right ear lobe. It never bothered me. It made him happy, bless him. I suspect She will grow out of it.
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: C9FAL on January 20, 2019, 10:46:45 AM: Thank you for your replies. I appreciate it. I just thought it was a little weird. She has been here for 2 weeks and Friday night was the first we have ever seen her do it then again yesterday. She has the vets on Friday for her wee started pack (jags, flee/worming, microchip etc) and a health check so I will speak to them then and see what they suggest.
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Sue P (Paddysmum) on January 20, 2019, 12:13:28 PM: What does she look like? ;D Bet she's a little cutie.

Does she get on well generally with Cleo? I wouldnt worry too much about it, as I suspect of it gets on Cleo's nerves, she'll soon let Jessie know about it.

What you could try is when she attempts to suckle, give her a little soft toy of her own and encourage her to play with it.

Our Macbeenz MacSquee used to have a little mouse with dangly legs that he would tote round all over with him, and one of Rosella's cats had a little Shaun the Sheep that he took everywhere. :)
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: C9FAL on January 20, 2019, 17:10:46 PM: Quote from: Sue P (Paddysmum) on January 20, 2019, 12:13:28 PM

What does she look like? ;D Bet she's a little cutie.

Does she get on well generally with Cleo? I wouldnt worry too much about it, as I suspect of it gets on Cleo's nerves, she'll soon let Jessie know about it.

What you could try is when she attempts to suckle, give her a little soft toy of her own and encourage her to play with it.

Our Macbeenz MacSquee used to have a little mouse with dangly legs that he would tote round all over with him, and one of Rosella's cats had a little Shaun the Sheep that he took everywhere. :)

Photo of Jessie was taken literally 5 minutes ago. And a photo of her and Cleo.

They are absolutely brilliant together. Always playing away. I noticed that Cleo just thinks she wants to play and starts rolling about with her.

I will try that thank you. She has a little teddy that I took in the carrier when I went to collect her and sits in her bed.(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190120/e7a6018e4e14c8f758251717a8d050b7.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190120/8efe75b19dabf5bd466d0466a792649b.jpg)
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Misa on January 20, 2019, 21:35:20 PM: SO GORGEOUS
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Judecat (Paula) on January 20, 2019, 22:55:40 PM: They are both real cuties. :Luv: :Luv: :Luv:
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Sue P (Paddysmum) on January 21, 2019, 05:40:02 AM: Ah Yes! I've seen the photo of them both initially but not the top one of Jessie on her own. She's really Bonny. :Luv:
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Rosella moggy on January 21, 2019, 06:25:33 AM: Both Jessie and Cleo are absolute stunners :Luv2: :Luv2:

Glad your little ginger gal has a teddy to hug and also a playmate. It's so good that they get on so well.

I've dug out a video of our Groucho with his Shaun the Sheep. I'm afraid he killed the first one so we had to replace. Rough little lad was/is our Grouch :-[ Am quite sure Jessie shows her teddy more respect :innocent:

https://youtu.be/RtPBjjkAGPI
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Sue P (Paddysmum) on January 21, 2019, 06:47:23 AM: Brilliant, Rosella - thanks for posting ;D :evillaugh:
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Misa on January 21, 2019, 14:58:23 PM: GREAT ROSELLA AND WISH LUPIN HAD BEEN GIVEN STUFF LIKE THIS WHEN HE WAS A KITTEN
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Lyn (Slugsta) on January 22, 2019, 21:11:33 PM: How sweet is Groucho with Shaun?! I've never had a cat that has a favourite soft toy like that!
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: souffle on January 24, 2019, 07:26:27 AM: I had the exact same thing and that is the question that brought me here to Purrs 8 years ago!
I adopted tow kittens from the RSPCA a brother and sister and the boy Monty would suckle and tread his sister all the time. Her belly was always soaking but she let him do it! It was just a comfort thing though. This all stopped when they both went in to be neutered and we had to separate them (Callie the girl went in a crate) to let her wound heal. After that she would whack him and not let him suckle and he soon got the message!
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: C9FAL on January 28, 2019, 20:54:10 PM: Thank you for all your lovely messages :)

Rosella, that is so adorable My two don't really bother with their teddies. Although they love love soft toys.

I spoke to the vet on Friday when we had Jessie there. He said that when we see her doing it just take her away from Cleo. So we have just been doing that.(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190128/00f68ee76b8e59e1802fca0e4a44abeb.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190128/2fedea7fdd2f29cbed990ea030f6612d.jpg)
Title: Re: Kitten trying to feed from other kitten
Post by: Lyn (Slugsta) on January 29, 2019, 15:17:51 PM: :Luv2: