Expert: Ali - 9/23/2009

Question
i found a kitten which i believe to be about 4 to 5 weeks old. I found him at a barn without any litters nearby i think he was abandoned or just lost. He is thinner than he should be i can feel his hips and spin way to easily. I might of heard him crying on Saturday the 19 and I found him on monday. I have been feeding him 2nd step formula and he is eating. He has urinated twice normal color from what i could tell, but he has not had a bowl movement. He is  also dehydrated. i have given him fluids via syringe, for an extra kick. i also gave him some mineral oil earlier today but with no results. Am I over reacting? Does he need an enema? Thank you for any info!

Answer
Paige,

The kitten may be younger than you think, if this is the case the reason he hasn't defecated may be because he hasn't received the appropriate stimulation. I'd suggest having the kitten assessed by a veterinarian to determine an approximate age ASAP, but until then my recommendation is to add plain, unsweetened yogurt (organic if at all possible) to his formula, I usually make a habit of adding 1 tsp per feeding or make larger batches of formula that I add anywhere from 2-4 tablespoons to before I freeze it in ice cube trays (great trick for preserving meal sized portions of formula for longer than 24 hours, just be sure to place the formula cubes into a ziploc bag once they're frozen). The reason I recommend yogurt is because it's possible that the kitten's digestive system is out of balance and yogurt contains beneficial bacteria normally found in a healthy mammal's digestive tract.

I would also recommend that you try using all natural, unscented, alcohol free baby wipes to gently stimulate the kitten's anal and genital areas to encourage him to urinate and defecate after each feeding - don't be alarmed if he doesn't poop every time you feed him, once daily or every second day is okay. You'll want to gently wipe the kitten down from head to toe as though you're his mother giving him a bath starting with the face, chin and back, once you're finished those areas move on to the kitten's chest and belly. When you get to the genital area I'd suggest making sure that you wipe from genitals to bottom gently and keep wiping until the kitten urinates and defecates, it takes some practice and patience to get the technique exactly right but you should see some results within a day or so. It's quite possible if this kitten is younger than you think or simply immature for his age that his bladder is emptying on an overflow basis which isn't healthy for him. If your kitten hasn't defecated within the next 24 hours or so I'd strongly suggest an urgent appointment with the vet to be sure that nothing more serious is going on with this kitten. It's also important to start this baby on a high quality canned diet like Wellness, Spot's Stew or a properly balanced homemade raw diet such as the one outlined at catinfo.org ASAP because formula alone isn't going to adequately meet the needs of a 4-5 week old kitten and this diet could potentially result in health problems caused by his nutrition. Hopefully this information helps. If you have any further questions, concerns or you'd like me to clarify anything in this answer, please feel free to contact me again and I'll do my absolute best to help you out.