Expert: Jessica - 4/19/2010

Question
I took in 5  feral kittens from my neighbors garage a few days ago to foster, we've tried to catch the mama cat but have had no luck. They are approximately3-4 weeks old (Eyes open, ears open, milk teeth, and just starting to wobbly run and play). I've been feeding them KMR 2nd stage and kitten food made into mush and they seem to be doing pretty well at eating. I haven't seen them urinate or defecate on their own though. I can Manually stimulate urination, but its been about a day and a half and three of them have yet to defecate. What should I do? Am I not trying hard enough? When will they be able to go on their own?   Thanks!

Answer
Hi Kristy.  Kittens can get easily constipated when making the switch from natural milk to formula.  It does often take a few minutes of stimulation before kittens will even begin to push, as well, so there may be a combination of factors, here.  Sometimes I find that just running their little bums under a gentle stream of warm water for a couple of minutes after they urinate is the best way to keep them stimulated without irritating their skin.  Then I will use a moistened cotton ball to massage their anal area for another minute or two to encourage defecation.

If the kittens go two days without a bowel movement, it’s best to get them to the vet to determine the degree of constipation.  At this stage, sometimes vets will recommend giving the kitten a small amount of a lubricant laxative and waiting to see if he is able to pass the stool on his own after a few hours.  Other times, a mild enema will be necessary.  It’s very important to make sure kittens don’t go far beyond two days without a bowel movement, since their appetites will soon begin to fail, and many complications arise from this point on.

The kittens should be able to urinate on their own at moment.  Be very careful about rubbing their tummies!  The ability to defecate follows about a week later.  Typically, by the age of four weeks, the kittens are able to urinate and defecate on their own.  Most kittens even have a pretty good idea of what the litter box is all about at just five weeks.

Thanks for stepping in to break the tragic cycle of feral kitties.  Enjoy the little ones!

Jessica