First time kitten owner

by Candice Kellner
(olympia, wa)

I grew up with cats, but they were already 10 years old by the time I started living with them. I rescued this sweet little kitten yesterday, and was told he's probably only six to eight weeks old. He's really bony, and very scrawny all around. He's been having diarrhea, and the first night it was slightly bloody. My boyfriend had fed him some cooked chicken (not really knowing if we would keep him, and that being the only foodish stuff in the house), and I gave him a small bit of wet food that night. I expected the diarrhea, but not the blood. Since then it hasn't been bloody, but still runny. How long should I expect that to last if it's just a simple adjusting to food thing? Also, I noticed that his stomach/intestines (not sure which) felt rather hard and large below his ribcage, which I find strange because the rest of him is so flexible and soft. Is that because he's eating too much? I haven't been letting him eat an extreme amount of food, but he seems to eat past when he is comfortably full. I'm going to try feeding him less and see if he gets anxious for more or leaves it at the empty food bowl. And if you could give me an idea of how large a kitty should be around 6-8 weeks old, I'd be really appreciative, because I'm not sure he's even that old. I don't really know, though.

Answer by Kate
The very first thing you need to do is to book him in for a vets appointment. kittens can go down hill very fast and with the symptoms you describe i would worry that he may have some internal problem. blood should never be in the faeces.

get him checked out and then you can give him the best chance in his early life, this the first thing you need to do.

After that I have a whole section about kitten care from the food to feed, to how to help socialise them etc. these pages should give you all the information you will need to take care of the little guy. he is so lucky to have found someone like you to care for him.

here is the first of my kitten care pages

https://www.our-happy-cat.com/kitten-care.html

I hope the little guy is better soon

best wishes kate

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