# Splodge & her kittens-update!



## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Hey guys 
i havent been on in 2 weeks but im happy to say Splodge and her kittens are doing great! there 4 weeks old this sunday, and tomorrow me, my dad and the boyfriend are taking Splodge & her kittens to be wormed & flea.

In total Splodge has moved them 4 times lol, and sunday i arranged the spareroom and the kittening box so now there free agents, and can explore the room there walking really well the old stumble here and there lol.

and sunday i need to start weaning them, can anyone give me some advice on this, and litter training them?!

Thanks ill be posting lots of photos in the cat section 
x


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

If you just feed mum her wet food in with the kittens, theyll start to explore her food themselves. You don't really need to 'wean' them yourself, they'll do it.


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

If the kittens don't seem interested in food trying putting their paws in it so they have to lick it off. Also when weaning them put the food onto a flat plate so that they can get it more easily.
Pop them onto the litter tray after each meal and they should soon get the idea - just be prepared for the odd accident with some Simple solution to clean up with.


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## missmoomoo (Jul 23, 2011)

mine have basically done it all themselves also... I have left out a bowl of water, a bowl of Missies dry food (royal canin baby cat) and then 3 bowls of wet food and they just started to copy mum  as for the litter trays I have 2 in my room one each side and then one in the hallway (which is really missies but they have all take to sharing them all lol... again I just popped them in each time after the feed and just kept an eye on any digging and squatting behaviours and just popped them in the tray each time. 

I don't know if others will agree, but I left the tray a couple of days before cleaning out so it smells like a toilet area etc and now I can just clean as we go along as they have the idea. (mine are 7 weeks tomorrow) it all just slots into place  as long as they have free access to the tray then they will begin to use it. :thumbup:


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## catlove844 (Feb 15, 2011)

why are u taking 4 week old kittensto the vets? they shouldnt leave the house until 9 weeks of age for 1st injection, esp going to a place with ill cats!!

you worm them at home yourself with panacur thats what we did! x


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Thanks guys, some great information & tips!
i'll put there food on a plate sunday, and see how we go from there, and see if they try the food.


And the vets we rang them last week about there advice on getting them wormed and flead and they said to make a appointment and bring them in this week, so we went today, they gave us frontline spray which we put gloves on and spray a certain amount onto the fur and rub it in, and we have got this worming stuff like liquid form & a syrinch which we syrinch into the kittens mouths once a day for 3 days.


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## alisondalziel (Oct 8, 2008)

The worming liquid is Panacur. 

Do your kittens have fleas? If not there's absolutely no need to put Frontline on them.

I kind of agree about the vets and would avoid it unless necessary for vaccinations or if one was unwell in some way.


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## missmoomoo (Jul 23, 2011)

if you are unsure about worming vets will always sell you panacur without an appt (or you can buy online cheaper usually) if you weigh each kitten and then ring up the vets they will tell you how much to give them each time as they will need worming again in 2 weeks. But if you follow the instructions correctly it is pretty easy to work out yourself


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Yeah its called Panacur 
and it says give each kitten 0.25ml by mouth daily for 3 days.

yeah ive noticed fleas on there fur, and like black eggs on there tails thats why im using the frontline spray on them, i just hope it works.

Oh i didnt realise cause when i rang the vet up and explained what we needed,they said to bring them in, and cause they said that i assumed it would be okay to take them in.

Im getting really attached to them already lol there so much fun :thumbup:


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## missmoomoo (Jul 23, 2011)

it's ok don't panic.... it's just not a common thing for breeders to do. We get used to doing these things ourselves so no need to take them unless it is urgent or for jabs. For check ups i usually ask a vet to attend my house, especially when first born. 

forgot to add that if you have a flea infestation, using the frontline spray is good, but you will also have to treat mum using the same spray and any other animals in the house and make sure bedding is washed daily on a hot wash etc. But I'm sure you know this


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

oh right okay 
yeah cause i am new to all this, cause i always get my cats neutured/spayed so ive never had to deal with kittens before, its a nice experience to go through though 

Yeah have noticed some, but my other to cats Dodger & Felix i always treat them with frontline, ive treated the kittens and Splodge, im always washing there bedding, i also vaccum everyday, and treat the flat with a spray.

We have sexed them we have 1 female and 2 males.
The one with 2 dark patches is a male,
The white one with a light patch is female
& the brown coloured one is a male.


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

I need some advice on there food, well ive fed them put it on a plate left it for a few minuites to see if they will approach it so ive showed them the food, and there not intrested ive tried putting there paws into the food, and they just walk off lol.
And ive kept checking on them, and at first i caught Splodge eating the food.
So im not to sure what to do, unless she already fed them early this morning.

And also they seem intrested in eating cat grit if Splodge has been toilet, and kicks abit of grit out they will try and eat it, ive also tried placing them on the litter tray and they start to eat it so ive took them away straight the way.

if anyone could help, that would be great!
Thanks x


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## missmoomoo (Jul 23, 2011)

how old are they now? All kittens vary on timings...(I can only comment on what mine have done) I put food down for first time at 4.5 weeks and they just basically sat and watch mum eat the lot. Just kept putting food down in front of them and then it was probably about another week before the first kitten approached and licked at the food and then the second was 6 weeks old now they are 7 weeks old and eating very well. Even trying the dried food that is left down for them all. try to discourage the litter eating and make sure you are using non clumping litter as I can imagine clumping litter in a kittens stomach is prob not a good thing....


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

There 4 weeks old today!
yeah there not showing any intrest in the food, ive checked on them again to find some food has been eaten but i know thats splodge! even though shes got her food down lol, im worried about her keep eating the kittens food, Maybe i should give it time then to see when there ready to have a lick or eat abit of food, cause there 4 weeks today, so i thought i'll try it today.
Yes it is, im trying to keep a watchful eye of them with the litter, i take it its just a habit they will grow out of?


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

coral. said:


> There 4 weeks old today!
> yeah there not showing any intrest in the food, ive checked on them again to find some food has been eaten but i know thats splodge! even though shes got her food down lol, im worried about her keep eating the kittens food, Maybe i should give it time then to see when there ready to have a lick or eat abit of food, cause there 4 weeks today, so i thought i'll try it today.
> Yes it is, im trying to keep a watchful eye of them with the litter, i take it its just a habit they will grow out of?


But she is supposed to eat the kittens food, they can all eat the same food! her eating their food is what will show them that its food.

Just keep topping the food up.


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

oh dear ive got it muddled up lol! 
ive been buying her food seperate to there food lol!

and ive been buying the food in bulks lol!

so shall i just take her bowl away, and leave the plate in there with kitten food?


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

coral. said:


> oh dear ive got it muddled up lol!
> ive been buying her food seperate to there food lol!
> 
> and ive been buying the food in bulks lol!
> ...


Okay lets go back to basics a little bit. as long as you are feeding a high quality meat cat food, both adult and kitten can eat exactly the same, kitten food can be a bit of a con.

So firstly what brands are you feeding adult and kitten, and wet/dry?

If you were me, I would be putting down a high meat adult wet food in a few bowls for mum, and for kittens to explore.

Kittens are fine eating adult food, its barely any different when you look at the good brands. It depends what brands you are feeding though as to which I would keep and which I would remove...


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

i was giving Splodge Whiskas pouches and the dry biscuits 
& the Kittens have whiskas kitten food
But im thinking of changing over to Iams cause it surpose to be a good brand.
what brand would you recommend?

The thing i got wrong was what i did this morning i fed Splodge as normal wet & dry food
and then put the kitten food seperate on a plate.


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

As GWM says, it doesn't matter if they have the same food. Obviously a high meat content one is going to be the best.
Don't worry that at 4 weeks they aren't particularly interested. I have one at 7 weeks that still isn't all that bothered.
I put down three plates of different foods - raw, Bozita and usually Natures Menu and then they can take their pick. Mai Tai will let the kittens eat first but Rosie just joins in with them.
Putting them in the litter tray is good but you will need to have a couple of extra trays in other places if they are not kept in one room. Try to discourage the litter eating, though the grit types are not so bad as some of the clumping ones


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

Not Iams... no.

Honestly Whiskas is quite poor so in this instance I would keep both on whiskas kitten, as they by law have to have more nutrients in the kitten food to call it kitten. Most good food companies have that many nutrients in the adult version too, Whiskas doesnt.

So yeah that is what I would do for now. In the future I would look into switching both mum and kittens onto a high meat diet such as animonda carny, bozita, or smilla, all available from zooplus, very high quality and MUCH cheaper than Iams and probably cheaper than Whiskas too 

When you start that you can mix small amounts in with the whiskas kitten, I would probably be ordering some now, if it were me, to start the kittens on a mixture of both.

Don't worry if they don't eat the cat food, they will still be feeding from mum and it is not a hard and fast process at all. It is not '4 weeks must start weaning' they will do it themselves, its not really something we as humans need to 'do'


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

lymorelynn said:


> As GWM says, it doesn't matter if they have the same food. Obviously a high meat content one is going to be the best.
> Don't worry that at 4 weeks they aren't particularly interested. I have one at 7 weeks that still isn't all that bothered.
> I put down three plates of different foods - raw, Bozita and usually Natures Menu and then they can take their pick. Mai Tai will let the kittens eat first but Rosie just joins in with them.
> Putting them in the litter tray is good but you will need to have a couple of extra trays in other places if they are not kept in one room. Try to discourage the litter eating, though the grit types are not so bad as some of the clumping ones


ah okay, so it may take a little while and its not a straight the way thing!
yeah i have been putting them in the litter tray a few times, i noticed a few minuites ago he was trying to put his head over the litter tray and try eating grit, so i picked him up and carefully tried to get the grit from round his mouth and he kept sticking his tounge out as to say yuck this is dry, and been carefully trying to take the bits out.

How long is it till they do know what the litter tray is and they can use it,
and will this habit break eventually?


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Okay thanks 
i'll have to have a look round that site, what do you think of the brands James Wellbeloved and Royal Canin ?


Okay thanks so really it is quite straight forward when you get the hang of things lol 

& another question when is it best to rehome them some people say 8 weeks, but 12 weeks is best?


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

coral. said:


> Okay thanks
> i'll have to have a look round that site, what do you think of the brands James Wellbeloved and Royal Canin ?
> 
> Okay thanks so really it is quite straight forward when you get the hang of things lol
> ...


Both of those brands are very poor  (and very expensive!)

I would stick to the wets I told you about and ignore dry 

12 weeks, definitely! 8 weeks is FAR too young, 12 for sure  Thats gives then plenty of time to wean and get litter trained


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## missmoomoo (Jul 23, 2011)

yes mine only done it for about a week... as for training, again they will copy mum, i have 3 litter trays 2 in my room and 1 in the hall, basically took a couple of days of persistent watching and placing in tray if there were any digging behaviours and squatting. It just kind of clicked and to be totally truthful we have only had 3 accidents and one of those was mum trying to squeeze into the kittens tray and not use her own  bless her, she totally missed the tray even though she had dug a nice hole and was sat in the tray!!  

things just kind of come together over the next sort of 3 weeks you'll see, just don't try to rush it


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

Litter training will just come naturally, training is really the wrong word as it is instinct for a cat to go in a diggable place and to cover etc, really its the cat that wants to go in the litter box, and mum will show them that. Unlike dog toilet training, no 'training' is really done (well not by humans, but by mum)


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

gloworm*mushroom said:


> Both of those brands are very poor  (and very expensive!)
> 
> I would stick to the wets I told you about and ignore dry
> 
> 12 weeks, definitely! 8 weeks is FAR too young, 12 for sure  Thats gives then plenty of time to wean and get litter trained


Ah okay thanks for that ill let my boyfriend know caus he was thinking of putting Ruby (dog) onto one of them brands and the bag he was looking at was £50!

That site looks great i could go mad on it :thumbup:

I thought that aswell!
im going to miss them so much when they go, i just prey they go to really good homes!
Ive been asking friends but there not allowed one cause of the land lord/land lady, and they have been asking at work and all the girls want one, but the husbands are saying no cause they already have a cat or dogs lol booo!


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

I dont know much about dog nutrition to be honest with you, I would ask in dog as those brands may be fine for dogs! 

It is very important for them to go to new homes. 12 weeks means you will be able to vaccinate them before they go to (very important)

It is also something to look into getting them neutered before they go, or make sure they go to homes where they will be neutered so they don't end up in the same position as Splodge.

Don't be afraid of asking a rescue for help with homing, they could help you to home check and find good homes for the kittens, and I am sure some donation to them could be included in the adoption fee


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

missmoomoo said:


> yes mine only done it for about a week... as for training, again they will copy mum, i have 3 litter trays 2 in my room and 1 in the hall, basically took a couple of days of persistent watching and placing in tray if there were any digging behaviours and squatting. It just kind of clicked and to be totally truthful we have only had 3 accidents and one of those was mum trying to squeeze into the kittens tray and not use her own  bless her, she totally missed the tray even though she had dug a nice hole and was sat in the tray!!
> 
> things just kind of come together over the next sort of 3 weeks you'll see, just don't try to rush it


okay hopefully he cracks his naughty habit soon 
yeah i think im going to have to get another litter tray aswell, thats good then not to many, im expecting the odd accident here and there lol
Awwww bless her 

yeah it sounds like eventually things just slot into place


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

gloworm*mushroom said:


> I dont know much about dog nutrition to be honest with you, I would ask in dog as those brands may be fine for dogs!
> 
> It is very important for them to go to new homes. 12 weeks means you will be able to vaccinate them before they go to (very important)
> 
> ...


Okay do i'll have to ask in that section later 

Yeah cause when i bought Dodger last July, and i she told me his birthday, and i got him home i realised he was only about 7 weeks old!
i thought it was abit small and i was completely shocked!
i flea,worm him get his injections and surprisingly he was litter trained!

yeah thats very true, cause i dont want them to end up in the same situation as Splodge


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

thought i would update you on how everythings going,
i noticed last friday, the kittens are using the litter trays 
but no sighn of them eating yet, Splodge is still feeding them & there 6 weeks old this sunday, there so lovely and funny to watch keep exploring and running round sniffing and trying to play with Felix and Dodger, but i tend to keep a close eye on them!


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## lymorelynn (Oct 4, 2008)

Try putting their paws into the food to encourage them to eat it  I have a little one that wasn't too keen at 6 weeks but now at 8 weeks she is happily eating with the others.


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Yeah i keep doing that 
the one thats all different colours started licking his paws yesterday and thought here we go, he might start eating but he didnt lol, hopefully it will be soon though


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## coral. (May 11, 2011)

Sorry guys havent posted on here in a while, ive been quite busy
But the White female kitten was the first one to eat the food 
And then the tabby look alike was the second one,
and the white male is still not eating even though there 8 weeks this sunday but he should learn from them 

There all using the litter tray theres been some accidents but there expected to anyway 
Ive noticed its coming towards the end, where there going to get re-homed soon. im going to miss them so much cause there so much fun


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## Treaclesmum (Sep 26, 2011)

Awww want one!!!


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