Hi,
I have been syringe-feeding an orphaned kitten since she was 2 weeks old... and she loves it. However, at nearly six weeks, she should be starting to eat some solids. I just can't get her to take any interest in it! I put basically the same stuff I'm feeding her from the syringe in a little dish, but she won't touch it. Understandably, she acts like she has no idea what to do with it... she has been suckling to eat her entire (short) life, so she has no concept of lapping up food. I have tried EVERYTHING with her... I didn't feed her for nearly a whole day so that she would be very hungry, but she still refused to eat the solids, so I gave in and syringe-fed her. I even kept a kitten from a previous litter we fostered with us, because he is doing well on solids and we thought if she saw him, she'd try it. No luck... she couldn't care less. Feeding her formula every three hours isn't going to work forever. All the other foster kittens I've raised have made the transition beautifully... but not her. I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions... anything that has worked well for them? So far, the only advice I've gotten is to starve her until she's so hungry she eats whatever she's given... but obviously that doesn't work very well with her. Any other ideas?

Thanks for any help!

connij2

I have two orphaned 5 week old kittens, I have been bottle feeding them since they were 2 days old. In answer to your dilema. I have it too. However, I believe I came up with a solution. I was feeding KMR in the bottle and tried the KMR 2nd step for weaning. Neither kitten would accept it. Not even in the bottle. So, I switched up to lamb and rice baby food along with the KMR 1st step. Okay that really doesn't answer your question but here is what I found. We struggled!!!! I used to wrap the babies in a dishtowel to feed them the bottle so it wasn't getting messy everywhere and I was holding them. Then I thought they could just go to the dish without my assistance. I even tried the "put the food on your finger trick" neither worked. So, I wrapped them up in the dishtowel and then tried the finger trick. It worked for one of the kittens and the other is still bottle feeding. In essence, possibly your kitten is not ready or you need to hold him/her to give them comfort. The one who started eating baby food is now eating soft kitten food from the bowl. the other is still bottle feeding. The one who is eating now was biting the nipples and bottle. The other wasn't and is still suckling them. So one was ready and the other wasn't. Try holding your kitten and use the finger method. Or you may have to wait another week to try. As well, I am feeding 4 tablespoons of KMR in the bottle 4 times a day. This kitten is very healthy. I stopped the every 3 hour thing about a week ago at 4 weeks old. If your kitten can eat 4 tablespoons at 4 times a day this will decrease your time of every three hours. HOpe this helps. We have a terrific vet who has walked us through every step.