Feeding Babies
Recipes
for Emergency Kitten Formula
The pet store is closed, and you have
hungry kittens that need formula! Never fear!
In a pinch, the Cornell Book of Cats says
that human baby formula can be used
if made up to double the normal strength (human baby formula is normally not nutritious
enough for kittens). As with the below formulas, please remember that any emergency
formula should only be used until regular Feline Replacement Formula (such as KMR or Just
Born) can be purchased at the pet store. None of these are nutritionally complete for the
long term health of a kitten.
Formula #1
8 ounces homogenized whole milk
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon salad oil
1 drop liquid pediatric vitamins (optional)
Mix well and warm before using. Keep refrigerated.
Formula #2
1 part boiled water to 5 parts evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon bone meal per 16 oz fluid
Mix well, refrigerate, warm before using .
Formula #3
1 can Evaporated Milk
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons Karo syrup
All three mixed well and kept in tightly sealed jar in fridge.
At feeding time mix 1/2 of the estimated feeding amount with:
Equal amount of boiling water
(once a day mix 1 drop of human infant liquid vitamins in each kitties formula)
If constipation occurrs: add 1 drop of vegetable oil to each kitties formula no more
than once daily till problem is eased. Test temperature before feeding (the combination of
boiling water and chilled formula should be just about right).
Food
Brand Recommendations
At Kitten Rescue, many
people ask us what we consider "the best" brand of cat food. Most of us have
different preferences, usually dictated by the whims of our own cats, but there are some
universals we have discovered through experience and consultations with our vets.
What you may hear about
"supermarket" cat foods being the equivalent of "junk food" for cats
is not just a ploy to get you to buy the more expensive brands. Just like there's a range
of how people-food is made, different brands of cat food are made with different
standards. While most of the inexpensive foods you buy at the supermarket are
nutritionally sound and will certainly not hurt your cat, they are not the best choice. We
have found that cats will eat more of supermarket-bought foods, the theory being that
their bodies "know" that they need to substitute quality with quantity. These
foods are certainly a value.
If you have a few more dollars to spend,
any food you buy at a Petco, Petsmart, or similar pet supply chain is probably a superior
brand. We recommend Nutro foremost, with Science Diet an acceptable second choice. Two
newer brands on the market, Innova and Wellness are even more nutritious and we highly
recommend them. They use human grade ingredients. Most pet stores will give you samples of
foods so you can make sure your cat gives it the "paws up" before investing in a
whole case or bag. You will find that not only does your cat eat less of these foods, but
they will produce less feces-- always a plus!
Kittens should be fed kitten food until
they are at least six months old. Sometimes this is difficult if you also have an adult
cat. If it proves impossible to get your kitten to eat kitten food when there's adult food
around, eating adult food will not hurt your kitten; she will probably just eat more of it
to get the proper nutrition, and if she's active she'll burn it off. Elderly or very
sedentary cats should be given "lite" food. Pregnant and nursing momcats should
ALWAYS be fed kitten food. |
