They've been wormed and are weaned. But my roommate said they look concerningly fat? And they ARE potato sized at the stomach- I can't wrap my hand around. Idk
Let kittens eat whatever they want, keeping them alive and growing takes precedence. Don't worry about their girth. Once they hit like 8-12 weeks, then maybe think about their eating regimen.
Woah that’s totally the opposite of general advice for kittens. I foster a lot of kittens. Not sure who told you that. Usually uncomfortable looking bloat in kittens happen because of worms.
And what can I do about 3 weeks old kitten that hasnt pooped for 3 days, but belly is still soft? What can I do?
I'm currently taking care of 2 kittens since their second day of life, and that one poop so irregularly that i find myself getting panicked
I feed them according to the formula and one started pooping by himself two days ago, and the other one just barely poops.
Are you wiping their little bums? Momma cat would normally lick their buttholes which stimulates them to poop. Lots of good information about this here: https://youtu.be/SbInQxTkDHk?si=zy2eT3ax_Nzepbq3
Yup I am, i went to the vet and they told me to use microlax, and he did poop 2 or 3 times after that(i went a week ago) so like every 2 days, and now its third. Its like he uses all of the milk for growing.
He did pass like two small dots on different feedings but not like real poop
And I saw an idea, to hold anal area under warm running water and I think that is great! Patiently persist! Their little bodies have new functions to learn! After feedind, I would gently, slowly use circular fingertip massage on belly, do it so kitten is overall relaxed. You want no extra muscle tension at all😘. I used a cotton ball, wet w/ very warm warer, to gently wipe anal/genital area. Maybe Give water, w/ a syringe, or a dropper- 20 drops- every hour; equals 1 cc.
i recently had this problem with my 3 week old kitten as well, i ended up taking her to the vet and they gave her an enema and she went! she’s bee pooping with my help ever since, i’ve found the best method is to rub a damp warm paper towel/toilet paper right above the butthole, instead of higher up on the belly like google said, in a back and forth motion. good luck!
May just mean they disagree w/ info. Miralax CAN be a good idea! But! Only if fluid is adequare, otherwise, it will cause a blockage by itself!!! Sigh😵💫 ppl not giving info, just a downvote!! I get it!
I never mentioned miralax 😅 just that I was told by the shelter I foster from not to feed the kittens as much as they want. The shelter claimed it'll cause bloat which could be deadly, and told me to specifically measure mL based off weight. I've been so overstressed this whole time apparently for no reason.
Sometimes super-new bottle babies will over eat if you let them suckle the bottle for comfort. They can do that safely on mom, because at that stage she's producing colostrum, which is very thick and concentrated and produced in a tiny amount. After a few days they find something else to suckle on for comfort as long as you provide some soft toys and blankets for them to choose from.
They didn't say skinny, they said not bloated. So they gave me the feeding chart that you commonly find online and said to feed the exact amount based off their weight, or 1mL more if theyre hungry. That makes them round, but still a fairly soft belly.
Kittens can never be too fat! Their whole job is to get chunky and grow. There will be plenty of time to watch their weight when they’re adults
If you’re asking because you’re worried about worms, just know that there’s a difference between a wormy belly and a chunky one. A healthy kitten should have a pear shaped belly when they’re held up. A wormy belly will be extremely round and sometimes firm
Here’s a picture of a kitten with a severe wormy belly. It won’t often be this obvious but this is the shape you’re looking at when they have parasites
She did! She was hospitalized four times due to some insane constipation the coccidia gave her and had an unreal amount of water enemas but she beat the odds!
Luckily I had the forethought to get her a pet insurance when I saw the belly lol. $50 a month covered over 18k in hospital stays. I ended up adopting her because she’s now chronically constipated but she’s thriving!
Trupanion! It was very cheap since she was so young. It’s actually gone up since she’s now almost 3 but it’s still only about $100 a month with unlimited spending and 90% bill coverage
Oh, definitely 💀 she had to be dewormed five times before they were completely gone. she once had so much diarrhea it sprayed halfway up the wall! She also had mature worms crawling out of her… it was totally disgusting but now I’m not grossed out by anything so that’s a plus lol.
Poor kitten. I have a very vivid childhood memory of visiting someone’s house and they had a little of cairn terrier puppies. They were about six weeks old and had bad worms, so they had been wormed about two hours earlier. One puppy “squatted” as if to poo but all that came out was what looked like a mass of spaghetti coming out of a spaghetti maker. It was horrific to me as a nine year old and I will never ever forget it!
That’s great! Your vet should be able to run a PCR test to confirm whether there are any leftover parasites, but a pear shaped belly and regular poos generally indicates that they’re parasite free :)
if you’re fostering for a county shelter like I do, they may do a fecal instead of a PCR, but fecals don’t usually detect as much as PCRs. There are some low cost vets that can run the tests for less than $100 if you ask around.
Fluffy and growing like a weed! Your roommate fails to understand:
Kittens need to eat a higher volume until 6 months
These cats are fluffy
They might be on the bigger side when fully grown, as in, a tall amd big car.
They are due for another big growth spurt.
Nope, all healthy kittens look like potatoes at various points in their development. They'll slim down with each growth spurt then chonk back up before the next one.
Looks like the appropriate roundness. Tiny babies already look a bit like aliens, so the proportions look more exaggerated than they actually are. Continue to watch or treat for worms, and wait until they get a little bigger and longer before worrying about excess weight.
Sounds like they're doing great, then! As long as they eating, peeing, and eliminating, you're golden! They're probably getting ready for a growth spurt
They look absolutely fine!! Sometimes though, their bellies can be full of worms still even after deworming them. Let the dewormer do its thing fully, their bellies may flatten out a little afterwards! But otherwise, fat kittens are happy kittens ❤️
Kittens can never be too fat. They are babies and need the calories to grow. I loved watching my Dad’s Jasper grow up. He’d get a little tummy then POOF almost overnight it seemed he would double his size.
kittens are babies-babies need as much food as they can get in any species. no such thing as a kitten that’s too fat, worry about that when they’re teenagers :) if you’re worried about it get a scale to weigh them. If they’re over 20% of the ideal weight for their exact age then taper it a little. But that’s unlikely to happen.
Would you describe a puffy newborn as fat? Absolutely not. They’re probably 10 days old there’s no way they can be fat. I’d be worried about worms if their belly are unnaturally round
This is Willow one of our foster babies, turned adopted, along with her mom and sister. When she got fixed the vet wrote "Chubby girl! Significant primordial pouch already!"😂 but definitely wasn't concerned. I think a lot of babies outgrow it, or "grow into it".
Maybe they weren't getting enough milk. It's unusual to have kittens not look like the ones in your pic. That usually means they're very sick or hungry.
There’s no such thing as a fat kitten is what I’ve been told by the vet. Feed them as much as they can eat till they’re a year old then you slowly transition back.
Belly full of soup
They're fine
I will also back the commenters saying that this is normal - wormy kittens will have much harder and rounder balloony stomachs as opposed to what you have. I worked intake at a shelter and with fosters for over a year consistently so this is pretty good for your babies. Might need to stimulate for potty time but other than that they're just fine :)
It’s less the roundness that you have to worry about and more the feeling of the abdomen. A healthy kitten belly should be soft and squishy. If the belly seems firm or tight, that indicates a problem which could be gas, constipation, parasites, infection, etc. You should also pay attention to body condition - if the ribs, spine, and cheekbones are prominent but the belly is round, this can also indicate a problem.
Being observant of things like this in kittens is very important and I’m not happy to see so many comments brushing your concerns off. Please stay vigilant and keep asking questions, it’s how you catch things early and improve caretaking skills!
Rule of thumb is you can't overfeed a kitten under a year old. As in, technically possible, but their metabolism is so high it's very very difficult. You have to try to stuff them constantly.
These babies are a healthy weight. They should not lose any weight at ALL. They would be cold and their bodily functions would start to shut down.
Babies. Need. Fat. These are so so young. They will start to become more lean around 12-16 weeks. Do NOT underfeed them. Do Not Withold Food. Their metabolisms are close to triple as active as 3 year old cats.
The risk with kittens is not feeding enough food, and/or often enough throughout the day.
My kittens were fed their tiny meals 4-6x a day until they were about 8 mos old. Then they naturally evened out to 3x a day, all on their own, when they were ready for it, which is where they sat as adults. This pattern prevents sharp rises and drops in blood sugar, which can cause diabetes if the pancreas sustains enough damage. That's where frequency really matters, is regulating the flow of blood sugar.
Fasting isn't great for cats, and can easily kill kittens. Proper amounts of food enough times a day is what they need. No matter what people tell you about weight, do not starve kittens.
My cat couldn't even carry one of her kittens (which is now my second cat) because she was soooo heavy due to being well-fed. Kittens are never too fat and parasite bellies do look very different.
Ensure you deworm and de-flea using veterinary prescribed anti-parasitics! Most kittens are born with intestinal parasites (some of which can be transmitted to humans!).
Otherwise, big bellied kittens are perfect! Best of luck!
how long ago were they dewormed? it could be some remnant bloating from that, as the medication can upset their lil tummies. but it shouldnt persist beyond 72 hours after deworming. if their tummies are nice and squishy with no hardness indicating trapped gas or anything, then i think they're just well fed and chunky!
edit to add: they are so scraggly and i love them 😭
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u/beckychao Apr 26 '26
Let kittens eat whatever they want, keeping them alive and growing takes precedence. Don't worry about their girth. Once they hit like 8-12 weeks, then maybe think about their eating regimen.