Animal Welfare Professionals

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  • 1.  45 gram preemie

    Posted 07-12-2022 11:16 AM
    Hi everyone,
    I run a neonatal kitten rescue and I recently got a call for a preemie that was born in a litter of 5. She only weighs 45 grams but the other siblings are 95 to 107 grams. I'm wondering if anyone has ever successfully raised a kitten this small? I haven't found anything about it anywhere I've looked. I appreciate any feedback. Kitten is currently being tube fed diluted formula.

    #EducationandTraining
    #Medicine,SurgeryandSterilization
    #PetSupportServices*

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    Stephanie Aguilar
    President
    Purrfect Little Warriors Inc
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  • 2.  RE: 45 gram preemie

    Posted 07-12-2022 03:00 PM
    Hi Stephanie!

    The smallest kitten that we raised successfully with my previous organization was only 64 grams at birth and he was probably 4-5 days premature. It was tough and his development was extremely stunted compared to normal kitten growth but he made it! He was in our foster program and fostered by one of our nursery staff due to his fragile nature. It took a combination of tube feeding/frequent bottle feeding, keeping his items very clean to help prevent illness, and close veterinary monitoring to get him on track but he is currently living his best life as a 3 year old cat!

    It sounds like you're already on the right track, but I would highly recommend seeing a vet to ensure you're doing everything you can for this little one. Happy to talk more if you need help troubleshooting or advice.

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    Angela Gates
    Embedded Data Coordinator
    American Pets Alive!
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  • 3.  RE: 45 gram preemie

    Posted 07-12-2022 03:13 PM
    Than you Angela! I have seen and consulted with our vet and a couple others and none have ever seen a 45 gram kitten so they basically just told me to try and hope for the best. That's why I'm reaching out here to see if anyone has seen a kitten this little make it and thrive. I have had kittens that were in the upper 60s/70s that have made it and thrived but this is the tiniest I've ever seen and I couldn't find any research really at all.

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    Stephanie Aguilar
    President
    Purrfect Little Warriors Inc
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