My new kitten won't eat or drink. What food should I give it?

Your kitten is way too young to be away from its mommy. It would benefit him if you could take him back to your friend and leave him with his mother for another 3 or 4 weeks. While kittens start eating solid food at around 5-6 weeks, they should still benefit from mother's milk. Suckling also has a psychological benefit as kittes can run to mommy when something scares them. Shadow is also likely to be extremely scared and lonely in the new place with new smells. Try returning him to your friend for another 3-4 weeks and you will get a much brighter happier kitty back. Right now, you should keep him close to your body, where it is warm and where he can feel safe. Try to offer him wet (canned ) food warmed up, not dry food. Get some kitten milk and warm that up as well and let him lick it off your fingers. I hope your friend is willing to give Shadow another few weeks with his mom.

At 5 weeks Baby should be old enough to start eating some solid food. You can try mixing some canned kitten food with some kitten formula like KMR and putting it in a shallow dish. If she still won’t eat I would recommend seeing a veterinarian to determine what might be wrong. They can also teach you how to tube feed if necessary.

He is still very young and misses his mommy and his siblings. You should feed him canned kitten food, as kibble is still too hard and a kitten cannot eat enough of it. Feed him small portions 4-5 times a day and feed as much as he wants to eat, ie refill the bowl a little bit at a time. Make sure water is available but not next to the food. It needs to be about 6 feet away from the food bowl. At this age (71 days) he should weigh a little over 1kg, or 2.3lbs

Hi, it looks like you're offering both canned and dry food which is great. Little kittens don't eat very much, so maybe he is just full. He may also have parasites like intestinal worms which make him feel full. If he doesnt eat tomorrow, you should take him in to a vet. Good for you for adopting him.

That is not normal. I recommend getting the kitten seen by a vet right away. Such a tiny baby needs to eat every few hours. Many veterinarians will use an ordinary eye dropper or small syringe to utilize as a means of dispensing the milk replacer to the kitten. Most pet stores or veterinary clinics have nursing bottles, too, but be alert to the fact that some kittens cannot suck the contents through the small nipple. You may need to actually squeeze the milk out for the kitten while having the nipple in the kitty's mouth. Warm it up a little, too, under the hot water faucet! If it is after hours at your local animal hospital, your short-term solution will be to mix an egg yolk with a can of evaporated milk (make sure it is not the sweetened condensed milk). This is only a temporary "solution" (!) and should only be used for a couple of feedings. At the first few feedings the kittens will probably only consume a few cc’s worth of milk. (There are 5cc's in a teaspoon.) You will need to feed every couple of hours at first and gradually build up time between feedings as they begin to eat more at each meal. Start by offering a small amount. If the kitten won’t eat readily from the nipple and bottle, try an eyedropper or syringe and drip a little in the mouth, adding more as the kitten's pace. Make sure that the milk just above room temperature; try not to microwave since you can cause hot spots in the milk. Follow instructions on the milk replacer for mixing and storage. You will need to contact your veterinarian if the kitten has not eaten within 24 hours or is extremely weak. Once they get the hang of it, the kittens should consume the milk replacer greedily. You can stop the feeding when the kitten begins to slow down the consumption or becomes disinterested.

I would recommend to start weaning him off the formula and offering the cat food more and more. He is old enough to eat dry kitten food and he isn't getting what he needs with just the formula. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Moving to a new home can be very scary for new pets. Bring Claymore the food and water and put them next to his hiding area (if he is under the bed, put the dishes under the bed). Also bring in his litter box close to the area. Giver him a few days to get use to things. Keep the environment calm and don't allow him to be hounded by other pets or children until he is more comfortable. This link has excellent information about introducing new cats: Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.co/article/bringing-your-cat-home-how-to-prepare-for-an-easy-transition/ Monitor the amount of food and the litter box closely. If there seems to be a problem, have Claymore examined by the veterinarian. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.