I have fostered many homeless kittens over the years, but none less than 10 weeks old. I recently attended a workshop at my local animal rescue centre to learn about fostering neonates. These have usually been brought in by members of the public who have found an abandoned litter without a mother cat. Caring for these orphaned newborns is a full-time job requiring great dedication, as they need attention every 2 hours both day and night if they are to survive. After arrival at the centre they are allocated to a foster parent who can pick them up as soon as possible and take them home along with all the necessary equipment: carry cage, towels and bedding, microwavable heat pad, formula feed, bottle and teats, digital scale and bowl for weighing, syringes and toileting cloths.

The care routine, as demonstrated on a stuffed toy at the workshop, involves preparation and warming of formula food, hand washing, toileting, weighing, bottle feeding, toileting again, cleaning, burping, changing the bedding, cleaning the bottle, hand washing again, and recording notes to send in to the centre. The process is then repeated for the next kitten. It is best for each foster home to have more than one, so they can learn to socialise and play with each other.

They will spend the first 3 weeks in their cage, then at 3-5 weeks move into a larger crate, and then when they have learned to feed themselves and use a litter tray they have access to a small secure room but are not allowed outside. When they can eat solid food and have reached about 1 kg in weight, usually at 8-10 weeks of age, they return to the centre to be desexed, microchipped and vaccinated. Some will need a further few weeks of fostering, for example if they are still on medical treatment. They are then ready to go to their forever homes. Kittens at this stage are very appealing and are usually adopted within a few days of becoming available. Sometimes the foster parents can’t bear to part with them, as was the case with Magic and Leo (pictured) whom we decided to keep after fostering them 8 or 9 years ago.

Things do not always go smoothly. Small kittens from deprived backgrounds are vulnerable to infections such as cat flu, ringworm and Giardia. For this reason they need to be checked daily for symptoms such as lethargy, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, vomiting, sneezing, discharge from eyes or nose, scratching or hair loss. They also need to return to the centre once a week to be examined by a vet. Not all of them will survive, sometimes due to a condition called the fading kitten syndrome, which can develop for many reasons though often the cause is unknown. One friend of mine has questioned the wisdom of putting so much effort into saving their lives, when there are so many unwanted cats in New Zealand. But it would seem very hard hearted to let them die. A better solution to overpopulation is desexing, which is now being stepped up again having been suspended during the Covid pandemic.

Maybe reading this post will encourage others to consider neonatal fostering, After reflecting on the content of the workshop, I don’t think I have enough physical or mental stamina for the night work involved in looking after “bottle babies”, but I look forward to taking in some slightly older kittens again this summer.