53
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by Xirup@lemmy.one to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

Hi, well to start I usually feed any cat that came to my house, and a pregnant cat start coming around 2 months ago but unlike the others cat, she remained on my yard and basically she lives here.

At some point, when I realized that she was pregnant, I started to lock her on my house where she can give birth and be safe.

Just some 3 days ago, she gave birth to 2 completely black kittens (she is black with white points) and one white kitten with black points. But when I was looking closely at the white kitten, I realize that he had fleas, and obviously all the kittens and the mother have, but they are too dark to watch the fleas.

I read that an easy way to remove the fleas is bathing the kitten, but ironically I also read that if a person touches a kitten too much, the mother can stop recognizing it by its smell, and even eat it, without mentioning that they are only 3 days old, so I guess that this is not an option.

I also read that fleas abhor the smell of chamomile tea, so I could do a bit and rub a bit over the kittens without bathing them, but I don't know if what I mentioned in the previous point also applies.

For the mother, I don't think I have to worry, because I'll buy her a pipette,

I also want to clarify that the kittens are not infested with fleas, maybe they have 5 or 10, but they are 3 kittens that sleep one on top of the other, and I prefer to be safe rather than sorry.

(Sorry if this is not the correct place to ask such a question, but I couldn't find an "AskVet" alternative on Lemmy)

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] fiat_lux@kbin.social 4 points 1 year ago

Shelters are very location dependent, unfortunately. If you're in a wealthier country / area there are likely some good ones around. Please get the kittens checked by a vet as soon as you can though, fleas can cause anaemia in kittens and kill them quickly. Even if you're rural, a vet who specialises in livestock likely knows of some local charities who can assist financially in providing care, if that's a concern. Kitten Lady's website is great for practical young kitten tips and product choices if you need to do some hands-on care yourself. Someone else already linked her YouTube videos which are also great, but I find the organisation a bit hard to navigate by comparison.

If the kittens look like they have pale gums/tongue or they are lethargic, or stop eating it's emergency vet time. Those are signs the fleas have caused anaemia. And it's important to keep them warm. 24 hour veterinaries exist in many cities. They frequently offer payment plans too.

They do need to see a vet soon though, even if they look healthy, so they can be checked and dewormed. Once they have been given the all clear, for good beginner-friendly long term care advice Dr. Uri Burstyn "Helpful Vancouver Vet is great. Also Jackson Galaxy for understanding cat behaviour is a fun watch for your family members who have fallen in love.

Please also consider getting them all desexed. There are programs globally working with vets to help get stray populations sterilised, which is recognised as the most humane approach to limiting cat populations. Cats also typically have longer lives when they're desexed, and are less prone to territorial behavioural issues like pissing all over your things.

this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2023
53 points (90.8% liked)

Asklemmy

43958 readers
1205 users here now

A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions

Search asklemmy ๐Ÿ”

If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!

  1. Open-ended question
  2. Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
  3. Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
  4. Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
  5. An actual topic of discussion

Looking for support?

Looking for a community?

~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_A@discuss.tchncs.de~

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS