Abandoned newborn kittens

I had this happen to one of my cat's kittens years ago. It appeared that the kitten's back legs were put on backwards or that he had front paws as back legs. This was not the case with him or with your kittens. This is actually a condition that makes the hind or front legs of a kitten appear deformed at birth. The twisting of the legs can vary from paws that are slightly curled under, to hyper-extended stiff legs, to legs bent into a yoga position to the severest condition where it may actually appear like the back legs have been put on backwards. The condition was due to contracted tendons, most likely a result of positioning or crowding in the uterus. There are tendons that travel down the leg and into the foot but when the kitten is being formed and growing in the uterus if it is confined then the tendons are shorter on one side and longer on the other. First of all, since the mother has abandoned her kittens continue to nurse the kittens with the bottle. It might be that the kittens could not pull themselves into a postiion to nurse and this is why she abandoned them. Next you need to concentrate on helping to rehabilitate the kittens. You are going to need to give the kittens physiotherapy. First of all, start by warming the affected limb; this helps prepare the shortened tendon to be stretched, in the same way warmth helps sore muscles. There are several ways of warming the leg. You can apply a heating pad or you can use a warm compress by heating a moistened cloth in the microwave and wrapping it around the leg. This will lose heat fairly quickly so have a second cloth ready and keep replacing it with a warm one. If this doesn't work you could try to immerse the leg in water as warm as you can stand it, or you could use your hair dryer to direct warm air on the leg. Once the leg has been warmed, begin a gentle massage up and down its length. As you massage, you can also carefully begin to stretch it towards a normal position. The stretch is the most important part of the therapy. At first, you will probably not be able to bring the leg completely into the correct position. Try to stretch the contracted tendon a little bit at a time. At the same time as the shortened tendon stretches, the tendon on the other side which is too long will have the opportunity to contract back. Gradually as the tendons come back into a more equal relationship with one another, the leg should also come into a normal position. The more often you perform the warming-massage-stretch routine, the faster the kitten is likely to correct. Conduct the physiotherapy at least 3 times a day. Up to 10 times or more a day is preferred. Once the legs seem to be in a normal position, you can help build strength in them. If dealing with the hind legs, hold the kitten up under its front legs and try to get it to "stand" on its hind legs. Bounce it slightly so it tries to use the hind legs, strengthening them. If it is the front legs that need strengthening, reverse the technique so it is standing on its "hands". Do not use these strengthening exercises if the legs cannot support the weight without twisting again. You should be seeing weekly improvement following the warming-massaging-stretching routine. If you don't see improvement, you may need to consider bracing the legs. If the leg cannot bear the weight of the cat and collapses, the tendons never have the opportunity to recover. The contracted one remains too short. The long one remains too long. Apply bracing as needed - usually from above to below where the twisting is occurring. Bracing forces the leg into the correct position and supports it in that position while the tendons have the opportunity to grow normally. Besides bracing the hind legs into position, they often have to be connected to one another or the kitten will either splay them out at an unnatural angle or drag them. When bracing hind legs, be sure that the stifle (knee) is left free to move if possible. If the kitten needs to have the legs braced, do not delay. The longer you delay, the longer the leg will need to be braced and the less the chance of 100% success. Kittens grow VERY fast so bracing will need to be replaced almost daily or it will become too tight. A sign of being too tight is swelling in the toes meaning circulation is being cut off. The best bracing materials depend on your kitten and its problem. Tongue depressors, metal finger splints or Velcro vet wrap are a few good options. Most kittens born with twisted legs self correct by the time they are starting to walk - about 5 weeks of age. This did occur in my case with my kitten. He did have a slight curve to his back legs, but he was able to walk and take care of himself as an adult. Just to let you know, most veterinarians are not familiar with a kitten being born with twisted legs. If an owner takes a kitten born this way to a veterinarian, it is not unusual for the vet to assume the kitten will be permanently deformed and recommend euthanasia. It obviously takes a long of care and love to deal with this situation when they are kittens, but once you have made it past this hurdle it should be smooth sailing from that point on. Good luck with your kitties and keep us updated!!

She is an animal and cats are more independent and if they were in the wild, the kittens would not stand a chance. The mother is not thinking that there is a human in the house and she can help the kittens. The mother cat knew that with their hind legs being backward they would have trouble climbing trees and the dogs would kill them before they got away. And certainly they would have a disadvantage when mouse hunting. They will be good house pets,but I would not let them go outside unless you can get surgery for their legs.

Sounds kind of like something that happened to my neighbor's poodle/shitzu puppies not so long ago...too bad nature doesn't allow animals to feel a bit more emotion for their offspring. Thank you for sharing your story.

wow... you are so kind and nice. i have a hint that the mother cat (and other animals) has a way of thinking that if a newborn doesn't look right, then it doesn't serve a purpose. cruel it may seem but that is how we are different with them. we perceive the act as wrong but she obviously has another thing on her mind. the remaining kittens are so lucky to have you. good work..!

I was going to ask you about those kittens. But, you're probably right about what she's doing. I'm hoping Mama comes around and starts taking care of her young, and I'm glad to hear three out of the four are surving. I've heard if they make it past the first day they have a fighting chance, but since they're so young they have a long way to go. Be sure to let me know how they're doing. I'm keeping my fingers crossed the remaining three go on to live long healthy lives.

that's heartbreaking. :( i thought cats are naturally sweet and caring. we have a big mother cat here and she adopted a lost kitten from the street. she nurses the kitten even though the kitten is not her daughter. one time, the kitten cannot open her eyes because of too much secretion, the mother cat licked the kitten's eyes so the kitten could open her eyes. the mother cat cares for the kitten which is not related to her. i thought cats are naturally caring to the young ones. :(

It is a basic part of survival that causes mother animals to abandon their young if they are not basically sound. If this were no the case the animals would die off. After all if any of those deformed animal bred and pass on their deformation it would weaken the breed. I once saved 9 out of 10 kittens who were almost frozen when their mother left them. I was lucky none were deformed and all grew into beautiful cats.