REUNITED! Hippo is Back With Her Mama!

Reunited and it feels so good! 💓 After about 3.5 days of intensive supportive care, Hippo is well enough to rejoin her family. Her mama was very happy to see her…and to smell her!

I’m continuing to monitor Hippo closely, and to provide supplemental feedings and fluids as needed. She has her heat pad and cozy hut, and is doing great so far.

One of the main comments I’m getting is “Why don’t you put her in a sweater?” I addressed it on social media, but I’m adding it here too:

As a rule, I don’t put clothing on very young neonatal kittens. I advise strongly against putting a very small neonatal kitten in clothing, because doing so can:

1) restrict mobility at a time when muscle development is crucial

2) restrict normal body development by changing posture and position

3) become a suffocation hazard or restrict breathing

4) cause skin irritation and dermatitis, trap bacteria

5) make it harder to manage sanitary stimulation

For these reasons and more, I don’t like clothing on small kittens. That said, we do use socks as kitten sweaters when medically necessary, and it is likely she’ll benefit from that once she’s no longer nesting (with mom or in incubator) and is out and exploring, with slightly better thermoregulation (around 4+ weeks). So while you won’t see sweaters just yet, you probably will soon. I hope that answers the question!

Check out my instructional videos here: http://bit.ly/2qwudwX

Follow Kitten Lady on social media!

FACEBOOK:   / kittenxlady  
INSTAGRAM:   / kittenxlady  

Shop for Kitten Lady gear: https://kittenlady.bigcartel.com