​One of the Leukemia Babies – A Tiny Fighter

Last week, shortly after we separated the two mama cats and their litters, I started noticing that the tiny dilute calico kitten wasn’t doing so well. She was much less active than the others, and her little eyes were staying goopy and crusty, even though I was cleaning them and applying ointment regularly.
When I weighed her, I got even more concerned. She was 100 grams lighter than the biggest kitten in her litter, and 50 grams lighter than the third. That’s a significant difference in kittens this small—especially with Mama testing positive for FeLV (feline leukemia).
Of course, my mind went straight to the worst-case scenarios.
Does this baby have FeLV too?
Is she already showing signs of being sick?
Is she fading?
Or is she simply not nursing as well as the others?
There are just so many possibilities when a kitten starts to struggle.
I offered her a little formula. She took a small amount… and then refused any more. My worry doubled. Desperate to get something into her, I dipped my finger into Mama’s wet food and offered it to her. At first, she turned her head. So I gently dabbed a tiny bit on her mouth—just enough to get her to lick it off.
She wasn’t thrilled at first.
But then I offered her a second little dab, and she seemed more curious. So I scooped a bit onto my fingers… and she went all in. She even bit my finger in her eagerness! I filled my fingers up several times, and she just kept eating.
Whew. This foster mama breathed a sigh of relief.
She ate.
She ate!
It may not seem like much, but for now, it’s everything.
We’ll take this one day at a time.