3 day old kitten missing out of the nest?

Question

I am reposting this hoping I can have more answers as im scared

my cat has had kittens, she had 3, one is missing, I havent been in alll day so not sure how long its been missing.

I have searched the house and cannot find it, in her box is the 2 which she feeds, so if she hid it, wouldnt she of moved the others?

I have a cat flap and sometimes a cat comes in, would they of took it? I have another cat which is her mum and she scares cats out so would they of had time?

any ideas?

Answer 1

In the wild (or when cats aren't being watched and cared for by humans), the runt of the litter is usually sick or weaker than the rest and is meant to die younger than the others.  Mother cats sense this and know, and will often take the runt away from the others to ensure that they get all of the nourishment and the runt doesn't make the others sick.  We have a lot of 'barn cats' in our neighborhood, and most of them gravitate to my backyard.  Over the years, I've seen the litters go from 6 or 7 kittens each down to 2 or 3, with usually only 1 or 2 surviving.  It is unfortunate, I know, as we would like to save all of the kittens.  But the horrible reality is that as we prolong the lives of the runts, we weaken the gene pool (unless we spay and neuter), and we end up with lots of cats being born and living far longer than they should have, passing on poor immune systems and genetic health problems.  My best friend's cat, the runt of the litter born to a runt mother, just passed away with a genetic lung disorder, the second of her shelter cats to do so.  The only survivor in her cats is the large (18lb), clearly alpha tomcat.  

The mother most likely removed the kitten from the box to ensure the safety and health of the other two.  While it's sad to think that one has to die, it keeps the others healthier longer, and, should you let the cats breed, strengthens the gene pool to breed healthier stock.

Answer 2

with a cat flap it could be anything,maybe a raccoon stole it,though I think they would eat them all if that was the case,maybe the mother ate or moved it,maybe a tom stole it,there are so many possibilities,unless you find it you'll probably never know....

Answer 3

Try this:  Turn off everything in your house that makes any kind of sound.  (Leave your refrigerator on.)

Walk quietly from room to room, and listen for any mewing.

Go outside, and be very quiet.  Listen, again, for any mewing.  If your house is on a raised foundation (Do you walk up stairs to enter your home?) look under the crawl space with a flashlight.

Is she in the same spot as when she gave birth to the kittens?  If she moved, go back to the spot where they were born.  The baby may be there.

Meantime, close off the cat flap, so that no more marauders can enter your home, and go get a catbox for inside use, if you do not have one already.

If you think she may have rejected the little one because it was handled by humans, place one drop of vanilla extract on her, and on all the remaining babies.  She will accept them, because they smell like her.

Look thoroughly through closets, in shoes, even.  Use your flashlight, even if you have the light on.  It may reveal something in the corner that you cannot see.

Good luck to you, I hope you find the little baby very soon.

We had a feral mother give birth outside our bedroom.  Something happened to her, and the babies cried all night.  In the morning, we went out and got them, and bottle fed them.  They were so young, they still had their umbical stumps, just tiny, tiny babies.  We have those babies, who grew up to be wonderful, intelligent kitties.

One more thing, please have your mama cat spayed, as soon as she quits nursing the babies.  Please keep her indoors until she has fully recovered from the spaying.  Also, please have the babies altered, so they do not contribute to the unwanted pet explosion.  Poor, unwanted animals are destroyed every day.  Please, help that explosion stop, with your kitties.

Answer 4

cats and dogs have a second sense, they seem to know when  one of their offspring is not right (retarded maybe or they just know its not healthy). Sometimes they will even kill the ones they have this feeling about. If she is not laying on it, she hid it somewhere. Otherwise it is possible one of the others out of jealousy took off w/one. Just keep looking! Keep Mom & kitten safe too.

Answer 5

what ever has happened to the kitten,will be something to do with the mother,kittens cant start crawling until 16 days old.so obviously the mom has removed it from the litter because it was a sick cat. if she had taken it to another place of safety she would have taken them all.

Answer 6

well this might be really bad or maybe a mistake ok now there's 2 possible things that could have happened at that age one have u touched the kitten like pettedd it or handle it in any other way the mother might have well killed it thinking it might be a threat by another sent or maybe she was worried and moved just that kitten ifhaven'ttt handle the kitten then watcherbivoreorr and see if she goes anywhere else and stays for a while then wen shes gone check that area i hope i can help

Answer 7

I'm so sorry, but she has most likely died. There is a possibility she is still alive but kittens so long are completely defensless. Was the kitten male or female, and do you have the father or any other male adult cats at your house. Tomcats will sometimes kill what they percieve as future rivals. Don't give up hope though! I wish I had some better news to tell you. :(

Answer 8

Hi,sorry but the mam may have killed it.

Answer 9

Sometimes the mother cats will take a kitten away from the others if it is sick. I would look outside if you have a cat flap and listen because they usually will cry for mama for awhile. Its posisble mama did it herself, I don't think the other cat would have bothered it.