Newborn kittens are venerable to many diseases similar to human babies. Though many kittens can survive extremely harsh conditions, they are not invincible. Fading kitten syndrome is a condition that is triggered by an underdeveloped immune system.
In fact, this is the only condition of kittens that has the highest death rate. As cat lovers, it’s our responsibility to know how to save a kitten with fading kitten syndrome.
To help out all pet lovers, I decided to do a little research on this topic, and here is what I found.
How to save a fading kitten? Commonly kittens fade because of low blood sugar. So to save a fading kitten, you need to give your kittens an immediate dose of sugar syrup or corn syrup. If you don’t have sugar syrup, you can mix real sugar with water and feed your kittens.
If your cats get fade they will not die immediately, but there are few signs that indicate your cat time coming closer.
Following are the signs of fading kitten syndrome:
- Open-mouth breathing
- Eye discharge
- Sneezing
- Abdominal distension
- Extreme lethargy
- Dehydration
- Hypothermia
- Hemolytic Anemia
Note: Acting immediately when you see these types of signs, will increase the chance of survival of the kitten.
How to Treat Kittens with Fading Kitten Syndrome At Home
Not only low blood sugar but there are many possible symptoms that make your cat go fade. I will always suggest you take your cat nearest pet hospital for permanent treatment. Following are the steps that explain how to treat kittens with “fading kitten syndrome” at home:
- Check your kitten’s blood sugar, if you found low blood sugar feed them sugar syrup. Provide three drops of sugar every three minutes. If your kitten isn’t swallowing, try rubbing the sugar drops on their tongue, lips, and gums.
- If the kitten’s body temperature gets low, wrap your kitten’s body with a towel or blanket. Wrap completely body and head keeping only face open. You can also use a heating pad.
- If your kitten has breathing difficulty, keep them in an oxygen mask.
- Dehydration can make your cat go fade, feed them lactose-free milk or water to keep them hydrated.
Tips: do not rush your kitten to the hospital or animal shelter, performing the above steps will be the best chance of survival.
There is no universal test that can tell that a kitten has fading syndrome or what makes your kitten go fade.
To find out any possible causes of this disease the veteran performs several tests like blood tests, x-rays, urine, and feces tests.
By performing these types of tests a veteran can tell if there is something life-threatening going on with their kittens.
How Long Does It Take For a Kitten to Die From Fading Kitten Syndrome?
Kittens do not die immediately of fading kitten syndrome. If fading syndrome triggers they can survive up to 6 to 12 hours, without any medical attention. The chances of survival time may increase depending on the kitten’s health condition.
Potential Reasons/Causes of fading Kitten Syndrome
- Trauma or Shocks
- Genetic Disorders
- Trouble during birth
- Parasites Or Pathogens
- Malformations
- Low Weight By Birth
- Neglect From Mother Cats
- Feline panleukopenia
- Bacterial or viral Infections
- Hypothermia(Cold Water Exposure)
- Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar Levels)
Kitten Feeding Chart by Age and Weight
Lack of nutrition is one of the main causes of fading kitten syndrome. Therefore it is necessary to give them a proper nutritional diet to increase their survival rate. Following is the kitten feeding chart by age and weight:
| Kitten Age | Kitten Weight | Amount per feeding | Schedule |
| 0 to 1 Week | 50 to 150 grams | 2 to 6 ml | Every 2 hours |
| 1 to 2 weeks | 150 to 250 grams | 6 to 10 ml | Every 2 to 3 hours |
| 2 to 3 weeks | 250 to 350 grams | 10 to 14 ml | Every 3 to 4 hours |
| 3 to 4 weeks | 350 to 450 grams | 14 to 18 ml | Every 4 to 5 hours |
| 5 to 8 weeks | 550 to 850 grams | Start offering plentiful weight food | Every 6 hours |
Also, read my article: 27 foods cats can and can’t eat
How Common Is Fading Kitten Syndrome?
Fading kitten syndrome is more common among kittens that are a week old.
During the first week of kittens’ birth, the mortality rate is highest which is 90 % of death.
On average 15% to 27% of kittens can die of fading kitten syndrome before 9 weeks of age.
Is Fading Kitten Syndrome Contagious?
Kittens can get affected by fading kitten syndrome for many possible causes.
The contagious causes of fading kitten syndrome include virus and bacterial infection.
If a mother cat has a virus or bacterial infection, it can be transferred to their newborn kitten which can be a possible cause of fading kitten syndrome.
Final Thought
While researching this topic, I find out fading kitten syndrome is a deadly disease.
Most kitten owners do not know about this disease & its treatment, as a result, their kitten dies all of a sudden.
I am really happy to share my knowledge on this topic with all cat owners.
Now you know all the possible causes and necessary treatments of fading kitten syndrome.
We all love and care for our cats. Being a cat owner it’s our responsibility to know about our cat’s likes, dislikes, diseases, and treatment.