My 3-week-old kitten isn't walking or eating. What's this black spot?

Hello, sorry to hear about Luna. It sounds like she is having acne. This is typically brought on in cats due to them rubbing their face and snout against objects such as the rug or food bowls. Most often, you need to wipe their snout with skin sensitive baby wipes and change their food bowls to stainless steel. This are the first steps to try, and if it does not work then some cats may need medications. Your kitten is a bit young for this disease if she is truly 21 days old, so if the cleaning does not help or if the black spots are spreading, then she should be seen by a veterinarian. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Submit a stool sample to your veterinarian to diagnose intestinal parasites which are common in kittens. At 4 weeks of age, Gatsby shoukdbweigh about 1 pound. You can offer a slurry made from KMR (kitten milk replacer) and a high quality kitten canned food. Offer food about 4-5 times a day. An exam with the vet would be recommended anyway to rule out injury or neurological conditions that may be affecting his gait.

Now that she is 3-4 weeks old she may be peeing or pooping without your knowledge. Go ahead and start teaching her the litter box but make sure it is small enough that she can get in and out. If you haven't already I would also start weaning her to cat food. At first you will still have to supplement with formula but you start by putting all for feet in canned food on a paper plate. Soon she will start eating that. And once she gets a little older, approximately 6 week, you can start adding softened kibble. The fact that she is still playful and acting normally, I do not think she is block and not urinating or pooping. Usually they will become lethargic. If you still haven't see any irons or poop in the next day or she becomes lethargic then I would see your vet for an exam. They will be able to tell if she is constipated or if the bladder is really large. I hope this helps!

3 weeks is very young. Under normal circumstances a kitten should be with its mommy until it is 10 to 12 weeks old. Your kitten will still need to be fed with kitten milk (bottle feeding). You can get a bottle and Kitten milk at a large supermarket or your vet;s office. At three weeks, the mother still licks and stimulates the kittens genitals and anus to entice it to urinate and defecate. She then removes the urine and feces. You will need to do this with a soft tissue moistened with warm water every time you feed her. At 3 weeks of age she should be fed every 4 hours. Once she is around 4 to 5 weeks old you can offer her canned kitten food in addition to the milk. Here is extensive information on raising a kitten: http://animalalliancenyc.org/feralcats/tnr-colony-care-resources/managing-kittens/raising-orphaned-kittens/

Your kitten is very young and therefore any viral or bacterial disease can quickly kill it. Not being able to breathe properly and not eating is an emergency and you need to take her to a Pet ER right away. She will need antibiotics to clear up the bacterial infection that is clogging her airways. You can also support the action of the antibiotics with exposing your kitten to a humidifier/ saline water steam to liquefy the discharge/congestion.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. There may not be anything wrong with Mittens. Some pigment change in early kittenhood is not uncommon. I would mention it to your vet at her next vaccine appointment just to be safe. If, of course, you see anything else like a raw section, bleeding, or change in the texture of the nose, please see your vet sooner. Best wishes to you and Mittens!

Without an image it would be hard to say what you are seeing. It could be a parasite, bug, etc crawling around. Checking the environment for anything similar may alert you to this, and you can use a flea comb and Dawn dish soap to kill any fleas on kittens that young. If mom is taking care of the kittens, she is likely cleaning/stimulating your kitten to go potty, however 4-5 weeks is around the age they should start showing interest in the litter box and start eating solid food so more stool may appear, and the momma cat may be taking him to a litter box to go potty as well. You can watch to see if this is the case.