When it’s time to wean young kittens from the bottle to their first soft food, expect the unexpected! Having never eaten solid food, kittens must think, ‘What’s that squishy stuff for anyway?’ That’s what happened when an Atlanta foster mom introduced kitten paté to four kittens named after SpongeBob Squarepants. Taking the aquatic theme to heart, they were swimming in the stuff!
A Semi-Aquatic Start for Six Foster Kittens
After carefully preparing a place for the kittens, Jennifer Ngo intended to pick up three from the local shelter. But instead, she ended up leaving with six! Four of them were just two weeks old, and two were much older, but all were covered in fleas!
Once safely at home, the first order of business was a gentle, warm flea bath in the sink. Such a bath is not generally done for very young ones. But they were loaded with fleas and otherwise in good overall health. After bath time, each kitten needed to be carefully dried and always kept warm. But they felt so much better without the blood-suckers on them and relaxed into their comfortable home.
Given their semi-aquatic beginnings, the idea arrived to name them after creatures under the sea: SpongeBob SquarePants.
“It started as a joke, but then it was too cute to pass up 😆,” said Jennifer.
Jennifer and husband Matthew, Images via TikTok/thekittenfoster and Instagram/thekittenfoster
The two tuxedo boys became Sponge and Bob, while the silver tabby girls became Square and Pants. Meanwhile, the two remaining older kittens went to another loving foster home.
From left: Sponge, Bob, Square, and Pants
A Kitten Aquarium
As you can see, the kitten play area is complete with bright colors and a Bikini Bottom-themed crab and pineapple cozy. And their playpen area with clear walls looks a bit like a kitten aquarium!
The SpongeBob Kittens in Bikini Bottom
Although the kittens were very young, they turned out to have strong appetites and a comical enthusiasm for exploring, like their namesakes.
Pants the kitten
Of all the kittens, Sponge’s name might have been most fitting. After a vet visit, he had a tiny hole in his neck from where they needed to drain an abscess. Fortunately, it healed nicely. After a brief isolation, he was much relieved to be back in Bikini Bottom with his siblings.
Sponge the kitten gets a syringe of kitten formula
As a Sponge, he’s also skilled at soaking up milk (kitten formula) at top speed!
Video via Instagram/thekittenfoster
Four-Week-Old Sponge, Bob, Square, and Pants
At four-weeks-old, the kittens were all so confident. At this age, their tiny needle-like teeth emerge as they become less wobbly on their tiny paws.
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Hefty Bob became a skilled pole climber as his face grew rounder and cuter.
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Bold Sponge tried to nurse his siblings. So once more, he had to be separated for a couple of days. Then he resumed his wrestling matches with Bob, who had an upper hand in size.
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Lap kitten Pants tried her first jumps to try to get to her mama. But she still had lots of growing to do to make that jump!
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Wild Child Square tried another approach to get Mama’s attention, using her voice as loud as possible.
Taking the ‘Under the Sea’ Theme to Heart
As kittens do, they grew up so fast that Jennifer “was in awe.” By five weeks, it was time to wean to their first wet food, although the time varies. Some kittens wean early, around three weeks and others not until six weeks old or so.
Bob with a Patrick toy
Swimming in Wet Kitten Paté
When weaning kittens, you can expect squishy food to get everywhere, so Jennifer carefully created a small area with paper towels. To get them to recognize the wet paté, Jennifer put some on her finger and tempted them near their mouths.
Bold Bob and brother Sponge were first to take to eating the gooey stuff. But Pants and Square were not so fond of the idea and demanded their bottles. How could their foster mom refuse?
Eventually, they all leaned that food is not for swimming in but for eating. Afterwards, the kitten aquarium and undersea inhabitants needed quite a thorough cleaning!
“They’ve been swimming in their food. They’re really taking this ‘under the sea’ thing to heart,” she said.
See the weaning process in the video below:
Videos via TikTok/thekittenfoster and Instagram/thekittenfoster
