On Apr 20, 9:28*pm, harry wrote:

How do you "innoculate" a new-born kitten . . .

a) Kittens inherit antibodies from their mothers for about the first 3
months of their lives via the colostrom - their first nursing. If they
do not get this, then they do not inherit the immunities. Newborn
bottle-fed, never-nursing kittens will not get this immunity and so
rarely survive as healthy cats. Not NEVER, but certainly rarely.

b) Adult cats that have been exposed to feline distemper and survived
it, and/or received immunities early in their lives may be resistant
to it, but not have sufficient and of the correct immunities to pass
it to their kittens. That is why it is critical that cats have their
immunizations at the correct intervals if they are allowed to breed -
even though the science does (somewhat) support a continuing
resistance even to a single effective course of immunizations. Much as
humans achieved permanent immunizations to Smallpox from a single
exposure to the vaccine - such that today the vaccine is no longer
given as a matter of course. But humans as with cats do not pass on
those immunities to their children as a permanent condition.

And unless you are in the true boonies, there are 24-hour clinics.
Further to that, most ethical vets will respond 24/7 if there is a
need. Our vet practice does not even charge extra to come to the house
(and they will, at short notice if needed) if it turns out that there
was a true emergency. We have been with them now for over 25 years for
just that reason.

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA