Category: Kitten Development

Kitten development is a process that occurs in the first six to 18 months of a cat’s life. There are four main stages, each with its own unique characteristics

6-Month Old Kitten Care Tips

Your 6-month old kitten gradually loses their baby-like characteristics and starts to show some attributes of an adult cat. In fact, for some breed, the age of 6 months can be a threshold for a kitten to enter the realm of adulthood.

In other words, some kittens simply become adult cats when they are 6 years old, although there are kittens that don’t become adult cats until they reach 1 year of age or later. You need to be aware of every change that occurs in this stage of their growth and plan the best care accordingly.

6-Month Old Kitten’s Physical Changes

Physically, at the age of 6 months, your kitten will become leaner and gradually lose their baby fat. They are no longer plump and even if they are fat, they barely look chubby like baby. They are also still in the process of losing their baby teeth and gaining permanent adult teeth.

This process, which began around the age of 4 months, will conclude by the time your kitten reaches 7 months of age, when your kitten will have four molars and all adult teeth. For now, expect to find tooth debris in carpet, food, and anything that your kitten bites.

6-Month Old Kitten Behavioral Changes

Your adolescent 6-month old kitten has become more aggressive. Unless you have spayed or neutered them, they will make numerous attempts to attract other cats for mating, including marking places using urine, making “hot” noises, or roaming around the neighborhood.

Your kitten will also starts to see other kittens and cats as rivals. Your kitten has also become more able to communicate with you both verbally and non-verbally, so you should be attentive when your kitten approaches you, rubs their body against your legs or hands, “speaks” to you, or interacts with you by any means.

If you are attentive enough, you should eventually be able to understand what your kitten actually needs.

6-Month Old Kitten Nutrition

Your kitten has now grown older, so it is okay for you to give them adult cat food; however, protein-rich 6-month old kitten food and kitten food formula are still the most recommended meal for your kitten.

You may want to wait for another month until your kitten gets all of their adult teeth before deciding to give them a larger portion of cat food.

Your are free to choose either dry or wet food. Some kitten loves one over the other, some others love both. Dry food can be left outside for a whole day, but wet food should not be exposed to open air more than 20 minutes.

If your kitten drinks a lot, giving them dry food only is okay. If they drink rarely, eating only dry food may dehydrate them. Take this into consideration.

Medical Checkup for Your 6-Month Old Kitten

Normally, your 6-month old kitten should get their last vaccinations this month, so take your kitten to your vet to get ones. It is important to understand, though, that not all cats are the same.

Your veterinarian will mostly ask you about your cat’s lifestyle and check your cat’s medical records to determine whether additional vaccinations are needed.

How to Litter Train a Kitten

Due to your kitten’s more aggressive behavior, spaying or neutering is almost a must. If you haven’t done so last month or the month before, you should do it now. Your 6 month old kitten also needs a toy that they can use, or abuse, to vent their aggressive behavior.

How to Raise and Care for 4 Week Old Kitten

Raising an abandoned or orphaned 4 week old kitten may feel like an exhausting full-time job, more so in the beginning when they must be frequently fed throughout the day. However as the day goes by and now that they are in the fourth week of their lives, things may finally start to feel a tad bit easier for you.

Not only do they not need to be fed as often as in the first two weeks, they have also become stronger and more active. This is when the fun begins. However, your job of caring for them is far from over.

Taking care of orphaned or abandoned kittens may be exhausting, but we cannot deny the fact that it is also incredibly rewarding. Now that they are learning to properly balance themselves and walk more often, you may crack a smile every single time you catch their glimpse as they roam around.

3 Week Old Kitten, Everything You must Know

At this point their heads are larger than their entire body, which is the reason why they wobble their way around. As their curiosity and activity increase, so is your responsibility.

4 Week Old Kitten
As soon as your kitten turn four weeks, they may start getting more active. This comes with a few additional tasks and responsibilities, learn how to properly do it here.

Caring for 4 week old kitten: what you should know

With the kitten start walking and roaming around their surrounding, one of the first things you must do is evaluate any harmful plants as well as items and chemical products around the house. Consider relocating the plants and storing the aforementioned products and items in a compartment or somewhere they cannot reach in order to eliminate the risk of harming them during their exploration. Other than that, you must also evaluate the house for small openings to avoid their accidental escape.

Another aspect worth noting is, while four week old kittens are still nursing, the weaning process must be started at this stage. This is important as they need to eventually make the move to solid food, and four weeks is the ideal age for you to introduce them to kitten food.

Mother cats typically start the weaning process by the end of their third week, but at four weeks they are still allowed formula as long as it is in addition to kitten food or homemade gruel.

Other than starting the weaning process, another task you have at hand is introducing them to their litter box. While cats do not need to be trained to use their litter box, they must still be introduced to their litter box from early age. That way they will understand the appropriate place to urinate and defecate.

Caring for 4 week old kitten: how to wean the kitten

Encouraging your kitten to start eating and stop suckling come with quite a few challenges. However, as challenging as it may be, it can definitely be done. If there is one thing you should never do, it’s to abruptly change their diet. Slow and steady always wins the race when it comes to these lovely creatures. The fact that they are still nursing may make you wonder how often you should give them formula, in that case a good rule of thumb is to give them 8cc for every ounce of their bodyweight.

Alternatively you may give them 104cc (13oz) of milk, given to them 3 times a day. This is of course aside the obligatory introduction to food (also referred to as “gruel”). Homemade gruel is essentially a mixture of either high-quality dry kitten food or wet kitten food and their formula with a little bit of warm water. To make the gruel using high-quality dry kitten food, you must let the kitten food sit in warm water for a while. Once softened, mix it with milk replacement formula.

To get them to try, place a small amount on your fingertip and let them smell it. Once they come closer, slowly move your finger toward the food bowl. Your kitten will follow you and will soon start lapping up the gruel. Gradually over the next few weeks, thicken the homemade gruel until the kitten is finally starting to eat plain kitten food.

Caring for 4 week old kitten: how to introduce litter box

When it comes to using the litter box, cat owners really hit the jackpot as cats do not require a proper litter-training unlike their canine counterpart. However, a little introduction is needed. Fortunately, this introduction process is as easy as taking the kittens and placing them inside their litter box in order to let them smell the box and get used to it. Your kitten may dig around the litter box for a while or shun the litter box by hopping out of it.

If your kitten is among those that hop out, simply take them and place them back in the litter box in an hour. Continue to introduce them to it after meals and in the morning, and every time you think they are about to urinate or defecate, gently place them in their litter box to do the job.

How to Care for 1 Week Old Kitten (NewBorn Kitten)

In the high kitten season such as spring and summer, it is not unusual for us to find a nest of unattended newborn kittens or 1 week old kitten seemingly the runt of the litter that has been abandoned by its mother somewhere.

Upon finding them, we instinctively decide to take them back with us and take care of them. Rescuing these poor kittens is a noble decision, there is no doubt about it. But not all of us know how to properly care for newborn kitten and this may lead to a serious issue.

The fact that we do not know anything about how to take care of newborn kittens often makes us question our decision. But when we look back on it, our decision to rescue them is much better than leaving them on their own when we are aware they are still unable to fend for themselves. Now all we have to do is educate ourselves, and luckily for us this article is specifically made for this reason.

How to care for 1 week old kitten: step one

Despite having the responsibilities spelled out, it may still come off as confusing. This is largely due to our unfamiliarity with how to correctly do the aforementioned responsibilities. We know how to keep babies warm, and we also know how and when to feed them as well as how to properly change their diapers. But this is not a human baby we are talking about, so a task as simple as feeding may become ten times more complicated to us.

First, purchase kitten formula and nursing kit from the nearby pet store. This nursing kit typically includes a cleaning brush, and a bottle along with several nipples. If you want an economical option, go for the powdered kitten formula and remember to never give them cow’s milk.

To start, cut an opening in the first nipple with a scissor. To know whether or not you have the right opening size, hold the bottle upside down and when it slowly drips, you are good to go.

1 week old kitten
The newborn kitten weighs just ounces and easily fits into the palm of your hand. Her umbilical cord will fall off within two or three days, but her eyes and ear canals will not be open yet.

How to care for 1 week old kitten: step two

Before each feeding, you are advised to sterilize the nipples and bottles by boiling them in water for a few minutes. Make sure the formula is slightly warmer than room temperature. If you are not using surgical gloves made out of latex for feeding, you should wash your hands before and after each feeding to protect the kittens from each other’s germs.

To feed them, place them on their stomach on a clean cloth or towel then gently open their mouth and slowly slip the nipple in. They will quickly get into enthusiastic suckle mode which is exciting to see and experience. However, remember that you must always lightly pull the bottle.

This is important to ensure that the bottle is always at a 45 degree angle in order to avoid air from being sucked into their stomach. If after feeding they start choking, it’s common so don’t panic. Simply hold them upside down until they stop.

Another thing that is worth noting is the fact that kittens always instinctively knead their paws when being fed, which brings us to another good alternative position for feeding. If it is possible for you, sit on the floor with your legs crossed, and put a towel on your leg before you place the kitten on your leg. This way the newborns will be much more comfortable during feeding. Just remember to change the towel each day.

How to care for 1 week old kitten: step three

While kittens know how to suck the nipple by instinct, you may come across a newborn that somehow refuses to take the nipple. When your newborn kitten refuse to suckle, you may coax them by delicately stroking its back or rubbing the nipple gently but firmly on the newborn’s forehead. These are incredibly stimulating because they replicate the cleaning activity that mother-cats always do to their newborns.

If this does not work out, chances are the newborn kitten is simply being fussy. In the event that this happens, you may change to another type of nipple. The nursing kit typically consists of extra nipples with different length. If you are using the shorter nipple, immediately change it to the longer one and use it to feed the picky newborn.

How To Litter Train a Kitten

If the kitten still refuses to take the nipple, examine whether they seem weaker than the others. Newborn kittens who are too weak to suckle usually can easily be stimulated by gently dabbing some Karo syrup on their lips.

If Karo syrup also does not work, they are possibly sick and must be given a small dose of amoxycillin. While this usually does the trick, you may take them to the veterinarian right away and have them properly examined.

5 Month Old Kitten Care Tips

A 5 month old kitten will show some physiological changes that make them appear more like an adult cat; however, they are still a cute kitty that needs your care not less than before.

There are some physical and behavioral changes that you can expect from your kitten. It is important that you respond to those changes wisely to make sure that the changes don’t affect you, your kitten and your environment adversely.

5 Month Old Kitten’s Physical Changes

Congratulation, your 5 month old kitten now appears like a smaller replica of their adult counterpart. Their eyes no longer appear pale blue and have already gained the sinister dark tint typical of adult cats. Their deciduous teeth have begun to shed since a few weeks ago and you should see tooth remains in foods or carpet.

If you don’t see any, that means your kitten may have swallowed them. Don’t worry because it is normal for kittens to swallow their baby teeth. In brief, physically, your kitten has already become a cute and lovable beast.

5 month old kitten
Domestic Cat {Felis catus} 5-month Silver tortoiseshell kitten ‘Cynthia’ with her mother ‘Sylvia’

5 Month Old Kitten Behavioral Changes

Your kitten also shows some changes in the way they behave. Remember that your kitten is now a young adolescent flooded with all kinds of hormonal surge. They will become more sensitive and they will start thinking about mating. It is thus best for you to consider spaying or neutering your kitten.

Why Should You Spay or Neuter Your 5-Month Old Kitten?

There are clear reasons why you should spay or neuter your kitten. If your 5 month old kitten is female, spaying prevents unwanted pregnancies, prevents unwanted noises when your kitten starts to “call” male cats, and avoids possible infections.

If your kitten is male, neutering prevents them from straying over a large area, prevents them from marking their area with urine, and protects them from diseases.

Should You Declaw Your 5-Month Old Kitten?

While you attempt to spay or neuter your kitten, you may also consider declawing them; however, remember that declawing procedure will render your kitten defenseless for the rest of their life, so declaw only if you think that the claws will be dangerous or if the kitten will stay indoors forever. Your kitten will no longer be able to fight back when attacked or to climb tree when escaping if you declaw them.

5-Month Old Kitten Care

There are some important things to mind when you want to care for your 5-month old kitten. The first is about 5-month old kitten food. Feed your kitten with healthy kitten’s food, be it wet or dry (protein-rich is preferable), to boost their growth while paying attention to their weight.

There are many factors that determine how much a 5-month old kitten weighs, such as the kitten’s build, breed and neutering status, so it’s best for you to ask your vet to find out whether your kitten is of the right weight and size.

How To Litter Train a Kitten

Lastly, your 5 month old kitten has now had adult teeth, so tooth brushing will become your new routine. You should also brush their hair coat to remove unwanted hair strands

5-Week Old Kitten Care Tips

Adopting a 5-week old kitten is a good idea because they are still baby and therefore easier to train and because they are already able to eat food other than their mom’s milk. So, the two most basic aspects of kitten care, i.e. training for development and nurturing for growth, can be handled perfectly.

As a baby, however, a 5-week old kitten is considered weak and fragile. You need to know how to take the role once played by their mom and how to be a good master for your new tiny pet.

Here we will explore all aspects of 5-week old kitten care, including what to expect from a 5-week old kitten, their physical and behavioral features, their feeding and medical needs, their training, and their basic care.

A 5-week old kitten starts to use their legs for standing or walking, although with constant shakiness. At the age of 5 weeks, they can be trained to be a social pet, so focus on their training to make them a friendly kitten.

The physical characteristics of a 5-week old kitten

Your kitten should acquire their first pound on week five because 1 pound is considered the normal 5-week old kitten weight. Female cats wane their kittens when the latter are 4 weeks old.

If you decide to take the kitten and make them your pet, you will start to feed them when they are 4 or 5 weeks old. The food that they eat will add 1 pound every month.

Although your kitten has already had baby teeth, they still look chubby like baby. At the age of 5 weeks, they will also start to learn to walk on their feet, although their gait is still shaky; however, it will not take very long before they can finally walk gracefully and even make a steady gallop.

If you want to know what the gender of your kitten is, you should consult your vet. The sexual organ of a 5-week old kittenhas not been developed fully, so it is rather difficult to find visual clues that determine your kitten’s gender.

How to feed a 5-week old Kitten

A 5-week old kitten is above all a baby, but they are a baby that you can safely take from their mother. Nursing female cats generally stop giving their milk to their baby and start weaning them starting from the age of 4.

Although the ongoing weaning process generally ends by the time your kitten reaches 8 weeks of age, after the age of 4 weeks, your kitten can actually take any alternative to their mom’s milk. Giving them proper 5-week old kitten feed is thus an extra responsibility for you as a new “mom” for the cute baby.

Your 5-week old kitten will need a steady supply of food that is rich in nutrients, especially protein. Because they are recently weaned, kitten formula should be the best nutrition for your kitten.

Although they already have baby teeth, giving them dry food to accompany the formula might not be the best idea. Instead, give them wet and soft feed that they can easily munch and digest.

How to train your 5-week old kitten

A 5-week old kitten is becoming more active and aggressive. If they grow with their mom and litter mates, they will spend most of their time playing with them. If you let them grow with you, you will become their mate.

You may think that this will become another extra duty that you have to deal with, but playing with them is actually an important aspect of 5-week old kitten care that strengthens your bond with your kitten and allows them to know that you and they are in the same family.

Just like human baby, kitten also uses their teeth and claws when playing. Although their teeth and claws are not fully developed yet, they are sharp enough to hurt or even wound you.

Therefore, make sure that you train your kitten not to bite you, anyone or anything. Give them teether or toy so that they can have an interesting object to bite. You may also need to scold them if they start to bite you and to praise them when they don’t use their teeth when playing with you.

If you continue to train your kitten this way, they should eventually be able to understand proper behavior and manner.

Lastly, take your kitten out and introduce them to other kittens and people. This 5-week old kitten training is important to expand your kitten’s social life.

5-week old kitten’s medical monitoring

A 5-week old kitten also requires intensive medical monitoring. Although they will not get their first vaccination shots until they reach 8 weeks of age, addressing flea problem and possible diseases, such as problem with immune system, is an important aspect of 5-week old kitten care.

How To Litter Train a Kitten

Take your kitten to your vet to find out about the best non-toxic flea treatment for them and to test whether your kitten suffers from dangerous diseases such as feline immunodeficiency virus. Don’t forget to take a fecal sample to find out whether your kitten eats properly or whether they have some problem with their digestive system.

6-Week Old Kitten Care Tips

A 6-week old kitten is not much different from a 5-week old one. Kittens aged 5 and 6 weeks are often included in the same age group that determines how they grow and develop and how they should be cared for.

Nevertheless, there are some slight differences in how they appear and behave. And so there is also difference between 6-week old kitten care and that of their 5-month old counterpart.

Here we will explore what you can expect from your 6-week old kitten and how to deal with their care.

The physical characteristics of a 6-week old kitten

Your 6-week old kitten now has a sturdier build, although they still look like a chubby baby. Get ready to see significant growth starting from this week, but don’t expect significant change in their size because size is not a determining factor for growth.

They will physically stronger than before and will get more and more powerful in the next weeks. Their legs have become a little bit stronger and their gait is less shaky compared to that one week before.

They should have gained about 1 to 3 ounces of weight this week. A week before, their weight is somewhere between 14 ounces and 1.8 pounds, so normally, a 6-week old kitten weight should be between  1 and 2 pounds. Check with your veterinarian to make sure that your kitten has proper weight.

Your kitten’s sexual organ should look clearer now and you should be able to determine their sex with ease. Although distinguishing the gender of a kitten can be done as early as when your kitten is 3-week old, but significant difference in the appearance of their sexual organ doesn’t become tangible until they are 5 or 6 weeks old. If you have started sexing your kitten now, you may need to plan to neuter your kitten next week or the week after.

6-week old kitten

How to feed a 6-week old Kitten

Your kitten is still in the growth stage in which healthy nutrition plays an important role in ensuring their proper growth and development. Most experts agree that bottle-fed kittens should be weaned by the time they reach 6 or 8 weeks of age. Check with your veterinarian to learn whether your 6-week old kitten can be weaned and the best 6-week old kitten feed to replace the formula.

In general, formulated kitten food (don’t confuse it with kitten’s formulated milk), should be given to your kitten until they are at least 1 year old. Your kitten’s deciduous teeth indeed still look tiny and fragile, but they can actually be used for chewing dry kitten food.

If you haven’t given your kitten dry food before, this week can be the best time to introduce them to dry food. Wet canned food, nonetheless, is still a recommended food for your 6-week old kitten.

How often should you feed your kitten in a day? Normally, kitten eats four times a day. If you feed your kitten with a combination of dry and wet food, you can feed your kitten with wet food twice a day and leave dry food around your kitten’s surroundings for the entire day.

Dry food can be exposed to open air as long as you want, but wet food should not be left too long in the open because they can easily be contaminated. Consult your vet if your 6-week old kitten won’t feed or if they show symptoms of diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, and other diseases.

How to train your 6-week old kitten

Litter box training is possibly the most important training that your 6-week old kitten should get. When your kitten still lives with their mom, urination is mostly assisted by mom who licks the kitten’s perineum to stimulate it.

After they are weaned, they should start to be able to urinate on their own. Prepare yourself to do litter training to your kitten because the earlier you do this training, the easier your kitten can master it.

Your kitten also becomes more social when they are 6 weeks old. Therefore, it is important that you spend many good times with your kitten so that your bond with them becomes even stronger.

Take your kitten outside to help them socialize with other kittens and people and make sure that you do 6-week old kitten training that helps your kitten behave better and avoid biting and other malicious actions.

5-week old kitten’s medical monitoring

Most kittens receive their first vaccination shots when they are 8 weeks or 2 months old; however, some kittens may receive those shots as early as when they are 6 weeks old. Therefore, consult your vet to find out whether your 6-week old kittenis ready for vaccinations.

7-Week Old Kitten

If they are ready, the likely type of vaccination that they will get is called combination vaccine consisting of feline distemper, rhinotracheitis, and calicivirus. Chlamydophila may also be included in the first 6-week old kitten vaccination. Also make sure that your kitten receives proper flea treatment that is safe for them.

When Does a Kitten Become a Cat?

Some people like to ask about when does a kitten become a cat and apparently, many give different answers. Some say the kitten becomes adult around six months while others say the cats will be adult when reach one year old.

Even though your kitten already became an adult, they maybe still act like mischievous kitten, however her needs will change so you also need to change the way you take care of the adult cat.

When does a kitten become a cat and fully grown?

Your kitten can start to look like an adult when they reach 6 months of age and this is mean that they start need adult cat foods. After you are sure when do kittens become cats, you should change the way you feeding them as well as other requirements such as:

  1. Feeding

After your kitten becomes an adult cat, do not feed her your usual kitten foods because cats do not use as much as energy as the kitten so she might become overweight.

You need to find more suitable adult cat foods in proper amount too. Little by little replace the kitten foods with cat foods since it is the best way to slowly introduce her with the new foods.

when does a kitten become a cat

  1. Exercising

When your cat becomes bigger and muscular, it is the time you bring her for regular exercise. It is also the best way to prevent overweight and keep her fit. With exercise, the cats will be healthier and happier. Makes them active will make her mind in peace.

  1. Vaccinating

Why a kitten’s first year is the most important it is because they start to need some vaccinate. Take a note that at around 14 months of age, the vet usually will recommend the adult cat to get some vaccination. It will boost their immune system and keep your cat healthy while fight against diseases.

So, when you are not sure about when does a kitten become a cat, you can always ask the veterinarian because they can help to determine the cat’s age based on appearance and other factors or indications.

How to Stop Kitten from Bitting?

When the kittens start to become adult, the vet might also recommend her to get spayed (female cat) or neutered (male) to prevent them become pregnant or breeding.

Just make sure you make an appointment with the vet to check your new kitten or cat soon. It is also important for the cats to have regular check up to ensure their health condition.

How to Properly Care for 2 Week Old Kitten

If you found yourself wondering about the proper way to take care of a 2 week old kitten, chances are you are faced with an unexpected situation. Like many others, you are puzzled as to how to care for an orphaned kitten because all this time, the mother does all the care while you only lend support when it is needed such as providing a place for them as well as food and water for the mother cat.

1 Week old Kitten

Judging from the display of motherly love in domestic cats, there is no question about the strong bond shared between the mother and children. But while there seems to be zero chance of domesticated cats ever abandoning their own offsprings, the same scenario cannot be applied to feral homeless cats as they have a very different, and incredibly tough lives.

Not only do they live in a group that is typically already unnaturally dense, they also have to struggle with unspeakable challenges that leave them constantly living on the edge of suffering a disease and starvation-induced mortality. Challenges that domestic cats clearly never have to face as they are living in a safe environment where their owner provides them with everything they possibly need. So what do we have to do if, by chance, we find a poor abandoned kitten not able to fend for itself in the wild?

Caring for 2 week old kitten: what you should know

The first thing you must do is determine how old the kitten is, and the best way to find out is by looking at their eyes. Kitten that is younger than 14 days old typically have their eyes closed and both their ears are visibly folded over. As an obligatory reminder, the fact that they have not opened their eyes yet is natural and just how it is supposed to be, so avoid attempting to open their eyes. Let it happen naturally.

Another thing you should know is the fact that kitten of very young age such as them have no ability to properly control their body temperature. This is another reason why kittens are not allowed to be taken from their mother’s care until they are at least six weeks old. Not only do they need the warmth that their mother provides, they also need the nutrition and antibodies found in their mother’s milk.

2 week old kitten
By the second week, their eyes are beginning to open (although their vision is not very good at this stage). Do not force their eyes open, as it could result in damage

Caring for 2 week old kitten: what to provide

With both of the aforementioned facts, it is clear that the first thing you must focus on in their initial developing stage is nutrition and warmth. Place the kitten in a cardboard box that has been lined up with a clean cloth or towel. Not only does this clean cloth provide them with warmth, it also adequately contains their waste as they constantly soil the box.

Unless you are living in the tropical territory, you must also provide them with a heating pad. Wrap the heating pad with clean towels and place the kitten on it. Set it at its lowest setting. If you are living in the tropics, a heating pad may not be needed and in the event that the cat is feeling cold, you may warm a water bottle until it reaches 100-degrees and wrap it in a towel before you place it in the box with them.

Place the box in a safe location. If you already have a cat in the house when you bring back the kitten, be sure to place the box away from the cat’s reach as they may not take the kitten’s presence very well.

Caring for 2 week old kitten: how to feed

In terms of nutrition, the one thing you must always remember is to never give the kitten cow’s milk as it isn’t nutritious enough for them. Not only that, cow’s milk cannot be properly digested by them. Get a kitten formula and nursing kit in a pet store. Said nursing kit consists of two types of nipples and a few extras, if you are confused as to which type of nipple to use, you may go for the short one.

Before you feed them, make sure the kitten isn’t feeling cold as kittens cannot properly digest in such condition. While you can feed them virtually anywhere, you are advised to do it while sitting on the floor with your legs crossed. This is largely because kittens always do the kneading movement with their paws when fed; not only does this position give them more comfort, it also makes things easier for you.

3 Week Old Kitten

Sterilize both nipple and bottle before each feeding and make sure to thoroughly wash your hands to avoid germs. Mimic the position they would be in when fed by their mother, place the kitten right on its stomach and gently open their mouth with your fingertip as you slowly slip the nipple into its mouth. Be sure to hold the bottle at 45 degree angle.

3 Month Old Kitten Care Tips

Having a 3 month old kitten is a real happiness especially because your kitten has become very active and is on their way to become fully independent. Whether you grow the kitten from their birth or you buy them when they are 2-month old—a normal age for a kitten to be purchasable—you will see significant physical and mental improvement between when they are 2-month old and when they are 3-month old. Nevertheless, despite this significant development, your kitten is still a small and cute kitten that must be handled with care.

3 Month Old Kitten Weight

Starting from the age of 2 months, a healthy kitten will gain weight at approximately 1 pound every month. Therefore, if a 2-month old kitten generally weighs between 1.4 and 2.6 pounds with 2 pound as median, a 3 month old kitten is expected to weigh between 2.2 and 4 pounds with 3 pound as median.

Your kitten can be of whatever size depending on their breed, but it is important to keep their weight within the range above. Otherwise, they will not be considered healthy.

3 month old kitten
Tabby male kitten, Fosset, 3 months old, lying with his head up

3 Month Old Kitten Care

Your newly independent kitten might be more self-reliant now, but they still need you to give the best possible care to them. 3 month old kitten care covers everything ranging from feeding, training and vaccination.

Feeding

Your 3-month kitten is still in their essential growing stage in which proper feeding is crucial. You will need to take care of not only the kind and variety of foods that they should consume, but also how often you should feed them.

With their teeth, kitten has ability to eat both dry and wet foods; however, it is important to put bigger portion on wet food because dry food tends to dehydrate your kitten. Kitten has their own special food, so don’t give them adult cat’s food yet because the latter lacks necessary nutrients to fuel their rapid growth.

Food that is high in protein is indeed expensive; however, if you want your kitten to stay healthy give the food to them. Feed your kitten about 4 times a day or 3 times with larger portion.

3-month old kitten
Tabby kittens, Stanley and Fosset, 3 months old, sitting together

Training

Potty training should have been complete by the time your kitten reaches 3 months of age. You can potty train them by placing a litter box at a particular room and having your kitten spend most of their time in that room. Allow them to explore the rest of the house, or even outdoors, if they are already accustomed to using their litter box.

Remember to provide them with toys that they can play with. They love to play with them. Toys and fishing rods can also be good training instruments if you want to keep your hand away from their sharp teeth and claws.

How to Litter Train a Kitten

Vaccination

Your 3-month old kitten has already had their first shots one month prior when they were 2 months old. By the time they reach 3 months of age, you should visit your vet to allow your kitten to receive the second vaccination. The third and the last vaccination should take place when they are 4 months old.

3 Week Old Kitten, Everything You Must Know

Kittens are adorable little creatures that require special attention, but not everyone is capable of caring for 3 week old kitten. Perhaps you found a stray kitten during your morning jog and you did not have it in your heart to leave it out there to fend for itself, or something happened to your pet and the kitten is left motherless. Both of this situation calls for your active participation, but there is that complication, it is a territory that you have no knowledge in.

It is common, however. Even the most dedicated cat owner can be as clueless as a good samaritan who rescued the kitten despite not having the experience of dealing with cats in the past. This is largely due to the nature of our passive participation during this initial stage of kittens’ lives.

While we give the mother cat everything it possibly needs, kittens younger than 6 weeks old are always with their mother and thus we only focus on providing a safe and comfortable container and supplying food and water.

How to Properly Care for 2-Week Old Kitten

However, with the absence of their mother, you have no other choice than learn how to properly care for them. This does not only include feeding them and cleaning their waste, it also includes providing the care that is appropriate for its developmental stage

To help you navigate your way around this uncharted territory, we have compiled a handy guide filled with important information and tips you can use.

3 week old kitten
Taking care of orphaned three week old kitten does not only require patience, but also sets of handy skill to use when unexpected challenges arise. Read on to learn more.

Caring for 3 week old kitten: kitten development

Kittens are born with their ears folded over and their eyes closed; some of them have their eyes tightly closed while others have it only partially closed. You should never attempt to open their eyes during this stage because their eyes will naturally open on their own on the second week. On the third week however, you may notice the color of their eyes. This color may still change as they age, however.

Their vision is not the only thing that has significantly improved during this stage of their lives, their sense of smell is too. You may also notice the kitten is scared off quite easily, this is the sign that they have finally developed their hearing. Any noise may startle them, but before you get concerned, know that it will be the reason for their ears to start standing tall and for them to learn to walk.

How to care for 3 week old kitten

With their senses finally improved and they start roaming, your task to take care of them has yet to end. They still need your assistance during feeding, although they no longer need frequent feeding. Kittens which are three weeks old only need four feedings per day, typically given every four hours.

The amount of formula must be given per day is 80 cc or 10 oz. A good rule of thumb when it comes to this is that a kitten must be fed 8 cc of formula per ounce of its body weight.

This is the primary reason why you must closely monitor their weight. You may use food scale to weigh them and to ensure accuracy, weigh them every day and write it on your notebook to keep as a record. That way you will be able to see their growth and if there is anything to adjust.

As a reminder, only make formula they will drink as any remaining milk must be thrown away as heating milk will destroy its protein and your kitten depends on it as their source of nutrition.

Caring for 3 week old kitten: hygiene

With them being more active, a few issues may starting to arise. Hygiene is one aspect we must always put on the our priority list. Notice that mother cats always lick their kittens to keep them scrupulously clean?

This state of cleanliness must be continued despite the absence their mother. Wiping the kitten with a clean washcloth which has been submerged is usually enough. However, if you find feces on their body, you must give them a bath.

Simply use a mild soap such as Dawn and warm water, gently clean the kitten and completely dry them right away. To dry, use the towel before shifting to blow dryer using its lowest setting. To avoid burning during blow-drying, put your hand between the dryer and the kitten.

Flea is another issue that you may find during this stage. They must be removed immediately because if left untreated, these bloodsucking insects may cause serious health issues. To remove fleas, avoid using chemical products.

How to Raise and Care for 4 Week Old Kitten

Instead, give kittens a warm bath and rinse them with mild soap. Once finished, place them on a clean dry towel and comb using flea-comb while their fur is still wet. Drop the fleas you found and put them in a cup of alcohol or hot soapy water, and wash fabric and bedding with hot water.