(Acoustic music)
While being absolutely adorable
and thoroughly entertaining,
newborn kittens are a huge responsibility.
At this stage in their life
kittens are extremely vulnerable
and susceptible to disease.
So if you are caring for newborn kittens
it’s vital you’re informed about their development
as much as possible,
so you can give them the best possible start in life.
Newborn kittens should weigh
approximately 90-110g each.
If the queen is relaxed it’s recommended
you weigh the kittens at birth
and every day thereafter,
keeping a daily record to ensure
they are gaining around 10-15g each per day,
doubling their birth weight by the time
they are two weeks old.
At birth kittens’ eyes will be closed
and won’t begin to open
until approximately 10 days later,
but this could take until they are 16 days old.
The iris, the coloured part of the eye,
stays a blue/grey colour for four to six weeks
before changing colour permanently.
Kittens will begin to crawl at seven to 14 days
and begin to walk after two weeks.
It’s important you are aware of this
so you can keep an eye out for any runaways,
or whether they are likely to get trapped anywhere.
Make sure the room you are keeping
the kittens in is safe and secure,
and any holes and gaps are blocked,
to avoid injury or worse.
Kittens cannot pass urine or faeces on their own
until around three weeks of age.
So you should see the queen stimulating the rear end
of each kitten to prompt this.
Weaning is the term given to transitioning the kittens
from drinking their mum’s milk to solid food.
This process can begin at three to four weeks
of age and will take several weeks.
Start by providing them with some diluted specialised
kitten milk replacement in a shallow bowl.
You should always follow the product’s instructions
very carefully to ensure the correct amount,
dilution and temperature is used.
The next stage is to introduce more solid food.
So, with clean hands, start to place
a small amount of solid food
on the kitten’s mouth while encouraging them
to lap directly from the bowl.
Try this process several times a day,
while the kittens continue to suckle.
Gradually increase the ratio of food to milk
until they are eating solids freely
and completely weaned from mum.
As the protection from antibodies received
in the colostrum wanes
this makes the kittens very vulnerable to disease.
As soon as possible you should seek
veterinary advice on the best time
and safest products to use
for flea and worm treatment,
for both queen and her kittens
as well as enquiring about the best time
to start their vaccinations.
Distressed newborn kittens may be restless,
not sleep for long periods and cry excessively.
They may also leave the queen and kittening area,
or stop feeding and have a reduced sucking reflex.
It is also possible for the queen to reject her young
if she has been distressed at any point
after giving birth.
If any of the above occur, or you have concerns
you should consult your vet as soon as possible,
as the kittens will likely require additional care
and supplementary feeding.
For some information about kitten behaviour
I’m going to hand you over to Daniel,
our Behaviour Manager at Cats Protection.
The most crucial part
in a kitten’s social development
is in the first eight weeks of their life.
This is when the kittens are naturally most curious
and before their fear response is fully developed.
This is known as the socialisation period.
During this time kittens will need gentle exposure
to a variety of stimuli
so they can grow into happy,
confident pets once rehomed.
This includes gentle handling,
and exposure to different toys and types of litter.
If kittens aren’t properly socialised during this period
it can lead to long-term behaviour issues and stress,
which can lead to some severe health issues
throughout their life.
For help on how to socialise your kittens properly,
including a downloadable socialisation chart
to help plan your progress,
please visit our webpage.
For more information
you should contact your vet or local cat behavourist.
Once fully weaned it's a good idea
to allow the queen to start spending time away
from her kittens to help her milk to dry up.
Kittens can start to spend
short periods of time away from the queen
from six to seven weeks of age.
It is not uncommon for a mum
to seek time away from her kittens before six weeks,
and if she does you shouldn’t worry.
However, the kittens will still be learning from her
so should not be fully separated
until at least eight weeks of age.
From about six weeks you should move mum
into a completely separate area for an hour or so,
a few times each day.
Ensure the new area has bedding
that already has her scent, so this feels familiar to her,
as well as feeding enrichment
to keep her mind challenged.
At around seven weeks,
you can start separating the mother
for longer periods of time.
Try moving her to her own space during the day
then put her back in with her kittens
in the evening time and overnight.
The development of kittens may be affected
if separated from their mum
and littermates too soon,
and may cause behavioural and welfare issues
throughout the cat’s life,
so take care to do this gradually
over a decent period of time.
We hope you’ve learned a lot about caring
for young kittens in this video.
The most important thing to remember is
if you are unsure of anything
throughout your cat’s pregnancy, birth
or when caring for kittens
you should consult with your vet as soon as possible.
For more information please visit our website.