There’s nothing cuter than newborn kittens. In fact, the entire birth process for felines is incredible. Here is all of the information you need to know about how mother cats provide for their kittens.
As her delivery time draws near, your mother cat may hide in dark, quiet and secluded areas. Her instinct is telling her to find a safe place in which she can give birth to and care for her kittens. Some mother cats become aggressive toward other pets and people as the birth gets closer. This is her instinct telling her to drive away anyone who might threaten her or her babies when they are at their most vulnerable.
Felines prefer privacy when they’re giving birth. Your cat knows what to do. However, it’s important for you to understand how you can help in case mom is unable to care for her babies. If she neglects to remove the amniotic sac from any kittens, you can gently break it with a towel. Count the placentas to make sure that there is one for every kitten. If you don’t see all of the placentas, one of them may have been retained, and your cat might need medical help. However, she might have already eaten one of them. Twin cats may share one placenta.
Your mother cat's instincts tell her that her newborn babies are completely dependent on her. She will rarely leave them during their first few weeks. This is because they cannot keep themselves warm and she must regulate their body temperatures. She knows she has to stimulate them with licking in order for them to urinate and defecate. She also will instinctively swallow their waste so predators will be less likely to find them.
After about three weeks, kittens start to explore their environments. This is when the mother begins socializing the young cats. She will encourage them to walk and move around. You may hear her making a strange sound as she calls those that have strayed too far. By four weeks, the kittens should be fairly steady on their feet. They’ll begin playing, jumping, and climbing by six weeks.
Kittens should stay with their mothers for 12 to 13 weeks of age for them to be properly developed physically and behaviorally. The kitten needs to be weaned before being placed in a new home because much of its nutrients comes from the mother cat's milk. If they are weaned too soon, it could lead to the risk of future health issues or more veterinary visits.
Staying with their mother for 12-13 weeks will help them receive the necessary nutrients to healthily and fully develop and be socialized. The extra time will allow them to play and communicate with their littermates, so they can easily adapt to their new home situation once adopted or purchased.
Mother cats will typically start to wean their kittens off their milk at one month of age. This does not mean that this is the time that the kittens can go home, though. The next month of life is still full of essentials for a growing kitten, even if it isn't consuming its mother's milk all of the time.
The weaning process usually continues for about another month until the kittens are fully weaned between eight and 10 weeks of age. During this time, the kittens will still occasionally nurse on their mother but they will also start to eat liquid kitten food. The liquid kitten food should gradually get thicker until it is a watered-down canned kitten food or a moistened kitten kibble. Over the four to six week weaning period, the kitten will consume less and less milk from its mother. Getting a kitten used to eating dry food can take some time, so it should not be forced or rushed.
Ideally, kittens should go to their new home around 12 weeks of age. While some kittens can go home earlier, the closer you wait until 12 or 13 weeks, the better off the kitten will be. Your cat's chances of being healthy, well-socialized, and properly developed are dramatically increased by allowing it to spend extra time with its mother and littermates.
