Cat Behavior Explained Blog

Kitten development is very quick over the first 8 or so weeks of life.

Newborn kittens are blind, deaf and completely helpless, but within a few weeks grow into the fluffy, playful bundles of joy that we adore so much!

This page goes through the major milestones in kitten development from newborn kitten to 12 weeks old.

If you want to know what the little fur balls are able to do at different stages in their early life, read on!

Newborn kittens

Newborn kittens are blind, deaf and can’t smell very well. Their eyes are shut and their ears folded over. They rely on what little sense of smell they have, and their sense of touch, to locate their mother. Their umbilical cord is still attached to their tummy.

When they’re not asleep, they’re feeding almost constantly. This is vital for growth, normal development and for building up resistance to diseases.

Believe it or not, each kitten usually has a preferred nipple which they like to feed from, and they can locate this by its unique smell. How clever is that?!!

A newborn kitten weighs on average 3.5 Oz (100g).

Week 1

The kittens will start to hear (though not very well yet) and the umbilical cord will fall off.

They’ll still feed a lot and will start to squeak when they’re hungry, purr when they’re happy and hiss if they feel scared.

By the end of week 1, their weight should have doubled.

Week 2

Their eyes usually open by the end of week 2, but at this stage their eyesight is blurry. All kittens have blue eyes – their adult color develops later.

Also by the end of week 2, they can hear and their milk teeth start to come through.

Week 3

At this stage, kittens will start to attempt to walk. The first few tries won’t be very elegant (!) but they’ll rapidly become more steady and sure on their feet.

As their eyesight, smell, hearing and ability to walk improve, they’ll start to move around more and explore outside their nest. Mommy cat will often start teaching them how to use the litter box at this stage.

Until kittens about 3 weeks old, you should resist handling them except for short periods. Too much handling by humans in these early stages often upsets Mommy cat, and in a worst case scenario she may even reject them because of it.

At 3 weeks, their weight will be around 4 times their birth weight.

Weeks 4 to 6

Weaning starts – feral kittens will start to eat prey brought to them by their mother. They’ll start to play with each other and with cat toys, and will start to use the litter box voluntarily.

You should now start handling the kittens – a lot! This is a really important part of normal kitten development as it gets them used to humans and helps turn them into sociable, friendly cats.

Weeks 7 – 12

Weaning continues, and the kittens now need their mother’s milk much less. Mommy may become very reluctant to feed them. This is OK, as long as they’re eating and thriving this is normal.

Most kittens are fully weaned by about 8 weeks old (though they’ll still try to feed off Mommy if they can!)

Their eyes will change color from blue to their adult color (unless the adult color is blue of course!

Kittens can be homed from about 7 weeks of age, as long as they’re fully weaned. Many breeders prefer to keep them until they’re a bit older (often until they’re 12 weeks old) so that they can sort their vaccinations and worming treatments before they go to their new owners.

Kitten development is rapid – you’ll be amazed at how quickly your kitten grows. They stay little for such a short time I’d advise you to have the camera and camcorder permanently charged so you have lots of visual memories of your kitty as a baby!

Kitten fleas are the same fleas that adult cats get, but there are some important differences when it comes to dealing with them. If you don’t know much about cat fleas at the moment, it’s probably a good idea to get familiar with the basics before you read this page. Click here to learn more about cat fleas.

There are a couple of really important things you should know about dealing with fleas on kittens specifically:

1) Fleas on young kittens can be dangerous and must be treated

Because a little kitten has such a small body, fleas can actually suck out so much blood that they cause feline anemia. This can be fatal in really bad cases. Therefore, it’s essential that fleas are removed from kittens as swiftly as possible. But – before you go and grab your adult cat flea treatment – the second point is…

2) You can’t use adult cat flea treatments on young kittens

The vast majority of preparations used to treat adult cat fleas are not safe to use on kittens. Some can be used when the kitten is 6 weeks old, others when they are a few weeks older than that. The “safe” age may even vary from kitten to kitten depending on other health problems they may have.

My advice on this is pretty simple. Never use a flea treatment on a kitten without checking with your vet first.

How To Treat Kitten Fleas

The first thing you should do is treat Mommy cat, and any other adult cats living with you. As long as Mommy has fleas, they’ll continue to hop between her and her kittens. Click here for advice on different cat flea treatment methods you can use on adult cats.

The environment also needs to be treated, as cat fleas can live in bedding, carpets and furniture. Once again, you should take qualified advice on sprays that are suitable for use around small kittens.

The best way to get rid of kitten fleas, if you can manage it, is to remove them with a special flea comb which you can get from your vet. Have a bowl of water nearby. When you have fleas on the comb, submerge it in the water to drown them. You’ll need to keep doing this, as more fleas may hatch for up to 3 weeks.

This page offers you some practical advice on the do’s and don’ts of feeding kittens. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of information available on this; relentless pet food advertising may well leave your head in a spin.

First things first. When you get your new kitten, ask the seller what they’ve been feeding her and give her the same or a similar food at first. A sudden change may cause digestive problems and diarrhea. You don’t need to keep the brand identical, but don’t, for example, suddenly switch your kitten from wet to dry food. You can introduce new foods, but gradually, by mixing small amounts of the new food in with the old.

 

Feeding Kittens – The Do’s

1) Feed her kitten food

Kittens have very different nutritional needs to adult cats, so it’s really important to feed them food that’s been specifically designed for them. They should be given kitten food until they’re 12 months old.

2) Feed her a variety of foods

There’s a lot of debate on the subject of kitten feeding, and some people will no doubt disagree with me here. But I believe it’s best to introduce your kitten to a variety of good quality foods, including wet food, dry food and cooked meat. Wet food helps to keep cats hydrated and is thought to reduce the risk of cat urinary tract infection. Dry food and strips of meat help to clean Kitty’s teeth, reducing the build-up of tartar and the likelihood of dental problems developing later in her life.

Also, getting Kitty used to a variety of foods when she’s little reduces the risk of her becoming a fussy eater whose food bill is higher than yours…

3) Make sure whatever you feed your kitten is good quality

Feeding kittens cheap, poor quality food can cause all sorts of health problems in later life. It can be difficult to decide on the best food to buy, but as a general guide, good pet stores and vets will stock the better brands and should give you good advice.

4) Feed her small, frequent meals

Kittens have very little stomachs, so they need to be fed small meals 4 or 5 times a day. Make sure there’s a constant supply of fresh drinking water available.

 

Feeding Kittens – The Don’ts

The following shouldn’t form part of your kitten’s diet:

1) Raw meat

Raw meat is one of the most common causes of food poisoning including really nasty bugs like Salmonella. This could be very serious for a young kitten. Always ensure any meat you give her is fully cooked, not been in the fridge for too long and not past its sell-by date.

2) Vitamins or other supplements

If you’re feeding your kitten good quality food, she won’t need anything else. An overdose of some supplements can actually cause health problems.

3) Liver

Some cats get to love liver so much they’ll practically starve themselves rather than eat anything else. Large quantities of liver may overdose a cat with Vitamin A, which can cause fusion of the spine bones.

4) Dog food

Cats have very different nutritional needs to dogs. Dog food won’t give your cat the nutrition she needs, and can lead to severe health problems.

5) Cheap, poor quality cat food

I said this earlier, but it’s worth repeating. Cheap, trashy cat food can cause a reduced life expectancy and a load of health problems. Buy cheap, pay dear is the motto when it comes to feeding your cat…

6) Cow’s milk

Feeding kittens cow’s milk can cause diarrhea. Kittens over 6 weeks of age don’t need milk; a constant supply of fresh water is much more important for them.

A big part of taking care of kittens involves keeping them as safe as possible. There are many potential kitten safety hazards around the home, but with a bit of forward planning, risks to your kitten can be minimized.

 

Tips On Taking Care Of Kittens – Potential Hazards By Room

1) Living room

• • Poisonous houseplants. A lot of plants are toxic to cats. If in doubt, put them out of reach.
  • Electrical wires. Some kittens have a thing about chewing wires. If yours does, put the wires out of reach or get some plastic wire covers from a hardware store.

• Pot pourri. The oils used to fragrance this can be poisonous to cats.
• Candles and open fires. Screen off the fire and never leave a kitten unattended with candles burning.
• Curtain tie-backs and blind cords. Kittens can get caught in these. Remove tie-backs if necessary and tie up blind cords out of reach.

2) Bathroom

• Filled baths and sinks. Never leave a full bath or sink unattended
• Open toilet lid. A kitten may fall into a toilet and not be able to get back out. Keep the lid shut!
• Toilet and bathroom cleaners. Most of these are highly poisonous. Make sure they’re out of reach.
• Human medications. Store them in a cupboard out of reach.

3) Kitchen

• • Washing machine. If you store clothes in your machine before washing them, your kitten may climb in unnoticed and go to sleep. Keep the machine door shut to avoid this, and always check the whereabouts of your kitten before using the machine. Same applies to electric clothes dryers.
  • Refrigerator and freezer. Close the door as soon as you’ve finished using them.

• Hot hob rings and open oven doors. Always shut the oven door after use and put covers on hot hob plates. Don’t leave your kitten unattended in the kitchen while you’re cooking.
• Human foods. Some are poisonous to cats. Keep human foods out of reach.
• Uncooked meat. This can cause food poisoning, and should be kept out of the way.
• Cleaning products. Most are poisonous and should be stored somewhere your kitten can’t access.
• The garbage. Your kitten could eat something poisonous or some old meat that’s gone off. Put all rubbish into a sealed bin that your kitten can’t get into.

4) General hazards to consider when taking care of kittens

With new kitten care, there are a number of general hazards that could occur in any room in the home:

• • Unsafe cat toys. Some toys have small pieces on them that could be swallowed. Check any toys for this before you buy them.
  • String, rope, thread, fishing line and wool. These can all get swallowed in large quantities so should be kept out of reach. Pom-poms and balls of wool or string don’t make good cat toys for this reason.

• Small objects – for example pins, needles, rubber bands, paper clips. These can all be swallowed by a kitten.
• Tobacco products including nicotine patches and gum. These are poisonous to cats.
• Swivel chairs, folding beds, drawers, reclining chairs. A kitten may go to sleep inside one of these and could get badly hurt if they’re moved.

Taking care of kittens isn’t as difficult as this list may make it seem, so please don’t be put off. This may sound daft at first, but if you are a new cat or kitten owner, sticking post it notes up around your home with THINK CAT!written on them will get you used to doing just that. Stick them on or near the biggest potential hazards – e.g. the fridge, washing machine, dryer, oven, toilet and fold-away bed – and anywhere else that could be dangerous. 

Kitten gender is easy to figure out once you know how to do it. On this page I’ll show you how you can determine the sex of male kittens and female kittens quickly and easily.

You may want to find out the gender of a kitten for a number of reasons. Maybe you want a specific gender of a cat for a pet.

Or maybe you’re trying to decide on a name, love “Princess” (for example) but aren’t sure if your little furball is a boy or a girl…

You may laugh at this, but I know two people who have made exactly this mistake. They named their male kittens Lily and Phoebe – whoops!

To figure out the gender of a kitten, go somewhere with good light. If necessary, have a helper with a torch.

Hold the kitten still; the best way is to gently pinch the skin on the scruff of their neck between your thumb and first finger. Lift their neck slightly, but keep their feet on the ground.

With the other hand, gently lift their tail to an upright position so you can see their butt.

The diagram here (badly drawn by me – sorry!) shows what a female (left) and a male (right) look like.

The top opening in both cases is their butt. Both sexes have a second opening, which is where their sexual organs are housed.

In female kittens, this second opening is very close to their butt and slit shaped.

In male kittens, the second opening is considerably further away from their butt and is round in shape.

In most cases, by doing this it’s really easy to work out kitten gender. The only time you may have a problem is with long haired kittens, as their fur can hide the areas you’re trying to look for.

If you do have difficulty, get a second person to move the fur out of the way so you can see better.

If you’ve just discovered the gender of your kitten but are struggling to think of a name, here are hundreds of suggestions…

Cute kitten names
Female names A – M
Female names N – Z
Male names A – M
Male names N – Z

And if you’re interested in how a kitten grows and develops in the first 12 weeks of its life, this page on kitten development could be useful.