Kitten Care

Kittens are the one stage where a week genuinely changes things. Newborns arrive blind, deaf and unable to regulate their own body temperature, which is why warmth comes before food in the first days — a chilled kitten cannot digest. Orphaned kittens need feeding every two to three hours at first, help to urinate and defecate, and a heat source they can move away from. Eyes usually open somewhere between seven and fourteen days, and the blue haze they show at first settles into the adult colour over a few months. A newborn that is cold, limp or refusing to eat is a vet call, not a wait.

Once a kitten is mobile, the practical questions shift to food and litter. Offer a growth-formula food free-choice or as three to four meals a day, and let the kitten eat its fill during the rapid growth phase rather than rationing. Litter training usually needs no teaching at all — a shallow tray with unscented, fine-grained litter, placed somewhere quiet and easy to reach, is often enough. Avoid clumping litter for very young kittens, which may swallow it while exploring.

Then come the appointments. Vaccinations run as a series every few weeks until around sixteen weeks, with deworming alongside, and most vets discuss spay or neuter at four to six months. Between visits, spend the time on socialization: handling paws, ears and mouth, meeting different people, and hearing ordinary household sounds. A kitten that meets these things before about nine weeks carries the confidence for life.