Kittenhood is a very special time for a cat and her guardian. She’s growing up fast, her weight doubling or even tripling in the first few weeks of her life. This rapid development requires very careful feeding in order to support your kitten’s growth. Without the right food — and enough of it — kittens can rapidly fall prey to nutritional deficiencies. While most breeders won’t hand over a kitten before the 12th week, there are circumstances where you may find yourself with very young kittens in your care. If you do, you’ll need to pay special attention to their nutrition to give them the proper start in life.
How much should a kitten eat? The exact answer will depend on the kitten’s stage of development as their needs change rapidly over the first few weeks of life. In general, kittens need to be fed frequently throughout the day. The frequency can decrease as the kitten gets older.
You’ve found this page because you have, or soon will have, a young kitten in your home. You probably have lots of questions.
- How often do kittens need to eat?
- Can kittens become overweight?
- Can I bottle-feed a kitten?
- When should I start weaning my kitten?
- Can kittens eat dry kibble?
- Do I need to buy specialised kitten food?
- How much should a 12-week old kitten eat?
Luckily, you’ve come to the right place. We have all the answers you’re looking for and more. Read on to find out everything you need to know about feeding a kitten for the first ten weeks of life.
How much should a kitten eat?
Kittens grow fast and need lots of food. Their needs will change rapidly as they grow Newborn kittens need to nurse every two to three hours, while a ten-week-old kitten needs a helping of the appropriate solid wet food at least four times a day. Before they’re fully weaned, your kittens should be with their mother; she will provide the milk they need as well as care and socialisation.
While it’s possible to bottle-rear kittens, their mother is the best possible carer for them. I really can’t stress enough how important this is. If you deliberately separate kittens from their mother before they’re weaned, you will dramatically impair their chances of a healthy kittenhood and might even cause their deaths.
Sadly, circumstances don’t always permit kittens to stay with their mother. Ill-health or the death of the mother cat is always a possibility, as is rejection and abandonment. If you do find yourself looking after very young kittens, bottle-feeding is a possibility. It’s tricky and you’ll need to be very careful; ideally, you should hand off the babies to an experienced foster carer until they are big enough to eat solid food.
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If you really have no other option but to try and hand-rear the very smallest kittens, talk to your vet immediately and get as much advice as you can. Your vet may be able to recommend (and even provide) a kitten feeding bottle. This is a graduated bottle with a teat that the kitten can suck on. You should be able to upturn the bottle and see the milk drip slowly out of the teat, a drop at a time. The first time you use it, a teat may not be large enough; you can enlarge the hole with a sterilised needle.
Kittens must on no account be fed cow’s milk as they can’t digest it properly. They need a specific kitten formula which you can buy from pet supply stores or your vet. There are various recipes for home-made kitten formula circulating online, some of them better than others; again, you should talk to your vet about any recipe you wish to use. Bottle babies are very delicate and vulnerable to infections so you must take great care to sterilise their bottles. A kitten needs roughly 8 ml of formula per 28 g of body weight per day; you will want to aim for around a tablespoon (15 ml) of formula every two or three hours. Each of those meals is going to take about 45 minutes so buckle in for a long, hard slog.
Young kittens cannot regulate their body temperatures. When you feed them, you must be very careful to keep them warm. Between feeds, they should be in a kitty carrier with a heating pad and warm, clean bedding. Change the bedding at least once a day and check it for messes every hour or so. If the kittens foul the bedding, change it right away. When feeding the kittens, you should ideally wear gloves and a robe that you only put on for feeds. This will prevent any spread of disease. Keep your clothing clean, laundering daily. Clothing and bedding must be washed separately from your household laundry.
Very young kittens need to be stimulated to produce urine or faeces after a feed. Gently wipe their hindquarters with a wet cloth until they do, preferably over a sink.
Hand-feeding very young kittens is a very challenging task. If you can’t arrange foster care four your bottle babies, get as much information and support as you possibly can.
How much should a 2-week old kitten eat?
Kittens between the ages of two and three weeks still need to be fed every 2-3 hours. If the kittens are with their mother, you can check whether they’re getting enough food by monitoring their weight.
If you’re bottle-feeding, aim for a full tablespoon at each feed. If that’s not possible, you should at least make sure your kitten gets at least half a tablespoon of formula or milk at every meal. Keep the ratio “8 ml of formula per 28 g of body weight per day” in mind when planning the kitten’s meals. You don’t need to worry about them getting too many calories — I have never seen a fat kitten — but if you go too fast with a feed you can make your kitten sick. It’s hard work but be patient and take your time.
Kittens at this stage are starting to develop and grow but they are still tiny and very vulnerable. Continue to keep them in their carrier between feedings, with their heating pad and clean bedding. After every feed, you will still need to give your kittens a wash: they will tend to get formula on themselves and may produce urine or faeces. Water needs to be warm but not hot as kittens are very sensitive at this age. Once they’re clean, dry your kittens thoroughly but gently as they can easily lose heat through their wet fur.
Your kittens should gain weight very rapidly in the first two weeks of life. By the second week, your kittens should weigh something in the region of 280 g (10 oz). Their eyes should be opening and they should be starting to stand up by themselves. They are still very helpless and can’t really walk, although they may wriggle around much more. If any of your kittens are not gaining weight and showing increased levels of activity, seek medical attention for them.
How much should a 3-week old kitten eat?
Three-week-old kittens are still growing fast and need feeding at least once every three hours. If you’re bottle-feeding, you should notice that they’re becoming better able to take their formula and will want to drink a bit more. Keep aiming for a tablespoon every feed. Remember that your kitten is developing very rapidly and needs plenty of food. Be alert for any kitten who doesn’t take at least half a tablespoon of food per meal as this can be a sign that something is wrong. You may simply need to spend more time feeding that particular kitten or there may be a health issue.
Once your kittens reach 3 weeks old, they will be noticeably more mobile. All the kittens should be standing up by now and starting to interact more with their environment and their litter-mates. The kittens may groom each other and you might notice behaviours such as ear-biting and suckling on each other’s fur. This is normal and usually harmless but you should keep an eye out for any scrapes, scratches or areas where the fur is getting thin. If you do see repeated injuries, you might need to separate the kittens for a while. It’s good to let the kittens play together as much as possible; they need this time to socialise and learn to get along with other cats.
Whether the kittens are with their mother or being bottle-fed, keep weighing your kittens regularly. If they don’t appear to be gaining weight, have them checked out by a vet. Be alert for any sign that your kittens are not thriving. Their eyes should be open and bright, they should be vocalizing and becoming fairly curious about the world around them. Kittens who appear lethargic and less lively than their litter-mates may