Hi everyone, my cousin found an abandoned kitten in her garage who is barely a month old according to the vet. Is it a problem to take in a kitten at this age? Is there a risk of them becoming aggressive later on because they haven't been properly socialised by their mum?
Translated from French
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I’ve just got a six-week-old kitten; he drinks cat milk and eats fresh fish, plain raw minced beef, as well as tuna and a bit of egg in the morning. This is much better than all those shop-bought products, especially Whiskas which is the absolute worst...
He does have kitten dry food though... Hills and Royal Canin are well suited for little ones from 4 weeks onwards.
For fleas, you need to get them wormed at the vet and make sure they get their vaccinations too.
Hi, your vet is there for that very reason, so I’d recommend asking them for advice. But at two weeks old, you can just pick the fleas off one by one and treat your home (using white vinegar).
Hi! I’ve got two 2-week-old kittens!! They’re on kitten milk from the vet and they’re toileting fine, but they’re absolutely riddled with fleas!! How can I treat them???
My two latest additions, who've been home with me for 2 years now, are doing really well.
I had to take them in as an emergency after the owner of a garage wanted to hand them over to a local rescue, as they weren't his cats and apparently were taking up too much space... The kittens were only about a month old. Their mum (a stray) was there, but I had no choice but to take them without her. I sometimes feel guilty about having to separate them from their mum so early :( I already had a cat, Shiva, and she most likely wouldn't have accepted another female — two kittens were already a stretch, let alone a rival! And besides, I don't think the kittens' mum would have coped with being kept indoors either (I was living in a studio flat at the time!).
Anyway, Pepita and Sita are on the small side for two-year-olds, very playful, and affectionate when they feel like it. Absolute experts at hunting flies :D
Apart from the settling-in period the three cats needed to get used to living together (which is perfectly normal), they all seem to be in great shape — affectionate and playful, as I said.
It's down to your cousin to spend time with the kitten and give it all the love and attention it won't be getting from its mum anymore. The kitten will truly thrive thanks to your cousin.
If I can offer one small piece of advice — get a comfort toy, a soft toy, or even just a scrap of fabric for the kitten. It'll suckle on it just like it would on its mum. Or if it starts doing it on its own without you giving it anything, definitely let it carry on. It's been separated from its mum too early, and it's quite likely it'll do this for a while — or even for the rest of its life. Sita sleeps with me every night and suckles on her comfort toy, all snuggled up on the pillow. Pepita sometimes comes and suckles on my earlobe — that one's quite funny, but not at all bothersome.
Lots of cuddles to that little kitten :)
Here's a little photo of my three babies, Shiva, Sita and Pepita!
Laurence is spot on, follow her advice.
Also, it's not a "bad thing" at all to take in an abandoned kitten—it’s actually better for its survival—you just need to double-check that it really has been abandoned.
It won't necessarily be aggressive when it's older. It might have some behavioural issues, but that also depends on you and how you raise it during the time it has left before it's fully weaned. That’s why you should follow Laurence's advice, as she’s clearly been through this before.
The first thing I’d do is put the kitten back where you found it and wait for a few hours; it’s possible the mother was just out hunting and went looking for him!! A single kitten is quite rare for a cat, but you never know!
Angèle was only 15 days old when someone alerted me to her; she was basically baking in the sun—I’ll spare you the details. I had to bottle-feed her for a month every two hours, day and night; setting an alarm was a must!!! But thank goodness, with a bit of luck and a lot of determination, she made it! She’s five now, but she’s still got that kitten personality and stayed quite small. As for training, you first need to let the kitten build his strength back up, but if you found him in good condition, it means his mum was definitely looking after him! You can wait a bit on the training side of things and I’ll give you all my tips later, but for now, whenever you bottle-feed him, put him straight in the litter tray. I agree with @Candymarie, though—I think the mother just stepped away for a bit, otherwise the kitten wouldn't have ended up in the garage all by himself!!
The best thing to do is see if the mother is looking for him by putting him back where he was. Otherwise, it’s bottle-feeding every two hours, day and night. Best of luck, because it really isn’t easy!!!
Once he’s nearly two months old, you’ll need to switch him to kitten wet food and dry food, etc. Then you can teach him not to scratch or bite too hard, but for now, the priority is just feeding him!!! And I’ll say it again: check if his mum is nearby. If you put the kitten down, he’ll naturally start meowing and she should turn up within an hour or so, depending on where she is!! She shouldn't be far, but it depends how long you've had him for!!
Laurence and her Noah's Ark
Are you sure the mum wasn't nearby? It's quite common for them to nip away and leave their kitten for a bit; she might have put him there thinking he was safe.
You’ll have to train and socialise him yourself. You need to handle him a lot and stop him from biting too hard or scratching—for example, by picking him up by the scruff of the neck, giving a firm "No!" and blowing gently on his nose, as many times as it takes. There’s also the "mum's method": scruffing him and then laying him on his side.
It’s a lot of work, but it’s doable. You don’t really have much choice anyway; you can’t exactly leave him out in the wild :)
