6 Week Old Kittens, Caring for Them as They Grow

[napy87]

Over the weekend, I got 2 kittens, a boy and girl, both 6 weeks old. The person informing me that they were both born April 21st 2020. I have been feeding them milk, one drinks from the bowl and other from a syringe. Now both kittens are getting the milk from a bowl. But today, I have them milk as I have for the first few days. Tonight though, one of the kittens threw up twice. So is she sick from drinking too much milk or sick from another reason? They have not gotten their shots yet but have a vet appointment next Monday morning. Should I be worried and take the kittens for their shots and check up's sooner like this week or what to do?

[Mollycat]

Kittens don't need milk once they are weaned onto food and leave their mother. Some cats tolerate milk after that but many cats lose the ability to break down lactose and it makes them unwell. Also, if you're giving regular cow's milk this is often too rich for cats anyway.

Ideally they should have stayed with mum a bit longer, until they are at least 8 but better 12 weeks old, but you have them now and that's ok. Years ago kittens used to leave their mother at 6-7 weeks old and grew up just fine, so don't worry!

Shots are normally started at 9 weeks old. If your vets are open a check-up wouldn't hurt but with Covid certainly UK vets and many others around the world are closed for all but emergencies though.

For now I would stop the milk first, like immediately. Give them canned food, if they don't eat it from the bowl at first you can help them by giving a little on your finger and they will soon get the hang of it. Hopefully that should be enough but do watch as vomiting and diarrhea can quickly cause dehydration in such a small kitten. Always have water available in a few different places, some cats don't like their water next to their food and won't drink it. At least they both know how to lap which is good.

[Ruth B]

As Mollycat says, unless it is properly formulated replacement cat milk it could well be what caused the kitten to throw up. I would suggest getting some pouches or tins of kitten food (if you can't get that then normal cat food would be fine), mix it with a bit of water so it has a sloppier consistency and see if you can get them to eat that. If a vet is open near you then a check up there would be a good idea, it would also mean you could pick up some de-fleaing and de-worming treatment suitable for kittens that age.