New Kitten Meows Constantly

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Larry R Harrison Jr - 07 Mar 2004 23:37 GMT

We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
weeks or so.

She does eat, drink milk/water normally and properly uses the litterbox, but
she meows almost constantly every waking moment unless you're holding
her--every waking moment. Is this normal behavior for a kitten-something
that passes as they become cats as opposed to kittens?

And how off is she age-wise in terms of being with us not around her mother?
(Again, at the time didn't realize that was kind of young until others told
us.)

LRH

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SimWidow - 07 Mar 2004 23:45 GMT

> We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
> didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> LRH

I got my cat sally at 4 weeks old too, we remember her crying a lot but she
got over it, it might help to put a hot water bottle in a basket for her
with a small ticking clock, it's supposed to resemble the mother cat,
warmth, heart beat etc, hope this helps...

Signature

Kerry
******
Don't let your mind wander, it's too small to be out on it's own...

Audi vide et tace
Si vis vivere in pace.

Listen, look, and keep quiet,
If you wish to live in peace. .

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JoJo - 08 Mar 2004 00:19 GMT

She's probably missing her litter mates or she could be cold. You can try
to make a bed for her on a heating pad set on LOW - and make sure you
heavily layer the blankets so she doesn't get burned on the heating pad.
You want just enough heat to get through but not enough where it's too hot
for the kitten. I leave enough room for them to move away from the heating
pad if they need to.

If she misses her litter mates you are going to have to fill in. If she
enjoys being held, and you can do so, enjoy it while you can. Before you
know it she'll be up and running. She may also miss her mother - does she
try to nuzzle up to you and suckle? Two of mine became attached to my
earlobes because they were abandoned at young ages.

Make sure she actually is eating and not pushing food around. Sometimes at
this age they know how to eat, other times you need to help them. Try
feeding her off of your hand, to make sure she is eating (beware of kitten
teeth). Sometimes at this age, they may eat, walk away and still cry
because they are hungry, just put her back at the food dish. Eventually
she'll get the idea.

Added supplement try meat baby food such as chicken or turkey. It's easy
for them to lick up plus it has lots of protein.

Enjoy this time, just like kids they grow up too fast! :)

> > We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
> > didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
> with a small ticking clock, it's supposed to resemble the mother cat,
> warmth, heart beat etc, hope this helps...

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XMar - 08 Mar 2004 00:29 GMT

Kittens that young do need to be held and nutured.
I got my youngest at 6 weeks and she had a great need to be cuddled and
held. Which I allowed...she would also curl up at the back of my neck
and under my head.

you are talking about an infant kitten. They NEED to be cuddled and held

> We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
> didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> LRH

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Larry R Harrison Jr - 08 Mar 2004 00:34 GMT

> you are talking about an infant kitten. They NEED to be cuddled and held

I don't mind that, as long as it's not every single waking moment. I don't
have that kind of energy.

But beyond that, of course--why get a cat if you're not going to hold it
SOME at least? Why bother otherwise?

LRH

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Mary - 08 Mar 2004 01:28 GMT

>We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
>didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
>weeks or so.

They should be at least 8-12 weeks old when they leave their mother. They
generally nurse to 8 weeks. They should be with their mom so they can be
properly socialized, taught manners and loved by mom. If you can't return her
to mom, I'd treat her like an orphaned baby and give her a stuffed animal to
cuddle. I'd probably also give her some formula besides kitten food. Sometimes
when kittens are by themselves they get lonely and bored so I generally
recommend that people adopt two kittens. One kitten by itself needs lots of
attention or it will meow constantly which can drive some people crazy.

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rpl - 08 Mar 2004 04:23 GMT

> We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
> didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
> weeks or so.

I'd say 10-12 for a well rounded cat, the 6 weeks is if you're giving
her to a pet store and she'd be with other kittens for a couple weeks
waiting for Mr/Mrs Right to come along.

> She does eat, drink milk/water normally and properly uses the litterbox,

LOL, you missed that 'fun' by a week or so (takes them a couple days to
figger out the litterbox thing).

>but
> she meows almost constantly every waking moment unless you're holding
> her--every waking moment. Is this normal behavior for a kitten-something
> that passes as they become cats as opposed to kittens?

Well, you're her mother now, in another few weeks she may become a
little less clingy, but she'll almost always prefer to have company,
helping you out, nosing into things, following you around (you do
understand what a cat is, right? <g>).

If you can handle it, 2 cats/kittens can keep each other company.
Believe it or not 2 cats are actually less attention-intensive, overall,
than 1 cat.

> And how off is she age-wise in terms of being with us not around her mother?
> (Again, at the time didn't realize that was kind of young until others told
> us.)

I've never had experience with a kitten that young without a mother, you
might (and should) ask your vet for a medical opinion (for instance
kittens should have kitten food) as well as garnering opinions from
cat-owners here.

pat

> LRH

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Wendy - 08 Mar 2004 22:32 GMT

> > We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
> > didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
[quoted text clipped - 33 lines]
>
> pat

I bottle fed 4 kittens last fall. We found them outside when they were 2
1/2 - 3 weeks old. They weren't anywhere close to being ready to be alone at
4 weeks. They were just starting to eat kitten food and were still on the
bottle as well. Box training is the easy part.

I'd suppliment with some KMR and seriously consider getting the little
bugger a friend if Mom couldn't take her back till she's around 8 weeks old.

W

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M.C. Mullen - 08 Mar 2004 08:40 GMT

| We just got a new kitten. It's only 4 weeks old. Color us ignorant; we
| didn't realize that was maybe too young, that she (it's a girl) should be 6
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
| her--every waking moment. Is this normal behavior for a kitten-something
| that passes as they become cats as opposed to kittens?

Yes, it's absolutely normal for a kitten way too young to look for its
mummy. This kitten should not have been removed before 12 weeks old. Bring
it back ASAP!!

| And how off is she age-wise in terms of being with us not around her mother?
| (Again, at the time didn't realize that was kind of young until others told
| us.)
|
| LRH

This is really stupid!! Unless of course there is a genuine reason why the
kitten was removed from the mother so young!
But you did not state.
If you can't bring the kitten back to the mother until its old enough to
part GIVE it kitten formula milk. It desperately needs it! Not cow's milk
and just ordinary cat food!

Carola

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rpl - 08 Mar 2004 17:33 GMT

> If you can't bring the kitten back to the mother until its old enough to
> part GIVE it kitten formula milk. It desperately needs it! Not cow's milk
> and just ordinary cat food!
>
> Carola

Ah, I'd forgotten about that... "Cat Milk" (kitten formula(?) and adult
cats like it too)

pat

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