Three Essential tips for a new kitten

The most important issue to address when bringing a new kitten into his new home is your knowledge.

Here at Esmaraldus Cattery, we deal with the issue with our customers on a monthly basis. Here are some of our tips if you are thinking about bringing a new kitten into your Home and Heart.

We divided this article into 5 parts:

1. Health
2. Food
3. Litter Box

*Disclaimer, We are not Veterinarians and don’t impose on being one, all the information is from our experience.

In General:

Kittens are born with eyes closed and folded ears. As with newborn infants, teeth have not yet emerged from the gums. The gums, nose, and paws are bright pink. They still have no vomiting reflex, or the ability to regulate their body temperature.

The umbilical cord will be attached to them and fall off by itself around the fourth or fifth day of their life.

The newborn cat’s nails will be out. They still can’t bend them into the paws. At this age, they cannot see or hear, so they will find their way to food through the sense of smell and look for the heat of a cat’s mother.

Health:

Weight: Make sure these are mammals properly and that all puppies are gaining weight. Cat puppies gain weight between 50 and 100 grams per week and should double their litter weight within two weeks.

Heat: Kittens are considered to be pliothermic, which means that they are unable to regulate their body heat compared to the environment, so their temperature varies according to the existing temperature in the environment, in most cases downward of course. After two weeks, the ability to regulate the temperature is greatly improved, but they can still reach a low body temperature when the environmental conditions are not optimal. In light of this, young puppies should be warmed up. This can be achieved by heating bottles, heating pads, professional electric heating surfaces, and heating lamps. Active heating elements must be combined with a protected and insulated area (crate with a heat source).

Food:

Dry food: It is very important to make sure that the puppy breastfeeds the colostrum within the first 18 hours of the litter as there is a window in which antibodies found in the primary milk (colostrum) can be absorbed through the kitten’s digestive tract and then this operation will no longer be performed. Very poor and will be very vulnerable by the age of 4 weeks (the age at which the immune system begins to produce antibodies on its own). Puppies that are born small (less than 75 grams) are at a high risk of mortality at an early age and should, therefore, be emphasized and fed in addition to breastfeeding.

Wet food: Puppies are fed a milk replacer adapted to cat puppies according to the preparation instructions on the product packaging (do not give milk replacements for babies). In the first stage, 5 ml of milk replacer should be provided every two hours, and the quantity increased by 5 ml per 100 grams of body weight as the puppy grows, of course, the intervals between feeding can be increased as the puppy grows. When the puppy grows or, alternatively, a puppy is found to be approaching the age of 4 weeks, you can try to start feeding commercial foods to cat puppies, initially, it is preferable to use high-quality moist foods (canned food).

Supplements: Consuming vitamins for cats is recommended when the cat’s diet is not rich and in cases where the cat is suffering from some illness or is recovering from physical trauma. Nutritional supplements will help strengthen the body’s systems, improve the cat’s overall appearance, and bring it back to us faster.

Litter Box

Like all feces, even cat feces can contain bacteria and parasites that are dangerous to human health. After handling the box, wash your hands with soap and water. It is important to remove the feces in a sealed bag daily.

Cat feces may contain the Toxoplasma parasite, which can harm the fetuses of pregnant women. It is recommended that women who have not been exposed to toxoplasma (ask the women’s doctor) before pregnancy will be prevented from engaging with the crate during pregnancy.

Wash the box with soap and water at least once a month. Avoid using strong fragrances and it is important to dry the crate well beforehand That is refilled.