10 Day Old Kittens Mum Keeps Leaving Them

Hi,
I’m new to kitten care, I have a cat who has 4 10 day old kittens, however she just doesn’t seem overly interested in them, she leaves them for long periods of time, their all gaining weight and developing nicely (all have either opened eyes or nearly opened) kittens seems content, however should I be locking mumma cat in a room with them so she can’t leave them or is she ok to carry on as long as their gaining weight? Today she has left them for about 3 hours and only gone back to them because I carried her.

If the kittens are gaining weight each day and staying warm, they are fine. Mom cats outside do have to leave their kittens every day to get food; kittens don't need Mom with them 24/7. You can add extra blankets to the nest to make sure the kittens are staying warm enough if you are concerned about that aspect. You can also supplement the kittens if they aren't gaining weight at some point or their weight gain is low each day.

I am personally against locking Mom in with her kittens. Not all female cats want to be Mom or are good at it. Forcing her to spend more time with the kittens when she wants to get away won't benefit her or the kittens much. I agree with bringing her back if it has been a few hours and the kittens are crying but not full on locking her in with them. Just keep some KMR on hand along with bottles/syringes just in case. Also, please remember to get Mom spayed before she is allowed outside and/or around unaltered males. She can get pregnant again (and may already be if she has been allowed out/around unaltered males).

I currently have 16 day old kittens and the mom has been leaving them for periods of time since they were a couple days old. She'll come downstairs and lay on the kitchen floor, go nuts on her post, etc... she always goes up to check on them every couple hours though. As long as they're gaining weight and she's spending a bit of time with them, it should be fine. Mind you, I also have dad cat who seems to take over and care for the kittens, when dad goes in the room, mom is always right behind him and watches him groom and potty the kittens so maybe for my female, she's just enjoying a bit of 'kid free' time.