How long do kittens go without feeding at a week old

jasper87

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hi I'm new here and hoping you can help me

My cat had her kittens a week ago, 3 healthy, chunky fluff balls of cute. The kittens are now 8 days old and have been gaining weight steadily my question is when does the weight gain taper off? The mother cat has started to leave the kittens for longer periods when she is not there the kittens are sleeping and don't seem to be missing her but the weather here is much warmer than usual so I just want to check this is normal and not because the mother cat is away seeking cooler places

Thanks in advance
 

Kittycatcat

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By a week old our kittens were feeding roughly every 2.5 - 3hrs and mama started leaving the nest more often to have abit of time to herself but often near by by still.
Ours are almost 3 wks now and mama is getting more time out the nest has her babies drink more milk but less often probably every 4 hrs now, she likes to check in on the often though but its lovely she's able to go and stretch her legs and take a break. You will more than likely find the same with you mama has they get older 😊
Has for weight gain, I think 10g daily is the guide. Are you weighing them? Mine usually have an increase of anything between 10-20g a day.
Do you have the nesting box in a cool spot? I doubt they will be getting too hot though as they can't regulate their body temperature for the first few weeks, if you haven't already put a heat pad in so they can keep lovely and warm when she isn't with them, obviously they need enough room to be able to get away from it should they get to warm. 🙂
Would love to see some pics of the little darlings 😉
 

Sarthur2

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All sounds normal, and they sound like healthy little fluff balls to me! :lovecat2:
 
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jasper87

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20200726_125849.jpg

Thank you very much just wasnt too sure
I have been weighing them every day and all were putting on similar amounts each day until they were a week old I then skipped a day switching to every second day after that and noticed all had put on around 20g where up until that point they were putting on there abouts each day
 

Sarthur2

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As long as they continue to gain they are fine. Not gaining or losing is a problem, but weight gains can and do fluctuate as they grow. :)
 

Willowy

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Oh, that little spotty calico! 😍

Usually, as long as the kittens are strong and warm, and not overly squally, that means they're doing fine. If they feel cool or limpish, or are crying all the time, that means something is wrong.

Some mother cats have higher-fat milk and their babies can go longer in between feedings, so the exact timing is an individual thing. But it's definitely normal for the mama to go somewhere else for a while in between feedings---in the wild she'd have to hunt---so that's nothing to worry about.
 
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