Kittens uninterested in weaning

[sydney57]

My cat Lily was yet unspayed due to money reasons but it was coming very soon. She used to be underweight and didn’t LOOK pregnant at all, just like she was finally putting on normal weight. On top of that we put real effort into keeping her inside, so had no inkling she was pregnant until she started exhibiting nesting behavior. Now that the kittens are a month old, we’re moving on to vetting possible adopters for rehoming them, and to getting her spayed.
She had these kittens 04/14/21, and they’re still not showing any interest in wet or dry food, even water, as of today (05/15/21). They have been licking the litter, but not using the litter box. What can I do to encourage weaning? The mother does not show enthusiastic interest in feeding them anymore and gets up to leave whenever she feels done, so I don’t know how else to encourage them to wean off. I intend to wean and potty train within the next 2-4 weeks but I’m unsure how, aside from keeping them confined within my room with a litter box and food and water dish, as well as plenty of boxes with blankets for them to sleep in. Aside from the weaning and litter box issues, they act normal.

 

[Willowy]

They're only 4 weeks old, perfectly normal. Many mother-raised kittens don't even look at solid food until 6 weeks or sometimes even later. They'll eat it when they're ready. Don't try to wean them forcibly; this can create a neurotic cat later in life. Please keep them with their mother until 10 weeks at the VERY earliest; 12-14 weeks is best. The mother will potty-train them after they start eating solids. Except for providing a clean shallow pan, there's not a lot you have to do with mother-raised kittens when it comes to potty-training.
It is Best for Kittens to Stay with Mom in a Home Environment for 12-14 Weeks

Most vets will spay the mother cat when the kittens are 8-9 weeks old even if they're still nursing. Contact your vet to see what they prefer.

 

[Kieka]

Kittens wean at their own speed and few will wean at 4 weeks old. Even if they start eating solid food, they won't be ready to re-home until 10-12 weeks old at the earliest. Mom will wean them and potty train them, you really don't have to concern yourself with either. The ages from 8 weeks to 12 weeks are when kittens learn cat 101 lessons from Mom. How to act, play and interact with others. You will be setting the kittens up for future behavior problems if you remove them before they are at least 10 weeks old (ideally after 12 weeks). The common problems of play aggression and biting are caused by early separation from Mom. Please reconsider the age you re-home for the kittens well being. An extra few weeks in your home with Mom will make a huge difference in their lives.

 

[Sarthur2]

Here is a helpful video when they are ready to wean, which is usually 6 weeks at the earliest when they have a mom:

 

[sydney57]

They're only 4 weeks old, perfectly normal. Many mother-raised kittens don't even look at solid food until 6 weeks or sometimes even later. They'll eat it when they're ready. Don't try to wean them forcibly; this can create a neurotic cat later in life. Please keep them with their mother until 10 weeks at the VERY earliest; 12-14 weeks is best. The mother will potty-train them after they start eating solids. Except for providing a clean shallow pan, there's not a lot you have to do with mother-raised kittens when it comes to potty-training.
It is Best for Kittens to Stay with Mom in a Home Environment for 12-14 Weeks

Most vets will spay the mother cat when the kittens are 8-9 weeks old even if they're still nursing. Contact your vet to see what they prefer.

When she was a barn cat and not a pet, she had a litter of two that weaned themselves almost. By this age they were eating food we put out for the barn cats and were using the litter box in the tack room. Because letting my animals get pregnant isn’t really a common practice, that was the first time I dealt with any of that and thought that a month to a month and half is normal. We did keep those two until they were a full 14 weeks. We kept the boy of the pair actually, and he’s been neutered and is a perfect copy of her - and we got her as a kitten, and she was just the same. A runt we didn’t know anything about, but already eating and relieving herself normally. Thanks