4 month Kitten not fully weaned

LegacyUser

Hi,

I got a kitten and ending up taking on the mother of the kitten too, as they seemed inseparable.

I have them for a month or so now but this evening I noticed that the kitten is still milking off the mother. I've never seen it before with the pair of them. If it a bad thing, or is it okay, I would've thought that by 4 months she would be fully weaned. But then, was it a bad idea to keep the mother?

Bubby

Rabies

The kitten should be weaned by now. Try giving them some time apart when it is time to feed them. Allow the mother to eat alone and give the kitten it's own bowl in a different room. Hunger will take over and it will eat. It will take time, don't expect it to start eating straight away, it will still want its mothers milk.

karlin

At that age it is probably more a comfort thing and the mother is probably not still producing milk. Mothers will be very firm when they wean and if the kitten is eating solid food it is long since weaned. When your cat kneads at you while it purrs, it is doing what it did as a nursing kitten to stimulate milk flow and this is the equivalent except with its mother. If the mother isn't annoyed I wouldn't worry -- I'd say the kitten is well and truly weaned.

I had 10 week old foster kittens recently -- and a 6 month old kitten at present -- who both attempt to nurse from the nipples of one of my (male) dogs. All those kittens were/are weaned, and obviously they weren't getting any milk :eek: but they liked the warmth and comfort of curling up with the dog and the next step (just as when they start kneading your leg while on your lap) was to go through nursing motions. No the dog didn't mind, though he seemed a bit bemused!

LegacyUser

Hi,

Thanks for the tips and advice! I think you are right Karlin, it is just a comfort thing. Thing is, the Kitten was as far as I was concerned .. well and truely weaned. She eats like a horse!!

Funnily enough .. lastnight when I say the kitten nursing off it mother it was one of the first times in ages (since she was a few weeks old) that I heard her purr. Neither the mother or kitten purr. Originally the mother was a stray / kicked out of the house kitten that arrived in the garden heavily pregnant and with her eye hanging out. After an eye removal we planned to keep her indoors, till the stitches would be taken out. We didn't have the heart to put her out into the wild again after the 10 days. So we kept her. The mother cowers when you try to pet her .. but she is better than she was. She isn't ferral (excuse he spelling) by any means. Was probably just whacked around by a kid when she was a baby.

I wonder though will either of them ever purr when cuddled by a human or has the mother's fear of humans brushed off on the kitten.

Seraphina

i'd say she will get used to human contact again if you are very careful and gentle and dont try and force contact if she doesn't like to be petted.

we took on two cats from the animal shelter, and when we first got them, one was very adverse to being touched. she was obviously just nervous, but she got used to us eventually and began to trust us.

FranknFurter

one of ours, was wild, had to keep her in a shower cuical for 2 days till she started to calm down.
after a lot of work, 2 months she was a complete lapcat, purred like a lawnmower tho lol.

Another, total lapcat also, often "makes dough" on us as a love/comfort thing, in 4 years, has never purred, some do, some dont it seems

B

SpaceJunkie

Purring is a natural action a cat does when he/she feels comfortable and relaxed. But, the loudness of the purring varies and depends on the cat. Some sound like motorboats. With others, you may only detect a small vibration near its vocal cords. Sometimes, you need to get real close and listen carefully to hear it. Since most cats like being scratched under their chin, this is fairly easy to check.

Also, the nursing instinct lasts longer then the need to nurse for food. Weaning a young one usually involves sturn rejection by the mother to force the kitten to find its own food. If Mom isn't being sturn, the kitten will continue finding comfort in Mom's body heat, texture, sounds, etc. It is a comfort thing and not a need for milk. And nothing to worry about. Mom will get tired of it eventually. The instinct remains strong for the rest of the cat's life though. The "kneading" it does on blankets before curling up and laying down or when on your lap are examples of that behavior.

The cat with the eye injury that resulted in its removal by a vet, should never be let outside again except on a leash. The chances of it being hurt by something outside is compounded many times by its sight and depth of field limitations caused by losing one eye. Cover one of your eyes for a day and see how difficult it becomes for you to do normal things. Cats depend far more on their eyesight for their survival then we do. And on top of that, they do not understand their limitations as well as we do when it happens to us.

LegacyUser

Hi, Thanks again everyone.

SpaceJunkie .. you have a very good point there when saying thatsight and depth of field will be limited. Its very sad, becuase I see her looking out the window and a few times I have carried her outside and let her walk around the back garden. I was planning to get in a cat flap for the pair of them and was just waiting for the little one to be old enough to go out (she would be jelly for a dog).

How can I restrict the one eyed cat (Polly) from going out ,.. but still let the kitten (Elma) out. I don't want Elma to be stuck indoors for the resty of her life. Once spayed she should be able to come and go as she pleases. I was hoping the it would be the same for Polly and that the pair of them would stick together. Maybe that is wishful thinking.

About the purring. I know that Elma purrs becuase she was purring like a JCB (LOL) the other night while kneading Polly. I've never heard Polly purr, ever .. she is very vocal though .. little grunts and moans etc .. but never a purr out of her.

B

SpaceJunkie

I realize that mother cat has lived a good portion of her life outside or being able to go outside. For this reason, I recommended a leash. Once she gets used to it, she will appreciate the chance to be outside for some exercise. Alone and outside, she will not be able to notice cars as quickly as if she had two eyes and if she sees one, she will not be able to judge its speed and its danger. There are other things that involve depth of field such as judging height. Without a good sense of distance, a cat will make judgement errors and will fall, or will attempt distances that might be harmfull.

She may miss going outside, being wild and free, but it is far better then placing her at risk.

The kitten is another situation altogether. If he/she is never allowed outside, he/she will never miss it at all. I kept my Calico inside all her life except for one day when I took her outside to show her the world. When I put her on the ground, she ran full speed to the door, up the stairs and back into the apartment. She had no interest in the outdoors except from the window.

Cats adjust to their circumstances very well. As long as you give her plenty of attention, she will be fine. Cats wander because it is their instinct to. It's how they track down food and mates and guard their territory. If she is spayed and well fed, she is just going through the motions. As long as she is outside, she will have to defend her territory, hunt, play and generally be vulnerable. It's not necessary and not worth the risk.

I would never allow a cat to go outside with such a disablity as having lost one eye. I would also not allow a cat outside if it had been declawed.

Remember that cats are predators. But without all their natural abilities intact, they can also become prey.

SpaceJunkie

I should also mention that cats are generally loners. Yes, from time to time they will play together and on a cold night, they will even curl up and sleep together as long as they get along. But, to expect them to be a team and to take care of each other is not realistic. They just won't do that. In fact, just the opposite is very likely to occur. If they get a chance to get away from each other, they will. In many cases, once the parenting is done, the mother will have little or nothing to do with her kittens. They don't feel love or exhibit pride for their offspring like humans do. As far as mom is concerned, it's just another cat she has to share her territory with.