Expert: Ali - 5/16/2009

Question
QUESTION: What is the best way to seperate a mom from her kittens?  We are fostering a stay cat and her 2 kittens.  I have taken them all to the vet and the vet has deemed the babies to be 5-6 wks. old.  My vet said to give them another week with the mom and start to work on seperating them.  The kittens are eatting kitten chow, and drinking water, but I still see them nursing occasionally.  I don't want anyone to be traumatized, the mom or the babies.  Should the seperation be done a little at a time, like say, remove the babies from the Mom for 2 hours the first day, then 4 hours the second day, etc., or just seperate them completely all at once cold turkey?

ANSWER: Angie,

There are a number of opinions about how old kittens should be when they leave their mother and move into adoptive homes. I've cared for many kittens over the years and in my experience kittens who stay with their mother for the first 10-12 weeks are less likely to have certain health and behavioral issues. The longer the kittens stay with mom the better socialized, more secure and less fragile they'll be. There are advantages to keeping kittens with their mom for at minimum 10-12 weeks: by the time they go into their adoptive home they've been socialized. 10-12 week old kittens have normally been eating solid foods for awhile which means that they're comfortable with the idea and by that stage they're also becoming more independent which allows them to be more confident. By the age of ten weeks kittens have learned some basic etiquette in terms of how they socialize with other cats and their human caregivers.

I'd strongly suggest allowing the kittens to stay with mom at least until she weans them on her own which normally happens in the first 8-10 weeks of life. This is an important time for the kittens because they learn many important skills during the first weeks of life. It's very important to socialize them appropriately from the beginning. Queens teach their kittens how to hunt, pounce on and kill prey, defend themselves, recognize feline body language and respond appropriately to it and they also learn to control the force behind their claws and teeth during play. Young kittens are cute but for the sake of adoptability it's important to properly socialize them so that they behave appropriately with people of all ages, shapes, colors and sizes. Well behaved kittens have a better chance of living in a permanent home.

Unlike dogs nursing queens don't require any human help to wean their kittens, this normally happens some time in the first 8-10 weeks of a kitten's life. I would recommend providing mom and her newborn family with a comfy bed made from a cardboard box lined with old towels or a blanket, the box should be large enough for mom and her babies to stretch out and nurse comfortably, have low enough sides that mom can come and go easily but the box should also have high enough sides to prevent the tiny newborns from wandering off on their own. I recommend against ever allowing mom and her newborn kittens sleeping in bed with any person because kittens can easily be suffocated if someone accidentally rolls onto them during the night.

Proper socialization will help to ensure that these baby predators are as adoptable as possible. Kittens learn about things like litter training, using scratch posts and how to interact politely with people from their mother. It's important that nobody ever allows a cat or kitten, regardless of how adorable they are, to chew any of your possessions because while it may initially be cute it won't be quite as cute in a full grown cat. It's very important that those people handling the kittens never allow them to bite, scratch or attack any part of their body - this includes hands, feet, fingers and even toes under the blankets at night. Kittens should be taught that they can play with mom, their siblings and toys - human hands are for petting, grooming and transportation only and it's never okay to scratch or bite human skin during play.

Early socialization is very important because the stakes are high - if a kitten thinks that biting or scratching is a game their adoptive family may euthanize, abuse, abandon or relinquish their cat to a shelter because a biting/scratching cat is a liability. Behavioral issues can be deadly serious - in North America the leading cause of death in cats is euthanasia due to behavioral problems. This fact is all the more heartbreaking when we consider the fact that many problems are completely preventable by properly socializing cats early in life, other serious behavioral issues can be prevented or reduced in intensity by spaying/neutering kittens as early as possible.

There shouldn't be any huge rush to separate these babies from their mother yet - it's best for them if mom weans them on her own which she's likely to do in the next couple of weeks. Mom will also teach these kittens some important lessons and discipline them appropriately so that they can have the best possible start at being well adjusted, healthy, happy kittens. If you're concerned about the kittens nursing it's important to realize that they probably do still nurse during the night and when they're in need of comfort. Separating the kittens from their mom at this early age can cause behavioral issues related to improper early socialization as well as insecurity. Some kittens actually develop self soothing behaviors to comfort themselves such as sucking on human body parts such as lips, fingers, ears. Kittens separated from mom early will often nurse on other pets in the home, littermates, blankets, clothing and stuffed animals.

Mom should have access to as much fresh water as she likes, she should also have as much of a high quality cat food as she wants because she's providing for her nutritional needs as well as those of her rapidly growing babies. I normally suggest that pet parents consider feeding a high quality, holistic cat food made from human grade ingredients. I've found that Wellness and Spot's Stew by Halo are good quality foods and they're made from human grade ingredients. Wellness is meant to be fed as a combination of canned and dry food which can be a bit pricey. I feed my cats Spot's Stew Sensitive Cat by Halo, a 6 lb bag costs roughly $25 and lasts my 3 resident cats about a month, that works out to about 28 cents per cat per day. You can choose to feed canned food, dry food or any combination you like. Mom's food intake can double, triple or even quadruple in some cases while nursing kittens because she has to meet her own nutritional needs as well as those of her rapidly growing family. High quality foods may initially appear expensive when compared to brands sold in grocery/discount stores. When cats are fed a high quality food they tend to eat less because they don't need as much food to meet their nutritional needs. Litter box deposits are less frequent and less pungent which means that you use less kitty litter over the long term. It's also important to note that most cats who are fed high quality foods have fewer health problems which means that you spend less money at the vet's office. Another advantage to high quality nutrition for your cat is that she'll likely live a much longer, healthier life and her kittens will have the best possible start in life.

You might find a homeopathic remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy helpful during weaning. It's a blend of flower essences designed to calm and reassure, I've used this remedy many times over the years in a variety of situations and it's been a safe, effective way of dealing with cats and kittens in a variety of situations such as those who have been traumatized, abused, abandoned, or under-socialized to the point of being generally fearful of all people. You can usually find Rescue Remedy in health food stores, naturopathic pharmacies, some mainstream pharmacies carry it in the aisle with vitamins/nutritional supplements and I believe that you can purchase this remedy online as well. The best way to administer it is to add it to their water bowl or mix it very well into some canned cat food. I'd say that 6 drops of Rescue Remedy added to a clean bowl of fresh water each morning starting in about two weeks would be enough to help ease the tension of separating mom and her babies permanently. Rescue Remedy is perfectly safe when used with basic common sense, I've had pet parents ask me about the possibility that they can overdose their cats on this remedy. You could actually administer this remedy at several times the recommended dosage without causing harmful effects in your cats.

There is an incredibly serious pet overpopulation issue that affect shelters and rescue organizations. Unfortunately many animal loving staff working for animal welfare organizations are forced to euthanize healthy, adoptable animals simply because they don't have the time, space or resources to devote to each animal until their forever family comes along to adopt them. The euthanasia rates for shelter cats tends to be much higher than that of dogs, possibly because cats are seen as disposable or simply because pet parents aren't taking the simply step of controlling pet overpopulation by spaying/neutering their cats.

There are many good behavioral and medical reasons to spay/neuter our cats. Cats that have been spayed/neutered are prevented from getting uterine, ovarian or prostate cancers. The earlier in life that a cat is spayed/neutered the less likely s/he will be to develop prostate or breast cancers later in life. Unspayed female cats are at risk of developing a potentially life threatening uterine infection called pyometra which causes the womb to fill with pus, if the uterus ruptures and spreads infection throughout the abdomen the cat's chances of survival are pretty low. The only treatment for pyometra is to perform an emergency spay, this procedure is much riskier than a routine spay because the cat is already quite sick which is associated with higher risks of anesthetic death and post surgical complications. The emergency spay is more complicated and time consuming so it tends to be quite a bit more expensive than a routine spay.

Many parents believe that the best way for their children to learn about the miracle of birth is to watch the family pet give birth, I strongly advise against that since so many unwanted pets are destroyed every year in shelters. If you do want your children to see a cat (or other domestic pet) give birth there are videos on youtube that will serve the purpose without having the additional burden of finding permanent, responsible homes for unwanted kittens.

It's extremely important that you keep mom and her offspring separated from other family pets because newborn kittens don't have much immunity against viral or bacterial infections. I recommend that anyone handling the kittens or their mother makes sure to wash their hands with hot, soapy water before and afterwards to minimize the risk of passing along infections that may be very serious for newborn kittens. If you have any other intact male cats in your household it's extremely important to keep mom and her babies separate from them because toms have been known to kill kittens to force mom back into season sooner than she would normally cycle so that they can mate with her. I am willing to offer information on kitten training, weaning, socialization and development if you'd like more information on how to give these babies the best possible start in life.

The leading cause of death in cats living in North America is euthanasia secondary to behavioral issues. This statistic is heart breaking because many behavioral issues can be prevented through appropriate training or minimized by spaying/neutering our cats. Common behavioral problems including inappropriate elimination (urinating or defecating outside of the litter box), fighting with other cats (the resulting injuries from cat fights often require medical care because bite wounds tend to get badly infected forming abscesses which must be drained under anesthetic, flushed with sterile saline and treated with antibiotics), queens howling to advertise their availability to mate, tom cats caterwauling and fighting to win the right to mate with receptive queens and wandering over a large area are all issues which can be prevented by having the cat spayed/neutered before they reach sexual maturity. Behaviors like house soiling or fighting can sometimes occur with cats that have been spayed/neutered however these behaviors are often related to things like improper introductions to new cats in the household, poor litter box hygiene, scented litter, and other issues which can be easily solved.

Ultimately spaying and neutering our cats is a responsible and ethical choice which saves countless lives each year. For pet parents that are having difficulty getting the money together for routine vet care I may be able to help find a solution to those issues. I keep an ever growing list of resources that may be willing to cover part or all of the cost of routine care like kitten vaccines and spay/neuter procedures. The only information that I ask for in these cases is that the pet parent provide the general area they are writing from - in Canada or the US the province or state is fine. Spaying and neutering helps cats to live longer, healthier lives and as kitty caregivers that love our pets we all want to have as much quality time as possible with our furry friends.  If you need any further information about kitty nutrition, kitten socialization or other issues I'm more than willing to offer opinions based on my experience.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you very much for your information.  It was very informative for me.  I want to do the best I can for these cats, but I may not be able to keep them together for 3-4 more weeks.  I am on the waiting list for the kittens to go to our local "no-kill", cat sanctuary to be adopted out.  This non-funded non-profitted house will spay/neuter the kittens/cats and charge an adoption fee to pay for the medical costs.  I am going out of town and don't want to lose my spot on the waiting list.  I guess I am saying that waiting until the kittens are 10 wks old may not be an option for me.  :-(

Answer
Angie,

I understand the difficult position you're in...If at all possible I'd suggest that you keep these babies with their moms until the no kill sanctuary contacts you then, the longer they're with mom the better it is for them in terms of future socialization and preventing certain behavioral issues later on.