what to feed 2 weeks old kittens

by Ivy Treutel Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago

Cat Feeding Chart

Age	Approximate Weight	Amount to Feed	Schedule
0-1 week	50-150 grams / 1.7 – 5.2 ounces	2-6 ml kitten formula	Every 1 to 2 hours
1-2 weeks	150-250 grams / 5.2 – 8.8 ounces	6-10 ml kitten formula	Every 1 to 2 hours
2-3 weeks	250-350- grams / 8.8 – 12.4 ounces	10-14 ml kitten formula	Every 2 to 3 hours
3-4 weeks	350-450 grams / 12.4 – 15.9 ounces	14-18 ml kitten formula	Every 3 to 4 hours

19 more rows ...

Jul 18 2022

Stick to kitten formula, such as kitten milk replacer (KMR), which can be purchased at most pet supply stores. Use specific kitten bottles to feed them kitten formula. Feed kittens on their stomachs—not their backs like human babies—and tilt the bottle.

Full Answer

How to properly care for 2 week old kitten?

Schedule an appointment early. No matter what, schedule your kitten’s first vet appointment within a week of getting her. ...
Ask about intestinal parasites, fleas and heartworm. ...
Ask which vaccinations your kitten needs and how often: Preventive care for kittens may include vaccines for feline leukemia, rabies and distemper. ...

How long should kittens eat kitten food?

How to switch a kitten from kitten food to cat food?

For Day 1 and 2, the diet proportion of your kitten food should be ¼ adult food and ¾ kitten food.
On Day 3 and 4, the proportion is ½ adult cat food and ½ kitten food.
For Day 5 and 6, your kitten’s meal should be ¾ adult cat food and ¼ kitten food.
By Day 7, your kitten would be fully transitioned to adult cat food.

What to feed kittens that have been abandoned?

If the kittens aren’t in imminent danger, wait and observe them from a distance for an hour or two. ...
You can try scattering flour around the kittens and leaving the area completely for a while. ...
Clean kittens that are sleeping soundly are probably not abandoned. ...

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How to take care of abandoned kittens?

To successfully raise an orphaned litter one must consider:

Nutrition and weaning
Sanitation
Temperature and humidity
Disease prevention
Nurture and socialization

Do 2 week old kittens need milk?

(NEVER give them cow's milk and keep them on the same formula.) Kittens should eat 2 tablespoons or 30 ccs of formula per 4 ounces of body weight within a 24 hour period. Feed kittens less than 2 weeks of age at least every 2 hours. Kittens 2 to 4 weeks of age should eat every 3-4 hours.

How often should 2 week old kittens eat?

every 2-4 hoursHow much and how often should I feed orphaned kittens? Orphaned kittens should be fed on a strict schedule, preferably every 2-4 hours. Kittens up to two weeks old can generally consume their daily intake in 4-5 meals per day.

How do you take care of a 2 week old kitten without its mother?

For the first week of life, they need to be fed about every two to three hours. After that, you can usually stretch it out to every four hours. These kittens should be bottle-fed using kitten milk replacer (or KMR), which comes in either liquid or powder form.

Can 2 week old kittens eat wet food?

At three weeks old, you can start introducing wet food to kittens.

What can I feed a baby kitten if I don't have formula?

Homemade milk replacer for kittens1 • 6 tablespoons (90 ml) condensed milk • 6 tablespoons (90 ml) water • 1/2 cup (120 ml) plain yogurt (not low fat) • 3 large or 4 small egg yolks Blend uniformly and warm to 95-100°F. + Refrigerate between uses.

How do you make sugar water for kittens?

Following are the steps of making sugar water for kittens:Boil a pot of water for 5 minutes.Add two teaspoons of white sugar per liter of boiling water.Stir the sugar into the hot liquid until dissolved.Cools down the sugar solution.Filter the sugar solution, before giving it to your kitten.

What milk is good for kittens?

The short answer: The only milk that is healthy for kittens to drink is either their mother's, or they will need a kitten milk replacer, which can also be called KMR or kitten milk formula.

Can kittens drink water?

Your kitten is no different but she still needs to drink water and plenty of it! Kittens may get the water they need form wet food such as Whiskas® wet pouches, but they still need fresh drinking water. Water aids their body processes and helps them avoid potential problems with their kidneys.

Can you feed kittens milk?

Can You Give Kittens Milk? Yes. Kittens drink their mother's milk, a kitten milk replacer or kitten milk formula for their first four to five weeks.

Can 2 weeks old kitten eat dry food?

Kittens 3 to 5 weeks should be given baby cat kibble. Kittens 5 to 6 weeks should be given kitten kibble and kibble should be mixed into the wet food. Kittens 7 weeks and older should eat mainly dry kibble.

Can I feed a 2 week old kitten cat food?

Although kittens shouldn't eat adult cat food before they've fully matured, they can begin eating dry kibble and wet kitten food much earlier. By three to four weeks, kittens can begin eating moistened dry kibble or wet food.

Can you touch 2 week old kittens?

Take it slowly, and make sure she is okay with it before you touch them. Either way, they really should not be handled that much at all until they are about 2 weeks old. If you do handle them, be sure to either wear gloves or wash your hands thoroughly before and after.

When can kittens go all night without eating?

Feeding the kittens. Kittens under 4 weeks old should be fed every 3-1/2 to 4 hours during the day. Nighttime feeding is not necessary as long as the kittens are fed at least 4 to 5 times during the day. However, feed as late in the evening as is convenient and as early in the morning as possible.

How long can a 2 week old go without eating?

Newborns should not go more than about 4–5 hours without feeding. Signs that babies are hungry include: moving their heads from side to side.

How many hours can a kitten go without eating?

The average cat can technically survive for one to two weeks without food if they have a water supply. However, without protein, it may be more like three to four days, even if they have enough water. With no water or food, it is unlikely that a cat would survive longer than three days.

How long can kittens go between feedings?

three to four hoursFeeding frequency: Once kittens are older than 10 days, they can eat every three to four hours.

How long do kittens need to be bottle fed?

You will probably have guessed that a newborn kitten will need to be bottle-fed. And you are correct. Kittens need to be bottle-fed until anywhere from 6-8 weeks. You do not want to try to ween the kittens off the bottle before they are ready.

How old are kittens when they start to walk?

Kittens at two weeks old will start to try and take their first few steps. It will be wobbly and uncoordinated. So do not fear if you see a kitten that looks about two weeks struggling to walk. They are just learning and will be quite wobbly for some time.

How long does it take for an orphaned kitten to suckle?

This is by far the hardest part of caring for an orphaned kitten. At two weeks they may need either a syringe or be able to suckle a bottle on their own. In the previous section, I talked about how to prepare the bottle.

How old was Binx when she was orphaned?

And depending on how many orphaned kittens you have, the size may vary. When we had a Binx, we used a bin similar to this. She was already about 3 weeks old, so she was moving around, but we still wanted to keep her safe and warm while we were sleeping.

How to tell if a kitten is 2 weeks old?

First, let’s talk about how to tell if a kitten is two weeks old. A two-week-old kitten will have their eyes open and their hearing is getting better each day. They respond better to sounds, though their sight is still not the best. Their ears are starting to point outwards but still are mostly turned inwards. ...

How much sleep does a kitten need?

And cats in general tend to sleep a lot. Kittens under two months generally will sleep around 20 hours a day , if not more. I know that seems like a lot, and they will gradually begin sleeping less and less as they grow.

How to keep multiple kittens?

Often people that have multiple kittens will keep them in a room to themselves, or a large bin. You want the space to be large enough to where they can move around if they get warm, but not so big that they can’t get to the heat when they want it. And depending on how many orphaned kittens you have, the size may vary.

FEEDING FREQUENCY

Kittens need two to three times as many calories as an adult cat. Kittens older than 10 days can eat every three to four hours. Up to 2 weeks old should eat every 3-4 hours.

Orphaned Kitten Feeding

If you find orphaned kittens, ask your veterinarian or an animal welfare group to help you find a mother cat with a small litter because she may be able to nurse the kittens. If you cannot find a foster mother cat, ask your veterinarian to teach you how to bottle feed kittens with a commercial kitten formula milk replacer.

FEEDING POSTURE

Kittens should be fed while on all four legs or lying upright on their stomachs (the same position for nursing from the mother).Feed kittens on their stomachs—not their backs like human babies—and tilt the bottle. After they’re done eating, you’ll need to burp the kittens.

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF KITTENS

It is important to understand that like all mammals, the first year of life is characterized by explosive growth and development. For kittens, their weight typically doubles or even triples in just a matter of a few weeks after birth. This growth spurt requires tremendous amounts of energy. As such, you can expect kittens to require more energy.

Kittens And Solid Food

Kittens under 4 weeks of age cannot eat solid food, whether it’s dry or canned. They can drink their mother’s milk to get the nutrients they need. The kitten will rely on you to survive if their mother isn’t around.

PROVIDING WARMTH

For the first 2 weeks of life, kittens, especially orphaned kittens must be kept warm. Please ask your veterinarian about the ideal temperature of heat sources such as a heating pad or a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel. Be sure that the heat source is not too warm; kittens can be seriously burned.

What is the best cat food for kittens?

Wet and dry cat food are commonly available in kitten formulations, and there are pros and cons to feeding each. To decide which option best suits your kitten’s needs, talk with your veterinarian and get their recommendation. Here are some pros and cons of each: 1 Wet cat food is higher in moisture, so it can be beneficial in keeping kittens hydrated, flushing out the urinary tract, and helping kidneys stay healthy. However, wet food tends to stick to the teeth more, which can be associated with dental disease and painful cavity-type problems for cats. 2 Dry cat food is easier to feed in mutli-cat homes and can help scrape tartar from the teeth. However, some cats can overeat with dry food and gain excessive weight, which can be associated with arthritis, heart problems, blood pressure problems, respiratory problems, or diabetes mellitus—just to name a few.

How long does it take for a kitten to grow?

Kittens do most of their growing (both height and weight) within the first year and then stabilize from there. Many of the growth plates of the bones in the kitten skeleton close by about one year old. At this time, after much of the growth is finished, your vet will typically switch your kitten to an adult diet.

How does a cat food bowl work?

There are some cat food bowls that work on timers to automatically release a measured amount of dry food at specified times. Kittens can also learn to use their instinctual hunting behavior to work for part of their daily food. This helps keep your kitten healthy mentally and physically.

How much weight do kittens gain?

A general rule of thumb in kittens is that they typically gain about 1 pound per month. Often, a kitten’s weight is about 1 pound at 1 month (4 weeks), 2 pounds at 2 months (8 weeks), and so on until about 4-5 months. Kittens do most of their growing (both height and weight) within the first year and then stabilize from there.

Why is my kitten not eating?

Reasons Your Kitten May Not Be Eating. If your new kitten is not eating well or has diarrhea, call your vet and schedule another checkup. Sometimes intestinal parasites can cause gastrointestinal upset in kittens. It is common for kittens to come home already infected with parasites.

How to track a cat's eating habits?

One way to deal with this is by using a microchip-activated feeder that only opens when it scans your kitten’s microchip. Just make sure another cat is not guarding this feeder and keeping the kitten from eating.

Can you feed a kitten dry food?

Free-feeding kittens is usually done with dry food, leaving a bowl out all the time so the food is readily available. This is convenient for pet parents, especially if they have busy schedules. The benefit to this type of feeding is that your kitten can eat when they want and ideally self-regulate how much they need.

How to get kittens to eat wet food?

Starting with wet kitten food or moistened dry kibble will help through the transition. Start by combining one part of warm water and three parts of dry or wet kitten food (it should look like oatmeal). Over the next two weeks, gradually decrease the amount of water and increase the amount of food. By six to eight weeks, kittens can eat wet ...

How long does it take for a kitten to eat wet food?

Over the next two weeks, gradually decrease the amount of water and increase the amount of food. By six to eight weeks, kittens can eat wet or dry cat food at will. With wet food and/or dry food, you can provide a greater variety of flavors and textures, which will help support her adventurous nature. You can also feed a combination of wet and dry ...

How do kittens get nutrition?

Newborn kittens get their nutrition from their mother through nursing. If separated from their mother, a kitten milk replacer may be used. The weaning process may begin around three to four weeks of age, at which time more solid foods can be introduced.

How long do cats need kitten food?

They may need to continue eating kitten food until between 18 months and 2 years of age.

Why is it important to feed kittens?

Choosing the right food for your kitten is an important decision. Nutrition supports her growth, development and can even affect her behavior. Giving her high-quality kitten food now will help support many long, healthy years as an adult cat. If you’re a first-time cat owner, choosing the right food and knowing how much to feed ...

How long can you keep wet food in the refrigerator?

Any leftovers in her bowl should be discarded. You can store an open can of wet food in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Bring it up to room temperature before serving. The chart below can help you determine how much to feed your kitten.

Do kittens need milk?

Once a kitten has been completely weaned from her mother’s milk, she does not need milk in other forms. Although cow’s milk is often appealing to kittens and adult cats, it doesn’t contain the nutrients they need and cannot replace a complete and balanced diet.

How often do kittens urinate?

If you notice the kittens are having trouble urinating or defecating, consult a veterinarian. A healthy kitten will urinate almost every time you stimulate them and have a bowel movement once or twice a day. For more on caring for kittens younger than four weeks old, including health concerns, go to.

How to feed kittens formula?

After they’re done eating, you’ll need to burp the kittens. Put them on your shoulder or on their stomachs and pat them gently until they burp.

How to care for a four week old kitten?

Neonatal—newborn to four-week-old—kittens require round-the-clock care. Feeding: Use specific kitten bottles to feed the kittens with kitten formula. Make sure you never feed kittens “Cat Milk,” which is designed for adult cats, or cow’s or goat’s milk, which could give the kittens life-threatening diarrhea.

How to keep a kitten warm in the cold?

Keep kittens warm by building a soft nest, like a box with a blanket and Snuggle Safe or a heated rice sock or water bottle. Make sure that kittens have room to move away from the heat if they want.

How old do kittens have to be to go to the bathroom?

Kittens younger than four weeks old must be stimulated to go to the bathroom after each feeding. A mother cat uses her tongue to do this, but you can use a warm and damp cotton ball, tissue, or washcloth to gently rub the kitten’s anal area.

How to tell if a kitten is dehydrated?

Signs of dehydration include limpness, unresponsiveness, sunken eyes, and lethargy. You can also check by pulling up the skin at the scruff of the neck when the kitten is in a standing position.

How old are kittens when they start to play?

At two weeks old, kittens become more aware of their surroundings and begin to interact more with their siblings, if they have them. However, they still spend most of their time asleep. Their ears will start to unfold and they will start to play, develop fine motor skills, and take their unsteady first steps.

How many meals should a 4 week old kitten eat?

While a 4-week-old kitten will need about 5 small meals per day, you can reduce his daily feedings to 2-3 daily meals by the time he’s 6 months old. You can also give your kitten treats throughout the day, but calories from treats shouldn’t exceed 5-10% of total daily caloric intake.

How many calories should a kitten eat a day?

Kittens in this age group need around 30 calories per pound of body weight per day. For example, an 8-pound kitten should consume about 240 calories per day.

How long does it take for a kitten to start weaning?

4-8 Weeks Old Kitten. Kittens usually begin the weaning process around their 4th week. During this time, they’ll start gradually shifting from milk or formula onto a solid food diet, which delivers the protein, fatty acids, and nutrients that fuel their early development.

How old is a kitten when he starts eating?

4-6 Months Old Kitten. During this stage, your kitten will start to settle into his dietary routine. That’s why it’s vital to make sure you’re establishing good habits for adulthood. Feeding a varied diet can keep your kitten from becoming finicky and keep him mentally stimulated.

How to keep a cat healthy?

Regular exercise and a well-controlled diet will help to prevent obesity and keep your cat in good shape. Whether you feed your cat homemade cat food or the best commercial cat foods, it’s critical to feed him the right amount per day. But there’s no single amount of food that every cat should eat each day.

Why is it important to feed a cat clean water?

Proper hydration helps to prevent constipation and reduces the risk of urinary system diseases like urinary tract infection and blockage.

What is supplemental feeding only for cats?

Foods that aren’t nutritionally complete and balanced will usually be labeled “for supplemental feeding only”. These foods don’t contain the appropriate balance of macronutrients (protein, fat, and carbohydrates) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and shouldn’t be your cat’s sole source of nutrition.

Assessing The Kitten Before Feeding

Bottle fed kittens should be fed every two or three hours during the daytime: if they are fed this frequently, there should be no need to feed them during the night.

Preparing The Bottle

Make up the solution of milk according to the instructions on the kitten formula packet. If using powder, you need to mix well to make sure that there is no clumping.

Feeding Process

When you have finished feeding, play with the kitten for a while to encourage movement: this will assist with burping, removing gas that may have entered the stomach.

Finishing Up The Routine