Those first few months are essential for helping your kitten start growing into a happy and healthy part of your life.

WHAT SHOTS DOES YOUR KITTEN NEED?

All kittens need to be vaccinated. Feline  vaccines protect against feline leukemia, feline distemper, upper respiratory infections and rabies. View Grandview Animal Hospital's Vaccination Protocol.

Grandview Animal Hospital's veterinarians recommend giving a young kitten a series of these vaccinations starting when the kitten is six weeks old, and continuing every three weeks until the kitten is about four months old. Remember most vaccines must be given over a period of time and require multiple veterinary visits.

WHAT IS COLOSTRUM AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR NEWBORN KITTENS?
The first milk produced by a mother mammal after delivering her babies is called colostrum. This special milk contains antibodies, along with vitamins, electrolytes, and nutrients. Through her colostrum, the mother passes on her own natural immunity to her young as they nurse.

After just one day, a newborn's digestive tract loses the ability to absorb antibodies. The mother's milk becomes richer, and the colostrum is gone. Newborns have undeveloped immune systems. So, without colostrum's protective antibodies, an illness can be fatal. If your cat isn't nursing her young, gently hold her down, and help the babies latch on. Even a few minutes of nursing can greatly improve their chances of survival.

DO KITTENS HAVE UNIQUE NUTRITIONAL NEEDS?
Young kittens may nurse from their mother up to six or eight weeks of age. But three weeks is a good time to get them started on solid food.

Luckily kittens have plenty of appetite for both kinds of food. That's because young kittens need one-and-a-half times as much protein and three times as many calories, per pound of body weight, as an adult cat. That's easy to provide if you choose a commercially prepared kitten food --- a so-called "growth diet." Make sure to follow label instructions on how much to feed and how often.

The time will come when growth formula is too rich for your adult cat, so consult one of our veterinarians about when to switch your cat's diet.

WHEN WILL MY KITTEN'S EYES CHANGE FROM BLUE TO THEIR PERMANENT COLOR?
At birth, a kitten arrives in this world with its eyes closed. That's mother nature's way of protecting them, as a lot of development still needs to take place. Most kittens begin to open their eyes when they're ten to fourteen days old. They look blue at first because the kitten's body hasn't begun to produce melanin, the color pigment that determines eye color.

Things look fuzzy to a two-week-old kitten, but as it's eyes continue to develop, it's eyesight dramatically improves. At two to three months of age, it's eyes begin to change color.

Most felines have eyes that are green, gold, or copper. Some breeds, however, such as Siamese, Birman, Balinese, and Ragdolls, retain their blue eyes into adulthood.

WHEN DO KITTENS LOSE THEIR BABY TEETH?
Just like humans, cats develop two sets of teeth--baby teeth, also called milk teeth, and adult teeth. A kitten's baby teeth start to appear when it's about four weeks old, and ready to chew soft foods. When the process is complete, the little feline has twenty-six tiny, sharp teeth.

Within a few months, however, a kitten's baby teeth begin to fall out, as new, stronger, permanent teeth push them out and replace them. Teething can be a somewhat painful process, and your kitten's gums may be a bit sore for a while. But by the time it's eight or nine months old, that young cat will be crunching down it's kibble with a set of thirty very bright, very sharp adult teeth.

WHEN SHOULD A KITTEN BE WEANED OFF ITS MOTHER'S MILK?
Some kittens will begin tasting their mother's cat chow as early as three weeks of age; others refuse anything but mother's milk until two months. But by week five, most kittens are nursing less, and exploring their new world more. This is a good time to introduce them to solid food. Offer high quality canned kitten food on a flat dish several times a day--and expect their first attempts at eating to be messy!

Kittens should still nurse until they're at least eight weeks old. If mother and kittens are all in good health, nursing can continue until twelve weeks. Mother will gradually wean the kittens herself. Kittens should gain around four ounces per week. If they fail to gain weight, or develop diarrhea, contact one of Grandview Animal Hospital's veterinarians.