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How to determine the age of a kitten
Kittens of different ages need different care, and what a newborn kitten needs is not suitable for a two-month-old kitten (and vice versa). Therefore, it is important to know how many months your kitten will have and how it can be determined. There are several ways to determine the age of your pet.
Determination of age by appearance
If the kitten is very young, first look at its umbilical cord. Usually it disappears during the first three days of life. If you have an umbilical cord, you have a newborn kitten in your hands.
Kitten eyes and age
They open during the first two weeks of the kitten’s life. Firstly, all kittens have blue eyes. After that, the color of the iris of the kitten usually begins to change. The age of small kittens can be adjusted in accordance with the age of the kitten:
if they are still closed, the kitten should not be older than a week;
If his eyes are open, but narrow, he will be 2-3 weeks old;
If the diaphragm starts to change color, the kitten should be 6-7 weeks old.
Kitten ears
The ear canals of kittens are closed at birth. They open on average one week after birth. You can also understand age by the size and shape of the ears. Unlike the canals, it takes longer to straighten the ear canals, which takes 2-3 weeks.
Baby teeth
Kittens have no teeth for two weeks. All baby teeth should appear within eight weeks.
Cutters are the first baby teeth to appear. This usually occurs by the third week;
Fangs appear after 3-4 weeks;
After 1-2 months, premolars appear, i.e. teeth located after fangs. Cats should have three premolars on each side of the upper jaw and two on the lower.
Two months later, the kitten should have 26 teeth: 12 incisors, 4 toothfish and 10 molars.
Primary kitten teeth
Most often, kittens’ teeth begin to change after 2.5-3 months. First, the incisors are updated, then the fangs, premolars, and at the end molars are cut – these are the farthest teeth that are used to chew food, like premolars. In total, deciduous teeth are replaced by molars under the age of seven months. By this time, the kitten already has all 30 primary teeth, including four molars.
Kitten’s motor activity
Two-week-old kittens have a staggering and uncertain gait;
If the kitten feels confident enough and he is interested in everything that happens around him, then he is about a month old. At the same time, kittens can land on their feet when they fall;
The kitten will be able to run by five weeks.
General view of the kitten
If your kitten runs confidently and behaves, you can check the proportions of his body. In kittens, puberty begins at 4-6 months. At this age, their body and limbs are extended, and the kitten becomes more and more like an adult cat.
Kitten puberty and age
We can try to observe the instincts and behavior of the animal.
After about four months, the males begin to mark the territory;
In cats, the first estrus can begin in 4-6 months.
Kitten Weight and Age
Determining age by weight is the least accurate way to determine age. It is worth remembering that a lot depends on the breed and gender of the kitten, so their number is approximate:
Новорожденные 70-130 гр;
1 месяц - 500-750 гр;
2 месяца - 1-1,5 кг;
3 месяца - 1,7-2,3 кг;
4 месяца - 2,5-3,6 кг;
5 месяцев - 3,1-4,2 кг;
6 месяцев - 3,5-4,8 кг.If you are not sure how accurately your kitten’s age is set, take him to the vet, he will help you find out and give detailed recommendations on caring for your kitten.