Isnt 4 weeks a bit young?!

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#1
I know someone who just got a 4 week old kitten from the humane society... this seems awfully young to be giving kittens away, especially to inexperienced owners (these people have never owned an animal before of any kind)... just wondering if this is standard HS procedure or not? Also, what kinds of problems is this going to cause in the future?

Thanks.

Elissa
 

adojrts

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#3
I think it is too young when going to an inexpericed home. Having said that a friend of mine has made it a hobby (gr) of going to the shelters and bring home the very young or sick kittens. But she is very experienced with animals, she nurses them back to health, raises them with her other cats, gets all their vacc's etc. then has them s/n when old enough and then she finds them a new home.........or it could stay if she got too attached to it and has the room.
Sorry I have no idea what the policies are for Humane Soc. but raising a kitten generally isn't all that difficult lol.
 
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#4
Sorry I have no idea what the policies are for Humane Soc. but raising a kitten generally isn't all that difficult lol.
obviously it is not hard to raise a cat.. I have three, Im not dumb.

I was asking about future health/behavioral problems the kitten could have from being taken so early... you couldnt answer the question, then dont post.
 

Herschel

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#5
I think it is too young when going to an inexpericed home. Having said that a friend of mine has made it a hobby (gr) of going to the shelters and bring home the very young or sick kittens. But she is very experienced with animals, she nurses them back to health, raises them with her other cats, gets all their vacc's etc. then has them s/n when old enough and then she finds them a new home.........or it could stay if she got too attached to it and has the room.
Sorry I have no idea what the policies are for Humane Soc. but raising a kitten generally isn't all that difficult lol.
I'm not sure why you got slammed for your post. I thought it was perfectly reasonable... :confused:
 
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#7
I'm not sure why you got slammed for your post. I thought it was perfectly reasonable... :confused:
I asked a question about future problems with bringing a kitten home early... I know bringing a dog home early leads to bite inhibition problems, socialization issues, etc... obviously the issues with cats are different, I wanted someone who knew anything about it to possibly answer the question instead Im told... well its not too hard to raise a cat, haha... like Im dumb and couldnt possibly raise an animal. My oldest cat is 17 today and we got her at 8 weeks old... Im pretty sure I can raise a cat... so if the only point in posting is to tell someone the question was dumb to begin with, why post?
 
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#8
Ours won't accept any before 6 or 8 weeks ...............
Yea, thats what I thought was more "normal"... I would have thought 8 weeks was the norm.. my first two cats were both 8-10 weeks at adoption... my last one was about 12-14.
 

~Tucker&Me~

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#9
I don't think she was calling you dumb in the least.

I think it's too young for inexperienced owners.

~Tucker
 
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#10
I also agree..I see nothing wrong with her post, she was just saying its not difficult to raise a cat. I got most of my cats as kittens, and most of the ones I didn't I got their mothers when they were pregnant..So I have raised plenty of kittens. Many of which I bottle fed.

The Humane Society and SPCA don't really care in most cases. Our SPCA will adopt any of the animals out, and they don't screen like rescues do. They are just trying to make room. I used to take lots of kittens under 2 weeks off their hands to make room for adults. But generally they don;t adopt out until atleast 6 weeks.
 
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#11
Is it possible the kitten wasn't there with the rest of the litter or mom? That it was an orphan? If the concerns are similar with cats as they are with dogs, one could potentially argue that if there was no mom or siblings left at the shelter, then it would be better off in a home where it could get one-on-one attention.
 

Lilavati

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#12
Sometimes people dump kittens when they are very small . . . the shelters will sometimes hand them over to rescues for care, or sometimes just put them down. I've never heard of adopting out that little, but its better than the alternative. Often they have no mother . . . they were dumped without their mother.


As for behavior, what I have heard is it is not as much a problem with cats as with dogs. But your cat will likely think its a human and that you are its mother. It is also less likely to get along with other cats,. But some people find such velco cats adorable. As for health, its what you would expect: too young for shots, away from mom's immunity, and denied the nutrition of milk.
 

noludoru

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#13
Yes... too young to be adopted out, IMO, ESPECIALLY a kitten that young. Fostered maybe, not adopted. Kitty probably just has eyes open and is still sorta crawling instead of walking, yes? With that said, I got mine around that age and had only had an older cat before that.. and only for a very short period of time. I pretty much gave up my social life and all my hobbies for a couple of months while I took care of them... while they were being bottle fed it was a round the clock job. I think if I had the option I'd do it again, but only because I love these two girls very dearly... Otherwise.. good god no. Midnight and 3-4am feedings. Argh.

Kittens taken away from their moms can have LOADS of behavioral issues. Some don't, but I think most usually have at least one small issue. They can be highly aggressive towards people they don't know and only bond with one person. They will often 'nurse' (if the kitten your friends have start this.. tell them to NIP IT IN THE BUG ASAP, it is NOT pleasant to have a fully grown cat attached to your ear or neck.. believe me when I say this... it can take years to go away, if at all) on people or things. They could have bad social skills.. tell them now is the time to get the kitten used to dogs and other cats if they intend to have other pets. Don't spoil the kitten--I don't mean not giving it the best of everything, but don't say yes to all its demands. There are others.. I'd do a google search on it.. should bring up lots of info.

Expect to spend lots in baby kitty milk and replacement nipples. Wash bedding often, you may not see kitten pee, but oh boy will he/she. Wash kitten gently, or at least wipe off with a warm/damp towel once a day when dirty.
 
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#14
Lilavati and Nolu... thank you soo much for your very informative posts.

Lilavati... being away from the mothers immunity is the thing I was most concerned about, as well as the lack of milk... these people are feeding regular cat food already:yikes:

Nolu.. I highly doubt there is anything I can do about this kitten and the way its raised... they are soooo excited to have an animal and are very young, so I doubt telling them any of these things is going to help... but I will most certainly try... although it is their fault, as you should do what is best for any animal that comes in your house, I really feel the humane society is at fault because they should no better then handing a cat like this to someone with no experience and not even giving them directions as to milk supplements and stuff.

Well thanks again... your posts were both very helpful.
 

skittledoo

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#15
As for behavior, what I have heard is it is not as much a problem with cats as with dogs. But your cat will likely think its a human and that you are its mother. It is also less likely to get along with other cats,. But some people find such velco cats adorable. As for health, its what you would expect: too young for shots, away from mom's immunity, and denied the nutrition of milk.
I found Goober when he was about 3 weeks old and when you say some will think they're human and become a velcro kitty... you weren't lying lol. He's super attached to me. I had to put my social life aside for a little while to devote to him. He was wormy and sick when I found him and it took a lot to get him in good health. It's definitely not healthy for a kitten so young to be away from their mother's immunity. He is about 6 months old now. He still thinks he's human and he's definitely still a velcro kitty. He does get along really well with other cats and dogs though. I made sure to put the extra effort into socializing him after he was well and had had his shots.



Anyways... now about the kitty that influenced this thread. Poodlemommy, just curious what area you live in. I'd be interested to research and see what their humane society policies are. One on one attention for a kitten so young is definitely important so I can understand if he was the only kitten that age and they felt that he would be better off in a home where he can get the care he needs. However, I do not think that such a young kitten should have been adopted to someone with little to very minimal experience. I don't think the Humane Society in our area will adopt animals that young, but I haven't really checked out our policies to know. It does seem a little odd that your HS would adopt out a 4 week old kitten though. Has your friend done research on raising a kitten during this period of their life?
 

noludoru

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#16
You're welcome, Poodle. :)

Honestly? I would say you need to bypass being polite. Educate them NOW. I made so, so many mistakes that I've had to work very hard to correct. One of those mistakes I'm still paying for and will continue to do so for at least ten years. Not to mention the horror of getting the kitties on GOOD food and trying to get Emma back down to a better weight. Please tell them that if they want to have a remotely functional cat, NOW is the time to socialize.. when the kitten hits 3 months is not good enough. Have quiet, well-mannered people wash their hands thoroughly and come in to talk around kitty and pet kitty. When the kitten's had all its shots, start bringing it places... get it used to the car.. used to other people. If possible have it meet other young kittens to form positive memories of other cats, and well-mannered dogs. If they won't listen to you... give them my e-mail. kallikitty at gmail dot com. Tell them to send me an e-mail, I've been through it before, except with two of them, and would love to help. I'll do my best tog et them good resources and stuff. But honestly, now is not the time for them to be close minded and skimp on things. *sigh*

Another thing.. I'm not a nutritionist.. but I think four weeks is too young to be on solid foods. Mine weren't weaned until approximately seven weeks. We let them do it at their own pace, and it was very gradual. I still remember that last bottle.
 
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#17
Way, way too young. I could see letting it go to an experienced foster home, but never for adoption. The sad truth of kittens and shelters is, many of the kittens will not make it, especially if they are taken form mom so soon. It would be devestating if that happened in an an adoptive home.
 

adojrts

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#18
I asked a question about future problems with bringing a kitten home early... I know bringing a dog home early leads to bite inhibition problems, socialization issues, etc... obviously the issues with cats are different, I wanted someone who knew anything about it to possibly answer the question instead Im told... well its not too hard to raise a cat, haha... like Im dumb and couldnt possibly raise an animal. My oldest cat is 17 today and we got her at 8 weeks old... Im pretty sure I can raise a cat... so if the only point in posting is to tell someone the question was dumb to begin with, why post?
Ok, where to start..........I never said the question nor you (or anyone else for that matter) was stupid/dumb etc. Not too sure where you got that from.
I am a little confused here, you said it was someone else that had the kitten, someone who is inexperienced and has no history of owning/raising anything.......correct??? So why are you offended (btw when no offence was intended), about the last line about 'its generally easy to raise a kitten"?

At 4 wks of age, the kitten may or maynot do well on dry cat food. If it was still with the momma, momma would (usually) start the weaning process at this time and start introducing kills to the kittens. Some momma's have to wean early and the kittens do eat what the adults do and are fine. At four weeks the kitten will (or should be) very mobile, walking/running etc. the eyes would have opened around 12- 14 days, same with the hearing. The owners will have to keep the kitten clean or at the very least check to make sure the kitten is able to clean its self correctly. Deworming is a must at this stage. Bottle feeding, milk replacers and mulitple feedings throught the night are not needed at this point. But milk replacers can be added to dry food and feed semi moist.
The kitten can be taught at this age to use a litter box. Where it sleeps should be draft free, indoors (meaning a house/apt etc) it shouldn't need a secondary heat source like a heat lamp, hot water bottle etc at this age.

Your org. post indictated that you were looking for behavioural issues, not info on how to raise a kitten. If it was clear that that was what you were looking for posting this info would have been done then.
BTW, I have raised countless orphaned kittens (entire litters) and two litters of orphaned pups. All orphaned from 4 days after birth to 12 days, didn't loose one.
 
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smkie

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#19
The kitten will probably be a blanket sucker. IT is too young, but for alot of shelters being a kitten being turned in is immediate death, there are just too many, so maybe this was an attempt at a save.
 
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#20
skittledoo... the humane society that this cat was adopted from is in upstate NY.

I am guessing like others said this was an attempt at saving the kittens life but putting them in a home with an inexperienced owner wasnt the way to do it IMHO...

nolu... I will see this person tmrw and I will explain everything to them and hope they listen. Thanks Again.
 

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