Characteristics of lactating kittens

Cats in the lactation stage have fast growth and development, but are not mature enough physiologically. In terms of breeding and management, they must adapt to the following characteristics:

(1) Newborn kittens grow rapidly. This is based on its vigorous material metabolism, therefore, the demand for nutrients is relatively high in both quantity and quality.

(2) The digestive organs of newborn cats are underdeveloped. The digestive gland function of newborn cats is incomplete, and they can only eat milk in the early stages and cannot digest other difficult to digest foods. With the growth of age, the function of the gastrointestinal tract continues to improve, in order to gradually eat some easily digestible foods. This puts forward special requirements for the quality, form, feeding method, and feeding frequency of feed.

(3) Newborn kittens lack natural immunity, which is mainly obtained from breast milk. Therefore, improper feeding and management are highly susceptible to infection, and special care must be taken for kittens.

(4) The development of auditory and visual organs in newborn cats is not yet complete. When a kitten is born, it only has a good sense of smell and taste, but lacks hearing and vision. It is not until the 8th day after birth that it can hear sound, and it is about 10 days before it can fully open its eyes and see objects clearly. Therefore, for the first 10 days after birth, except for breastfeeding, they are mostly in a sleep state all day.

(5) The temperature of a kitten at birth is below normal. As the cat grows older, its body temperature gradually increases, reaching 37.7 ℃ by the age of 5 days. Moreover, the newborn cat’s body temperature regulation function is not perfect, and its adaptability to temperature changes in the external environment is poor. Therefore, special attention should be paid to preventing cold and keeping warm.