Weaning Kittens Off Formula

Start at the right age.

Weaning kittens off formula. How to wean hand raised kittens. When you are weaning kittens you can add into the kitten formula a bit of canned or dry kitten food. Try putting a drop or two of the kitten formula on your finger. Dip your finger into the formula and offer it to the kitten to lick it off.

Then you can introduce them to lapping from a bowl. Smear the mixture around their mouth with your finger and let them lick it off. If a kitten is nursing from its mother you ll have to depend on how much the kitten weighs to know whether or not it is consuming enough food. Then you can introduce them to lapping from a bowl.

A kitten 0 5 weeks old should be nursing or bottle feeding. If so it may be time to start weaning. Add a bit of canned kitten food to the formula in the shallow dish after a week of feeding just formula to. When you first start weaning your kitten off of its mother s milk you ll want to buy milk replacer.

To begin weaning a kitten mix the kitten food with formula so they recognize the taste. If you are weaning a bottle fed kitten dip the nipple of the bottle or syringe eye dropper in the formula instead of using your finger. If the kitten seems interested and licks it off then you can start weaning her. A 2 to 3 week old kitten will still need to be fed every 2 3 hours and it should consume at least 1 2 tablespoon of formula or milk during each meal.

One thing to keep in mind before beginning is that weaning is a process that is going to require a bit of patience on your part. Here s what you need to know about weaning. Kittens bodies are very sensitive to premature weaning so be careful about starting them too young. Place a high quality dry kitten food in the blender with kitten milk replacer and hot water.

Repeat this until the kitten gets used to the taste. You ll also want to be sure to purchase high quality cat food which will be introduced to the kitten gradually. Once they get used to the taste they ll seek it out elsewhere. During weaning kittens gradually progress from dependence on a mother s care to social independence.

Smear the mixture around their mouth with your finger and let them lick it off. Once they get used to the taste they ll seek it out elsewhere. Place a shallow dish filled with kitten milk replacement formula in an enclosed easy to clean space such as a bathtub since weaning can. Certainly this can be done with a fork or spoon but i love to use my blender.

It is designed to replicate the nutritional value and to a degree the taste of its mother s milk. However you must be very careful about crushing the dry food really well.