Kittens

[MomtoSyd&Emma]

ok to make a longer than long story short, my Parents took in the nephew of my brothers wife when his mother (I use the term loosely here sadly) was put in a psyche hospital for a indefinete time. When he came to live with them (he is 17) the rent was 3 months behind, electric was cut off, water on its way next. His siblings are with their biological fathers. He brought with him SEVEN felines, momma, daddy and 5 gorgeous kittens.

We are thinking of taking the black kitten, my parents are keeping the snowshoe looking one, my daughters teacher is taking one, a friend one, and that leaves one for the boy to keep as its his favorite one. BUT we are all pitching in to have the Daddy neutered and the Momma spayed so this cant happen again at least.

The kittens are GORGEOUS and I mean GORGEOUS! The lil black one is the runt and oh so sweet (I cant tell the sexes apart sadly and I am calling the Vet tomorrow to see if they will show me how to do that) lol

What I am wondering is how old do you all think they are? They are eating dry food, using a litter box but yet tonight I caught them nursing! I havent had a kitten in forever so I just dont know these things anymore, will the Momma allow them to nurse even if they are old enough to wean? I know they need to be with her to at least 8 weeks. Here are some photos. PLEASE excuse the mess they are in my Dads work shed as that was the only place that was safe, warm and dry to house them when they brought them home so unexpectedly!

 

[Crazyland]

I don't know their age.
But they are so cute!

 

[gritsar]

Six to eight weeks old. Probably closer to 8. When Mama is tired of them nursing, she'll let them know, painfully at times.
Mama can get pregnant very quickly, so you might want to put a rush on that spaying.

 

[Akane]

Kittens generally wean themselves when they are ready. They may continue to nurse up to 12weeks without it being abnormal. After that I'd go ahead and send them to their homes even if they are still nursing. I'd definitely spay the mom asap. It doesn't matter if kittens are still nursing. She can get pregnant (if she isn't already) and she can be spayed right now.

 

[MomtoSyd&Emma]

Quote:
Yep that is what I told my Parents that she is probably already pregnant and that it will be an abortion spay, and I can just about guarantee that the Momma cat is still a kitten herself, she is tiny, and so juvenile looking, while the Daddy is a HUGE moose!

 

[Cattitude]

The kittens look to be about 8 weeks old; they can go to their new homes now that they're eating on their own and using the litter box. I had one momma cat who nursed her kittens til they were bigger than she was! Once you have her spayed, separate her from the babies for a week at least, 2 weeks if you can, so that the kittens that are still there will "un-learn" the instinct to nurse.

Add: the last momma cat I inherited actually grew a bit after she was spayed, and now she's a good sized cat.

The momma should be the first to be fixed, cause (like humans) the male cat still has a supply of sperm stored up and can still father kittens for a while after his operation. I've observed my neutered males mounting the spayed females (the girls are less enthusiastic about the process) and these males have been neutered for over a year! The instinct to mate never fully leaves them.

Most veterinarians will now do what they call "pediatric" neutering, which means that they will spay females as early as 8 weeks, and males as soon as the testicles descend. Urge the new cat owners to get the kittens done as soon as they can. Males who are neutered early actually get taller and heavier (on average) than their littermates who are neutered later. And they certainly never learn to spray!

You have some beautiful kittens, they will make great pets! If I didn't already have 10 cats...

 

[MomtoSyd&Emma]

Thank you for all the information. I had already called the local low cost spay/neuter clinic but they didnt answer or call me back, I have an appt to have our puppy spayed there and they cant get to her until July, but I am going to BEG and explain the entire situation to them, and get the parents in there to be "fixed" as soon as they can possibly fit us in!

They have a deal where if you bring in more than 3 at one time its only 42.00 each, so I know that we can bring at least 5 in at once if they will do that for us (mom, dad, and 3 kittens, black one, snow shoe looking one, and siamese looking one) possibly 6 (the gray one) That would only leave the himy looking one needing a home and neutering!