During weaning

Cats start weaning their kittens around six to ten weeks of age. The majority of breeders implement a complete weaning regimen at seven to eight weeks of age, so they can move to their new homes. Some kittens start eating solid food around the age of three to four weeks, but start consuming most of their solid diet around.

Generally cats loose some weight during lactation, but it shouldn't be more than 10% of their corporal weight. A good nutrition and an adequate treatment during gestation and lactation will guarantee a minimal loss weight, even when the litters are numerous. The physical condition of the cat during the moment of raising the kittens will influence her capacity to overcome the difficulties of the gestation and the lactation.

Supplements of calcium or any other vitamin during the gestation are not necessary for a healthy development of the fetal, when eating a healthy and high quality food.

In fact, some investigators assure that excessive supplements of calcium or vitamin during the gestation, can produce calcification of the soft tissue and physical deformations of the fetus in development. Though the requirements of calcium during the gestation and the lactation are high, cats obtain their additional requirement through eating more quantities than their normal diet.

Kittens in growth need a more nutritional plan to support the rapid growth and provide a surplus of energy that is so typical of kittens. In this stage of growth, 100 g per week is desirable, but there are great variations between individuals determined by factors as the nutrition, breed and corporal weight of the mother.

During their first weeks of life, kittens completely depend on the mothers milk and don't require any nutrition supplement.

Nutritional supplements
Between three to four weeks of age, kittens start showing more interest in solid food. To help them eat this type of food, is it helpful giving it to them damped, finely chopped or dry food mixed in with a little bit of water.

This type of food can be the same as the mother or specifically for kittens. Once the kittens start eating solid food, the weaning period has to start and they will start eating more solid food gradually until they are complete weaned around eight weeks of age.

Often supplementing the mothers milk is inadequate. Better look for milk substitutes specially made for kittens, which will be distributed during the whole day in frequent intervals. Be careful with what you give them, powder milk design for humans, cow milk or goat milk are not the adequate substitutes or recommendable for kittens since the analytical profiles vary considerably.