What Age Do Kittens Have To Be To Leave Their Mother

Why the wait is necessary.

What age do kittens have to be to leave their mother. If their mother returns leave them be. By the way don t worry about mommy being upset when her babies leave. In fact according to the cat fanciers association one of the ways to tell if a breeder is reputable is that he or she will never sell a kitten younger than 12 weeks old. Kittens rely on their mother s milk for proper growth and development.

That clever lady mother nature has designed cat mommies to encourage her kittens to leave the nest so that she can get busy with the next lot. Learn what to do when you find kittens outdoors. Curious as to why this is the recommended age span. In many cases kittens begin eating strictly solid foods at around 8 weeks and then may be ready to leave their mothers for good.

So when can kittens leave their mothers. First of all there is no set age on when the separation should be done. However a kitten is typically ready to leave his mother at about 8 to 12 weeks of age. The short answer is that kittens should stay with the mother cat until they are 12 16 weeks old.

The perfect age seems to be between eight and twelve weeks. How soon can kittens leave their mother. 8 weeks the organization cats international recommends keeping kittens with their fellow litter mates and mothers until about 8 weeks in age. Learn more about kittens and their needs as they grow in our kitten guide.

This is because they will need to stay with their mother to feed on her nutritious milk as well as stay with their siblings to learn valuable social skills. The best time to separate a kitten from their mother and siblings is when they are 12 13 weeks old. The time varies from one kitten to another since several factors come to play. Despite this however you should ensure that the earliest your kitten leaves its mother is 4 weeks old.

Before you do anything remember never separate kittens from their mother cat. During this time the kittens will still occasionally nurse on their mother but they will also start to eat liquid kitten food. The weaning process usually continues for about another month until the kittens are fully weaned between eight and 10 weeks of age.