When Do Feral Kittens Leave Their Mom

First of all there is no set age on when the separation should be done.

When do feral kittens leave their mom. The earliest a kitten can leave its mother while you may want your kitten to stay as long as is needed with the mother the conditions on ground may leave you with no option. However a kitten is typically ready to leave his mother at about 8 to 12 weeks of age. By the way don t worry about mommy being upset when her babies leave. 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.

The perfect age seems to be between eight and twelve weeks. When the kittens are 5 6 weeks old and eating steadily the mother is spayed and if feral ear tipped and returned to her site. So when can kittens leave their mothers. Once the kittens are fully weaned around 10 to 12 weeks old they are old enough to move away from their mama.

During this time the kittens will still occasionally nurse on their mother but they will also start to eat liquid kitten food. As you know by now it s a very labor intensive process to socialize feral kittens and to feed kittens that aren t quite old enough to leave their mother. Why the wait is necessary. One goes to seek food and never returns.

The time varies from one kitten to another since several factors come to play. Plus the female kitten can be impregnated as young as 4 months old and have several litters a year. The weaning process usually continues for about another month until the kittens are fully weaned between eight and 10 weeks of age. Please read my pages on cat colonies and feral cats for some more information.