I have decided to take in a 4 week old kitten... I have had a cat before but not when it was a 4 week old kitten. Anybody have any suggestions that I need to know.

I obviously know to get a litter box and kitten food... the basics.

What more do I need to know. The kittens were born behind the building I work at so I also know it will need fixed and declawed and shots etc.

Anybody know when I should take it to the vet?

I adopted a 4wk old kitten...they are pretty self-sufficient even that young...but I would highly advise against getting it de-clawed... First, I think it's a barbaric practice...2nd, if the cat ever escapes the house it won't have any protection (even if you only remove the front claws)...JMO I also knew a senile old vet who mistakenly removed the cat's PADS along with the nails!

Declawing IS barbaric and completely unnecessary IMO I did it once (when I was young and foolish) and after seeing what my cat went through, I will NEVER do it again.

A 4 week old kitten may need special diet, it is still too young to be weaned from it's momma and most kitten chows will be far too hard for their little teeth. There is kitten formula at most pet stores (I think even Walmart may carry it). You will most likely need to soak kitten chow to a mush in that for the next few weeks or more.

You should take it to a vet as soon as possible for a check up but first shots won't be until about 8 weeks and you cannot spay a cat until they are about 6-8 months old. Since it is outdoors, you really want to watch for fleas, ticks, and ear mites. Not easily treated in kittens as traditional treatments are too harsh for such a young kitten.

Get a scratching post, cover it in catnip and encourage the kitten to scratch and play on that, sharpening their claws is a natural instinct but they can and will learn where it is appropriate and where it isn't.

Good luck to you

I never de-clawed my many cats over the years...

Get it fixed when it's old enough, there are too many animals out there

I always had males but got them fixed...they just pull the mo-jo out of their

little testies, they don't cut them off...

The first thing that springs to mind is a sack and a canal.

Just kidding

Yeah...that's true about the special diet... My lil Metu Kitty never did attain her full growth size cuz her momma was hit by a car when she was 4wks old...

Since you have the kitten, of course you know you gotta take it to the vet. We have a really old cat, and he is completely declawed and he is living just fine. It also depends on the doctor what all they remove. They should be inside. My mother did what you did, behind her work there was a litter of kittens, and my mother brought her home, and she had a mental problem, so, you should get it checked for that kind of stuff. Other than that, the reason you should get the cat declawed, is if you have children/grandchildren, the cat wouldn't be able to hurt them with it's claws, but it's teeth are another thing. It's not barbaric, but actually good, especially for your carpets/floors, the cat will eventually get the need to claw everything insight, and it's a lot of work to keep the nails short and trimmed. But anyways, congrats on your new kitten, and I hope that helped you with whatever yo uhad a hard time with choosing to keep nails, or get rid of them

well I guess I still need to bottle feed it then introduce it to kitty food. I'm so nervous but sooo excited at the same time.

Also, check with your vet on the declawing, many vets will no longer do this. If it's something you feel strongly needs to be done, it may take some looking to find a vet.

Or have the nails clipped by a groomer regularly (I professionally groomed dogs & cats for many years) thus saving the expense & danger of surgery...

So I found out the kitten is 3 weeks old.. I just bottle fed it and it drank about 1 and 1/2 ounces I hope that's ok. I'm so nervous lol. Now it's sleeping.

Does anyone know how I can tell the sex of the kitten?

Give it a couple more weeks...M & F cat's genitals are in basically the same area (unlike a dog's), & if all else fails, the vet will be able to tell you...

I just did the same thing ...go to any pet store ask for kitten replacement milk or mix 1 cup milk , 1 teaspoon of corn syrup and 1 raw egg yoke that should work ..remember their somatch are the size of golf ball you don,t want to over feed it about 2 tablespoon ever 4 hour should do it ..and kitten chow also very good when their about 6 weeks old good luck ...don't forget the shots and to have it dewormed about 3 months ..mine is loving life she sleeping on lap now ..

nooooooo

don't declaw it

thats like cutting off a baby's fingers

cats use their claws like we do fingers

Yeah, 3 weeks is a little early to tell gender that easily. But it should be soon that you can tell.

I've been clipping mine I play with her paws so she used the handling now she fine with just don't clip them to short ..

NO NO NO DE-CLAWING TO PAINFUL !!!!!!!!!!!

Good girl! Now here's a cookie!

Thank You Sooo much... I didn't know when I should have taken it to the vet and I figured after a few months should be good. I'm pretty nervous... I'm not sure if it peed yet

how do I tell... it's belly looks full too

Kitties and nice people

http://www.feralcat.com/raising.html