Is it okay to separate 6-week-old kittens from their mother?

When a kitten stops nursing on his mom he is ready to go, it's usually never before the age of 6 weeks. having said that a cat can survive from a younger age if fed kitten replacer milk, but it is not recommended if the mother is available.

At 6 weeks they are old enough to be weaned. You can started with dry kitten food mixed with a little water and canned food to entice them. If they eat well, then you can decrease the amount of canned food and water until they are eating dry food. The mom will also help by letting them nurse less and less. Once they are eating a good meal 3-4 times a day, they do no need any milk from mom and go to a new home.

Yes, that is normal. Some kittens are more independent than others and they are old enough to begin exploring the world on their terms. Generally the cats will work this out amongst themselves. I do recommend to have the mother spayed in six weeks. Spaying cats prevents many health and behavioral issues. It also helps to control the problem of pet overpopulation. One female cat can have almost 30 kittens in a year. That is a lot of cats! I hope this helps.

Hi there I would ideally wait until the kittens are 8 weeks old. Many people re home kittens at 6 weeks, but the longer they can be with their mom the better. I'd make sure to continue to work on weaning them as you have, but if you can wait until 8 weeks of age that would be best. Thanks for using Pet Coach!

I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your cat :( For the kittens, mom would have been weaning them by this point. Offer a bowl of warmed kitten formula, a bowl of warmed wet kitten food and a bowl of warmed formula soaked kitten kibble. Smear the contents of the bowls along the mouths/lips of the kittens so that they get the taste in their mouths. This will generally stimulate them to start eating. Royal Canin makes a great kitten food called Baby Cat for kittens under 6weeks old. This is what I fed my little rescues. Best of luck!

The kittens should be weaned at 6-8 weeks. Not all animals are natural, nurturing mothers, and she may just not know how to make the kittens go away. I would recommend separating them. The kittens still need a safe environment and easy access to kitten food, but they no longer need mom for milk.

As they are 6 weeks old they do not need to be nursing on the mother anymore, although at 6 weeks i would not consider it a danger to let them nurse on their newly vaccinated mother (many vets already vaccinate puppies at this age anyway).