What Milk Can Baby Kittens Drink
The only milk that is healthy for kittens to drink is either their mother s or they will need a kitten milk replacer which can also be called kmr or kitten milk formula.
What milk can baby kittens drink. All young kittens must have milk in order to survive. You can find these formulas in pet supply stores along with the other items necessary to feed your little one such as nursing bottles and nipples. Kittens drink milk from their mothers but adult cats do not need any form of milk to thrive. The weaning process begins around 4 5 weeks of age but prior to that their only source of nutrition is milk.
For instance people increasingly ask whether goat milk for cats is an acceptable treat. The following nutrients are found in regular cow s milk. The best possible milk is from the kitten s mother. Goat milk for kittens is a little more salutary than cow s milk but the difference between them is.
These formulas come in either canned liquid or powdered form. A newborn kitten can only digest milk and more specifically the milk from a female cat. No other sustenance not even water is yet required. Cow s milk can upset a kitten s stomach and should be used as a last resort.
Milk does contain some beneficial ingredients but it s not necessary to give your cat milk. Cow s milk is inappropriate for newborn kittens. It is extremely important that you do not give a young kitten cow s milk. Water makes up 70 of a cat s body and is vital for survival.
The only type of milk that is suitable for managing the specific nutritional demands of kittens is milk from lactating cats period. The aspca states that this milk provides all of a kitten s required nourishment. Kittens should be drinking water by the time they are 4 to 6 weeks of age. This applies only to mom s milk though as cow s milk can often lead to tummy distress and diarrhea troubles in kittens so be careful and keep it away from them.
Feeding the wrong sort of milk such as cow s milk can have short term and long term effects including diarrhea dehydration nutritional deficiencies and long term health problems due to poor growth. Kitten milk replacement kittens orphaned prior to 4 weeks old need to drink a kitten milk replacement formula. However you may feed orphan kittens goat s milk available at many large grocery stores or supermarkets.