Many novice pet owners begin to wonder when the kittens will open their eyes as soon as they encounter their first litter. Like puppies, small cats are usually born completely blind. In the process of growth in the first two weeks, they actively develop and acquire many skills that were deprived at birth.
So, for example, the most developed feeling in newborn kittens is the sense of smell. They find their mother and food source purely by smell. But at first they don’t have a rumor - the ears at birth are covered with small combs of skin that disappear on the ninth day of their life. After that, the kids are already starting to hear and are guided by the purr of the cat as a signal that everything is fine. But the time
when kittens open their eyes can be different - from two days to two weeks, depending on the breed and the course of pregnancy. So, usually in outbred animals this period is 7-10 days, but
sphynx cats are often ahead of the rest of the species in this matter. Often their kittens are born with open eyes, while for other breeds this is a sign of pathology. It is believed that babies born on the 55-68th day of pregnancy open their eyes later than their counterparts born after the 68th day, that is, completely full-term.
Eye color in small cats is detected only in the fifth to sixth weeks of life.
When
newborn kittens open their eyes, they all have a dull blue color. This is not an indicator that in the future animals will be blue-eyed - this feature is observed in almost all mammals after birth.
At first, babies cannot support heat transfer in the same way as adult animals. Usually this is taken care of by the mother, who warms them with her body, but in her absence, it is required to independently provide the kittens with a comfortable temperature using a heating pad. The normal body temperature of the animals themselves at this age is 39 degrees.
The best food for newborn kittens is breast milk. Together with him they get immunity to many diseases. Also, it provides the correct weight gain for babies as they grow. On average, a kitten weighs 80-100 grams at birth. The normal increase in breast milk is about 10-15 grams per day. But you should not feed them with kefir or other sour-milk products - it is better to wait for the kittens to open their eyes before starting the transfer to adult food.
The first teeth in small cats appear on the 4th week, until this moment animals can only perceive liquid foods like milk. It should be remembered that at birth, the digestion and excretory system practically do not work for them - to stimulate urination and defecation in babies, the cat licks their stomachs after each feeding. And only when the kittens open their eyes, they will be able to cope with these processes on their own. If the cat is not nearby, after feeding the newborn kitten, you should hold a soft, moist, warm cloth along his stomach in a clockwise direction to start the intestines.
Knowing all these subtleties of caring for kittens, even the most inexperienced breeder will be able to grow a healthy and strong offspring, which will soon delight him with his tricks and individual characteristics.