# when do you let kittens go to new owners??



## munchkin (Mar 25, 2010)

have researched this a bit, with different answers, our kittens are only 2 weeks old so not a problem yet, a friend of mine let hers go at 6 weeks, i'm definately not letting them go that early is around 10 to 12 weeks ideal?, read behaviour can be a problem if they leave mum to early?
Also when do you start introducing food to them around 3 wks??
they are all doing fine and weigh between 300g and 350g, misty was 1 1st time mum to 5 kittens born 17th april.x


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## The Twins (Oct 11, 2009)

I think 12 weeks is better personally. Also think 5 weeks old to start weaning onto solid food.


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## lizward (Feb 29, 2008)

Pedigree breeders have to keep them until 13 weeks but to be fair moggies seem to grow up quicker. Make it 8 weeks and you shouldn't go far wrong. Start them on solid food at four weeks.

Liz


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## **kitty** (May 1, 2010)

Im glad Ive seen this thread as I have seen adverts for kittens ready to go now who are only 6 weeks old. 
Would love to see some piccies of your kittens


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## The Twins (Oct 11, 2009)

lizward said:


> Pedigree breeders have to keep them until 13 weeks but to be fair moggies seem to grow up quicker. Make it 8 weeks and you shouldn't go far wrong. Start them on solid food at four weeks.
> 
> Liz


I'm sorry but i disagree with the bit about moggies growing quicker - mine took AGES to grow, and they were moggies. And just because they are moggies, why should they be ok to leave their mum 5 weeks earlier than pedigrees????


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## becbec31 (Jun 26, 2009)

Pedigree breeders keep their kittens till they are 13 weeks as we have them vaccinated. This is done at 9 and 12 weeks ideally so if you keep your moggies till 13 weeks will you be vaccinating them? 

To be fair to Liz I agree moggies grow quicker not so specifically just in size but in development they wean earlier etc etc. My last litter didn't fully wean till they were 6 weeks old, imagine if I had let them go at that age when they were still part feeding off mum? All my vets also share the opinion that cross bred moggies develop much quicker, it is a conversation i have had many times.

I think personally for a moggie 8 weeks is ideal. Just in time for new owner to start vaccinating. Oh course all kittens are different and if some have any other health problems they should be kept till this is sorted out.


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## munchkin (Mar 25, 2010)

thanks for help guys, updated pic of kittens 2 wks old


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## The Twins (Oct 11, 2009)

I don't have any kittens to sell on, moggie or otherwise but if i did, yes i'd keep them til 12 weeks and vaccinate them before sending them on to their new homes, even if they were moggies! Why should u vaccinate pedigree's before rehoming, and not mog's?? Is it due to profit margins being so much smaller on them!? Sorry, but i think this gives people the wrong idea to say its ok to give mogs away earlier and not to vaccinate them.


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## Tje (Jan 16, 2010)

The Twins said:


> I don't have any kittens to sell on, moggie or otherwise but if i did, yes i'd keep them til 12 weeks and vaccinate them before sending them on to their new homes, even if they were moggies! Why should u vaccinate pedigree's before rehoming, and not mog's?? Is it due to profit margins being so much smaller on them!? Sorry, but i think this gives people the wrong idea to say its ok to give mogs away earlier and not to vaccinate them.


I agree with you, as a foster mum for shelter moggies, they get rehomed at 12 weeks.

only in very rare circumstances do I rehome earlier (say for instance an orphaned kitten who can be rehomed at 8 or 9 weeks old to a home with very experienced owners with an other cat for socialization of the kitten, but I have to feel the other home offers more for the kitten than my home does  if it doesnt they stay with me).

I also dont share the experiences of others that moggies grow up quicker than pedigrees. Of course it will depend on the individual litters, but if I compare my moggy litters to friends pedigree litters, if anything their pedigree litters seem to mature much quicker. And I generally put that down to the fact that their (pedigree) queens were well looked after, well fed, well rested and in tip-top health before giving birth. My shelter-moggy mothers are often too young/too skinny/back2back bred and in a general poor shape health wise prior to giving birth.

If I felt keeping the kittens between week 8 and week 12 had no benefits for the kittens then obviously I wouldnt do it, but I see those kittens learning so much in those 4 weeks that I feel its much better to keep them with their mother and siblings for that extra month.

I would never buy/accept a moggy kitten that was 8 weeks old. As a buyer its often difficult to know how old a kitten is so if I was buying a moggy kitten I would go by weight and wouldnt accept one under the 1000grams, preferably Id be looking for around 1200grams.

You only have to read this forum on a semi-regular basis to see all the problems new owners have with kittens that are separated too young from their mother and siblings not just eating problems, but also socialization problems.


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## becbec31 (Jun 26, 2009)

i agree they should be vaccinated moggie or otherwise but it simply doesnt happen. I know so many people who ave brought moggie kittens for between £40 and £90 pounds and they came with no vaccs, hadnt been wormed etc etc. If all cat owners were as responsible as we would all like all cats would be vaccinated all of the time but some are not.

Some pedigree breeders arent as responsible as they should be but we are regulated by the GCCf and if found to not be following guidelines we are fined, banned etc. It creates some protection for new owners and breeders alike.

And to clear up that point its about profit margins, I made no money at all on my kittens last year. I just covered costs at the end of the day as I had one litter which needed a lot of extra vet care. Im not complaining its for the love of the cats that I breed and would spend as much money as possible to make sure they were healthy and fit before rehoming. However i know a moggie breeder and by breeder I mean she has 2 litters a year from all her cats (has no idea who fathers are and sells them for £60.) She makes a lot of money as the kittens receive no vet checks no wormers and no vaccs. My brother brought a kitten from her agaisnt my advice and has ended up with loads of problems poor thing was infested with ear mites and had to be knocked out at the vets and have her ears thorughly cleaned out twice before the problem cleared as drops wouldnt touch the problem.

I find it so disheartening when people make assumptions that Pedigree breeders make lots of money it simply isnt the case.


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## The Twins (Oct 11, 2009)

becbec31 said:


> i agree they should be vaccinated moggie or otherwise but it simply doesnt happen. I know so many people who ave brought moggie kittens for between £40 and £90 pounds and they came with no vaccs, hadnt been wormed etc etc. If all cat owners were as responsible as we would all like all cats would be vaccinated all of the time but some are not.
> 
> Some pedigree breeders arent as responsible as they should be but we are regulated by the GCCf and if found to not be following guidelines we are fined, banned etc. It creates some protection for new owners and breeders alike.
> 
> ...


I am not making that assumption at all - the opposite... which is why i think many people send on moggies to their new homes at 8 weeks old (too early) so that they dont have to spend money on vaccinations when they know they wont recoup the cost...


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