cat is a teenage cat. After birth, kittens are completely dependent on their mothers to survive and they usually do not open their eyes until after seven to ten days. After about two weeks, the kitten quickly developed and began to explore the outside world of the nest. After three to four weeks, they start eating solid foods and teething grown. Domestic kittens are very social animals and usually enjoy human companionship.
Video Kitten
Etymology and development
The word "kitten" comes from the Middle English word kitoun , which in turn comes from the old French chitoun or cheton . Teenagers big cats are called "tiger boys" rather than kittens; Both terms (but usually more commonly "cats") can be used for young children from smaller wild felids, such as ocelots, caracals and lynxes.
Cat litter usually consists of two to five kittens born after pregnancy that lasts between 64 and 67 days, with an average length of 66 days, but from one to more than ten are known. The kitten appears in a sac called an amnion, which is bitten and eaten by the mother cat.
During the first few weeks, kittens can not urinate or defecate without being stimulated by their mother. They also can not regulate their body temperature during the first three weeks, so kittens born in temperatures less than 27 Â ° C (81 Â ° F) may die from hypothermia if their mother does not keep them warm. Mother's milk is very important for kitten nutrition and proper growth. This milk transfers antibodies to kittens, which help protect them against infectious diseases. The newborn kittens can not produce dense urine, so it has a very high need for fluids. The kittens open their eyes about seven to ten days after birth. At first, the retina is less developed and the eyesight is poor. The kitten can not see the adult cat until about ten weeks after birth.
The kitten develops very quickly from about two weeks to the seventh week. Their coordination and strength increased. They play with their mammoth friends and start exploring the world outside the nest or nest. They learn to wash themselves and others and play hunting and stalking games, demonstrating their innate abilities as predators. This innate skill is developed by the mother of a kitten or other adult cat, who brings live prey to the nest. Later, adult cats demonstrate hunting techniques for kittens to imitate. When they reach the age of three to four weeks, the kittens are gradually weaned and start eating solid foods, with weaning usually lasting six to eight weeks. Kittens generally begin to lose their baby teeth around the age of three months, and have full nine month old teeth. The kittens live mainly on solid foods after weaning, but usually continue to suckle from time to time until separated from their mother. Some cat mothers will scatter their kittens as early as three months, while others continue to nurture them until they approach sexual maturity.
The sex of a kitten is usually easy to determine at birth. At the age of six to eight weeks they are more difficult to have sex because of the growth of fur in the genital area. The opening of the male urethra is round, while the opening of the female urethra is a gap. Another marked difference is the distance between the anus and the opening of the urethra, which is greater in males than in females.
Kittens are very social animals and spend most of their time interacting with animals that are available and playing on their own. Play with other kittens at peak in the third or fourth month after birth, with more hunting and stalking to play peeking later, about five months.
Kittens are vulnerable because they want to find a dark place to hide, sometimes with fatal results if they are not carefully watched. Cats have a habit of looking for protection under or inside a car or on a car tire during a storm or cold weather. It often causes fractures, burns, heat attacks, damaged internal organs or death.
Although domestic kittens are generally sent to new homes at the age of six to eight weeks, it has been suggested that with mothers and kittens from six to twelve weeks important for the social and behavioral development of kittens. Typically, breeders and residential homes will not sell or adopt kittens younger than twelve weeks. In many jurisdictions, it is illegal to give kittens younger than eight weeks. Kittens generally reach sexual maturity in about seven months. A cat reaches a whole "adult" around the age of one year.
Maps Kitten
Health
Domestic kittens in advanced societies are usually vaccinated against common illness from two to three months. The usual combination vaccinations protect against feline viral rhinotracheitis (FVR), feline calicivirus (C), and feline panleukopenia (P). FVRCP inoculation is usually given at eight, twelve, and sixteen weeks, and inoculation of rabies can be given at sixteen weeks. Kittens are usually sterilized or castrated at the age of seven months, but kittens can be castrated as young as seven weeks (if large enough), especially in animal shelters. Such early neutering does not seem to have long-term health risks for cats, and may even be beneficial in male cats. The kitten is usually a roundworm worm of about four weeks.
Nutrition
Felines are carnivores and have adapted to the animal diet and low carbohydrate inclusions. Kittens are categorized in the growth stage of life, and have high energy and protein requirements. When feeding kittens, it is often recommended to use easily digestible ingredients and various components to assist in the development to produce healthy adults. In North America, a diet certified by the American Association of Food Feeders (AAFCO) is accepted as adequate nutrition, so a kitten's diet must be approved by AAFCO to ensure full supplementation. The main components of the diet are high fat content to meet the growing calorie growth requirements, high protein to meet the needs of muscle growth as well as certain nutritional supplementation such as docosahexaenoic acid to benefit brain development and cognitive optimization.
Pre-weaning nutrients
Setting immunity
Part of the kitten's immune system is the mucosal immune system, which is in the gastrointestinal tract. The mucosal immune system is largely responsible for coordinating an appropriate immune response by tolerating harmless antigens and attacking foreign pathogens. To optimize the health of cats and increase the chances of survival, it is important to optimize the association between lymphoid tissue associated with the intestines and gastrointestinal microbiota. Long lasting health and longevity can be achieved partly through proper nutrition and building a healthy gut from birth through colostrum utilization.
In the first 2 days after birth, kittens get passive immunity from their breast milk. Milk in the first few days of birth is called colostrum, and it contains high concentrations of immunoglobulin. These include immunoglobulin A and G immunoglobulin that cross the neonatal intestinal barrier. Immunoglobulins and growth factors found in colostrum begin to form and strengthen weak immune systems in offspring. Kittens can chew solid foods about 5-6 weeks after birth, and it is recommended that 30% of their food should consist of solid foods at present. Kittens stick to mother's milk until about the age of eight weeks when weaning is complete and a solid food diet is the main food source.
Weaning Nutrition
Fat
Up to about a year, kittens are experiencing a growth phase where energy needs are up to 2.5 times higher than maintenance. Pet nutritionists often suggest that commercial cat food specially designed for kittens with bidding begins at 4 weeks of age. Fat has a higher calorific value than carbohydrates and proteins, supplying 8.5 kcal/g. The growing kitten needs arachidonic and linoleic acids that can be administered in omega-3 fatty acids. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is another important nutrient that can be supplied through omega 3 fatty acids. The addition of DHA to the diet is beneficial for the development of cognition, brain and visual kittens.
Protein
Cats are natural carnivorous animals and require large amounts of protein in food. Kittens are experiencing growth and need large amounts of protein to provide essential amino acids that allow the growth of tissues and muscles. It is recommended that kittens consume foods containing about 30% protein on a dry matter basis for proper growth.
Taurine is an essential amino acid found only in animal tissues and can not be produced in sufficient quantities by cats. Since it is an indispensable amino acid, it must be exogenously supplied through diet at 10 mg/kg body weight/day. Kittens lacking taurine can experience poor growth and can cause degeneration of the retina in cats.
Carbohydrates
Felines are natural carnivores and do not intentionally consume large amounts of carbohydrates. The liver of domestic cats has adapted to the carbohydrate deficiencies in diet by utilizing amino acids to produce glucose for brain fuel and other tissues. Research has shown that carbohydrate digestion in young kittens is much less effective than that of adult cats with a growing digestive tract. The easily digestible carbohydrates can be found in commercial kittens' food as an additional source of energy as well as a source of fiber to stimulate the immature tissue of the intestine. Soluble fibers such as slurry bits are common ingredients used as fibrous stool reinforcement and have been shown to strengthen intestinal muscles and thickened mucous lining to prevent diarrhea.
Diet Composition
Amino Acids
The lack of glucose available from restricted carbohydrates in foods has led to liver adaptation to produce glucose from the protein-solving component of amino acids. Enzymes that break down amino acids continue to be active in cats and thus, cats need a constant source of protein in their diet. Kittens, needing an increased amount of protein to supply the amino acids available for daily care and to build new body components as they continue to grow. There are many amino acids needed for kittens. Histidine required no more than 30% in a kitten diet because consuming a histidine-free diet leads to weight loss. Tryptophan is required at 0.15% for maximizing performance at this level. The kittens also need the following amino acids added in their diet: arginine to avoid excess ammonia in the blood or otherwise known as hyperammonemia, isoleucine, leucine, valine, lysine, methionine as sulfur containing amino acids, asparagine for maximum growth in early post- weaning, threonine and taurine to prevent central retinal degeneration.
Vitamins
Fat-soluble vitamins
Vitamin A is necessary in the diet of cats because cats can not convert carotene into retinol in the intestinal mucosa because they lack enzymes so this vitamin should be a supplement in food. Vitamin E is another vitamin needed in the kitten's diet because of the deficiency causing steatitis, causing fat depots to be firm and yellow-orange, which is painful and causes death. Also, Vitamin D is an important vitamin because the cat can not change it from the precursors in the skin.
Water-soluble vitamins
Cats can synthesize niacin, but its solution exceeds the number that can be synthesized and thus, has a higher need for it, which can be met through an animal diet. Pyridoxine (vitamin B6) is needed in increasing amounts because it is needed to produce amino acids. To continue, vitamin B12 is the recommended vitamin AAFCO essential in the metabolism of carbohydrates and proteins and maintains a healthy nervous system, healthy mucous membranes, healthy muscles and heart function and in general, promotes normal growth and development. Choline is also the recommended AAFCO material for kittens, which is important for neurotransmission in the brain and as a component of the phospholipid membrane. Biotin is another recommended AAFCO vitamin to support the thyroid and adrenal glands as well as the reproductive and nervous systems. Kittens also need riboflavin (vitamin B2) for heart health, pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), and folacin.
Metabolic tools
Because the kittens' food is very high in calories, ingredients must be implemented to ensure adequate digestion and utilization of these calories. Choline chloride is a material that retains fat metabolism. Biotin and niacin are also active in the metabolism of fats, carbohydrates and proteins. Riboflavin is also required for the digestion of fats and carbohydrates. This is the main metabolic tool incorporated into the kitten's diet to ensure the maximal use of nutrients.
Growth and Development
The combination of nutrients needed to meet the growth and development of the body of the cat as a whole, there are many materials that are not required kittens, but incorporated in dietary formulation to encourage healthy growth and development. These ingredients include: dry eggs as a source of protein and high-quality fatty acids, flaxseed as a source of flaxseed oil rich in omega 3 fatty acids and aids in digestion, calcium carbonate as a source of calcium, and calcium pantothenic (vitamin B5) acts as a coenzyme in amino acid conversion and essential for healthy skin.
Immunity Boosters
Antioxidants help support the development of a healthy immune system through inhibition of other molecule oxidation, which is important for growing kittens. Antioxidants can come from ingredients, such as: carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, vitamin E and vitamin E supplements, and zinc proteinate.
Orphaned kittens
Source of the article : Wikipedia
0 Comments