For the first few weeks, both small wild and domestic newborn felines gain about 3 ounces in weight per week, while big-cat cubs gain proportionately more. For example, Siberian tiger cubs pack on the same amount in a day as their smaller cousins do in a week. To stimulate milk flow, kittens start to tread on the mother's breasts almost immediately after birth. They will continue to employ kneading as a comfort mechanism right into adulthood.
Feline mothers, both wild and domestic, are among the most protective in the animal world. They keep their kittens warm and clean, licking them head to toe — even the genitals are licked, both to clean them and to stimulate urination and defecation. To keep the nesting den clean and free of odors that might attract potential predators, the dutiful mother goes so far as to consume her litter's bodily wastes.
The First Several Weeks
The helpless newborn cubs and kittens spend nearly all of their time on their bellies, their heads pressed against the ground. They don't have the strength to stand. The intensity of their early feeding, however, brings quick physical results. Although their limbs will not fully support them for some time yet, week-old domestic cats may crawl as much as a few feet at a time, usually to rejoin siblings in the perpetual huddle for warmth.
- Most cats can stand at around 3 weeks of age.
- At about the same time as the kittens' first teeth emerge, domestic mothers begin to wean their young to solid foods.
- When they start to eat solids, the mother stops consuming their bodily waste and the kittens begin to bury their excretions in the ground or litter box.
- At about 4 weeks of age, kittens slowly but surely begin to walk. Their tails, until now limp and of little use, also may become upright, assisting the new walkers in maintaining their balance on shaky feet.
- Before long, as their bodies fill out, the kittens start to run, jump and climb with frenetic intensity.
- By 6 or 7 weeks of age, domestic kittens usually are fully weaned and eating only solid foods.
- At 8 weeks of age, many are taken from the litter to new homes, but 12 weeks is a better time for this separation — the extra time spent with the feline family is important for social development, as long as there is also interaction with humans.
The Self-Taught Cat
By the age of 4 or 5 weeks, the physical skills of domestic kittens have progressed to the point where their play exhibits all of the energy and techniques of the hunt, complete with high-speed chases and pouncing. Around this time, if the mother is allowed to go outdoors, she may bring home dead prey to present to the litter. The sight and smell of the prey often triggers an innate reaction in kittens, causing them to become focused and considerably more aggressive. As the kittens mature, the mother will offer them stunned or injured prey, introducing live prey once they are weaned, to stimulate their interest and provide them with the opportunity to develop their killing skills.
Extended Kittenhood
Although wild cats' physical development roughly parallels that of domestics, most of them achieve independence much later: at around 3½ months of age, although the period can vary dramatically among species. Wild mothers must take a more cautionary approach in rearing their young. Because their survival is so closely linked to successful hunting, wild cubs need to master the art of stalking and killing before going off on their own. The animals preyed on in the wild are generally larger and far more combative than the domestic's field mouse or bird, so wild mothers take a sober, gradual approach to their offspring's hunting practice sessions, but the steps are the same as those of a suburban house cat.
- First, the mother will bring prey back to the den and eat it in front of her young. Eventually, she will share some of her catch with them.
- As her offspring reach about 3 months of age, she will bring home stunned or injured animals for them to kill.
- Once their bodies have matured and their mouths are equipped with teeth, the cubs begin to accompany adults on hunting trips. Some species, such as tigers, take down prey, then stand aside to let their cubs move in for the kill.
Lion cubs have a cushier youth than most other types of wild cats, thanks to their living in prides. Since food generally is provided for them by the adults, lion cubs seldom kill on their own before reaching 12 to 15 months of age. Cheetahs, too, are late bloomers, reaching independence at about 18 months of age.
