Kitten ?

[RockysMom]

I have not had a kitten in a very long time and getting ready to get one at the end of the month, it will only be 6 weeks old. How old do they have to be to get there first shots and be fixed?

[magdalena]

They can be fixed as early as 8-12 weeks now I believe though some vets wait until 4-6 months. It is irresponsible to take a kitten away from its mother before 8 weeks though, they are still learning how to be a cat. Most kittens get vaccinated between 8-10 weeks, three sets, done 3 weeks apart. They should probably get dewormed at this time as well as the general checkup.

[fqtt]

At the vet clinic I work at we usually don't fix a cat unless they're 8 months, I believe. I think that's just a personal thing my boss decided to do, though. Not sure about shots, but magdalena seems to have all that under control :)

I fully agree with the full checkup, though. It probably won't cost much, and if something is wrong, the checkup will make you aware of it early enough to be able to do something about it.

[magdalena]

I actually have a vaccine free, raw fed household and I wait until cats are a year to spay or neuter (2 years old for dogs) because I believe the hormonal changes they go through in that first year helps them develop completely both mentally and physically.

That said after 15 years of rescuing and rehabilitating cats and keeping them separate that first year I had my first accidental mating. Might rethink the earlier spaying now, or at least never get a cold and be too out of it to do lock ups if there's a female in the house who is very sneaky. :D

[Junco]

I wouldn't recommend getting the kitten fixed before 4-8 months. That way they have a better chance at an uneventful recovery. At 8-12 weeks they are still very fragile. The animal shelter I volunteer at spays/neuters at 8 weeks, but only because they can't adopt them out until they are fixed. It can be very hard on them.

[fqtt]

oh wow, that is really early DD: poor little kittens... are the ones you get where you volunteer strays or turn ins?

[Junco]

Both! The Owner surrenders are the worst. :(

[fqtt]

I figured it was a mix :'DD

man I bet DDDD: the poor little guys :(

[magdalena]

At least people surrender where you are, here they just leave them in ditches or throw boxes of them out car windows on the street as they drive by.

[Junco]

Originally Posted by magdalena

At least people surrender where you are, here they just leave them in ditches or throw boxes of them out car windows on the street as they drive by.

Unfortunately, they do that too... or set them on fire, tie their tails to a skateboard... torture, neglect and just plain irresponsibility happens everywhere. Yet, in a world where there can be such cruelty, I am amazed at those who stand up and show such animals what life in a loving "forever home" can be like.