05/24/2026
It's kitten season! 🥰
With that being said, I am going to share science-backed information on kittens and when they should go home to their new families. Cats are not dogs, and differ in many ways. Kittens should stay with their moms until at least 12 weeks old. Responsible, ethical breeders keep their kittens until 12 weeks. The only reason to not do so, is honestly, they grow rapidly and eat ALOT and are MESSY. It is my belief that anyone letting kittens go before 12 weeks of age - it is a monetary and time save for the person, but does not benefit the kitten.
Kittens are adorable and cute, I know! Please make sure you are choosing a reputable breed preservationist! Sharing out of love for the cats -Kelli
Thank you to the Siberian Health Association for this knowledge-based & helpful information!
UC Davis, AAHA, & the National Institute of Health have all done studies about early maternal separation. And they aren’t the only ones.
Responsible breeders will not remove a kitten from it’s mother prior to 12 weeks of age. Early weaning can lead to:
Aggression – Mother cats teach kittens “basic manners” during these later weeks. Mother cats will instigate “play fights” with their kittens during this time and rile the kitten up. This teaches the kittens the threshold for biting/scratching. They teach kittens thresholds for playing. Kittens that are weaned early and don’t get these lessons from their mothers can grow to be “aggressive”. They will bite and scratch because they haven’t been taught that this is not acceptable behavior.
Kittens grow incredibly fast between weeks 8 and 12. This quick growth can be really stressful on kitten bodies causes a chain reaction. Quick growth -> stresses the immune system -> lowers the immune system response -> can lead to bacterial infections. Bacterial infections at that age can lead to lethargy and ultimately death within hours. An experienced breeder can see these signs early and with normal every day supplies that a typical breeder has on hand, they can resolve an infection quickly versus taking days to get into a vet appointment. Most fur-parents don’t know what to look for in these situations and don’t know to do something as simple as pinching a cat/kittens skin to test for dehydration. It isn’t a matter of being a bad fur-parent. It is a matter of just not understanding the needs of a young kitten coupled with not having the supplies on hand to cope with an issue like this.
Kittens that go home at 12 weeks or more have more muscle and body weight to withstand stressors. Assuming proper socialization, they are also confident and better adjusted.
Here are some articles:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168159123000217
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28871130/
https://betterwithcats.net/how-do-mom-cats-discipline-kittens/ #:~:text=Correcting%20and%20disciplining%20kittens%20is,kittens%20learn%20what's%20off%2Dlimits
https://www.kinship.com/uk/cat-behaviour/signs-kitten-was-taken-from-mother-too-young
