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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Is my kitten smaller than average?

30 replies

bubblesforlife · 20/05/2019 13:26

Hey guys

I got a Bengal kitten when she was 10 weeks old, we brought her to the vet and realised she was very small for her age and underweight.

We didn't see her siblings as she was the last one there when we got her.

Roughly this has been her average weight

10 weeks .52 grams
11 weeks .65 grams
13 weeks .75 grams
16 weeks. 1.2 grams
18 weeks 1.35 grams (now)

She is super healthy now, full of energy and the vet is not at all concerned about her anymore.

I'm just curious based on this can anyone tell me if she is behind and if this may impact her growth going forward?

OP posts:
chemenger · 20/05/2019 13:38

I think you mean kilograms not grams.

UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername · 20/05/2019 13:48

Is it possible that she wasn't actually 10 weeks when you got her?

bubblesforlife · 20/05/2019 13:50

Yes kilograms! Sorry.

OP posts:
viccat · 20/05/2019 13:55

Do you have photos of her from when you first got her? If it was a private sale and not a registered breeder, it's highly likely she was younger than you were told...

You are correct that those weights make her a lot smaller than would be expected at those ages. Most kittens are about 100grams when they are born and then gain another 100grams each week. Some are smaller though (especially the runt of the litter) and if she is otherwise fine and vet is not concerned, sounds like she is doing well now.

bubblesforlife · 20/05/2019 13:56

She came with a certificate with her birth date, I'm of the opinion that she was that age. But I feel like maybe, possibly the runt of the litter, which is maybe (complete guess) why she was last to go.

OP posts:
Fluffycloudland77 · 20/05/2019 16:52

I saw a breeding queen Bengal at our bengals old cattery and she was tiny, I couldn’t believe she’d had kittens. Some of them just aren’t that big.

She won’t be fully grown till over a year, they do t mature as quickly as other breeds. Just feed on demand while she’s growing.

agnurse · 20/05/2019 18:12

This is Gatsby. He is about a year old in this pic. He is not a very big cat and probably won't get much bigger. He seems perfectly healthy and loves his mum, as you can see Grin

Hubby calls him Little Guy Grin

Is my kitten smaller than average?
bubblesforlife · 21/05/2019 22:56

The first is her about 11 weeks.
The second was last at 18 weeks.
She came from a registered breeder.

Is my kitten smaller than average?
Is my kitten smaller than average?
OP posts:
Ifeelinclined · 21/05/2019 23:15

She is beautiful!

SospanFrangipan · 21/05/2019 23:30

Gorgeous! My Trevor is half Bengal, and is 5kg, will be 10 in August, and still roams and acts like he's a kitten! He's so affectionate too, my little best mate 🥰

Tavannach · 21/05/2019 23:34

She's gorgeous. Difficult to say from a photo really but she does look a bit small at 11 weeks. Looks fine now.

SirVixofVixHall · 21/05/2019 23:38

She looks absolutely tiny for 11 weeks, so I would say either she wasn’t eleven weeks at all , or she is just naturally small. My Mum had a tiny cat, nothing wrong, just very weeny.

SirVixofVixHall · 21/05/2019 23:39

She looks more like 14 weeks in the 18 week pic.
She is absolutely gorgeous.

bubblesforlife · 21/05/2019 23:43

This is her at 15 weeks. She really has come on well on since then. We really struggled to get her to eat at first. Now she can’t get enough 😊

Is my kitten smaller than average?
OP posts:
EL8888 · 21/05/2019 23:47

She’s gorgeous! But yeah she does look a bit small. The important thing is the vet said she healthy. One of my cats is tiny, she’s 6 but people think she’s kitten still. She is perfectly happy and healthy

bubblesforlife · 21/05/2019 23:49

I hope she stays small, she’s so cuddly, and loves being on our shoulder! I don’t want that to change!
Do you think because she is a little behind she is likely not to grow that big?

OP posts:
agnurse · 22/05/2019 01:19

She VERY pretty girl! And so sweet!

Awwlookatmybabyspider · 23/05/2019 03:09

I have no idea if shes the right size for her age.
One thing I do know shes ridiculously cute. Id reach in through the screen and eat her if could. Grin

habibihabibi · 23/05/2019 04:09

So cute !

Fluffycloudland77 · 23/05/2019 06:57

She might have a growth spurt yet, ours went through a phase of being all legs and ears before filling out.

We had a Persian chinchilla who was kitten sized, she’d been the runt but was incredibly intelligent.

SirVixofVixHall · 23/05/2019 23:32

She is so very small for her age that I think she will stay small, unless you have been lied to about her age, obv.

FourteenCows · 23/05/2019 23:38

She seems quite small to me. Mine are boys but are both 2.6kg at 18 weeks.

She’s beautiful though!

Nutkin123 · 23/05/2019 23:41

She's stunning!!! As long as the vet says she's healthy she'll be fine Smile my little lady cat Remy is small, looks like a kitten and she's 8!

JingsMahBucket · 23/05/2019 23:48

I want to smoosh her, she’s so cute. She may have been the runt of her litter, hence her being the last one adopted. My friend has a cat who was the runt and she’s probably ever grown to about 80% of her full potential cat size. She’s even 14 years old now and still smaller than other cats.

Gingerkittykat · 24/05/2019 00:15

She looks a lot younger than 11 weeks in the first photo, more like the size my baby was at 8 weeks. It is also worrying she came underweight, how can you be sure the breeder is reputable?

The main thing is she is growing and gaining weight now.