What Milk Can Kittens Drink

That being said for a time kittens indeed have to drink milk to develop properly.

What milk can kittens drink. For instance people increasingly ask whether goat milk for cats is an acceptable treat. The only milk that is healthy for kittens to drink is either their mother s or they will need a kitten milk replacer which can also be called kmr or kitten milk formula. If she s not available or able to feed them you can feed orphaned kittens kitten milk replacement formula by a bottle. Once they have weaned production of lactase stops and they are no longer able to break down lactose effectively resulting in milk intolerance.

Since water makes up a larger portion of a kitten s body than that of an adult cat it is extra important to make sure they drink enough. Cats have no nutritional need for milk once they have weaned. Cats and milk at a glance. Most cats have an intolerance to the lactose in cow s milk and it can cause digestive problems.

Young kittens will drink their mother s milk until they are weaned. Cats don t need. Nursing kittens produce an enzyme called lactase which breaks down lactose sugar in milk. What do kittens drink.

Older already weaned kittens just need water to stay hydrated. No cow milk for kitties. Goat milk for kittens is a little more salutary than cow s milk but. Sheep s milk contains high levels of lactose and casein compared to other kinds of milk.

Gary richter a veterinary health expert with rover. Even though some cats can tolerate milk and seem to enjoy it cow s milk just isn t good for cats says dr. On average cats need 50 ml water per kg of body weight. Being obligate carnivores cats acquire nutrients through the fleshes of other animals so they don t need to drink milk.

This should be a treat only and not a part of your cat s daily fluid intake. There are other varieties of milk. If you do want to give your cat milk you can buy specially formulated cat milk from most supermarkets or pet shops. Kittens lack the proper enzymes to digest the lactose in cow milk and feeding cow milk to kittens can cause diarrhea and dehydration very quickly in very small kittens.

During the nursing phase after birth kittens need to drink milk from the mother cat to get much needed antibodies fat protein and so on. You can help make sure your kitten gets enough water by feeding it wet food. Does all milk contain lactose. There should also be free access to fresh water for their mother and kittens will start to lap this too.

What shouldn t cats drink. It won t be suitable for a lactose.