Newborn Kittens Sleep A Lot

A general rule for kittens is that the younger the kitten is the more sleep they need.

Newborn kittens sleep a lot. As kittens mature beyond the newborn stage they will sleep less. Her sleep is light agitated with small fast contractions of her face muscles and ears and she may make small sounds. But even at six months of age they still manage to spend about 16 to 20 hours a day dozing and dreaming away. While they also require a lot of sleep there s a noticeable difference between a kitten who is tired and one that is lethargic.

A newborn kitten s daily routine is made up of sleeping 90 percent of the time that is almost 22 hours of shuteye. Kittens won t be playing with littermates just yet and the only social interaction between each other will be battling for a nipple to nurse from. Newborn kittens need to feed every two to three hours. While it s true that kittens love snoozing and they can sleep up to 18 20 hours a day it doesn t always happen when humans are asleep.

The mother would not leave her babies or kill them as some people say as i have had some experience with stray kittens and their. A newborn kitten needs to sleep around 90 percent of the time which is about 22 hours of sleep. I would check on them even though newborns do sleep a lot. Behavior changes of newborn kittens.

Elderly cats often have kittens beat in that department however. Lethargic kittens sleep the whole day away and when they aren t sleeping they re disinterested in playing or doing anything that isn t looking for another place to fall asleep. Fading kitten syndrome is a congenital disease that occurs when a kitten fails to thrive. Not always it s common for kittens to wake up throughout the night.

So don t be concerned if your brand new kitten isn t running around and exploring at all times. Around 90 of her time. In reality sleep is the very best thing for her little body. If you notice one of the kittens is generally more lethargic and sleeping a lot more than its siblings it can be a sign of the syndrome.

If any kittens do not receive the first milk contact your vet. Cats are generally active at dawn and dusk. Once kittens are a few weeks old and out of the newborn stage of nearly constant sleeping they tend to be asleep for between 60 and 70 percent of each 24 hour period much more than the average sleeping time of fully mature felines. You probably won t notice much of a difference between a newborn kitten and a one week old kitten but it will start to be more active as the week goes on.

Kittens suckling well from their queen will sleep between feeds and do not need additional nutrition until three to four weeks of age. Kittens are supposed to be inquisitive and constantly bouncing around.