Kittens 2 – 4 weeks old

At 2 weeks old the kitten’s eye will be open and baby blue in colour. Their vision will be poor. The ear canals will be open and their ears will be small and round like a bear cub. They will have no teeth and their claws will still be non-retractable. At 3 weeks old their ears begin to point upward and their vision and hearing is slowly improving. At 4 weeks old they will start to explore and develop and be able to make eye contact and react to sights and sounds in the environment.

2-4 week old kittens belong with their mother full time. Please DO NOT remove the kittens. Their mother will be close by keeping an eye on them. If you do not see a mother present please call the DSPCA on (01) 499 4700 select option 3 or email info@dspca.ie

Should I handle kittens at this age?

The key socialisation period in kittens is from 2-3 weeks up to 10 weeks of age. Play is the best method to help them physically and socially develop. Socialisation is important to help kittens be comfortable around humans and other animals. Don’t remove them from where they are as they do need to be with their mother but you can start to interact with them and the best way in through play. Small home made toys such as tin foil scrunched up into little balls,  cardboard toilet roll holders and paper towels are great play items in addition to traditional kitten toys. As a guideline ideally kittens should have pleasant interactions with people for 30–60 minutes per day. If the kittens approach you, you can pet and touch them. This will help the kittens be ready for adoption when they are old enough and to settle into a home environment and be comfortable around humans.