is there a way to tell if a kitten is deaf?

sometimes when I stand behind my 6 week old kitten I clap my hands or snap my fingers behind her head and nothing, she does'nt look or even flinch, could she be deaf or is she just so young her hearing has'nt developed yet?

At 6 weeks, her hearing should be developed. If she's not responding to sounds behind her, but responds as soon as you move into her range of view, she could have a hearing problem. You should check with your vet to be sure, though.

At that age, the hearing might just be "selective". What does the kitten in question look like?

What I did with my two is stood across the room & beat pans together super loud.

I'm still reading, but you might find some answers here:

http://www.thecatsite.com/Snips/213/...g-in-Cats.html

I have a deaf cat and one way to find out is when they are asleep, bang pots together and see if they wake up.

I tried the banging pots thing when she took her nap, I banged them about 10 times and she didn't move until a few seconds after I stopped, even then she only stirred and went back to sleep.

All of the above!! We had a beautiful pure white kitty at work called Oddball (he had odd coloured eyes) alot of people didn't actually know he was deaf, including me and some of the volunteers as he seemed to respond to use and was very vocal. I think it was just good timing him turning around when we spoke but he definately was deaf

I thought Georgi might be deaf for a while when she was little - 5-6 weeks she didnt respond to clapping or calling her name but what we did was somebody held her and another person was behind her so she couldnt see and they clapped their hands and called her name and made noises and such and she turned around so she must of had some hearing. Now she responds to alot of things it may just be that the kitten is little

I am starting to wonder if she is deaf, she still doesn't respond when I snap my fingers or make a loud noise behind her but today I walked into my room where she was napping and called her name and she woke up and came over to me, so I think she heard me, could she have or did she just sense that I was there?

Take your kitty to the vet to have a hearing test done. Also- depending on the cat- sometimes they may be deaf/have hearing loss in only one ear-not necessarily both. Even if she is deaf- she should adapt just fine Just make a few accomidations for her such as walking in front of her and not sneaking up behind her or allowing other animals to (your vet and other tcs members can also give you more suggestions!)

What color is your kitten? (It's relevant, honest.)

Sorry it took so long to answer your question, my kitten is black.

I know white cats are more likely to be born deaf, but any cat could have hearing problems. Definitely have your vet look at her. At my old job, we had a deaf cat that lived in the offices (actually, she ruled the roost) and she was just fine. She would even look at you if you said her name. My boss said the vet explained it to him like this. Since cat's whiskers are so sensitive to air currents, if they don't have their hearing to rely on, the whiskers become even more sensitive and start reacting to vibrations, such as voices. She learned what her name felt like. It makes sense. When humans lose a sense, the rest compensate so I guess it could happen to cats too. But, get her checked just to make sure.

Even deaf cats can sense vibrations, like clapping and banging, so try on of those referees whistles, and blow on it. Hard. Best effects if kitten is sleeping.

But DEFINITELY take her to the vet..

Deafness can be caused by an ear infection, too. Isabelle, a shelter kitty, had one that rendered her deaf & also made her balance very poor. She wobbled, fell over a ton....& will likely suffer from chronic ear infections.