Two 6 week old kittens...HELP?!

Hi,

In a few weeks I will be bringing 2 kittens into my home and at that time they will be 6 weeks old. I know that 6 weeks is an early age to adopt kittens but their mother died shortly after they were born and if I don't take them they will end up at a shelter, which I'd hate to see happen.

However, in order for me to take these kittens they will need to ride with me on a 4 hour car ride from where they are now (with a friend) to my house. This is my first time traveling with little ones and I'm not sure how to best prepare. I know a crate is a good start but I'm not sure what else I'll need.

Also once I get them home, I work from 7am to 5pm five days a week and while I again know that this isn't the optimal situation for kittens I do feel it is much better than a shelter. So with regards to this I'm trying know what is best for them while I'm at work. Should I confine them to a few rooms in the house or let them have free reigns?

Any advice that you can provide would be so gratefully appreciated.
Thanks!!

Hello Majorette!

There will be a lot of people here with a lot of great advice. Here is my $.02.
4 hours isn't too bad in a car - when two of my cats were 5 weeks they did a two hour ride just fine. I think they are too young to care about the car. Just make sure they have room, but are confined well enough in case of stops.

You will need to take them to a vet first thing. Since you know when you will get them I would make an appointment now. They need testing, de-worming possibly, and to begin getting their shots. DO NOT WAIT ON THIS. You will want them to be checked on immediately.

Also, these kittens will need to be in a small space for awhile, they are way too little to have free reign. I bought the largest box I could find at a shipping store and filled it with blankets and food and a small pan for them to use as a bathroom. When they were able to scale the walls I knew they could have free reign of the bedroom. I don't think I let them wander my home unsupervised until nearly 6 months of age.

They should be able to lap by the time you get them, so KMR and meat baby food with no onions should be fine. The biggest issue is your feeding schedule, kittens need to be fed every few hours. Can you come home during lunch or have someone stop by and check up on them? It's really imperative that they are fed well on a feeding schedule.

Since the babies are used to being together, put them in a single carrier for the ride. I have two (sisters) who set up a howl the second I put them in two separate carriers in the car. When they're together they mostly sleep the whole time.

My first kitten was 7.5 weeks old when I brought her home. I shut her in the bedroom while I was at work, 13-14 hours at a time, but pretty much gave her free access to the whole house when I was home. She didn't seem to have any trouble adapting the to space.

At 6 weeks the kittens should be able to eat dry food. Rather than trying to work out a feeding schedule, you can free feed. Leave plenty of kitten food out for them to nibble on 24 hours a day. If you want to feed wet, you could time two meals a day before you leave for work and after you get home, with free feeding in between.

Can you time the arrival of the new furbabies so that you have two or three days with them before you have to go to work? That way you can spend more time acclimating them to you and to their new home.

Keep us updated on how things are going. Oh, and we want

All you should need for the ride home is a carrier. My cats didn't eat/drink/use the litterbox at all for the first 18 hours they were home, so I doubt yours will need to do so in the car. If you are anything like me, you might want to look into seeing if you have a friend who could accompany you on the trip. I drove 45 minutes to take my girls home, and all they did was meow at me the whole time (while, one did, and she still hasn't shut up!). I just wanted to get into the back seat and sit with them to tell them it is OK. So, if you can have someone who can take backseat duty (or drive, while you take the backseat), that would probably be great. Not imperative, as I'm sure they will eventually calm down and go to sleep at that age.

As for confining them to a room, my girls we confined to the bathroom the first night. I picked them up on Friday and just let them have free roam when I went back to work on Tuesday (which is a great schedule to have - if you can be at home with them over at least a weekend). They were absolutely fine (didn't cause any trouble until they were a little older!). They were 9.5 weeks though, quite a bit older than your little ones. It's probably not a bad idea to keep them in a room with litter box, food, water, and a few toys...at least until they have a chance to explore fully during supervised time.

They will have eachother, and at first, that will probably be the most important thing. I know mine would have a fit if they were separated for some reason....and they really helped each other to adapt.

Best of luck with your little cuties!

For traveling, put a puppy pad in the bottom for any accidents. I'd let them ride in the same carrier home (get a 2nd one later).

At home, confine the kittens to one room with their litter pan, food and water dishes and a few balls to play with.

I don't let my kittens have free run in the house without supervision until they are 4-5 months old.