Can she really be 9 months old?

I'm making the appointment for Luna to meet our vet, but I'm a little confused about her age and weight. The adoption papers have her DOB listed as 3/20/05. She was brought into the shelter after a car accident on 9/30/05. Nothing shows how they came about figuring her age.

My concern is, she only weighs about 4 pounds, a little less. She looks healthy, although her appetite has yet to fully bloom here while she completely adjusts to her new home. My husband says we just don't know what sort of life she had, with the surgery and all, and that she could fluff right up after a month or so with us. She is built small, but can she really be 9 months old at this weight?

Don't worry. I'll be plaguing my vet with questions very soon! In the meantime, any input?

Yes if she isnt a large cat she could be nine months... was she mal nurished??


Frankie is appx 2-3 years and weighed 5lbs something ...

Trauma can bring about some size and weight issues for sure, but goodness... four pounds seems a little low in the weight department for a nine month old cat, no matter the breed. Our new little girl is 7 months old and is 8 pounds already.

This appointment... spaying?

Weight doesn't necessarily correspond with age all that well. It is pretty easy to tell a 6 month old because they have most of their permanent teeth by that point so if that is the criterion the shelter used to determine her age, then it's probably accurate. 4 pounds is tiny but not unheard of.

sharky.....I don't think that she was malnourished, but I don't know much about her, other than what the shelter writes on the adoption papers. They've had her since September, when she was hit by a car and went through surgery for a broken leg to have a pin inserted. The pin came out on Nov. 8th.

Bikeman....Luna was spayed by the shelter on Dec. 7th, as well as microchipped and current on all vaccinations until Dec. of 2006. She was also tested for FIV, which was negative. All in all, she's a very healthy girl.

It's just habit for me to take a new animal in to my vet so that I can have his opinion of them, plus, he likes meeting them!

You might never truly know how old your new kitty is.

I adopted Smidge on 4/2/05. The shelter said she was 12 mns, based on her vet eval 3/30/05, when brought to the shelter as an injured stray. She also weighed on 5 lbs, had ribs sticking out, and a petite frame. I took her for a followup vet visit in May since her injured paw had not recovered; they said she was 9-12 mns, based mostly on all her baby teeth being gone.

From April thru the fall - she gained one pound a month. She's doubled in size practically and weighs 9-10 lbs now. Not just weight gain, but all over larger and her fur seemed more "baby" fluff then compared to now. I also notice that kittens have big ears generally in relation to the rest of their size...and Smidge's ears were awfully big compared to the rest of her when I brought her home.

Anyway, due to neglect and how much she's grown and whatnot, I think she was definately still a kitten when I got her - maybe 8-9 mns. Now she acts younger then she did as a true "kitten" She seems to be going backwards in age LOL

How she's turned out:



Not exactly the little petite "adult" cat I brought home

She is gorgeous, CDubbie!!!!

nana is 8 months old and she is 5 lb. my vet said she's the 2nd tiniest cat he's seen.
she was 4 lb when i got her a month ago...

so i guess as long as Luna is healthy it's good

Hannah was 4 lbs when I brought her home from the shelter and she was 6-7 months old. We've had her a month and she's up to 5.5 lbs. I don't think she's going to get much bigger since she's almost a year old, but you never know!

Stephanie

When I got Rocky I was told he was 8/10 weeks old. He was very skinny 2.5 pounds. Vets estimated him to be closer to 12-15 weeks based on his teeth. He fattened up very quickly though and grew very fast.

My Emily is about 4 years old, and she's only 6 pounds, and her sister Cubby is only about 8 pounds or so. Some kitties are just smaller, and not knowing her background, she could have been not properly nourished as a baby. Mine were barn cats with internal parasites and fleas so that could be why they are smaller now. I'd say as long as she's eating and acting normally, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. I'm sure you've had her tested for FELV/FIV? My guess is that she came to the shelter and they guestimated her at 6 months old, maybe judging by her teeth or something, making her birthday in March...Does she have her adult teeth yet?

Originally Posted by menagerie mama

My Emily is about 4 years old, and she's only 6 pounds, and her sister Cubby is only about 8 pounds or so. Some kitties are just smaller, and not knowing her background, she could have been not properly nourished as a baby. Mine were barn cats with internal parasites and fleas so that could be why they are smaller now. I'd say as long as she's eating and acting normally, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. I'm sure you've had her tested for FELV/FIV? My guess is that she came to the shelter and they guestimated her at 6 months old, maybe judging by her teeth or something, making her birthday in March...Does she have her adult teeth yet?

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She was tested for FELV/FIV on Dec. 12th, it was negative.

They listed her birthday as April 20th, 2004. I can always call the shelter and speak to the adoption coordinator, find out how they figured that date. Maybe they know something more than what is on the paperwork.

She is definitely eating and acting normally.

As far as her teeth, I have no clue. Was going to leave it up to my vet to check.

That's good about the FELV/FIV...Yeah, I think your vet will be able to give you a better estimate by looking at her teeth. Let us know what you find out!