the kittens at 3 weeks of age

finally we all have decided to name the kittens
everyone, meet sally, johnny and cindy. which one is which?

the upper one with the white stripe on the neck is johnny and the other one is cindy

this naughty and the smallest one is sally. doumo minna!!

they are so adorable and cute. we have decided to not give cindy to her father's owner like we promised before but instead we will give them money. besides, my cousin may want to have her. hmm..i can't imagine when they will separate from each other soon. like how casper separated from her other siblings. she played alone and it was a pitiful scene to watch.

as they are now 3 weeks old, they are able to open their eyes widely, able to do baby steps, lick their own furs and able to climb out from their basket. besides, the lactating a lot and sleep a lot make them bigger and fluffier. due to that, shaggy (the mother) is really thin. i could feel her spine and make an outline of each of them. to have the chance to observe these 3 adorable kittens growing up is such a pleasure. my camera is full with their pictures. every poses they made are really cute and i could not resist myself to take pictures of them. they are good models too. my daily activities mainly playing with the kittens. i woke up in the morning looking for them and before i go to sleep, i kiss each and everyone of them goodnight. like ibu said, how am i going to leave them when i get posted one day. i am so fuckingly going to miss them. zettai!!

but one thing that is bothering me is, ever since they were delivered until now, i never see they poop. i was wandering maybe they don't poop until later or maybe they have problem like anus is not patent. but they are healthy and very active to think of not patent anus. hence, i looked up for the correct milestone for kitten and this is what i have found.

info from i-love-cats.com

For the first week of life, kittens live only to process food and gain nutrients. Their eye and ear canals will not yet be open, and the mother cat will take care of all their needs. By the end of week two, their eyes will be completely open. .(yes this is true. they opened their eyes last week.) Throughout this week and the next, their senses of sight, smell, and hearing will be developing and they'll become more aware of the outside world(oooo...) During week three, kittens may start to purr and the mother cat may begin to wean them, as they can digest on their own.(ooo..really..we will start to give them powder milk soon) Between weeks three and four, the kittens will start to stand and even walk.(they walk now but not stable yet. like baby taking the first step.) In week five, the weaning process will start taking place in earnest. Owners should offer kittens' well-balanced canned food especially formulated for kitten needs. (oo..i'll take note of that) As the kittens are slowly weaned, they will continue to nurse for up to eight or 10 weeks to satisfy their need to suckle. (ok..) At five weeks, kittens will be more independent, can start to learn about the litter box, and "socialize" with their litter.(socialize?!!..i bet this is the most important lesson of all.. i don't want sally to end up like comel who just poooping anywhere she likes. hence she is on detention..so this mean they will not poop until 5 weeks?) During week six, socializing is the most important skill for kittens to learn as they play with each other and adjust to humans. (it looks like sally begins to start playing with me already.) If a kitten is not socialized to be handled by humans by six weeks, it is a very difficult skill to teach later in life. (ok..we will make sure that this is not going to happen.)

but still i am not that convince that they don't poop. how could that be. hence i searched some more info

here is another source i found that really helps. from cat world.com

Week 1

Kittens are born blind & deaf. There eyes are closed & their ears folded down.

In the first week of life kittens basically sleep & eat. When they are awake, they stay close to the mother. (absolutely true.)

Newborn kittens are unable to regulate their body temperature & rely on mum to keep warm. The kitten's environment must be kept at a constant temperature to avoid either hypothermia or hyperthermia.

The umbilical cord remains attached for the first 3 days. At birth they usually weigh between 90 - 100 grams.

Toileting is stimulated by the mother. After her kittens have fed, she will lick their belly & genital area, eating any feces & urine.(ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.....now i know....thats where the poops go...ok...the mystery is solved)

Week 2

By the second week their eyes are beginning to open although their vision is not very good at this stage. Do not force their eyes open as it could result in damage. Young kittens are vulnerable to eye infections, so keep a watch for any signs of infection such as crustiness or white/yellow secretion. All kittens have blue eyes at this stage. (really??)

Weight gain is around 7-10 grams a day, and by the end of the second week the kitten should have doubled it's weight. (i bet mine like already triple their weight by now)

The sense of smell is developing. They will often have a preference for a particular nipple.(they fight for them!!..that's what i noticed..poor shaggy)

Week 3

By three weeks the kitten is becoming more aware of his littermates.(haha..littermates ha) His sense of smell is continuing to develop. (ooo..that is why they like to sniff around) It is around the three week mark that kittens begin to shakily move about. (yes..like a drunkard..) Some kittens will try to walk & explore.(sally does this often...every morning, the one that always outside the kitten's basket will be sally...good sally..you are so adventurous..)

By three weeks their ears will be erect. Their baby teeth begin to show. (really??..is that why sally always try to bite me??..i could feel her teeth though..that means she was "teethless" before this??...oooo...sodeska...interesting...i should have observed more detail..sigh*) The sense of smell is well developed.

They can now purr.

Week 4

The sense of smell is fully mature.

The kittens are becoming more & more active & be interacting with their littermates. They may attempt to explore outside the confines of their kittening box.

The mother is still grooming her offspring, but they are also able to groom themselves.(i once saw cindy and sally tried to scratch themselves..ok..but not yet able to groom themselves)

Their eyesight is improving, although it will be a few more weeks before it is fully developed. The sense of hearing is now well developed. (ooo..)

It is at this time that the mother will begin to leave her kittens for short periods of time.

At this stage, you can provide a small bowl of water for kittens to drink from.

interesting isn't it??..i can't wait for them to grow up and be able to play catch with them..i am so thrill right now..hopefully i am able to play with them before i get posted..i love you..

good night!! from sally and cindy