How Old Is My Kitten? Age by Weight and Milestones
Found a kitten, or not sure how old yours is? Tick the signs you can see, enter a weight, or both. The tool compares them with kitten aging charts from Alley Cat Allies, the National Kitten Coalition, ASPCApro and the Merck Veterinary Manual.
Checked against 5 sources· Not veterinary advice
How the guide works
Each sign you tick points to an age range taken from the charts below. When you tick several, the tool shows the range where they all overlap. If they do not overlap, it says so rather than guessing. Weight is checked separately against the Alley Cat Allies weight ranges for kittens up to 5 weeks, and from 1 pound upward against ASPCApro's rule of thumb of about 1 pound per month.
Give the teeth more weight than the scale. The National Kitten Coalition says weight alone is not an accurate indicator of age, and that teeth are the most accurate indicator from 4 weeks to 6 months.
Kitten age chart: birth to 8 weeks
| Age | Typical weight | What you will see |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1 week | 3 to 8 oz | Eyes shut, ears folded down, cannot walk; umbilical cord may still be visible. |
| 1 to 2 weeks | 8 to 11 oz | Blue eyes start to open and focus; ears begin to unfold; crawling and kneading. |
| 3 weeks | 7.5 to 14.5 oz | Eyes and ears fully open; standing and first wobbly steps; baby teeth coming in. |
| 4 to 5 weeks | 8 to 16.75 oz | Running, playing and pouncing; starting to wean onto soft food and use a litter box; eye color changing from blue. |
| 8 weeks | About 2 lb | Looks like a miniature cat. |
Source: Alley Cat Allies, How to Determine a Kitten's Age.
Teething schedule
| Teeth | National Kitten Coalition | Merck Veterinary Manual |
|---|---|---|
| Baby incisors (front teeth) | 2½ to 3½ weeks | 2 to 4 weeks |
| Baby canines | 3 to 4 weeks | not listed |
| Baby premolars | 5 to 8 weeks | 5 to 6 weeks |
| All baby teeth in | By 8 weeks | not listed |
| Adult incisors | 3 to 3½ months | Adult teeth begin at about 4 to 7 months |
| Adult canines / premolars / molars | 3 to 4 / 4½ to 6 / 5 to 6 months | |
| All adult teeth in | By 6 months | not listed |
The National Kitten Coalition notes that eruption times vary with breed, nutrition and general health, which is why the guide gives ranges.
Frequently asked questions
How can you tell how old a kitten is?
Look at several signs together: whether the eyes and ears are open, whether the kitten can stand or walk, which teeth have come in, and its weight. The National Kitten Coalition says teeth are the most accurate guide from 4 weeks to 6 months, and that weight alone is not an accurate indicator of age.
When do kittens open their eyes?
Alley Cat Allies says a kitten's blue eyes start to open and focus at 1 to 2 weeks; the National Kitten Coalition puts eye opening at 7 to 10 days. By 3 weeks the eyes and ears are fully open.
How much should a 4 week old kitten weigh?
Alley Cat Allies gives 8 to 16.75 ounces for kittens of 4 to 5 weeks, and the National Kitten Coalition uses about 1 pound at four weeks as a baseline for healthy kittens, with a gain of 4 to 6 ounces a week after that.
When do kittens get their teeth?
The Merck Veterinary Manual says baby incisors begin to come in at 2 to 4 weeks and baby premolars at 5 to 6 weeks. Adult teeth usually begin to appear at around 4 to 7 months.
When do kittens start eating food?
Alley Cat Allies says kittens start to wean at 4 to 5 weeks, when they can lap up formula, eat soft food and even use the litter box.
Is the one pound per month rule accurate?
It is a rule of thumb. ASPCApro's kitten aging guide says healthy kittens weigh about 1 pound for every month of age, so a 2 pound kitten is about 2 months old. The National Kitten Coalition adds that weight alone is not an accurate indicator of age, so check teeth and milestones too.
Sources
- How to Determine a Kitten's Age, Alley Cat Allies. Used for: Weight brackets and milestones from birth to 8 weeks.
- Determining Kitten Age (National Kitten Coalition, 2015), National Kitten Coalition, hosted by Alley Cat Allies. Used for: Eye, ear and walking milestones and the teething schedule.
- Dental Development of Cats (pet owner version), Merck Veterinary Manual. Used for: Baby incisors at 2–4 weeks, baby premolars at 5–6 weeks, adult teeth from about 4–7 months.
- Aging Kittens (B. DiGangi, DVM, MS, DABVP), ASPCApro. Used for: Rule of thumb: healthy kittens weigh about 1 pound per month of age.
- How to determine the age of newborn kittens (kitten aging one-sheet), Best Friends Animal Society. Used for: Kittens cannot regulate their own body temperature until about 4 weeks old.