What to feed a Scottish Fold kitten at 2 months and how to care for him

A Scottish fold and straight-eared cat at 1 month (4 weeks) is a small creature that needs its mother. Unscrupulous breeders may already give kittens to future owners at this age, because... they want to get their pet early. But such people forget that taking a kitten away from its mother at 1 month is an unacceptable barbarity that can ruin its entire life. In this article we will talk about how a Scottish kitten should look, behave and eat at 1 month old, how to care for it and why it is so important not to separate it from its mother.

The article is part of the section Development of Scottish kittens by month

Description of the breed

Scottish cats have very developed muscles, a powerful and squat body, and short hair. This cute creature with a plush coat has short strong legs, a powerful neck, a large round head with a formed chin and pronounced cheeks. In the Scottish Fold, a characteristic sign of thoroughbredness is small triangular ears, strongly pressed to the skull, the tips of which are directed forward and curved down due to a special crease in the cartilage.

The large and round eyes of a 2-month-old Scottish Fold kitten, the photo of which is presented in the article, often have an amber-yellow color, and sometimes match the coat color. The animal's long tail tapers slightly towards the tip. The color of the coat with a thick undercoat can be very varied: cream, black, white, blue, chinchilla, silver. All kittens are born with straight ears and only some, after three weeks of age, acquire a characteristic appearance. There can be straight-eared and lop-eared Scots in the same litter.

Is it possible to breed a fold-eared cat with a fold-eared cat?

Once we figured out hereditary genetics, it became clear why two fold-eared Scots should not be brought together. It's all about the characteristic lines that form within the group:

Negative consequences occur when a couple with lop-eared inclinations is crossed with each other. Each of them gives one gene to the kittens, the FdFd formula is combined, and the cub’s body receives the entire set of hereditary ailments.

Then breeders relied on crossing straight-eared and fold-eared animals. The percentage of healthy offspring quickly increased, and the breed began to take on stable shape. Some of the kittens already demonstrated normal development, grew without problems and became absolutely healthy cats.

The other (smaller) half sometimes still “snapped.” She repeated the same painful manifestations, although her parents belonged to different species of the Scottish group - there were carriers of both fd and Fd. And the consequences were as if fold-eared cats were crossed

A new round of selection failures gave rise to further research by geneticists. They found that some cats look straight-eared, but have the genetic makeup of fold-eared cats. And when the parent pair seems completely correct - one has its ears down, and the other's ears are up - then in fact, in the scenario considered, it is possible to mate a fold-eared cat with the same genetically fold-eared cat.

Selection of food type

Owners who have acquired a small pet are immediately faced with the problem of what to feed a Scottish Fold kitten for 2 months. First you need to choose the main type of food, and then give preference to one of the following types:

• Natural – consists of a large list of products that pet owners eat.
• Artificial – ready-made dry and canned food and special additives.
• Combined – the most balanced, allowing you to provide a growing pet with all the necessary vitamins and microelements.

Choosing the type of feeding is a crucial moment for the animal owner. For a balanced diet, the lop-eared dog must receive a sufficient amount of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.

Mandatory set of natural products

To ensure health and active growth, Scottish cats need to choose the right diet. Pets have a good appetite and are not picky about food. What to feed a Scottish Fold kitten for 2 months? When choosing natural food, you will need the following products:

• Meat – lean varieties of beef, chicken, rabbit or turkey are high in protein. It is first boiled or doused with boiling water, finely chopped or passed through a meat grinder.
• Fish is a source of vitamins, Omega-3 fatty acids, phosphorus, and calcium. Give only boiled.
• Fermented milk products are rich in calcium: kefir, sour cream, cottage cheese, cream, fermented baked milk, with a fat content of no more than 10%.
• By-products - contains phosphorus: heart, brains, liver.
• Porridge – you can cook it in milk using rice, buckwheat and wheat groats.
• Vegetables and herbs are a source of vitamins; use boiled or add chopped to porridge or meat. They use cauliflower, zucchini, carrots, and beets.
• Egg yolk – boiled and added to porridge and vegetables.

Be sure to place a bowl of clean, filtered drinking water near your food to normalize digestion. It is recommended to change the water twice a day.

Ready-made factory feed

The easiest way to organize feeding a Scottish Fold kitten for 2 months is with ready-made factory food. In this case, time for preparing food is saved, and the pet receives all the necessary nutrients according to age for healthy development and growth. You can use both dry and canned food. It is recommended to choose only high-quality products marked Premium or Superpremium class.

Such treats are not cheap, but the savings come from additional feeding and the good condition of your pet. For kittens, there are products on sale in three flavors: game, poultry and fish with the addition of various components. You should not use cheap food "Katinka", "Kity Kat", "Whiskas" and "Friskas". They are of insufficient quality and contain a large amount of mineral salts. Instead of meat and offal, they use bones, skins and feathers. When they are consumed, kittens develop certain diseases, including urolithiasis.

Characteristics of age

Kittens at 1 month are still just mastering the world around them. At this time, they begin to actively crawl around their mother and even into neighboring rooms. The mother is not very happy with this, because... The kittens may disappear from sight, so she tries to collect them in a pile. A particularly inquisitive cat may bite its whiskers, because... With the help of their whiskers, cats navigate in space, and, having lost them, they become less self-confident.

Little kittens do not yet know how to go to the litter box, doing it every other time or not doing it at all: many choose the wrong places, contrary to the example of the mother and the complaints of the breeders. But a little more - and these guys will learn everything as required by cat etiquette.

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At the age of 1 month, kittens actively play with each other and with their mother, trying various predatory tricks. But the mother stops their attempts to play with the claws: in this way she develops in the children a manner of playing softly, which future owners will really like. Kittens have not yet mastered this skill at 1 month, so wait at least until 2 months until the mother reinforces it.

Feeding secrets for a good character

Much depends directly on how to feed a Scottish Fold at 2 months. It is recommended to give food to the kitten not from a bowl, but from the hands of the owner. This helps to form better contact with humans and a friendly pet character. Animals like to follow rules when eating food. The Scottish kitten should be invited by the command “come here” so that he sits opposite the owner and only then begins to eat.

In the future, the cat will wait for special permission to start eating and will never steal food from the table. It is necessary to strictly monitor the kitten’s daily intake and not exceed it. Scots are naturally prone to obesity, diseases of the genitourinary system and heart, so it is imperative to follow the regime.

Neat games

But “no brute force” also means that you should not allow the cat to be rude to you. Another tip on how to raise a Scottish Fold and Straight-eared kitten is that if he fights, bites, attacks you, tries to pull your hair, chases your legs under the blanket, this needs to be stopped. But not by force. First, just don't play with your kitten with your bare hands and feet. Secondly, if he attacks himself, you can flick him on the bridge of his nose, but not too hard. Or hiss. The hissing of a mother cat is used as an effective tool against kitten violence. Therefore, they are all afraid of such sounds: this means that the offended party is desperate and is ready to take any measures to protect itself.

How to choose the right food for a 2 month old Scottish Fold kitten

Breeders advise feeding your pet the same food that its mother consumed. But if the new owners do not have the opportunity to buy expensive food, then the feed manufacturer and the type of product are selected individually. Carefully, giving a small amount of food, monitor the Scotsman’s condition. In the absence of negative effects, the feed is introduced for continuous use. It is especially necessary to ensure the compliance of all microelements and vitamins in it. When eating natural products, the daily diet is varied. The pet should receive lean meat, fresh sea fish, vegetables, cereals, and dairy products. You should not feed your Scotsman potatoes, legumes, onions, pork or lamb.

The second stage is independence and growing up

Cat vaccination periods

Rules for caring for kittens

Basic care for Scottish Fold kittens for 2 months includes the following activities:

• Grooming. Depending on the thickness, use a comb with rare or frequent teeth. If the fur is tangled, use a special lotion and trim the tangles with scissors.
• Examination and cleaning of eyes. They are cleaned with a cotton swab dipped in water. Special drops are used after washing the eyes.
• Bathing. They teach it gradually from an early age, washing the cat once every three months.
• Ear cleaning. The procedure is done monthly two to three times. Using a cotton swab dipped in a special liquid, gently wipe the auricle.
• Nail trimming. Perform, if necessary, on the front paws, cutting off the very tip, no more than 2 mm.
• Teeth cleaning. For this purpose, special toothpastes and brushes are used. Regular brushing helps prevent dental plaque.

In addition, the kitten must undergo preventive treatment against helminths and be vaccinated against dangerous diseases.

When and how to bathe a 2 month old Scottish Fold kitten?

A small pet begins to be bathed only from the age of two months, and then only when it is heavily soiled or when fleas appear. Wash in warm water about 36 degrees with special shampoo. It is better to pour the water in advance, because the Scotsman is very frightened by its noise. It is advisable to put a rubber toy in the bath and water the animal from a ladle. The soap solution must be washed off thoroughly so that when licked, the product does not cause irritation.

Before bathing, oil drops are instilled into the pet's eyes to prevent irritation of the mucous membrane. Cotton swabs are inserted into the ears. After the water procedure, the baby’s fur is dried with a towel and a hairdryer at a distance of half a meter. Make sure your kitten doesn't catch a cold. The shampoo that the owners use is not suitable for the kitten; it will cause severe allergies.

Feeding recommendations

We looked at what to feed a Scottish Fold kitten at 2 months old. For those who have recently acquired a furry pet, experts advise:

• Do not put the daily portion of food into the bowl immediately. A baby at this age is not able to control his appetite.
• Food should not be given without pre-heating from the refrigerator.
• The shelf life of food is 24 hours at a temperature of +4 degrees, and wet food is 48 hours.
• Don't forget to add microelements and vitamins for cats to natural food.
• Fresh water is poured into a separate bowl for the Scotsman, otherwise the kitten will lap it up wherever he finds it.

Experts are always arguing about combined nutrition. Some argue that you cannot combine natural food and ready-made food, while others welcome such nutrition. Moreover, it is noted that the diet of a two-month-old Scottish Fold must be constant.

Issues of castration and sterilization of Scots

Many pet owners who do not want to breed them decide to castrate or sterilize. The problem of the pet's sex life disappears completely. Scottish Folds can be neutered after reaching 1 year of age.

The probability of complications after castration is 0.05%. The operation lasts about 15 minutes, is considered practically safe, but is performed under anesthesia. After castration, the animal becomes more docile and affectionate and does not mark its territory.

To prevent unwanted pregnancies, a Scottish Fold cat is sterilized at 6–7 months. You should not wait for the first pregnancy to occur, but if this happens, you can also sterilize the pregnant pet.