My kitten smells weird. Will its mom accept it after the vet?

Question

Will mamma cat take back a 6 week old kitten that has been in hospital 6 days. Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 1 month and 28 days old | 1.3 lbs

Linda G, MS, DVM · Accepted Answer

Hello. It is very difficult to say how well the momma cat will accept the kitten. It is not necessarily a time issue, more the presence of strange & unusual scents the kitten will return with. What I would do is introduce the kitten back to mom after it has had a few hours at home & with its siblings. Rub the new kitten & the siblings alternating between everyone & hopefully familiar odors will be imparted to the returning kitten while diluting anything strange brought home. I do not think I would bathe anyone since this is just stressful. Maternal behavior is very strong so hopefully the family will just settle in together. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

My kitten smells weird. Will its mom accept it after the vet?

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