Feeding a 3-Week-Old Kitten: What Every Rescue Should Know

 

 

In 2015, my husband and I found a trash bag on the side of the road. Inside were baby kittens cold, fragile, and fighting for life. We didn’t know their age, but we knew instinctively what had to happen: keep them warm, bottle feed them, and stay close. That moment changed everything. What we learned through trial, error, and late-night research became the foundation for this guide. If you’ve just found a kitten and feel overwhelmed, I hope this article helps you the way others helped us.

At three weeks old, a kitten is entering a critical developmental stage. Their blue eyes are still prominent, ears begin to point upright, and baby teeth start to emerge. Vision and hearing are improving, and they’ll begin walking, exploring, and even testing out the litter box. A healthy kitten at this age typically weighs between 350–450 grams (12.8–14.1 ounces).

 Introducing Food

You can begin weaning by offering a mix of wet kitten food and kitten formula. This can be served in a shallow dish or fed via kitten-specific bottles. A general guideline is 4 ounces of milk per pound of body weight per day. For example, a 3-pound kitten would need approximately 12 ounces of formula daily, divided into multiple feedings.

 Essential Care Tips for 3-Week-Old Orphaned Kittens

 Feeding Schedule Feed every 6–8 hours, dividing total intake across feedings. Offer milk replacement formula in a shallow dish to encourage weaning. Introduce a moist, chewable mix of warm formula and high-quality kitten food 4–6 times daily. Avoid cow’s milk, which can cause digestive upset.

 Hydration: Provide fresh, clean water at every feeding. Rinse and refill the water bowl regularly, and sanitize weekly.

 Warmth: Use a low-setting heating pad wrapped in a towel until kittens are 4–6 weeks old. Ensure the bedding is warm but not hot, mimicking the warmth of a mother cat.

Cleanliness: Use clean newspaper for bedding during the first week. Avoid soft cloth bedding, which can pose suffocation risks for newborns.

Weight Monitoring: Kittens should gain about ½ ounce (14 grams) daily or 4 ounces (113 grams) weekly. Weigh kittens every 12 hours for the first two weeks, then daily until weaned. Continue weekly weigh-ins until at least 8 weeks of age.

 

📚 Supporting Resources

• Feeding Orphaned Kittens – VCA Animal Hospitals
• Best Friends Animal Society – Feeding and Weaning Orphaned Kittens
• Caring for Orphaned Kittens Under 3 Weeks – WikiHow

 

If you’ve just opened a trash bag and found life inside, or if you’re staring at a tiny kitten wondering what to do next know that you’re not alone. We’ve been there. And every ounce of care you give matters.

Feeding Rescued Baby Kitten: 3 to 5 Weeks

baby kitten 3 weeks old

This month my husband and I rescued baby kittens. The kittens were put into a Glad trash bag and thrown out onto the center medium of the road during the night hours when the light was poor and the cars sped by.  These baby kittens were newborns as two of them had just opened their eyes and these two out of the five needed help in going to the bathroom. 

We kept the kittens isolated from our cats and decided that due to the trauma that they just endured that we would care for them until they were four lbs.

At first we fed the kitten replacement milk and then when they were 4 week old we shopped at PetSmart for a quality kitten food.  We looked at Blue Buffalo but decided to buy Wellness Core dry kitten food. This is what we are feeding the kittens, a food that will boost their immune system and help them to grow healthy and strong.  .   

Boosting kitten immune system with Wellness Core kitten food

Feeding Baby Kittens, Hairy, Larry, Dini, Molly, and Sally Replacement milk 

At five weeks we were feeding the kitten’s softened solid food because these babies needed to put on weight. We also continued the replacement milk because it was a good way to boost their immune system.

Larry the rescued kitten 5 weeks old

At six weeks the kittens are weighing in approximately two pounds.   The worst thing that cat owner did was take the baby kittens away from their mom at such a young age and then put them in a bag and throw them out like trash.   I am so glad that my husband and I found the babies.

Sickly but beautiful rescued kittens

  

All kittens will be put up for adoption after they get a wellness checkup at the veterinarian and are tested for cat disease, get their booster shots and are wormed.  If you are interested in learning more about these  kittens please leave me a comment below.

Here are some baby kitten photographs.  

Kittens Hairy, Larry, Molly, and Dini eating wellness core kitten food

Baby Dini Kitten