At what age my kitten is ready to go home?
Most people want to get their pet as early as possible, so they can bond better. However, there are very important milestones in the kittens' development that have to be reached before they can be removed from the mom and the litter. These milestones are extremely important and, if not observed, many behavioral issues will most likely ensue. For a kitten this age is 12 to 16 week. It can be more in the case of a rant of the litter.
Although most moms stop or significantly reduce nursing by 8-10 weeks (when teeth appear and the babies start eating supplemental meals most of the time), they continue to teach them how to behave in the appropriate way. Many pets that have been adopted at 6-8 weeks of age find it difficult to behave properly around other cats because they are not well versed in their species language. Also, the company of their siblings is the most important to them at that age because, while playing, they experiment with testing their position in the group (dominant vs submissive), learn what behaviors are acceptable, how strong their bite is, etc.
A kitten taken too early from his mom and litter-mates may never learn to not nip at children's feet or hands and may never learn to play without unsheathing its claws - and you definitely don't want your child's face or your own hands scratched, do you? Before they learn how to be a part of a human family they need to understand what it means to be respectful of the rules of their own species.
"But isn't it too late for their socialization with the future owners?" - It is true that that age of readiness or "graduation" for kittens is very close to or even beyond the time when socialization period ends. That's why it makes a huge difference what kind of house this animal came from and whether or not he has been positively and often handled by people in the breeder's home or whether he was left in a cage for most of the day and had no contact with other species. Whether you like it or not, but you have to rely on a breeder for this job. Which means, it has to be a good and reliable breeder. It makes all the difference!
From my personal experience:
My first pure-bred Himalayan kitty came from a breeder I knew nothing about. She was only 12 weeks and was raised in the house with a golden retriever - which for me, as a Golden Retrievers breeder, was enough guarantee - but, looking back at the way she was kept in her box and without a mom around (because she was already pregnant again by that time!) and handed to me, I soon realized the reason for extreme fearfulness of that cat that even after three (!) years of living with us could not accept neither us nor the dog fully. She was simply not handled enough or at all at the critical age of 3 to 7 weeks.
Although most moms stop or significantly reduce nursing by 8-10 weeks (when teeth appear and the babies start eating supplemental meals most of the time), they continue to teach them how to behave in the appropriate way. Many pets that have been adopted at 6-8 weeks of age find it difficult to behave properly around other cats because they are not well versed in their species language. Also, the company of their siblings is the most important to them at that age because, while playing, they experiment with testing their position in the group (dominant vs submissive), learn what behaviors are acceptable, how strong their bite is, etc.
A kitten taken too early from his mom and litter-mates may never learn to not nip at children's feet or hands and may never learn to play without unsheathing its claws - and you definitely don't want your child's face or your own hands scratched, do you? Before they learn how to be a part of a human family they need to understand what it means to be respectful of the rules of their own species.
"But isn't it too late for their socialization with the future owners?" - It is true that that age of readiness or "graduation" for kittens is very close to or even beyond the time when socialization period ends. That's why it makes a huge difference what kind of house this animal came from and whether or not he has been positively and often handled by people in the breeder's home or whether he was left in a cage for most of the day and had no contact with other species. Whether you like it or not, but you have to rely on a breeder for this job. Which means, it has to be a good and reliable breeder. It makes all the difference!
From my personal experience:
My first pure-bred Himalayan kitty came from a breeder I knew nothing about. She was only 12 weeks and was raised in the house with a golden retriever - which for me, as a Golden Retrievers breeder, was enough guarantee - but, looking back at the way she was kept in her box and without a mom around (because she was already pregnant again by that time!) and handed to me, I soon realized the reason for extreme fearfulness of that cat that even after three (!) years of living with us could not accept neither us nor the dog fully. She was simply not handled enough or at all at the critical age of 3 to 7 weeks.