Episode 9 Meet the Kittens

What's this?

Ah - collars for the kittens.

11 collars for 11 kittens.

Can you count them with me as we put them on?

One,

two,

three,

four,

five,

six,

seven.

Now, here's something important.

You must make sure there's room for your finger underneath the collar.

That's to make sure the collar isn't too tight.

If it's tight, the kitten will have trouble breathing properly,

so make sure the collar is loose, but not too loose or it comes off.

Also, make sure the collar has a quick release,

in case the kitten gets caught in something.

The collar will pop open by itself.

OK, let's keep counting.

Eight,

nine,

ten,

11!

But the kittens aren't sure what to make of these collars,

especially as some of them have bells on.

The bells, the bells!

Ooh! I've never been dressed before.

Ooh! Neither have I.

If I concentrate, I'll make it spring off.

Good luck!

La-la-la-la. Nope.

Ha-ha. It's still there.

Oh, and these collars are itchy!

What you looking at?

Oh, well. If you're stuck with a collar,

then you can either have a wash...

or a wee!

Hey, don't look at me doing this. I said, don't look at me!

The kittens are now nine weeks old, so they have to be weighed again.

But first, we weigh the collar.

It's 6g, so we have to remember to take that 6g off the kittens' weight.

The kittens are so big, I think we should have got a bigger bowl!

This kitten weighs nearly 900g.

Is that all right?

Of course, but your sister weighs over a kilo.

The kittens are growing at different rates,

which is normal now they're older.

The kittens are now allowed to have a look out the front door.

The owner has put up a cat gate,

because kittens aren't allowed to wander outside.

They might hurt themselves

or they might get sick from nasty germs in the outside world.

But nothing is as interesting as food.

-Yum, yum, yum, yum.

-Nice, big chunky food from the shops.

Mums Cleo and Coco and the 11 kittens live in the country.

There are lots of animals here.

Big ones, like cows and sheep and horses

and also little ones, like birds and moles and rats.

Today, Cleo has caught a wild rabbit.

While almost all of their food comes from a can or a packet,

cats are hunting animals and sometimes they catch things

and bring them home,

because, as mothers, they feel they must provide food for their kittens.

You can get your cat to wear a collar with a bell.

This may help stop them catching wild animals, but it may not.

She leaves it on the stairs for her kittens to see.

They're curious but they're too young to understand what this is.

They have a sniff, but the noise from next door is sounding like fun,

so they decide to see what their brothers and sisters are doing.

As a treat, the kittens are going to be brushed.

But first, hand gel is used so the children's hands are nice and clean.

KITTEN PURRS

The kittens love this. Soft, gentle brushing.

KITTENS PURR

Oooh...that's lover-ly.

While the kittens are being brushed, Cleo and Coco are whisked

off to the vets.

Though their 11 kittens are lovely,

in the wide world outside, there are too many kittens being born

and not enough people to look after them.

So, mums Coco and Cleo are having a tiny operation

that means they won't have any more kittens.

Phew.

Cleo's first.

She's given an injection to make her go to sleep

and the operation is very quick.

Then it's Coco's turn.

She has an injection and even though her eyes are open, she's asleep.

Once again, it's very quick and then HOME!

Go and be free!

There's time for a wash to get rid of the vet smell,

then it's on to another nice big meal.

It's been a busy day, so time for sleepy-byes until next time.

CATS SNORE

Having a kitten is a huge, time consuming responsibility

and if you want an idea of exactly what's involved,

check out the Meet the Kittens page on the CBeebies website.