A kitten or kitty is a juvenile domesticated cat. A feline litter usually consists of two to five kittens. They are born after a gestation that lasts between 64 and 67 days, with an average length of 66 days. To survive, kittens need the care of their mother for the first several weeks of their life. Kittens are highly social animals and spend most of their waking hours playing and interacting with available companions.
The mother's milk is very important for the kittens' nutrition and proper growth. This milk transfers antibodies to the kittens, which helps protect them against infectious disease.
Kittens develop very quickly from about two weeks of age until their seventh week. Their coordination and strength improve, they play-fight with their litter-mates, and begin to explore the world outside the nest or den. They learn to wash themselves and others as well as play hunting and stalking games, showing their inborn ability as predators. These innate skills are developed by the kittens' mother or other adult cats bringing live prey to the nest. Later, the adult cats also demonstrate hunting techniques for the kittens to emulate.
Kittens are highly social animals and spend most of their waking hours interacting with available animals and playing. Play with other kittens peaks in the third or fourth month after birth, with more solitary hunting and stalking play peaking later, at about five months. Kittens are vulnerable to harm because they like to find dark places to hide, sometimes with fatal results if they are not watched carefully.
The Cache
The container is a plastic tube. Initial contents include only a log. Be sure to bring your own writing implement.
In winter, the trail is used extensively by snowmobilers. Be watchful for snowmobile (snow machine) traffic as it can exceed 60 mph.
During hunting season, high-visibility apparel is recommended as part of the trail flanks a wildlife management area where hunting is permitted.
NOTE: This cache may not be SUMMER friendly. No maintenance, including weed control, is performed during summer months.
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