Kittens are less forgiving than puppies. They are smaller, they lose heat faster, and they have a nutritional requirement dogs simply do not have — taurine, an amino acid a cat cannot make enough of for itself, and the absence of which does permanent damage. A kitten formula is not a puppy formula in a different tub.

Beaphar have been making Lactol for over 100 years. This is the kitten version: a complete milk replacement feed built on highly digestible proteins, with vitamins to support the immune system, minerals for bone and muscle development, docosahexaenoic acid for normal brain development and vision, taurine, and dextrose as a quick energy source. It mixes with warm water using the scoop provided, stirred until fully dissolved and cooled to 38 °C — blood temperature — before feeding. It also works as a complementary food for a lactating queen, or a cat who is ill or recovering.

• 250g or 500g tub
• Complete milk replacement for newborn and orphaned kittens
• Contains taurine, which cats cannot make enough of themselves
• With DHA, vitamins and minerals
• Mixed with warm water, fed at 38 °C
• Also for lactating queens and recovering cats

Temperature and timing matter more than the powder does. Feed at 38 °C — cold milk into a cold kitten is a genuine risk, and a chilled kitten cannot digest at all, so warming the kitten comes before feeding them. Made-up feed keeps in a fridge for 24 hours and must be reheated to blood temperature before use. Beyond that, hand-rearing is a round-the-clock job involving warmth, night feeds at intervals set by age, daily weighing and toileting after every feed. Ring a vet the day you start, not the day something goes wrong.

Who it's for: anyone who has taken on an orphaned or rejected litter, breeders, and owners supporting a queen through a demanding nursing period.