Kitten Vaccination Schedule: A Simple Timeline
A kitten needs three doses of FVRCP, at 6 to 8, 9 to 11 and 12 to 15 weeks, two doses of FeLV at 6 to 8 and 9 to 11 weeks, and a rabies vaccine from 16 weeks. After that, a booster of each every year. Indoor kittens need them too.
Kitten vaccination follows the same principle as the puppy version: a course of doses spaced weeks apart, not a single injection.
The gaps do real work. Antibodies passed from the mother block vaccines from taking, and nobody can predict exactly when they fade in a particular kitten, so the course is spaced to catch that moment whenever it comes.
The schedule
| Age | Vaccine |
|---|---|
| 6 to 8 weeks | FVRCP, first dose, and FeLV, first dose |
| 9 to 11 weeks | FVRCP, second dose, and FeLV, second dose |
| 12 to 15 weeks | FVRCP, third dose: the one most likely to give lasting protection |
| From 16 weeks | Rabies, by 26 weeks at the latest |
| Every year after | A booster of each |
Deworming runs alongside and starts earlier: at 2 weeks and 4 weeks old, then every month until 6 months. Worms in kittens are extremely common, including in kittens that look perfectly healthy. Flea and tick protection can start from 8 weeks.
Our free puppy and kitten vaccination schedule turns your kitten's date of birth into every one of these dates, ready to add to your phone's calendar.
What the vaccines protect against
FVRCP: the core combination
Three diseases in one injection.
Feline viral rhinotracheitis (cat herpesvirus) causes sneezing, runny eyes and nose, and mouth ulcers. Cats that recover carry the virus for life and flare up when stressed, so prevention matters.
Calicivirus causes similar signs, plus painful mouth ulcers that stop cats eating. Together these two cause most of what people call cat flu.
Panleukopenia is the serious one: the cat version of parvovirus, with severe vomiting and diarrhoea, a collapse in white blood cells, and a high death rate in kittens. It survives in the environment for months.
Feline leukaemia (FeLV)
Spread by close contact between cats: grooming, shared bowls and bites. It weakens the immune system and causes cancers, and there is no cure. Kittens get it because a kitten's future is rarely as settled as its owner expects; for an adult cat, it is a decision to take with your vet based on how the cat lives.
The reason a kitten gets a course rather than one injection is simple: antibodies from the mother block the vaccine, and nobody can say exactly when they fade in a particular kitten. Spacing the doses means at least one lands at the right moment.
Rabies
Fatal, and it passes to people. Cats hunt rats and meet bats, so they need it as much as dogs do. It is also required for travel, so keep the certificate safe.
"My cat never goes outside"
This is the most common reason people skip the course, and it is only half right. An indoor cat avoids other cats. It does not avoid everything.
- Panleukopenia and calicivirus travel on shoes, clothes and hands. You bring them in.
- Indoor cats get out: a door left open, a window that gives, a carrier that opens at the wrong moment.
- Circumstances change: boarding, a move, a new cat, an emergency stay at a clinic.
- Rabies does not need another cat. Bats and rats get indoors.
After the injection
Mild sleepiness, a slight fever or tenderness where the needle went in, for a day or so, is normal. Call your vet for facial swelling, hives, repeated vomiting or any difficulty breathing. Serious reactions are uncommon and treatable when caught quickly.
Tell your vet about a lump at the injection site that lasts beyond a few weeks, grows, or is bigger than a pea. This is rare, but worth checking rather than watching.
Getting a kitten to the clinic without a fight
Much of the stress of a cat's vet visit is the journey, not the appointment. Leave the carrier out at home as ordinary furniture, with a blanket inside, so it is not only ever the start of something unpleasant. Feed treats in it. Cover it with a cloth in the car.
A kitten that learns the carrier is nothing to fear becomes a cat that can be taken to a vet when it matters.
Keep the record
Boarding, travel and rehoming all ask for proof. Photograph the card after every visit, and your kitten's free Pet ID on the National Animal Database keeps the record in one place.
The awkward part is the timing. A kitten needs more vet visits in its first year than at any point afterwards, and that year lands just when an owner has paid for everything else a new kitten needs.
That is what the Cublings Plan is for. For puppies and kittens under 12 months, it pays for three rounds of FVRCP vaccines, a rabies vaccine and regular deworming, at any vet clinic in Nigeria.
Questions people ask
When should a kitten get its first vaccine?
At 6 to 8 weeks old, with the first doses of FVRCP and FeLV. Earlier than that, antibodies from the mother's milk stop the vaccine working.
How many vaccines does a kitten need?
Three doses of FVRCP, two of FeLV and one rabies vaccine in the first months, then a booster of each every year.
When can a kitten have the rabies vaccine?
From 16 weeks old, and by 26 weeks at the latest. After that, a booster every year.
Does an indoor kitten need vaccines?
Yes. Panleukopenia and cat flu viruses come in on shoes, clothes and hands, indoor cats do get out, and boarding, a move or a new cat can change their risk overnight.
What does FVRCP stand for?
Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis (cat herpesvirus), Calicivirus and Panleukopenia: three diseases in one injection. The first two cause most cat flu; the third is the deadly one.
Vaccines are covered on every plan.
Core vaccines and deworming come with every Skeepy Pet HMO plan, paid at any clinic in Nigeria. Each has its own waiting period, listed with the plan. Plans from ₦15,000 a month.
General information, not a diagnosis. If your pet is unwell, see a vet.