Is the term “baby kitten” / “baby puppy” superfluous?

Question

If "kitten" is a juvenile domestic cat, and "puppy" is a juvenile dog, are "baby kitten" or "baby puppy" superfluous or just extremely specific?

Answer 1

This all depends on context of course, but, generally speaking, the terms baby puppy and baby kitten are neither superfluous nor redundant. The term puppy can be used until a canine becomes full-grown, which can take around a year. If someone told me they had baby puppies or baby kittens for sale, then I'd assume they meant very young animals, maybe only a month or two old; if the animals were more like four or five months old, I'd expect the qualifier baby to be dropped.

Answer 2

Such apparent superfluity serves to emphasise the youthful nature of the animal in question.

Answer 3

I suppose it could be said that it was a tautology.

tautology noun : Needless or meaningless repetition in close succession of an idea, statement, or word

But I would say the repetition is useful to emphasise the point that the puppy or kitten was a particularly young one.

Answer 4

To elaborate on @BarrieEngland's response, I'd say that "baby kitten" will often be used to further heighten the cuteness factor of the fuzzy furball thus described. "Kitten" is cute. "Baby" is cute. "Baby kitten"? Double cute!