Can Kittens Eat Adult Cat Food Everything You Need To Now
We all as cat parents want the best for our kittens and grown-up cats for their overall well-being. Learning how to properly feed a kitten and training her to be around both humans and other household pets can seem daunting at first. With time and effort, it can become a part of your daily habit easily.
Balanced nutrition is essential for raising a healthy future adult cat, so dont skimp on your kittys food.
Being a pet parent can be difficult, but it can also be extremely rewarding. If you have a pet, especially a cat, you will appreciate the love and comfort they provide, even if they are only sitting on your lap. However, in order for them to survive and be healthy, you must supply them with the proper diet, which changes depending on whether they are kittens or adult cats.
Kittens are like infant children that have their own basic requirements to sustain life and for overall good health. Kittens nutrition requirements are different from that of an adult cat, and therefore you should avoid giving your kittens eat adult cat food as much as possible.
Kitten food is designed keeping in mind the requirements of your growing kitten, so a kitten diet is necessary to meet those requirements. However, if the food label indicates its created for all life stages, its fine to feed to both kittens and adult cats.
Benefits Of Wet Kitten Food
- Some kittens simply prefer wet food’s smell and texture, as it smells stronger and is softer than dry food.
- Wet food can still be very convenient with single-serve pouches and trays giving your kitten a fresh, easy-to-serve meal each time.
- Your kitten will have an increased water intake.
How Do You Introduce Kittens To Food
Remember, weaning is a process, and it may be a little harder for a bottle-fed kitten to navigate without the instincts of his birth mother. No need for any kitten-parent guilt, thoughyoure doing a ton to help lay a great nutritional foundation for the little guy. Patience and monitoring will be essential as your kitten transitions to a new dietary source.
At four weeks, offer the gruel, dry food, and water, but dont stress about how much the kittys eating. You do want the kitten to start getting used to the taste and texture, though. If youre bottle-feeding, you can offer gruel off a spoon or from a tongue depressor if the kitten doesnt seem to be eating from a dish.
At five weeks, swap baby cat kibble for kitten kibble and formula for water when making the gruel. If you were using a tongue depressor at four weeks, try to transition from it by slowly lowering it towards the dish of gruel to signify thats where the food is going to be in the future. Keep half a can of kitten kibble in a dish for each kitten you are caring for, plus gruel or wet food. Set out a water bowl too.
Weeks five and six are transitional. You want to keep feeding kittens milk or formula plus kibble to mitigate any digestive issues. Slowly reduce the amount of formula while increasing the amount of kibble. By seven weeks, the kitten should be eating mainly dry food, and he should be fully weaned at eight weeks.
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So Youve Welcomed A New Bundle Of Fur To Your Family Congratulations Now That Youve Settled The New Arrival Into Your Home Youll Be Wondering How You Can Help Them Grow Up Healthy And Strong
They might be tiny now, but theyre going to grow and quickly! Within six months, theyll have reached 75% of their adult body mass, which is why feeding them a nutritionally-rich kitten food now is so important.
To help them during this important time, the Purina Pet Care Team have some helpful tips to help you choose the best kitten food.
When Do Kittens Start Eating Food And Drinking Water
The weaning process involves going from the mothers milk to kibble and water, which is what a kitten will eat and drink in some form for the rest of their lives. If the mother cat is around, shell know when the time is right to start weaning, and its best not to interfere.
Generally, kittens will start to be ready to take small tastes of solid foods and water at around three to four weeks of age. The food and water are complimentary at this young age, so dont worry too much if they play with it more than they eat it. Theyre still getting most of their nutrition from Mom or a formula in a bottle.
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When To Switch From Kitten To Cat Food
Taking care of a kitten is quite different than caring for an adult cat. Many cat owners wonder whats the right time to switch from kitten to cat food? Theres no exact rule for when to make the switch, but the general rule is that all cats less than 12 months old are considered kittens. Its essential to feed your young fur baby a kitten formula during their first year. The exception would be larger breed cats, which dont mature to adults until they are 18+ months old.
You should feed your kittens a growth-formulated diet until theyre at least 90% of their adult weight. If youre unsure, its best to double-check with your vet before making any significant lifestyle changes for your kitten or cat.
What To Feed A Kitten
Introduce specially formulated kitten food, which has all the essential nutrients kittens require for optimum growth. Veterinary experts advise choosing brands certified by the American Association of Feed Control Officials, which indicates the food meets the industry’s minimum nutrition requirements.
When reviewing the best food for kittens, here’s what Anthony recommends:
- Look for package wording that states “animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures” or “formulated to meet standards.”
- The first three or four ingredients, which are listed by weight, should be the main bulk of the food, with meat near the top.
She also suggests Royal Canin Mother and Babycat in both wet and dry varieties for neonatal kitten diets , and you can ask your vet for additional recommendations. Avoid feeding kittens adult cat food or dog food because neither option has the proper formulation to ensure a kitten’s healthy growth.
A good place to start: mix warmed kitten wet food with kitten formula, gradually decreasing the amount of formula mixed in. Set out a few shallow dishes, about one per kitten, close to where the litter is primarily located. “Kittens can’t go too far, so convenience is key,” Anthony says. How much do you feed a kitten? Roughly a tablespoon in each dish is a good start so all littermates have plenty of chances to nosh.
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Chicken And Cranberry Cat Treats
Cranberries are thought to help reduce the risk of UTIs by lowering the urinary pH levels and preventing bacteria from sticking to the system. Hence, adding some cranberries to a cat treat recipe can not only brighten your cats day but may also help to keep UTI at bay!
Prep time: 20 minutes
- 1 heaping tablespoon dried catnip
Recipe Instructions:
The Importance Of Switching From Kitten Food To Cat Food
Kitten food is designed to support rapid growth and development. In comparison to adult cat food, kitten food generally has:
- More calories, protein, and fat
- Adequate levels of docosahexaenoic acid , an omega-3 fatty acid that is important for brain and vision development
- Increased amounts of some vitamins and minerals
- Optimal calcium to phosphorus ratios
Weight gain is the biggest danger associated with continuing to feed kitten food to an adult cat. While a chonky cat might sound cute, a healthy weight is going to help your cat live a happier, healthier life! The Association for Pet Obesity Prevention estimates that almost 60 percent of pet cats are overweight or obese, which puts them at increased risk for many health problems including diabetes, arthritis, and hepatic lipidosis .
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When Switching From Kitten To Cat Food Causes Problems
If at any point your cat loses their appetite or develops signs of digestive upset, you can go back to their old kitten food for a few days and then restart the transition at an even slower pace.
Here are some other ways to deal with difficulties transitioning from kitten food to adult cat food:
Introducing Cat Food To A Kitten
Were not kitten around, young cats have different nutritional needs than adult cats, so its important to eventually switch from kitten to adult cat food when theyre ready. Just like human babies, kittens need different kinds of foods at various stages of their lives to develop and grow properly.
Unlike their pawrents, pets eat the same diet every day and develop microbes to digest that specific diet. When the diet is suddenly changed, the microbes do not have time to adjust and digest the new food. This can result in severe tummy trouble that may include vomiting and diarrhea. To avoid this, spread out the transition process over a 7 to 10 day period, gradually incorporating more of the new food in with the old.
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Weaning Kittens From Their Mothers Milk
Different Types Of Cat Food
Choosing suitable types of cat food can be tricky. It is very important to give the best cat food to your kitten. Hence, it would help if you took care of giving them the right cat food that also suits your budget.
There are two types of cat foods that you can feed to your kittens. There are two types of cat food available- Dry and Wet. Hence, you must know that these cat foods have different tastes. Lets understand the about them below.
- Wet Food for Cats: Wet cat foods have a rich and meaty taste. Along with that, it has a soft texture and is filled with flavors. The kittens are suitable for chewing with their tiny teeth. As a result, they can easily digest them. Furthermore, they contain appropriate moisture that doesnt affect their urinary tract and kidneys.
- Dry Food for Cats: It is a fantastic option for giving a flavourful diet to your kittens. The best quality of dry food for cats has a crunchy texture. Also, the inner filling is slightly chewy that is kittens will surely love. Furthermore, it is also helpful in cleaning the tartar and plaque from the teeth. Apart from that, it has low moisture, which means it has a longer shelf line. So make sure that your kitten drinks water inappropriate amount.
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So You Cant Give A Kitten Adult Cat Food
While this answer is highly frowned upon by veterinarians everywhere. Feeding your kitten once in a while or for short periods when necessary of adult cat food is not impossible, and can actually benefit your kitten too. The downside though, is that you can possibly give them too much because theyre going to require higher calories from adult food, but they can also be at risk for vitamin toxification if youre not careful.
The best way to do it is to incorporate something like wet cat food with the dry food in order to give them the most nutrients and calories, as well as crude proteins and fats theyll need in order to truly achieve their success.
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Can Kittens Eat Adult Wet Food
Kittens should preferentially be fed diets that are designed for their life stage. This is because they have different requirements from an adult cat as they are growing really quickly. A kitten diet will be higher in protein and contain the right balance of calcium and phosphorous to support healthy bone development. Kitten diets often contain Vitamin E and selenium to benefit the immune system and DHA omega fatty acid for neurological development. The diets will also be very calorie dense to meet energy demands.
The mother of the kittens will also have increased energy demands during later stages of pregnancy and lactation. It is therefore common to feed her on a kitten diet. This also makes it easier when the kittens start to eat solid food, as they can be fed the same kitten diet as their mother.
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The Onset Of Weaning In Kitten
Firstly, to start the weaning phase, segregate the kitten from her mother for a few hours at a stretch. Consequently, the kittens dependency on their mothers milk would gradually reduce. Moreover, the mother and the kitten must have their own space with nutrition, water, and a waste container.
As long as the kitten will be ready to spend prolonged periods alone, as they get more adjusted and competent until they are completely weaned.
Its important to keep in mind that taking a kitten away from its mother too soon might have bad effects for both mother and kitten, including aggressiveness and other unpleasant characteristics. Similarly, Kittens observe their mother or even another mature cat figure out how to play, feed, interact and use cat litter. Therefore, a kitten should preferably be left with its mother.
How To Introduce New Food
Your fluffball has a palate as discerning as a Michelin star grader! Theyll figure out exactly whats going on if you dont do this gradually.
If youve introduced your kitten to different flavors and textures earlier in their life, this transition will go a lot smoother. Should you find yourself reading this article well before your kitten has matured, start offering them a wider variety of food. A combination of moist and dry food is always a good start.
A slow and methodical introduction to adult cat food is also advised to minimize intestinal upset. Because your kitten has been used to one type of diet, any rapid changes will affect their internal bacteria, sometimes causing runny tummies and vomiting. Sorry kitty.
The best way to transition to adult food is to space the process out over a week. Use this as a general guideline for success:
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Days 1 & 2: Combine 25% adult food with 75% kitten food
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Days 3 & 4: Combine 50% adult food with 50% kitten food
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Days 5 & 6: Combine 75% adult food with 25% kitten food
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Day 7: Serve 100% adult food
P.S. You can also use this transition method to safely introduce your cat to new textures and flavors of food.
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Weeks Two And Three Feeding Schedules
A 2 to 3-week old kitten will still need to be fed every 2-3 hours and it should consume at least 1/2 tablespoon of formula or milk during each meal. If a kitten is nursing from its mother, you’ll have to depend on how much the kitten weighs to know whether or not it is consuming enough food. Between days 8 through 18, its weight should increase to about 10 oz. and it will begin to crawl around shortly after its eyes open.
By the end of week 3, a kitten will be able to stand up and will have begun to interact with its littermates. Playing, ear-biting, wrestling, and exploring behaviors will begin and are important parts of socialization.