What is the best food to feed my kitten?

Answer 1

If they have been weaned then any cat food is suitable; some brands of cat food are designed with kittens in mind. I would advise you to avoid the cheaper cat foods as they are usually nutritionally poor quality.

Answer 2

Cats, no matter what age, are strict carnivores. They get all their nutritional needs from meat. Kittens in particular, need a lot of Protein and Fat in order to grow and develop in a healthy manner. Kittens should be fed small meals at regular times, and should be allowed to eat as much as they wish. Young kittens should be fed four to six meals a day, while older kittens (around 6-9 months) will be able to eat larger portions three to four times a day. Don't be surprised if you are feeding your kitten much more than you would an adult cat, this is normal and growing kittens need all the nutrients they can get.

Due to the amount of food kittens can eat, it makes sense to feed a good quality cat food. The higher the meat content, the better. The best cat foods are the ones with a very high, named-meat content. They should be labelled by source, such as: Chicken, Turkey, Rabbit, Lamb, Tuna, etc., as the first, or first two ingredients. Generally speaking, kittens will become fuller much quicker on higher quality foods, and will eat less than if on lower quality foods.

It is advisable to stay away from brands that include Corn, Wheat, Cereals, Gluten and Soy in their foods - kittens and cats have difficulty in digesting these and can cause upset stomachs (diarrhea can quickly become fatal to kittens as they dehydrate easily), and do not provide any nutritional value to the kitten whatsoever. Wet food with these specifications are much easier to find than in dry food.

Moisture is very important to cats and kittens alike. While fresh water should always be available (cow's milk should never be given as this can often cause upset stomachs), the easiest way in getting water into kittens and cats is to provide wet food as the majority of their diet. Felines have evolved to get all their needed moisture from their prey (their ancestors were cats that lived in very dry and arid environments where water was hard to come by), so therefore have a low "thirst drive" and will not often seek out water on their own.

Canned or pouched food has anywhere between 60 to 80% water. Seeing as in the wild a cat's prey is around 65%-75% water, wet food provides a cat or kitten with more than enough water each day.

Answer 3

Kittens should be fed kitten food for the first 12 months. Purina Kitten Chow is one that is commonly found in regular grocery stores. It is a dry food, which is good for their teeth. If you want to give them a little wet food to the side, you usually have to look in a pet store for kitten varieties. Fancy Feast makes a wet kitten food that contains a bit of kitten milk formula in the recipe.