When do you give kittens kitten food?

Answer 1

A kitten can start eating hard kibble by the time they are fully weaned, usually eight to ten weeks old. However, dry kibble is best used as a supplement to wet food. Kittens need a lot of nutrients to grow and develop in a healthy manner. A kitten can eat up to four times as much as an adult cat, so the more meat in the food, the more nutrients the kitten will get, thus will eat less than a kitten fed lower quality food. Be sure to feed small portions four or five times a day.

Cats are strict carnivores, so get all their nutrients from meat. Good quality wet foods are high in Protein and Fat, cats use these two nutrients as their primary source of energy. Be sure to look at the ingredients - The best cat foods are the ones with a very high named meat content (labeled as Chicken, Turkey, Rabbit, Lamb, Tuna, etc.) as the first, or first three, ingredients.

It is advisable to stay away from brands that include Corn, Wheat, Cereals, Soy and various Sugars in their foods - cats have difficulty in digesting these and do not provide any nutritional value to the cat whatsoever. Wet food with these specifications are much easier to find than in dry food.

Canned food is also preferable to feed a kitten (and adults) due to the the amount of moisture in this type of food. Cats are notoriously bad drinkers, even when they are thirsty. This is because they 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. This is a trait that has been passed down over the thousands of years.

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 with more than enough water each day. Most dry foods have either zero or 10% moisture in.

Many dry foods and low-quality wet foods are often packed with carbohydrates - "filler" in the way of grains and cereals, none of which cats can digest or gain any nutrients from. Grain is used instead of meat because it is cheaper to produce and helps kibble pieces hold together. Cats need MEAT based protein, not PLANT based protein. Cats will often overeat on lower quality foods because they are not getting all the nutrients they need, which often results in obesity and Diabetes. Because kibble is baked at such high temperatures, all the "natural" nutrition is destroyed. Wet food isn't processed to such high levels as this, so most of the nutrition stays intact.

Lastly, it is not proven that dry food cleans a cat's teeth. Kibble is hard and brittle, so shatters at the tips of the teeth - providing little or no cleaning friction. Dental issues usually start under or around the gumline, so kibble is usually ineffective. Some cats don't even chew; they will just swallow the kibble whole. However, some cats will have perfect teeth no matter what food they eat, while others will not benefit at all.

Many owners feed both, and for growing kittens the option of a bowl of biscuits left out during the day may be ideal. There are some decent dry foods out there such as Applaws, Orijen and Felidae with a height meat content in them and zero grains.

For high-quality Cat food there is: Blue Buffalo, Felidae, Weruva, California Natural, Instinct, Prairie, Natural Balance, Eagle Pack, Wellness, EVO, Bozita (the canned stuff is 90+% meat and can be bought from zooplus.co.UK), Applaws (70+% meat and comes in both tinned and dry), HiLife (60% meat), Feline Fayre, to name a few.

Answer 2

Kittens usually begin the weaning process around 4-6 weeks of age. They begin by taking an interest, or picking at their mother's solid food. At this age they will still be suckling and getting nutrients from their mother, but putting a tiny bit of wet food down every few hours will entice them to eat. You could see if they will lick food off your fingertip or off their own paws. This first stage can take several days.

Mushed up wet food, or wet food that is throughly mixed with a little water or kitten milk is the best type of food for them right now. It is easy for them to eat and digest. It is advisable not to try dry food as, even softened with water, kittens may still not be able to eat it. As the kittens get older and bigger, you can slowly decrease the amount of water or kitten milk you use in the food, and leave slightly larger chunks for them to chew.

Be sure to feed them from a plate and not a bowl, as it is easier for the kittens to pick up the food.

Answer 3

I would feed them three to six times a day, depending on the age of the kitten. Kittens have very small stomachs so it is best to feed "little and often". As they get older and larger they can eat bigger meals.

They should be fed kitten food until they are 1 year old and just about fully grown.

Answer 4

a cat can eat dry food at any time. somme cats enjoy dried food more than canned food it just depends on the cat.

When a kitten is eight or ten weeks old, it will be completely weaned and ready to be eating wet and dry food all the time.

Answer 5

Kittens usually begin the weaning process around 6 to 8 weeks of age. They begin by taking an interest, or picking at, their mother's solid food. At this age they will still be suckling and getting nutrients from their mother, but putting a tiny bit of wet food down every few hours will entice them to eat. You could see if they will lick food off your fingertip or off their own paws. This first stage can take several days.

Mashed up wet food, or wet food that is throughly mixed with a little water or kitten milk (never cow's milk) is the best type of food for them right now. It is easy for them to eat and digest. It is advisable not to try dry food as, even softened with water, kittens may still not be able to eat it. Be sure to feed them from a plate and not a bowl, as it is easier for the kittens to pick up the food. As kittens have tiny stomachs, it is recommended to feed little and often - around 6 meals a day is a common schedule for kittens learning to wean and ones that are newly weaned.

Gradually, over the course of several weeks, decrease the amount of water/milk in the food as the kittens become more confident with eating. The weaning transition should not be rushed.