Approximate calories for ~6 month old kitten?

[kittenmittens84]

So my kitten is about 6 months old now, and I’m thinking about starting to transition him from basically feeding him as much as he wants to a more measured diet and I have a few questions.

1. Is 6 months around when I should start actively monitoring calorie intake? I’ve only ever owned adult cats before but I know kittens need lots of energy to grow, so I don’t want to restrict him too soon but I also don’t want to start his life off overfeeding!

2. What’s a good estimate for the amount of calories a 6-8 month old kitten needs in a day? Since we rotate foods and they have different portion sizes and calories per portion it’s easier for me to go by calories rather than number of cans or pouches. He currently weighs 6.5 lbs and is still gaining at a steady pace.

For context, he currently gets 3 wet food meals a day, rotating between tiki cat, purina proplan kitten, and iams perfect portions kitten (the packaging on these drives me nuts but he absolutely loves them, they’re hands down his favorite). He also gets a little blue wilderness kitten dry food to munch on throughout the day.

 

[jen]

I have always told people, and also fed my own kittens freely until closer to 1 year old. It sounds like he is eating a good amount since his weight is appropriate for his age. Generally speaking of course. I wouldn't worry too much until he is a few months older.

 

[Furballsmom]

I agree, because there is an incredible amount of growth that needs to be fueled; neurological, skeleton, muscles, everything, and if your baby is a big breed cat, maturity will be even later

 

[kittenmittens84]

Thanks y’all, I’ll just keep feeding him the same way for now and reevaluate in a little while.

I agree, because there is an incredible amount of growth that needs to be fueled; neurological, skeleton, muscles, everything, and if your baby is a big breed cat, maturity will be even later

He’s just a regular old mutt DSH so I’m not sure about size but he does have very big feet! It’s actually really surprising because he had FIP, lost a ton of weight, and almost died at 3 months, so I kinda thought even after treatment he’d just be permanently on the small side but apparently not

 

[Furballsmom]

Good for you! Since he went through that, I'd be checking to see if he'd be interested in more food-i realize getting overweight is something to be aware of, but on the other hand at his age he should be active enough that he's literally "chewing" through calories/nutrients at an accelerated rate with play and running around.

If he's cleaning his plate and not leaving any wet food behind, try giving him some more