How to feed my kittens

[Thevikingchick]

I've got two 7 month old kittens, Nandor and Najda, I'm just not sure on how to go about feeding them. We have adult dry food (Canidae Ancient formula) all day and I'm feeding them Petco Whole Hearted kitten food in the evening. But I'm not sure how much wet food I should offer given they have dry food. I had them at 1 can each per day (half a can in the AM and half a can at night) and noticed they developed soft stool (not holding it's shape). Soon as I cut back to half a can per day the stool was back to normal, but Nandor lost a little weight. I can't win!

I also don't know how great Whole Hearted is, it's pretty new to the market, but the reviews and break downs on the unbiased review (allaboutcats.com) seem positive. I'm not opposed to switching, just got to be careful of the budget.

Before anyone comments on the adult dry food we have two senior cats that are extremely food sensitive (one of which is really not doing well) and it can't be switched out.

Any advice on wet to dry ratio that keeps the kittnes health would be really helpful. Also if there are other reasonably priced kitten foods out there please feel free to share.

Love
Nandor, Nadja and Ace.

 

[nurseangel]

It's nice to me you. I don't see anything wrong with your kittens eating the dry food that is required to meet the health requirement of your older cats. I wish so much that DH would have never gotten our cats addicted on canned cat food and treats. I'm no expert, but I also have an older cat on dietary restrictions. I would put in a quick call to the your vet to see if your kittens require canned food. My MIL's cats were doing fine with dry food until DH introduced them to the enchanting world of wet food.

 

[Thevikingchick]

Nice to meet you!

Glad you asked about the vet, I forgot to mention it, during our wellness exam she did recommend some wet food since I can't get them on kitten formula dry food, but begged me not to use any fish flavors. She advised in her experience it's the #1 cause for cats rejecting food and developing serious issues in older ages. I've stuck to turkey / chicken. Not to mention fishy cat food is AWFUL smelling. I love my cats but that's big nope.

 

[cataholic07]

Dry food is something that should be fed sparingly, if at all to be honest. Wet food is far better as it provides cats/kittens with the moisture content as they would never drink enough to fully keep them hydrated. In the wild cats would predominantly get their moisture from their diet. Cats aren't designed to digest carbs which is what dry food primarily is. For kittens I would feed them no less than 3 times a day and as much as they want. And if at all possible stop free feeding all your cats and switch to scheduled meals only (morning, supper, before bed). Try to add some wet food to your adult cats diet as well. Weruva, Rawz, hounds and gatos, Koha, Instinct, First mate are all good brands. Catfooddb.com is a good resource to start (it's not 100% up to date though).

 

[Thevikingchick]

We just started our seniors on wet food, one has a completely rotten tooth (which is getting pulled in a few weeks) so it's the only thing she can eat. We tried to stop free feeding and our old man stopped eating (he's a jerk) BUT good thing is we do feed them wet food.

Unfortunately those brands are way out of my price range

 

[Furballsmom]

our old man stopped eating (he's a jerk

I would say, with love since I have one too, that he knows his own mind

There are brands like Tiny Tiger, Tractor Supply has several brands, and fancy feast pate are maybe some possibilities for you.