Kitten Food For Adult Cat?

[arouetta]

I've got two cats, both male, 15 and 19. One has always been on the skinny side, the other has always been on the chubby side and tends to be a boredom eater and comfort eater. Two vets so far are actually glad to see a little extra weight on my cats as apparently senior kitties tend to be super skinny, which means less energy to fight off age related health problems.

Midway (15) has proven to be extremely stubborn about new foods, so we're doing Purina Cat Chow, no possibility of anything else. Recently I was looking at the Kitten Chow and it has a lot more protein and a little less fat.

Would Kitten Chow be good for a senior kitty? I did ask at PetSmart and got the greatest doublespeak ever. ("Too much protein is bad for an older cat....Look at this food, it's better....well yeah it has more protein than Kitten Chow, but the whole nutrition is different so the extra protein won't do bad things to them.") Midway apparently thinks it tastes just as yummy as the adult version.

 

[abyeb]

According to this thread: can old cat eat kitten food?

Yes, kitten food can be beneficial to senior cats. The extra protein can help them to maintain muscle mass. Kitten food does contain more calories, so you might need to give less in order to make it equivalent. You can always ask your vet for recommendations as well.

 

[arouetta]

Okay, so back to measured feedings. I probably should have done that a long time ago anyway.

 

[duckpond]

older cats, especially those who may not eat much i think can definitely benefit from kitten food. You can always ask your vet to be sure what he thinks would be best for your cats. The higher protein, and lower carbs may actually help the one loose a bit of fat, but gain a bit of muscle. always a good thing