Kitten To Cat Nutrition

[biscuity]

Hi

My kitten is coming up to 5 months old. She is about 2.5kg (5.5lbs). She was weaned by the breeder onto raw chicken which she was eating at 3 months. We have weaned her off that onto a quality kitten wet food twice a day with a quality kibble for lunchtime. At what point do I wean her onto adult food? The main difference between the kitten & adult wet food appears to be that the adult food has a little more protein, less ash & less fibre.

 

[RajaNMizu]

At this point, you could feed her kitten food or any food labeled for all life stages. Kitten food is high in protein, phosphorus and calories that rapidly growing kittens need to keep up with their growth and energy.

 

[Daisy6]

Why did you switch her to kibble instead of wet food? Most TCS members prefer a wet or partially wet diet.

Also, a five-month old kitten should only eat kitten food. She is still growing up.

 

[biscuity]

You might want to re-read my post Daisy. I did not type that I had changed to kibble.

Today, Coojee had her first checkup & I also contacted the pet food company. Both my new vet & the pet food CEO have said that I can change to adult food at any point from 6 months to 1 year. The vet suggested that the first 3 months feeding are by far the most important.

 

[duckpond]

If your vet has said change her to adult food after 6 months, then that is what i would do.

 

[2BSH]

I fed my guys an “ all life stages” food when they were 6 months old. They did well on it.
Is your kitty the one in your avatar picture? With those copper eyes it must be a British shorthair no ?

 

[Azazel]

I disagree with your vet and would keep him on kitten food until a year. Adult food is typically too low in protein even for adults. Kittens are growing well into the middle of their first year.

 

[Daisy6]

I switched Daisy to adult food early (11 months) only because prices for 12 cans - all she needed - was no cheaper.than the price for 24 cans. She was done getting bigger, but no less energetic. Did I stop the kitten food too early?

 

[Azazel]

I honestly don’t pay attention to kitten or adult labels. If I feed commercial food I just pick something that is high in animal based protein and low in carbs (and also high in moisture).

 

[biscuity]

Coojee is now approaching 7 month's old. She is still on kitten food. Contrary to on of the posters on this thread, the adult food appears to be higher in protein.

Kitten
Ingredients: Chicken Breast (70%), Chicken stock, Sunflower Oil, Vitamins & Minerals.
Analysis: Crude Protein 10%, Crude Oils & Fats 2%, Crude Ash 2%, Crude Fibres 1%, Moisture 84.5%

Adult
Chicken Breast (75%), Chicken Stock, Sunflower Oil, Vitamins & Minerals.
Analysis: Crude Protein 16%, Crude Oils & Fats 2%, Crude Ash 1.5%, Crude Fibres 0.1%, Moisture 80%, ME Kcal/100g 74.4
Per 100g: Vitamin A 2800IU, Vitamin D3 29 IU. Trace elements: Zinc 12mg, Iron 6mg, Manganese 1.4g, Copper 0.6mg, Iodine 0.2mg, Taurine 0.5g.

The comparison is incomplete, but it seems that the main differences is that the adult food has more protein, a little less crude ash & less crude fibre.

 

[Azazel]

Coojee is now approaching 7 month's old. She is still on kitten food. Contrary to on of the posters on this thread, the adult food appears to be higher in protein.

Kitten
Ingredients: Chicken Breast (70%), Chicken stock, Sunflower Oil, Vitamins & Minerals.
Analysis: Crude Protein 10%, Crude Oils & Fats 2%, Crude Ash 2%, Crude Fibres 1%, Moisture 84.5%

Adult
Chicken Breast (75%), Chicken Stock, Sunflower Oil, Vitamins & Minerals.
Analysis: Crude Protein 16%, Crude Oils & Fats 2%, Crude Ash 1.5%, Crude Fibres 0.1%, Moisture 80%, ME Kcal/100g 74.4
Per 100g: Vitamin A 2800IU, Vitamin D3 29 IU. Trace elements: Zinc 12mg, Iron 6mg, Manganese 1.4g, Copper 0.6mg, Iodine 0.2mg, Taurine 0.5g.

The comparison is incomplete, but it seems that the main differences is that the adult food has more protein, a little less crude ash & less crude fibre.

Are you from the UK? I think the quality of pet foods in Europe is different than North America.

Still, I would follow the rule of high animal protein, low carbs, high moisture - for all cats.

 

[biscuity]

Are you from the UK? I think the quality of pet foods in Europe is different than North America.

Still, I would follow the rule of high animal protein, low carbs, high moisture - for all cats.

I'm from the Isle of Man & buy cat food from the UK.

 

[Azazel]

I'm from the Isle of Man & buy cat food from the UK.

It also seems that the “kitten” food is lower in calories per serving, which is strange. I wonder on what basis they justify it being a “kitten” food then? In North America they justify kitten foods on the fact that they are higher in protein and fat and denser in calories.

In reality, cats and kittens don’t need special “foods”. Kittens just need to eat lots more than adults.

But, the problem with North American adult foods is that they tend to be extremely low in protein and high in carbs. The foods you’ve listed seem pretty good.

 

[biscuity]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months

 

[Royalty]

Thanks for your reply

I did wonder about the slightly lower protein value, however the suggested feeding is 3 tins of kitten food per day, whereas for the cat food, the suggested feeding is 2 tins per day.

You have a cute bsh welcome to the forum my bsh two. Went onto adult food high meat content at 6months