Like human babies, kittens need a special diet in order for them to grow and develop properly. During the first year, they should eat specially formulated kitten food that will meet their nutritional needs. As they grow, their diet and nutritional needs will also change. And it’s important to understand it so you can give your kitten the right balance for them to grow healthier. This guide will help you understand everything you need to know about taking care of your kitten needs.
Understanding Kitten Food is Different From Adult Cat Food
Kittens use most of their energy to grow, thus requiring double or triple the amount of food as an adult cat. This is why kitten food contains extra protein and a lot more different amounts of nutrients and vitamins to support their skeletal and muscular development.
Giving Dry Food and Wet Food
Experts recommend that kittens should start eating dry kitten food at around one month, this is the point when their mother’s milk is not giving them proper amounts of calories. During this time it should be a dry kitten food and mother’s milk. But you can also choose to feed canned kitten food as sometimes it is easier for them to eat.
Choosing the Best Type of Food for Your Kitten
There are brands that sell the best foods for kittens, they have food labels and you always look for the nutritional values in the bag if it meets nutritional value requirements for kittens. It is important to always check it first because some contain just the minimum nutrition requirement of your pet. Note that there will be a variety of food throughout the important developmental stages of your kitten. These foods will also state that they provide a complete and balanced diet, meaning they have all the nutrients your growing kitten requires.
How Much and How Often to Feed Your Kitten
When you’ve settled into the right food, you need to understand how much and how often you feed your kitten. Overfeeding them can lead to diarrhea or obesity. If the kitten is eating dry food, you can feed them a couple of small meals every day. If you prefer feeding canned food, then you should do it more frequently up to four times a day. Once they reach six months, you can switch to feeding two meals a day.
Should You Feed Your Kitten Human Food?
Some common human foods could be harmful to cats, so we recommend skipping the human snacks and only giving your kitten specially formulated cat treats. Some human food contains harmful bacteria, can cause diarrhea and can be toxic to kittens.
Cats can be choosy on what they eat, they can have finicky eating habits and become very selective about what foods they’ll accept. That’s why getting them accustomed to a proper diet should start when they are little. You just have to have a proper understanding and a lot of patience to make sure what you feed them is a balanced amount of nutrients and meeting all of their needs.
