Food for 8 month old kittens

missbjw22

Hello,

I am looking for some advice from other cat owners.

I am wondering if I am feeding my cats enough and whether I should look at changing their food or not.

They are British Longhair cats (8 months old) and they have been spayed. They are currently fed Royal Canin Kitten Instinctive wet food and Applaws Kitten dry food.

They have half a pouch of wet food with 15g of dry food in the morning and then 20g of dry food in the evening.

Is this enough for 9 month old kittens? Also I don't feel like the Royal Canin food is very good quality wise, do you have any other suggestions for better quality food?

These are my first cats, so I'm not sure if this is right for them.

Any advice would be great!

Thank you

RosesInTheHospital

I went by the mantra of feeding as much as they wanted up to 1 years old, I now feed three times a day as one of my bengals is sick if he goes too long without food.

SensibleSarah

Mine get 3 set meals a day (had 4 meals per day until 6 months old) but also have cheap dry food down 24/7 which they only touch if I'm late from work etc. Only 1 of my 4 has an issue with the free feeding and I have to be stricter with her, my other 3 self-regulate fine and are all healthy weights.

2/3 pouch each morning and same again last thing at night, plus a handful of royal canin biscuits at teatime. I don't measure/weigh the dry food.

Fire_Fox

Feeding three to four times a day is usual in kittenhood.

My little girl (ex-stray, but indoor only with me) came to me at under a year old, with the 'long lean' shape characteristic of an older kitten. The veterinarian advised to let her dictate the amount of food until we could tell whether she was fully grown or not. Once it became clear she had been spayed and once she had 'filled out', she was treated as a small adult cat.

You might consider feeding a complete wet food more frequently: cats naturally get most of their water from their food. I assume when questioning the quality of the Royal Canin you mean that it contains cereals and vegetable derivatives?

Two decent grain-free complete wet foods are Bozita tetrapacks (online) and Butchers Classic/ Butchers Really Meaty canned (supermarkets). They are not kitten specific, but that should be fine given that you feed a nutrient dense dry food alongside.

Please do check any significant dietary changes with your own veterinary practice.

TripleH

Another thing to watch for is that they may not eat the same amounts. Our girl was always a grazer eating when she felt like it whilst her younger brother and our older cat would wolf down anything we put in the bowl.

We ended up setting another bowl for the girl away from the others as she was looking quite thin. All good now though.

tealady

OP think there is an unwritten rule on this forum that if you mention your pets you have to post a picture of them.

eamon

When I had cats, put nothing in their bowl that was bigger than their heads. If they want more you will soon know about it.



If using wet foods wash the bowls out after they have eaten, though this is difficult if one or more of the cats is a grazer. Make sure they have access to clean fresh water. Don't give them milk.

missbjw22

Thanks for all the advice, I’m trying out some different wet food for them at the moment, one that has a better list of ingredients than the Royal Canin (I’m introducing small amounts to their existing food).

I’ve upped their dry food and have added an extra meal before bedtime too.

They seem happier and nag less for food now 🙂

If I could figure out how to post a picture I would!