How much food to feed your Kitten? | Veterinary Approved
How much food to feed your Kitten? | Veterinary Approved
Feeding kittens is a very common question I get as a small animal veterinarian! So I made you guys this video. Which is not only s super cute with my ragdoll kittens but will help you!
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FEEDING A KITTEN:
Under fed and underweight kittens get sick and can die.
Look at the body weight chart in my video to make sure you are feeding your cats enough food! So most Veterinarians use a 1-9 Body condition scale, 1 being underweight – bones showing ribs and pelvis bones easily palpable and 9 being obese or overweight. We want to shoot for a 5 which puts your cat an ideal body weight with some fat covering the entire body but with a nice abdominal tuck. So you can always refer to this chart to make sure your kitten or cat is not too skinny.
Kittens will however have more lanky arms and legs with a round pudgy abdomen until about 5 months old when it should start to tighten up and tuck in. Too round can mean parasites so always have your vet examine your kitten!
First I have to start with always… always… always! feed your kitten a cat food formulated diet from any company. Cats need more protein and have a dietary need for taurine since the have limited enzymatic activity for making it on their own.
Kittens should go to new homes around 8 weeks old.
Feeding kittens and cats is easy and most cats are similar in weight. So lets make this as easy as possible. First off, I always recommend offering your kittens a buffet of the same brand of wet and dry kibble. Some kittens maybe too young when you get them to want dry kibble but they normally love wet food by 3-4 weeks old when theyre weaning off their moms.
For an 8 week old kitten weighing 1lb +, feed them 1/4th cup dry food and 1/4 small can wet food three times a day. Do not be worried if they don’t eat it at every meal. Cats WASTE FOOD. Pick it up, throw it away and replenish with fresh food. All you need is a few bites to ensure your kitten has an appetite and is eating. Some kittens are closet eaters and may want to eat alone.
At 4 months old you can feed them ½ cup dry food with ½ small can wet food three times a day. Put tin foil over the extra food and keep it in the fridge to stay fresh. If you can’t feed them 3x a day, leave the morning portion out the whole day until dinner and refresh their food.
This feeding schedule will get you through to 8 months to 1 years old. At this time if your cat is 8 to 10lbs you can feed them 1 cup dry food twice a day or continue with your ½ cup dry and 1 full can wet twice a day.
Easy as that! Check their body condition score and make sure theyre not too skinny or obese. And you can increase and decrease food by 1/4th cup for either case.
Most importantly with kittens and cats is they have to eat. So make sure they don’t skip 2 days of eating. This puts them at danger for fatty liver disease which is deadly to cats.
Okay guys! If you have any other feeding questions for your kittens or cats please put it in the comments below. Don’t forget to Subscribe to my channel and ill see you next week!
~ Dr. Lindsay Butzer
This is the worst possible video "let me make it simple for you" -now go read the comments. Nobody can tell how much they’re supposed to feed their cats now because the instructions were not clear – What I took away from the video, as someone who feeds healthy food to their cat, is that I should over-feed them by a factor of 3-4 when looking at caloric intake- so yea, this is a terrible video that will create hundreds, if not thousands of unhealthy, obese cats that will have diabetes as adults. Let’s be clear here – this "Veterinarian" says to feed your 1-2 lb "Ki-enns" 1 1/2 cans (5 oz) of wet and 3/4 cup of dry food per day – think about this for just a minute! Calorically and from a Carb perspective, that’s absolutely insane, even for very active kittens!!!
No wonder her adult cat is fat, she gives the cat 2 big portions of foods each time?! 😱😱😱
This advice is wrong. Please watch the Cat Butler
I have four very tiny Munchkins and those amounts would be a little too much.
So I followed your advice since I’m a first time kitten owner/ caregiver.
I’ve had my kitten for 2 months now and took her for her 4 month rabies shot and checkup.
Kitten looks like she’s swallowed a ball- vet says kitten is overweight and needs to go on a diet.
My kitten was spayed at 2 months old before they released her to us so my vet thinks this could be the reason why she’s overweight.
Hopefully this comment helps prevent this for someone else.
💔Update: my vet misdiagnosed my kitten whose tummy was filled with fluid because she had FIP. Vet made me place her on a diet. FIP is rapidly progressive and fatal. Unfortunately my kitten passed away 3 weeks later (last week). I was worried she wasn’t fat and spent days researching what else it could be. 2 weeks into her diet I could feel her ribs and spine but her tummy was soft but still huge, she showed no signs of pain when I touched her tummy but I was still worried it wasn’t fat. Internet chat with vet-vet still insisted it’s because she’s fat and that she’s lethargic because she’s been spayed young at the shelter, said it’ll take a few month for her hormones to settle. A few days later she couldn’t walk more than 3 steps without rest and couldn’t climb the couch. I did my research and took her to the vet next morning, told her I think maybe my kitten has something called FIP and asked her to check for fluids. Vet drained almost 3 CUPS of fluid and reweighed my kitten who turned out to now be underweight and it was too late for her- she passed away the next day 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔
Figured I’d update since original comment I had the belief that this vet caused my kitten to become obese.
Yes dogs in fact don’t have to eat
My kitten eats 3 pack of 85gm everyday. She is two months old. Is it okay?
thanku
So I hear feeding dry food to cats can cause bladder and kidney issues because they cannot produce enough fluids because they don’t drink water enough so I’m kind of misled by what you’re saying dry food when they get a serve
Do you feed them both food at the same tim
Remember guys, AVOID CARRAGERN!!!! It causes cancer!
Good evening. I trust you all well. I took my cat with her 2 babies 4 weeks old to the vet as they were sneezing. I was scared it could get worse. I noticed the first born wasn’t energetic anymore. The Dr gave each kitten 2 injections. I’m feeding the weak one kitten milk as he dnt want to drink from his mom 😢. I’m trying to feed him as much as he can drink and he sleeps a lot. Please give me some advice. My plan is to take him back to the vet 😢
Oh I forgot to ask How many treats should we be giving a nude little kitten that’s less than 3 months old? How many lickables per day? If we feed additional things like boiled chicken, how much of that is okay? Are there other vitamins and supplements we should be offering outside of food, treats and water? Do cats like any fruits or vegetables? I have always been around dogs. This kitten is my first exposure to any felines at all!! HELP!!!
How i dntknow my kitten 2 month how eat which 1/4 or 1/2 a 2day?
Hmmm, I have never heard of "an over weight kitten" thats like saying your 2 month old infant is over weight?
Ki’en?
What about kitty 4 weeks old kitty And mama took out
Greetings Dr.
Hope you are having a wonderful day.
I wanted to appreciate your effort sharing this helpful necessary information for all cat dads n moms.
I’ve always been a dog dad and i had to move to another country and have just now adopted myself a 2 months old DollFacePersian kitten. Been 1 month now. My concern is and never have got an answer to why is my kitten having too much food😅 i feed 2 table spoons of wet food and in few hours Zara comes back with her tail tall asking for more… This happend 3 to 4 times a day. As per internet and videos, i feel like i might be feeding a bit more than recommended but she thinks Im not feeding enough. Zarah is 800g to 1kg weight now.
Waiting for some response this comment.
Have a great day, Thanks
This was pretty useful. Nobody ever cleared it up like this. My 5 month old kitten keeps stealing my 2 yr olds food and eats like she has food insecurity from before we got her. She cleans out her own and her brother’s bowl too. The older one is a picky eater and over sensitive and will go hungry sometimes
Never feed your kitten or cat dry kibble. Too many carbs, not enough fat and useable protein.
why would a vet recommend a cat only eat dry food
I feed my 1 yo ragdoll a wet can and 2 pouches of Stella and Chewy’s Carnivore Cravings a day and he still cries for more… I thought I was over feeding but now I feel comfortable adding in raw freeze dried kibble with his meals
Thank you very much 🙂
Just got an 8 week old kitten and she is NOT eating. Even tried using a syringe and a bottle but still nothing . do i just need to be patient? Or am i doing something wrong? Because Cant really take her to a vet
I have a 8 month kitten I have had her for three months she does not like wet food currently I feed her two 1/4 cup of Instinct High Protein kibble 95% Chicken Protein at least twice a day and as I am trying to introduce wet food she likes the Sheba Chicken Kitten 1/2 of the 1/2 tray twice a day I have tried many different wet foods but she just doesn’t like it is this okay for her she does drink plenty of water I can’t starve her to have her maybe eat the wet she is just a little baby and growing kitten
The fuck are you recommending kibble for how are you a vet
This video was very informative and helpful to me in knowing how much to feed my two kittens. Yes, I notice they are wasting food.
Not a Fan of getting a 8week old kitten. Thats way too young. I met my kitten at 8weeks and that poor Thing wasnt understanding the World yet. I picked him up at 12 weeks, where the Start to become more independant.
Also kibble is bad. Cats should eat 99% meat protein, No grains nor sugar
What about if you just feeding wet food for kittens 4-6 m
also.
The question I want to ask is.Why is it that my male kitten goes to the girls kitten plate to eat after he finish his food
I have 4 months kitten ragdoll. Should I feed her raw food?
What breed are they?
I have a ragdoll and she is 4 months ago. Can I feed her raw food or should I feed her when she is older?
NEVER, I repeat NEVER!!!! should you feed your cat only dry food when they get older like she says at min 2:03. My wife’s childhood cat died because of complication with urinary crystals. It is well known that cats need a lot of moisture in their diet. Specially male cats!!!! Do your research please. Ill always remember this quote, "THE WORST CAT WET FOOD IS BETTER THAN THE BEST CAT DRY FOOD"
Edit: if you can avoid dry food all together that is better. Please see other videos, do more research. You’ll see that it is true
Terrible advice to give dry food to kittens
The adult cat demonstration 😮😮😮 that’s way way way too much food, damn, even my super active 5 month old cat doesn’t eat that much lol not even close. He’s super healthy and muscular.
Might be a dumb question but feed both wet and dry at the same time? If so mix them or put them separately?
Should you separate out the wet and dry food or mix it up?
Thank you so much I need to do research bc and this helps soooo much thanks❤
Why are vets encouraging dry food. Sure cover the info but why transition to dry food when it is the most processed unhealthy option. Kinda disappointed you didn’t mention that.
you are so cute doctor 🥰
ki-en?
As soon as she started yelling at me, and telling me that you can transition your cat to 100% dry food, I know this is INCORRECT information. ALL cats need wet food, it’s how they get 90% of their fluids. Advice to the ‘vet’, get a lapel mike so you don’t have to yell at your viewers.
Guys just a reminder, feeding your cats or kittens dry kibble is like feeding them McDonalds takeout. Its a straight one way to an obese unhealthy cat and a bad diet.
Two kittens, bout three months old. I give them 1/2 portions of wet food 4 times a day (morning, lunch, diner, evening), and they have kibble on tap. They seem to self-regulate, they settle for half-portion meals, else they leave some to dry and it’s disgusting.
They snack on kibble a little bit through the day, but they much prefer the wet food. They run around the living room all day and don’t lack any energy whatsoever.
Always feed the wet food first. The dry food will not go bad if left in the bowl
Thanks! I have 4 stray cats, I feed them twice, piece of raw chicken in am and small cup of kibbles at night. Glad to know they are getting enough.
Wet food in one bowl and dry food in another bowl
Is that 1/2 can each feeding or a day
worst advice ever