how many times should i feed my kitten??

Question

I try to keep his bowl full of food at all times.. will that make him fat??should he only be fed a couple times a day??

Answer 1

Unfortunately, you did not indicate the age of your kitten. However, cat/kitten food can be introduced starting at 3-4 weeks of age. By the age of 6-7 weeks kittens should be completely weaned and eating an appropriate commercial kitten ration. Moisten dry foods to soften the kibble and make it easier for a youngster to eat. Use three parts dry food to one part water (not milk) to soften the food.

Offer a kitten food three times a day. A kitten's tummy is too small to allow him to eat the amount needed for proper nutrition all at one time. Instead, kittens tend to eat several small meals - perhaps only having three or four bites at a time, leaving, and then returning later to nibble again. Give the kitten about an hour to eat his fill, then throw out the uneaten portion. Wet food spoils if left out longer.

Soft diets (canned cat food) may be fed for the cat's lifetime but may contribute to dental plaque or tartar. Kittens are able to eat plain dry food by about three months of age. To get a kitten used to dry food, gradually decrease the amount of water over a week's time until the kitten ration is completely dry.

Once the kitten is six months old, his meals can be reduced to twice a day. He should continue to eat kitten ration, though, as long as he continues to grow, until at least a year old.

After one year of age, the cat should be fed an adult maintenance ration. Never change the diet abruptly - this can cause upset stomachs and result in vomiting and/or diarrhea. Instead, introduce the new food over 7-10 days by mixing it in with the familiar food. Gradually increase the proportion of new food while reducing the amount of the old until the cat is eating only the new diet.

Answer 2

My cats only get feed two cans a day. Keeping his bowl full of wet food can make him fat, unless you are keeping his bowl full of dry food (which I do), then he will snack on it when he is hungry, but they dont like it enough to continuely sit there and eat it all day.

BTW - my cats are both a little over a year old and are only 8 and 10 pounds, so they are pretty skinny.

Answer 3

Having small amounts of food in the bowl at all times is fine. However, if she starts eating too much, and taking advantage of the food being out, then i would start portion control. About half a cup in the morning and half a cup in the evening. Thats what i do with my cat, and during the day i will give her half a can of wet food. If the cat shows signs of obesity, make sure you limit her food before its too late. Once cats get overweight, its very hard to get their weight back down, not to mention the vet bills for their newly developed health problems!

Answer 4

its a very complex question first off i have a cat who had twins a boy and a girl the boy grew and grew so much so that it hogged all the nipples from the little girl I had to step in and feed the little girl with a special formula that the vet gave to me with a tiny doll=babies bottle every 2 hrs. then the vet told me that when ''mom''was trying to get them weened off her because the '''baby teeth''' were getting so sharp that they were actually cutting her nipples opened...what the vet told me is that I should take ''mom's'' dry food and wet it down and let it sit on the counter to soften and that is all you need to do... that these KITTEN CHOW is nothing more than a ''selling trick'' and that 1x in the morning 1with a smaller amount in the afternoon and then 1mores with the same amount that you gave them in the morning should be more than adequate...however when they kept going for mom I took it upon myself to separate them from her so that they and she could have some time apart to ''get used to being given away'' SAMSON &DALLILLA is what i tried but decided to just call them moms babies... DO NOT GIVE MILK according to the vet it WILL CAUSE SOUP POOP also no no no no tuna it will do the same... if you are really concerned call your vet or the SPCA.. and have fun try not to give toys that are no smaller than 3 fingers big so it doesn't choke..

Answer 5

When my cat was a kitten, we just left dry food out at all times...and she developed a bit of weight problem. But...we also gave her a lot of treats, so that may have added to the weight. When she got older, we put her on weight control food and now at age 4, she's at a normal weight.

But to avoid all of that, I think it's important to monitor how much he takes advantage of the easy-access food. If he eats much of the day...then perhaps keeping the food out only on regular time intervals would be better.

But, it also depends on what other sort of food, like treats, you may give him. So....just monitor his behavior and make your decision accordingly. Also...if he's starting to look a lot cuter and a little pudgy, maybe check with the vet to see if his weight is on point.

Answer 6

cats are not as dumb as dogs they wont eat all their food at once but kitty should be eating at least a cup full a day keep the bowl full it wont overindulge

Answer 7

Watch out. Leaving food out all the time can attract rodents, inside or out. Feed him morning and night, and he'll be alright.

Answer 8

He/she should be fed two times a day. Once in the morning, once at night. Also, keep his/her water fresh, everytime you feed him/her.

Answer 9

you need to chase him in the house and feed him 2 time a day

Answer 10

cats eat like 9 times a day or something like that, they're sposed to always have food available. if they start gettin fat then they need more play and exercise.