Proper nutrition for a kitten

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

When getting a kitten, most owners feed it the same food that adult cats eat. But the nutrition of babies is different, because their stomach is not the same as that of adults. It is necessary to give kittens the food that will be favorably digested. Proper nutrition of a kitten means providing him with he althy food. You also need to observe the mode of eating.

Mode

You need to know when to introduce complementary foods and how often to feed kittens. Usually guided by the hungry look of the animal. But it is better to feed the baby 3-4 weeks after birth. By 4 weeks, there will be a stable eating schedule.

How many times a day you need to feed the animal, depending on age:

• up to 2 weeks - 10 times a day;
• up to a month - 8 times;
• 1-2 months - 7 times;
• 2-3 months - 6 times;
• 4-5 months - 5 times;
• 5-9 months - 4 times;
• 9-12 months - 3 times.

From the age of 1, you can switch to two meals a day for a kitten. In the future, this will be enough for the animal to have a stronghe alth. The body must receive the necessary substances.

How much food is given?

Amount of food to be calculated based on weight:

• 1 week - 30 ml per 100 g animal;
• 2 weeks - 38ml;
• 3 weeks - 48ml;
• 4 weeks - 53 ml.

It turns out that depending on the weight, the kitten gets the amount of food it needs for full development. This is where moderation matters.

Essential Products

It's not just the quality care of kittens that matters. Food should be age appropriate. Do not give your pet hot or cold food. Preferably it should be at room temperature. The consistency of food should be taken into account: the first portions should be given in a porridge-like form. You can cook food with a blender and a regular grater.

What does proper kitten nutrition include? The diet should consist of:

• lean meat - raw, boiled, frozen, scalded;
• liver - once a week;
• porridge with meat and vegetables;
• vegetables – fresh and boiled;
• eggs;
• low-fat dairy products.

If the kitten is full, then he sleeps calmly or sucks his mother's milk. But when the animals around the mother squeak, this indicates that they need to be fed. We need to prepare a bottle with a pacifier, a pipette and a special mixture.

What foods are banned?

A kitten's diet should not include the followingproducts:

• dry and wet food;
• cow's milk;
• fat fermented milk products;
• fish;
• s alt, spices;
• sausage;
• potato;
• legumes;
• cheese;
• pork;
• sweets;
• flour.

Nutrition principles by month

Food may vary depending on the age of the animal:

• 2-4 months. The pet can eat on its own. At this time, he has active growth, a skeleton is being formed. The diet should include foods rich in vitamin and protein.
• 4-6 months. At this time, you need products that allow you to increase muscle mass. You can give meat, offal, cut into pieces. You also need fermented baked milk or low-fat yogurt.
• 6-10 months. Growth at this time is not so intense. From time to time you can give low-fat sea fish.

Scottish Fold kittens

There are animals that require special food. These include Scottish Fold kittens. Their care and nutrition is unique. Animals will benefit from meat, which should be lean, slightly cooked. When preparing it, do not add s alt, spices. Perfect for chicken breast. Scottish kittens also eat liver.

Food should not consist of fish. If the kitten likes it, then it is necessary to choose its low-fat types - these are hake, pike perch, sea bass. What else should be included in the nutrition of Scottish Fold kittens? Several times a week they can be given low-fat cottage cheese,ryazhenka, kefir. Whole milk cereals should be provided to pets up to 5 months. Kittens definitely need an egg yolk, which is mixed with cereals, vegetable purees.

It is important to adhere to the indicated norms in order for lop-eared kittens to develop correctly. Care and nutrition should be appropriate for the breed. The diet may include cereals - oatmeal, buckwheat, rice. Vegetables are perfect for them - carrots, cauliflower, asparagus. Products are boiled and mashed.

Vitamins are also required for Scottish Fold kittens to feel normal. Care and nutrition should be carried out on the basis of the recommendations of the veterinarian. He will advise the best type of vitamins that you can buy in specialized stores. Pets like grass, so it is advisable to plant it at home in a pot.

There are also special foods that lop-eared kittens also use. Care and nutrition should be complete, so you need to use dry food and canned food. These products contain the necessary components for proper development.

British breed

Requires a special approach and British kitten. His care and nutrition are unique. Owners can accustom a pet to natural nutrition, but vitamin complexes that contain trace elements will still be required. The type of supplement should be selected by the veterinarian.

Animals of this breed eat lean boiled meat. Useful for them cottage cheese, sour cream, kefir, fermented baked milk with a low percentage of fat. Quail eggs, cereals are excellent. After birth, you can give porridge from semolina, oatmeal, rice.

Only a varied dietwill make sure that the British kitten is he althy. Care and nutrition are different from other breeds. The diet should include vegetables - spinach, kohlrabi, carrots, cauliflower. Chicken yolks are also useful for them. Such nutrition will allow your pet to have good he alth.

The consequences of malnutrition

A balanced diet is important. Due to the imbalance of useful components, serious he alth problems appear:

• Diabetes. There are individuals who have a genetic predisposition to this disease. Therefore, the disease can appear with improper nutrition.
• Avitaminosis. With a lack of many components, he alth problems appear. For example, a lack of vitamin E causes a deterioration in the quality of wool.
• Allergy.
• Poisoning.

Some foods (chocolate, onion, garlic) are considered pet poison. Only feed them safe food.

Ready feed

There is a lot of controversy over what is best for kittens - dry food or natural food. If the finished product has all the minerals, vitamins, then it is great for a pet. Such food is useful, according to veterinarians.

Kitten owners should consider the following rules:

• Natural feeding should not be mixed with dry food as these foods are digested differently. Otherwise, various diseases may appear.
• If one food is present in the diet, then you should not change it to another, because in eachproduct its composition. Mixing may cause imbalance.
• Don't choose "mass market" food for your pet. Only high quality specialized feeds are needed.

Recommendations

• No need to s alt the cooked product.
• If raw meat is given, then it should be refrozen in advance.
• Fish is prohibited for neutered pets.
• Don't feed your pet large chunks of food.
• Oil and fatty products are contraindicated.
• Raw fish get worms, so it needs to be processed beforehand.
• Canned foods are dangerous.
• Meat and fish should not contain bones.
• There should be no pork in the diet.

Some owners, due to ignorance of the principles of nutrition of kittens, mix their food with industrial feeds. And this cannot be done. If there is no money for high-quality dry food, then it is better not to use the usual one. Cats need a balanced diet for good he alth and well-being.

What else do you need to know?

Kittens need 3 bowls: for water, dry and liquid food. Dishes should be comfortable and stable. Containers should be washed regularly. The animal should eat where it is more convenient for him.

It is important to pay attention to the he alth of the kitten. It should be regularly shown to the veterinarian. Often, such procedures can prevent many ailments, as well as cure the disease in a timely manner. Sometimes the doctor recommends adding somedrugs for treatment or prevention. Veterinarians perform deworming, vaccination. They prescribe remedies for fleas and other parasites. Proper nutrition and care protect the animal from various ailments. The pet will be he althy, which means it will delight its owners.