These simple rules are very important for keeping your pet healthy. Keep in mind that cats are talented handlers, they are happy to have breakfast, lunch and dinner with you and with each member of your family, both together and separately.
As the animal grows, it becomes more or less part of the general diet, of course, if you don’t give the kitten dangerous food, but when the animal grows, this approach to diet will lead to obesity and related health problems. Therefore, from the moment a small kitten appears in your house, suppress the desire in you and your loved ones to treat your cat with something delicious each time you go to the kitchen, especially if it is delicious in the list of products categorically contraindicated for cats.
Yes, it is very difficult to resist a cat who looks at you with the appearance “I am very hungry and unhappy, give me what you eat”, but show willpower for the health of the cat itself.
In fact, these are the feeding rules that should be followed
- If your pet is healthy and not neutered, you feed it with dry food, then the best will be the so-called “free food”, just make sure there is always food in the bowl. Recommendations for feeding cats with ready-to-eat food can be found here. But for castrated animals, this approach is not suitable because it can lead to obesity. In case the animal is sterilized, it is necessary to measure the daily standard of food and divide it into three parts and give the cat food three times a day accordingly.
- Kittens from 3 months to one year old, pregnant and lactating kittens must be fed up to 5 times a day. Adult animals are fed 2 to 3 times a day. The number of meals and the size of the food must correspond to the age and health of the animal.
- If the cat is healthy and its diet is properly selected and well balanced, the animal eats exactly as much food as it needs at a time. Food should be given at a rate of 30 to 60 g per 1 kg of animal weight.
- The food should be at room temperature. Do not give cats frozen food or food directly from the refrigerator.
- The food is prepared and fed in crushed form, if it is a natural food. Recommendations for the diet and the mixture recipe for natural food can be found here.
- Cat food is given at the same time in a strictly designated place in a clean container.
- Cats eat cat food. The food on your cat table is not only inappropriate, it is harmful to them.
- Leftover food is removed 30 minutes after the cat has eaten, again it is natural food. Dry food can be left.
- The amount of liquid an animal eats dry food drinks should be three times the amount of food it consumes. If a cat eats natural food or wet food, the amount of water it drinks should be 20 to 30 ml per 1 kg of cat weight, since natural food and wet food contain liquid.
- Water for the cat must be available at all times. Choose a large bowl of water for the cat’s mustache to enter. When the mustache touches the edges of the cat’s bowl, it becomes nervous. If the cat drinks little, change the bowl to a larger bowl, move it away from the tray and the food bowl. Some cats like to drink running water, others prefer to get up. It is not uncommon for cats to drink water from large flower pots and ignore their bowl of water. Watch your pet, cats are very intelligent, so it is likely that your cat has found a source of water that suits him perfectly.
- Feed your cat natural food or ready-to-use dry or wet food. There is an opinion that it is impossible to mix with each other. Unfortunately, there is no research to confirm or refute it.
- If an animal vomits undigested food a few minutes after eating, it is a sign of overeating. The amount of food should be reduced. However, be careful, this can sometimes be a sign of an infectious disease. If there are other alarming symptoms described in the article “How to determine if a cat is sick”, or if the reduction in the amount of food has not helped, immediately show your cat to a veterinarian!
Why should cats eat wet food?
Veterinarians recommend building a cat diet using wet food. Given the fact that cats are not water lovers, they often keep themselves on the verge of dehydration. Wet food helps to replenish the lack of water in the body.
Should the diet include wet and dry food?
- You must determine or consult with your veterinarian yourself: whether you will adhere to an exclusively wet diet or dilute the diet with dry food. There are cats that love exclusively dry food and, as a result, may be malnourished. In this case, it is worth alternating and calculating calories correctly.
- After the correct ratio of wet and dry food intake, calorie counting, you need to make sure that you are eating a quality diet that is listed in AAFCO as “complete and balanced”, and determine the number of calories per serving.
How much wet food should you feed your cat?
The needs of an animal in living conditions depend on most factors:
- by weight, you can determine how much to feed.
- determine by physique. A lean, muscular cat with large bones can weigh a lot. His diet will require more calories to support a healthy weight. An overweight cat needs to be fed according to its ideal weight, not actual
- Activity level and age. The diet of an active animal should exceed the number of calories consumed than that of a cat who leads an immobile lifestyle. As they get older, the kitten should be fed more than the adult.
The correct calculation of calories in the diet of the animal, first of all, the health of the pet. The AAHA offers a general guide to the nutritional needs of cats that clearly states the amount of calories in a kitten’s, adult’s, and older’s diets based on their physique.
Feeding Tips for cats
You can use the recommendations that are already written on the food packaging. On the internet, the diet website can go into more detail about the feeding rules. The amount of food you eat may need to be adjusted depending on how your cat reacts. If you notice unwanted weight gain or loss, the amount must be adjusted. If your cat seems very hungry and is not gaining weight, it is okay to increase the amount of feed.
Many wet foods come in cans or packs and it is recommended that you feed approximately one pack or can per day. Please read the brands carefully as the feeding instructions on the packaging may vary.
- Choose the right food by weight, age, activity, physiological state.
- Correctly determine and observe the dosage. Use kitchen scales and measuring cups.
- Always free access to quality water.
- Do not feed dog food to cats and vice versa.
- The type of feed is changed gradually. The new feed is added to the usual feed gradually, over 7-10 days. We increase the amount of new feed step by step, proportionally reducing the amount of the usual one.
- You can combine dry and wet food. It is important to recalculate the dosage in the correct ratio.
- Mixing commercial diets with regular homemade foods is not recommended. Since the advantage of a balanced diet is lost.
- When adding delicacies to the diet, you need to pay attention to their calorie content and quantity. It may be necessary to reduce the amount of feed on this day.
- Remember to visit your veterinarian regularly for annual checkups to make sure your cat is healthy.