What to feed a kitten?

29 March 2023

HOME FOOD Blog: How to Feed a Kitten

How to Feed a Kitten

During the period of active growth, a kitten’s body experiences increased stress, so its diet must be complete and well-balanced. It’s essential to take into account the needs of a still-developing organism. The food should contain all the necessary nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and other important components in the right proportions. High-quality commercial foods from premium and above classes usually meet these requirements — manufacturers have already considered the needs of a growing kitten. But what else should you know about feeding kittens and choosing the right food?

Basic Rules for a Kitten’s Diet

Kittens need not only love and care, but also a rationally balanced diet. For normal development and health maintenance, they require proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids. These components affect coat condition, teeth and bone strength, vision sharpness, and the functioning of all body systems.

Given cats’ natural predatory behavior, the main requirement for a diet is a high protein content:

For kittens: at least 30% protein in dry matter;
For adult cats: ideally 35–50% protein, depending on activity level and health condition.

Proteins and other nutrients are found in meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, and some vegetables. However, achieving an exact balance of all required nutrients through home-prepared food without specialized knowledge is extremely difficult.

A consultation with a veterinarian helps create an individualized feeding plan, select safe nutrient sources, and identify foods to avoid in order to reduce the risk of allergies or digestive issues.

Foods Strictly Forbidden for Kittens

Fatty meats: pork, lamb.
Fried meat, cutlets, chops — fatty and heavily processed foods are poorly digested.
Raw meat — risk of parasites and pathogenic infections.
Smoked meats, sausages, and semi-finished products — high in salt, spices, and often contain plant-based protein and other unsuitable ingredients.
Bones — can damage internal organs and cause blockages.
Large amounts of fish — disrupts phosphorus balance and increases the risk of urolithiasis.
High-fat dairy products (sour cream, cheese, etc.).
Liver in excess — can disrupt vitamin A metabolism and cause bone/joint problems.
Toxic to cats: tomatoes, grapes, eggplants, onions, garlic.
Potatoes and legumes — cause bloating and digestive upset.
Sweets, pastries, especially chocolate — absolutely unacceptable even in small amounts.
Alcohol — can cause toxic damage to the liver and brain.

Consequences: food poisoning, allergic reactions, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation. In some cases, feeding forbidden foods can even be fatal.

If your pet accidentally eats something harmful — contact a veterinarian immediately. Enterosorbents can provide quick first aid.

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Types of Kitten Food

It’s no surprise that many owners choose commercial foods — complete ready-made diets make life much easier. But do all foods fully meet a kitten’s needs? No, which is why it’s important to understand the differences:

Economy class — cheap foods found in supermarkets, heavily advertised on TV, often in bright packaging. These cannot be considered good, especially for kittens. Inexpensive ingredients (soy, cellulose, cartilage), plus dyes, antioxidants, preservatives, flavor enhancers, etc.
Premium and super-premium class — sold in pet stores and vet pharmacies. Much higher quality, close to ideal. Excellent vitamin-mineral complex and sufficient meat content.
Holistic — the highest tier: no preservatives, dyes, or unnecessary additives. Natural composition, plenty of vitamins and minerals, highly digestible. A kitten feels full with a smaller portion, which offsets the higher price.

How many times a day should you feed a kitten?

There is a concept of daily calorie requirement — how much energy a kitten needs per day for growth and vital functions. It depends on age, weight, and activity level. The daily calorie amount is usually stated on the package, but feeding frequency must be determined individually.

Up to 1 month: feed frequently — 7–8 times a day at regular intervals, including night feedings.
1.5–4 months: 5–6 times a day, night feeding can be removed.
4–6 months: ideally 5 meals a day.
6–9 months: 3–4 meals.
From 1 year: 2–3 meals a day are sufficient.

When creating a diet, age is also crucial:

Up to 1 month — only mother’s milk or special milk replacer formulas.
Around 1 month — start introducing wet kitten food.
2 months — add premium/super-premium dry food.
3 months — teeth are forming; full dry and wet kitten food + treats up to 5–10% of the diet.
4–6 months — rapid growth phase; all nutrients must be present in sufficient amounts.
6 months – 1 year — reaching adult weight, activity slightly decreases; adjust portions to prevent obesity.

Which is Better — Commercial Food or Homemade/Natural?

If you got your kitten already weaned from its mother, ask the previous owner what it was fed. A sudden diet change can cause digestive upset. Switch gradually, increasing the new food portion daily.

Creating a fully balanced homemade diet without specialized knowledge is very difficult. To provide all necessary nutrients, you almost always need to add supplements.

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Homemade food has several disadvantages:

Cost — you’ll need to buy vitamin-mineral complexes (taurine, biotin, Omega-3 and Omega-6 sources, arginine, etc.).

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Shelf life — homemade food can’t be stored for weeks; it must be prepared fresh daily. Stale food causes upset, and travel makes this even harder.
Difficulty of control — commercial foods are already precisely formulated for age, breed, and needs. Doing this yourself is complex and error-prone.

Therefore, a complete balanced commercial food is the best choice. It contains everything your kitten needs without additional vitamins or minerals.

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