Adult food?

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Mollysmummy
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Adult food?

Post by Mollysmummy »

Our kitten Kevin is 5 months old. We currently feed him kitten Iams dry food, and Tesco kitten food in gravy. We feed our older cat Molly the adult versions of these. Kevin will eat Molly's food rather than his own at any opportunity. We thought it was because we were feeding him in a different room so we've moved his food next to hers so it seems less special, but he's still going to her food rather than his own. We even find them eating out of opposite ends of the same bowl!

He's hardly touching his food, and I wonder what difference it will make if we start giving him her food? I know kitten food has more nutrients, but is there a supplement or anything we can add?
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meriad
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Re: Adult food?

Post by meriad »

Years back when I got Abbie and Jamie - they were 5 months old - I also had Molly who at the time was 13. I was speaking to my vet about food because obviously according to what the manufacturers would like you believe I should be feeding the little ones kitten food and Molly should have been on Senior food. And as I was at work all day it was going to be a problem because I always have free fed. The vet just laughed when I spoke to him; as he rightly pointed out - senior and kitten foods are fairly new 'inventions' and in the years gone all cats were reared on normal cat food and did quite fine on that. His recommendation was to feed a good quality adult food to all and they'd be fine - and they were / are. Molly lived to 21 and Jamie and Abbie are happy and healthy 9 year olds now.

And unless there is a medical reason for change of diet mine will always all be fed on adult food. Obviously if I got a kitten that was on kitten food I'd continue with it to start, but I'd wean them onto adult food as soon as I could.

I got Ava when she was 3 months old and Henry was 5 months old and neither of them had kitten food when they joined my household; and again both are fit and healthy. Thankfully they were used to adult food from where they came from so (from memory) I think I mixed their food for about a week or two and then they were 100% adult food
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sarie
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Re: Adult food?

Post by sarie »

Yup I'd also like to add to this as my kitten Bailey is 14 weeks old and he won't leave the adult food alone. He shuns his kitten food at any given opportunity so I'm weaning him across now as the kitten food has nearly run out.
I can't see that a cheapo brand of kitten food is better for him than a good quality adult food and there aren't many good quality kitten foods around so I'll be glad to see the back of it and have him eating something I know is high quality instead :)
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Mollysmummy
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Re: Adult food?

Post by Mollysmummy »

That's great advice, thanks! My mum said pretty much the same about my childhood cats, we had a mother and 5 week old son for my 5th birthday, mum said when he was weaned he went onto 'normal' food as there wasn't kitten food 25 years ago!

He's pretty much only eating her food now and seems to be doing fine, at 5 months he's almost as big as our 1 1/2 year old so I'm hoping he'll be a big boy when he's fully grown! :)
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