3 Types of Feeding
Natural Food
Ready-made
Mixed Feeding
It is necessary to feed a kitten at the age of 1.5-2 months 5-6 times a day. By 4 months, the kitten is fed 4 times a day, and only by 10 months of age, feeding is gradually reduced to 2 times. Each type of feeding has its’ pros and cons. The owner makes the final choice on what to feed their pet. Let’s take a quick look at the 3 different
Natural
The following products must be present in the kitten’s diet: cottage cheese, cereals, milk, eggs, meat (beef), poultry (chicken and turkey), offal. Meat should be given boiled or frozen, chicken boiled or scalded. Additionally, the menu can be varied with grains. Fish should be rarely offered to a pet and boiled beforehand, removing the bones. Milk is given in its pure form (gradually reducing the percentage of fat from 6 to 1), you can give kefir. In no case should you give yogurt and other dairy products containing bifidobacterial intended for humans! Remember: what is good for a person is not always good for a cat! Nowadays, you can buy yoghurts and other dairy products specifically for cats in any pet store. It is important that the diet is not only varied, but also balanced. For each age of the kitten, a certain content of proteins, fats and carbohydrates in the daily diet is necessary. Since it is almost impossible to perfectly balance the diet, it is recommended to add vitamin supplements, which are mainly selected by veterinarians, calculate the content of vegetables, meat and dairy products.
Ready-made
When shopping for ready-made food one should distinguish really high-quality food from those that will not bring any benefit to the cat, only harm. Good food is not cheap, because only high-quality ingredients are used to make it. Compliance with technology also requires financial costs. When choosing your kitten’s food, you should pay attention that it is not only premium or super acceptable class (Hill’s, Royal Canin, Bosh Sanabel, Yams, Okana, Nutro, Eukanuba), but also suits your cat in accordance with its breed, age and image of life. Today, almost all manufacturers of ready-made food offer food for kittens, lactating cats, young animals and animals over 7 years old, for sterilized cats, and so on. Also, the line of ready-made food provides types developed for the most popular breeds (Persian, Scottish/British, Abyssinian, etc). In addition, a bowl of clean water should ALWAYS be available to the kitten. Lack of water can lead to serious health problems later on. For small kittens who have just begun to feed on their own, dry food is recommended to soak. After three months, you can give it in its usual form. In any case, dry food should always be given by one manufacturer, and if you decide to replace it with another, then the transition is done gradually (within 4-5 days).
Mixed
Mixed nutrition is when dry food (high-quality!) is used as the main source of food, to which the animal has constant access, while adding meat, fish, poultry, and dairy products 1- 2 times a day. Nowadays, mixed feeding of cats causes the most versatile opinion. Most experts assure that it is unacceptable to use ready-made feeds and natural products in the diet.
Proponents of mixed feeding believe that animals in their natural habitat have the opportunity to eat in the most balanced way, knowing their own preferences and the required amount of certain substances, vitamins. Allowing the cat to make its own choice, as a result, we get a diet individually selected for your pet, which makes it possible to reduce the animal’s addiction to dry food that has special chemical additives that increase its dependence on such food, but at the same time increase the load on the cat’s body.
Opponents of mixed nutrition believe that the composition of industrial feed is completely balanced in terms of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and microelements, the ingredients included in the composition are processed, therefore, the cat’s digestive system adapts to the finished product, does not perceive and digest raw natural food well, and adding natural products is easy.
Despite the disputes about this type of feeding, the breeders of our cattery adhere to it, but given a number of some nuances:
Dry cat food should make up at least 70% of the daily diet. In the morning feeding, low-fat cottage cheese is given no more than 15% of the diet. In the evening feeding meat or chicken is given no more than 15% of the daily diet. In one feeding, natural food and ready-made food are not given.
