what next to feed Tundra and Tacoma?

denham

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I have been giving Tundra and Tacoma Purina Kitten Chow this week. We have only had these two 12 week old kittens for 5 days now. At first I softened it with a little water and then I have been giving them a little chow dry during the day to munch on. When can I start giving them something else - another flavor or canned food? One of them is very aware of the smell of our human food which they will not be given. He seems to want what we are eating, the other could care less.
Thanks for your patience with these brand new, never owned a pet before, kitten owners
 

sharky

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what did they eat at the breeder or shelter??

do you know how to do a search ??
 

skimble

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From what I remember reading, they were just dropped off at your husband's work. You can keep them on the food you have now and give wet canned food a couple of times a day until you decide what you would prefer to feed them. Dry food needs to be switched very slowly but wet food is usually not a problem.

At the top of the "Health and Nutrition" section on the right side under the page number is a search box. Type in what you are looking for and it will give you all the posts that pertain to that subject.

Here are a few links that might help when you have time to read.

http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.ph...brary&show=004
http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.ph...needcannedfood
http://www.catinfo.org
 

seaturtle

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My vet told me that cats ideally need dry food with at least 40% protein, and not w/cornmeal as first ingredient. She also said Purina Kitten Chow was ideal for cats of all ages to maintain on because of the protein content.

The only problem I've encountered with that is that my cats, all adults, like it so much that they will overeat on it all the time.

Look for cat foods with at least 40% protein - there are a few, but mostly quite expensive. And a good quality wet food, maybe just a little, though they can do fine without it.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by seaturtle

My vet told me that cats ideally need dry food with at least 40% protein, and not w/cornmeal as first ingredient. She also said Purina Kitten Chow was ideal for cats of all ages to maintain on because of the protein content.

The only problem I've encountered with that is that my cats, all adults, like it so much that they will overeat on it all the time.

Look for cat foods with at least 40% protein - there are a few, but mostly quite expensive. And a good quality wet food, maybe just a little, though they can do fine without it.
40% DRY protein is NOT needed ( yes many GOOD foods have that in a all stage ).... KITTEN CHOW is MOSTLY CORN Head ft and intestines...NOT a GOOD Protein set ...
 

babywukong

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Hmm... wondering if its safe to start kittens on raw diet since it would have all their dietary needs including taurine. I've never fed a cat raw before, and currently don't have any... Just throwing this suggestion out and seeing if other more experienced TCSers can advice.
 

kalikat

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Cats are carnivores & a natural died woud be ideal. I would try & feed raw chicken wing tips to start with to get them used to chewing on raw meaty bones. A good way to keep their teeth clean. When Blossom was a baby I used to give her the occasional raw chicken wing & chicken & lamb meat which she loved. Unfortunately I got lazy & only gave it to her once in a while & now she's not so fussed on them. I came across this site while researching raw feeding dogs. http://rawfed.com/myths/cats.html
I also read a couple of articles by vets that said that cats should only eat wet food (canned). It is said to also keep their teeth clean.
http://cats.about.com/gi/dynamic/off...rg%2Findex.htm
 

darlili

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Some considerations also are what stores can you get to easily and your budget - there are decent foods at all price points. Your babies already have lucked out in finding a loving, caring family, so everything else will be gravy for them, so to speak. And, of course, the best food for your cat sis one they'll eat - the most expensive, organic, wholistic food on the planet won't work if they turns up their noses at it!


For myself, Nutro has worked very well, it's easily findable if you have any of the larger pet stores near you, they have formulas for all stages of life, and it's not all that expensive. A lot of people have very good luck with Authority, the Petsmart housebrand, which is very reasonably priced.

If you're in a rural area, you may be able to find some foods like Chicken Soup for cats at feed stores. A lot of people like that.

BTW, I loved their names before you mentioned the link to Toyota - and it sounds like you have a good man there, and bless you both for giving these babies a loving home. BTW, there are a lot of books out there you might be interested in (I read a lot when I first got cats two years ago) - there's Kittens for Dummies book (which is actually very good) - and I bet there's at least one staff person at your local library who's a cat person who will be absolutely delighted to help you find resources.

BTW, line up a vet yet? Any good practice will be happy for you to make an appointment to interview them and tour the facility - I can tell you you'll feel more relaxed when you know you've got someone you like set up.

Good luck - and always remember all your questions come from love, and we've all be there!
 

arlyn

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I'd also like to add a few suggestions to your list.
Since we don't know what is available to you locally, I hope among all these suggestions you can find something.

If no big box petstores are around, maybe you have a Costco membership?
If so you can get Kirkland brand Signature premium food there, it's actually Diamond Naturals, but with Costco's branding on it.

Or a feed/farm store?
You can usually get Nutro, Diamond Naturals and Felidae at most of those places as well as some other decent, inexpensive, meat based dry foods and canned in those same varieties.
 

sweetkara

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My kitten freely feeds on Wellness Core dry and gets a scoop of wet 3 times a day. Either wellness kitten, or regular.
 
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denham

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Thanks everyone. I now have them on a heaped teaspoon of wet Fancy Feastnmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm (that's Tacoma!!) Fancy Feast mixed in with the dry Purina Kitten Chow in the am and pm. They loved this! I will continue to increase the wet. How does this sound?
They have grown so much in one week already.
 

chatterbox

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Actually, the AAFCO reccomends a protein level of 30% for growing kittens and lactating queens. What we use at our hospital, and reccomend for kittens, is Purina ProPlan Kitten Food. Our kittens really do well on it. I can get you the formula for calculating how much food they get, depending on the type of food (i.e. calories per kg), if you'd like... just let me know.
 
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