Is 1cup of dry food enough?

It seems Kismet will eat approx. 1cup of dry food per day.

Is that enough food for a 5mos old kitty? (He is on a mixture of Whiskas Adult and Performatrin kitten).

I've given up on the canned food for now. I want to wait untill he is done the antibiotics because he had a loose stool last night, "assuming" from the antibiotics.... so I do not want to add another food to mess up his system.

Is 1 measuring cup, enough for a kitten, or should he be eating more?

Sounds like way too much - what does the package say? He should be eating at the most 3/4C; but probably around 1/2 cup...
Dry food has a lot of calories!
Check what the package says - Lucky is a 9 month 9+lb, and her recommended amount is between 1/2 and 2/3 (it will be 1/2 when she moves completely to Orijen; right now it is mixed, so it's in between those measurements).
Just my opinion - I would follow what the package says - you don't want to end up with an obese cat...

I have 3 adult cats, and they get a bit over a cup a day of dry food between them! It sounds a bit much to me. You don't want to end up with a porker of a kitty

Hmmmm. I don't have the bag to check.

Keep in mind he is underweight (4.2lbs at 5mos, should be around 5lbs my vet said) as well as last week he did not eat at all on Tues. or Wed. then a little bit on Thurs, Fri, Sat. When I got home Sunday afternoon, his bowl was empty so I put in 2 scoops ( 1cup) and it was gone by dinner time Monday.

I'm guessing here, but he could be trying to make up for the lost food last week.

He drinks alot too.

Maybe I should have waited a few days before posting, it could easily be that he was really hungry. Lots of factors involved I think. I played with him for over an hour yesterday when I came home (we were gone Sat. afternoon - Sunday afternoon) plus his normal kitty by himself play (he's got lots of toys) and he had a loose stool yesterday (not sure if it was classed as diarrhea or not..)

I free feed for now, so I'll keep a 'diary' of when and how much I fed him, and see how it works out. It will also give me something to take to my vets next time we go. She (my vet) had said to let him eat as much as he wants because of the weight, that he had been fed adult food and needs the kitten, and because he's not in perfect health. ( URI and possible ringworm ).

Thanks

Fair enough then! I assume you're moving off the Whiskas and onto the Performatrin? The Performatrin looks like a good food. Is there a kitten formula though, or is it just one formula?

Originally Posted by sarahp

Fair enough then! I assume you're moving off the Whiskas and onto the Performatrin? The Performatrin looks like a good food.

Is there a kitten formula though, or is it just one formula?

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Yep, that is my goal I didn't want to upset his tummy, so I 50/50 it.

I feed my dog Performatrin (after a lengthy try of other foods...) and it helped her coat very much and her poo's/farts not stink as much LOL. So I picked some up for the kitty, yes it does come in Kitten formula. I just don't have the bag as I mixed the foods together in a container.

On a sidenote, he didn't eat the whole cup yesterday.

Maybe I should learn to sit back and wait a little bit before posting LOL

Thanks for the input everyone....appreciated.

That sounds about right. My guy eats around a cup and a quarter per day and he's 8 mos. As long as his weight is good, that's what matters most at his age.

My vet recommends that kittens be free-fed as much as they want to eat. There's no such thing as too much food for a growing cat, he says. And there's no reason to assume that a cat will have weight problems; I'd wait until he's an adult and see how he is, and only experiment with diet restriction if he does develop a weight problem.

for a kitten, or even an adult cat who doesn't overeat (ok, my girl doesn't overeat - wish I could do as well as she does), I'd free feed and always make sure food is available - and just keep checking during the routine kitten checks with the vet that he/she isn't getting obese. I do measure food with my adults, because my boy tends to gain weight easily.

My vet definitely didn't really get concerned with weight gain until the boys were a year old. But a cup of food seems like a lot. Makes me wish I would have kept track of that kind of thing with Jack--wrote it in his folder I keep.

I definitely think an owner knows their cat best. I've been telling a friend that Harley is slightly overweight--when they saw him recently they were in shock by seeing him that either I or a vet would consider him overweight. Unless a person spends every day with the cat they don't recognize "normal"

Leslie

I give Milo and Nora each 1/2c of food per day, split in two feedings. I also give them each 1/2 of a 3oz can of cat food each day.

With the dry food, I have two bowls and I put 1/4c in each one and let them pick at it until it is empty, then at around 4:30-5:30pm I put another 1/4c in each bowl again. I wait to give them dry food in the morning after they eat their wet food.

Nora is 7mon and 8lbs and Milo is 3mon and 3lbs

Originally Posted by emmylou

My vet recommends that kittens be free-fed as much as they want to eat. There's no such thing as too much food for a growing cat, he says. And there's no reason to assume that a cat will have weight problems; I'd wait until he's an adult and see how he is, and only experiment with diet restriction if he does develop a weight problem.

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Saame here and that's exactly what I did. when I got my kittens off the bottle I let them eat as much as they wanted. Done from an early age i think it's best. if you try to go from a measured feeding to later on free-feeding i could see a cat overeating because they're so used to only getting a certain amount, and they'd eat way more than they needed. Just a guess though.

I kept two BIG bowls of Nutro Max kitten dry, and once a day gave them a pouch of Nutro Max chicken and tomator (to split).

Thanks for all the replies.

I went to a LPS, and talked to my friend there, as I'd prefer to buy from him if possible.

Anyways, he was saying that 1cup of one type of food, is not equal to 1 cup of another brand of food. The better foods tend to be more filling, so you require less.

In all probility, the food I am feeding is not great food, because I am doing a 50/50 mix of what his old owner fed him, and a better brand. I'm going to up it here shortly. He's been on the 50/50 for a week now. The new food is NOT going to be his forever food. I picked it because I looked at a few, talked to the lady, and she told me it was one of the best "cheaper" brands...sure there was $30 bags (I paid $13) but I knew this brand, my dog is on it and it has worked wonders for her.

I got a few samples from my friend, of Nutram kitten and on their package, for how much, they have: " We recommend you feed your cat free choice throughout the day. Increase or decrese the amount of food according to the size, activity, age and desired body condition."

I must say, I like that

Hey Snake_Lady: There is a great brand of food in Canada called Orijen - It is not THAT expensive... It is Grain free; actually 70 percent meat, 30 percent fruit and vegetables and zero grain.

Here is the link - I wonder what is the perception of this food there in Canada? That is what I am feeding Lucky - the food is VERY rich, and the kibbles small, so all it takes is about 1/2 cup a day, or a little more...

Anyway: Have you heard about it?

http://www.championpetfoods.com/orijen/products/

Never heard of it...looking for a store that sells it, unfortunately noone in town does.... but I will compare it to the others and see if possibly my LPS could get it in if it's something that looks good. Thanks for the link.

Since he's a kitten I would give him as much as he wants-- they burn more calories than an adult cat.

My kitten eats about 8-10 ounces of wet food per day plus about a quarter cup of dry per day.

My adult cat eats maybe 5-6 ounces of wet per day and maybe two bites of the dry.

They both weigh about 8 to 9 lbs.

yeah I notice she's not really hearing that part. every vet i've talked to has said to feed kittens as much as they want.

Originally Posted by fastnoc

yeah I notice she's not really hearing that part. every vet i've talked to has said to feed kittens as much as they want.

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ummm, If you are talking about me, then obviously you have not read my posts, especially"

got a few samples from my friend, of Nutram kitten and on their package, for how much, they have: " We recommend you feed your cat free choice throughout the day. Increase or decrese the amount of food according to the size, activity, age and desired body condition."

I must say, I like that

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I obviously do feed Kizzy as much as he wants, hence asking if 1 cup was enough. His bowl is refilled as it is emptied.

I'm sorry, I didn't see that. To me free feeding means leaving the bowl full or at least never letting it get empty. but i see how you're doing it. I just didn't monitor it so i didn't recognize what you said.

Sorry

Originally Posted by fastnoc

I'm sorry, I didn't see that. To me free feeding means leaving the bowl full or at least never letting it get empty. but i see how you're doing it. I just didn't monitor it so i didn't recognize what you said.

Sorry

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no prob...simple misunderstanding, I just wanted to clarify it
When I first had posted, I had a couple that thought 1cup was too much....so it got me concerned a bit, and I posted the feeding poll. My comments there also enforce my opinion on letting the kitten eat as much as he will.

I like to know how much the cat is eating, so I am able to know how much to put out if I go away for a night, I learn how long a bag will last, etc.