Dry Food Question.

rpanaligan16

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Hello,

I'm currently feeding my three 2-3 year old cats and one 5 month old kitten Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul. It's hard feeding the adult cats adult food since they have access to the kitten food too. I was thinking mixing half kitten and half adult food for all of the cats. for Is it okay to mix two different dry foods together? I was thinking of doing half Chicken Soup and half Nutro Max. Is there anything wrong w/ feeding the cats kitten food?

Thanks.
 

GoldyCat

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As long as they aren't overeating and getting too fat, there shouldn't be any problem. They are some dry foods out there that are considered all-stages, meant for both cats and kittens. As far as mixing two different kinds together, many of us do that to get the best balance we can for our furbabies. Also, if you're changing from one food to another you need to do it gradually by mixing the two together. Add a small amount of the new food for a day or two, then increase the amount you add each day until you have them completely changed over. If you want to use a combination, just stop when you reach the mix you need.
 

sakura

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Adult cats can eat kitten dry food, but they might get fat. Kittens should NOT be eating an adult maintenance food. Some people say that you can switch a 5 month old kitten to an adult maintenance food, but that just seems a little young. It's up to you though, it's hard to take weight off of a cat.

I think the perfect solution for you is an all-life-stages food. Some good ones in a similar price range to the Chicken Soup are:
- Taste of the Wild
- Natural Balance Ultra
- Healthwise

Other all-life-stages dry foods to check out (pricier options):
- Solid Gold
- Felidae
- Innova
- California Natural
- Evo
 

zoe2009

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I don't know why adult food would be bad for a 5 month old. But if you mix them, I would mix the same brands. Some people may disagree with me. But I wouldn't fee comfortable mixing two different brands, especially a cheap one and a qualithy food. I had Lucky on Chicken Soup Lite and he wasn't crazy about it. He is a wet food lover. But I kept in his bowl for him to munch on between wet food feedings. I switched to Innova and he seems to like it better.
 

GoldyCat

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Originally Posted by zoe2009

I don't know why adult food would be bad for a 5 month old. But if you mix them, I would mix the same brands. Some people may disagree with me. But I wouldn't fee comfortable mixing two different brands, especially a cheap one and a qualithy food. I had Lucky on Chicken Soup Lite and he wasn't crazy about it. He is a wet food lover. But I kept in his bowl for him to munch on between wet food feedings. I switched to Innova and he seems to like it better.
Kitten food generally has a higher protein and fat content than adult food. The adult food just doesn't have enough for a growing kitten.

If you don't mix two different brands together, how did you make the switch from Chicken Soup to Innova? I've frequently mixed different brands, sometimes three or four at once when I'm trying to finish up one they don't like but don't want to waste it. It's not caused any problem so far.
 

sharky

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most all stage foods = % ages of an adult food.... IMHO kitten is better till at least a yr
 

snake_lady

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Originally Posted by zoe2009

I don't know why adult food would be bad for a 5 month old. But if you mix them, I would mix the same brands. Some people may disagree with me. But I wouldn't fee comfortable mixing two different brands, especially a cheap one and a qualithy food.
I'd be one of them that disagrees
(on the mixing comment, I agree on the first statement)

My cats are on a mixture containing 3 different dry foods... 2 high quality grain free (Wellness Core and TOTW) and one mid-lower quality with grain (currently its Nutrience Kitten....this one varies depending on sale). My cats are 14mos, almost 6mos and 5mos of age.

They also get a range of wet food, from high quality to friskies.... adult to kitten formulas.

There is nothing wrong with mixing the 2 the original poster mentioned, just monitor your adult cats weights as the kitten food can be higher cal/fat.
 
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