Use up the old food before switching?

I currently have a 4 month old kitten. I started him out on Purine Kitten Chow not knowing any better because that's what the previous owner fed him. After doing a bit of research on cat food i've decided to switch him over to a premium high quality brand (toss up between Innova and Wellness at the moment I think, whichever one he'll eat).

Anyways, I just opened a brand new bag of the Purina, then I realized I can get better food for him. I really hate to throw it out though, but I will if the purina food is really that bad for him. Do I start slowly switching my kitty over now to the better stuff or is it ok to finish out this bag of purina first and then slowly switch to the new stuff?

Edit: Oh yes, and kitty also gets high quality kitten wet food every day. I'd love to put him on an all wet diet but I have budget constraints and work commitments so am away from home most of the day until the evening. So he'll be getting a mix of wet and dry.

Well, IMO Kitten Chow isn't that bad. That is what both of my cats ate through kittenhood and they are fine . Anyway, I would use the Purina first. You really should transition slowly. Mix a small amount of the new food in with what your kitty is already eating. Continue to gradually add the new food and decreasing the amount of the old food. Switching overnight can cause kitty to get an upset tummie and diarrhea.

ETA: Do you feed any wet food at all? If not, getting a kitten stage wet food is probably a good idea.

P.S. Welcome to TCS! You will love it here!

I agree, use the bag you bought and then start mixing and switch.

A few additional weeks isn't going to detrimental to the long term health of your baby.

Leslie

I had the same situation. I bought a 15 lbs Royal Canin. I started switching to Orijen even there is still about 12 lbs of Royal Canin left.

It really depends on how comfortable you are. I asked the shelter I adopted the kitties if they will take food donation (I know Royal Canin is what they use anyway), and they said yes. So problem solved.

Right now, one of the kitties has soft stool, so I am still looking to see if Orijen is too rich for him. I might end up mixing Orijen and Royal Canin until the Royal Canin finishes.

If your new dry food is a rich one (looks like both of your choices are), I will start mixing now with the end result of 1 part of old, 3 parts of new until the old pack finishes. Just make sure to use the old one up before it expires.

When it is NOT a medical issue , IMHO use and mix in the old till it is gone

If you are willing to throw out the Purina, then why not go buy a bag of premium food, and start mixing now. Then your kitten could get transfered sooner, and eat less of the Purina.

I would start using it up, but keep some for the transition, cats can be so finicky about changes in their diet and new foods introduced quickly can cause digestive issues.

Instead of mixing, offer two plates, one with a little of the new and one with the old food, gradually increasing the amount of new food - dont mix them because if he is finicky, he may not eat which can cause issues itself