How much dry?

Sophie is 5 months old, and I've had her just over a month now.

I've learned in the past weeks how much better wet food is than dry, so I'm trying to balance it more equally.

I'm giving her wet food (Wellness brand) twice a day, once at bedtime (between 9pm and midnight, depending on when she starts whining) and once either in the morning, or in the evening when I come home from work. I probably give her about 3-4 Tbsp at a time, with a couple drops of water to soften it. She usually finishes the whole thing, or most of it.

I use the dry (Nutro Natural choice) to sustain her throughout the night and when I'm out at work. I'm just not sure how much to leave her to not overfeed her. I usually leave her at night with a 1/2 cup of kibbles and they are pretty much gone in the morning, and then I top it up same amount in the morning, and sometimes its half eaten, or almost all eaten when I get back home.

I've heard some people opposed to free-feeding. Should I keep topping it up, and let her eat as much dry as she wants, or should I make her wait for her bedtime wet food?

I'm just afraid of a) giving her too much dry than is good for her and b) her starting to develop an overeating habit.

On a side note, I was in Safeway, and the lady behind me at the checkout was stocking up on wet Fancy Feast -- the small cans that have the tab to open it with. I ask her how many cats she has -- she said just one. She says he demands FOUR of those cans a DAY! I must have had a shocked look on my face, because she said he won't stop a whining until he gets it! So then I asked, -- is he an active kitty? And she laughed as said, "Oh nope! He's such a lazy boy!"

Well the lady in line may have a large male ( 3 oz can and only feed canned a ave 10-12 lb male would need two to four cans a day )

From having cats all my life the amount of dry is = to activity and how much wet the cat will eat... I always aim for 50/50 ...

ie ADULT 10 lb cat would typically eat 1/3 cup dry and 3-5 oz of wet per day...

kittens up to a year can eat double what an adult does( some keep growing till age four typically 18 months most are done)...

so if your girl is 5-6 lbs ... she would eat roughly up to 12oz wet alone or one cup dry ... so if she eats 5 oz wet and 1/2 cup dry she is about ave in eating....

I have always measure free fed dry... I fill once or twice a day a measured amount and then they have it available all the time...

Here is a funny one for you.... I have a medium size female about 9 lbs and ave build she eats more than my large build 14-15lb male .. neither is overweight

This is really going to be a personal call. You'll have to take in all the info and then decide what you are most comfortable with.

My recommendation - no dry food, period. It just isn't worth the problems it can cause.

Kittens need more food than adults, but they certainly don't need to be free fed. My cats have always received three meals a day, including my two younger ones who I've had since before they were weaned. When they were about seven months old, I transitioned everyone to raw and the kittens (at just over a year old) are both bigger than their mother was full grown. Even on raw, they didn't need to eat more often.

Whatever you choose to feed, though, be comfortable with it. We are all of us just trying to do the best we can for our little friends.

To answer your question... Sophie should be ok with as much food as she wants for now as a kitten...

Once she turns one, then I would start measure free feeding her dry, added to her wet meals, depending on her weight then and activity level...

Not now - for now she needs to eat, and grow... just feed her what she wants... Kittens eat a lot... and she is a kitten

Thank you for your advice. It was all very helpful