Importance of feeding age-specific food

I recently read some speculation on a cat website (can't remember which one) that food intended for senior cats wasn't specifically necessary, and in fact could possibly be recommended against if the cat in question was fit and healthy.

I've been wondering about this question myself - how important is it to have food that is tailored to the age of your cat? I understand why kitten food might require different concentrations than adult food (although I have read often about people putting their kittens on adult food after a few months of age, though I'm not sure why) but I'm curious how important people find it to feed their older cats 'senior' food.

I've mainly been curious about the issue because I've noticed a lot of the higher end foods I've been looking at state that they are suitable for all ages. Is it better to feed to go with foods specifically tailored to ages or are all-ages foods just as good? Are all-age foods better because they have a complete spectrum?

I'd be curious to hear people's opinions on the issue.

There is no set nutrient profile by AAFCO for a senior cat, so there is no required difference in foods sold as "senior", honestly all this kitten, hairball, sensitive stomach, different breeds, every issue under the sun seems like a whole lotta hype and marketing for foods that are almost identical. Plus when is a cat a senior? 7? 10? 15? Older cats can have a harder time absorbing fats, but most senior foods I see restrict protein and fat since they seem to assume that older cat equals fat cat.

Originally Posted by Arkadia

I recently read some speculation on a cat website (can't remember which one) that food intended for senior cats wasn't specifically necessary, and in fact could possibly be recommended against if the cat in question was fit and healthy.

I've been wondering about this question myself - how important is it to have food that is tailored to the age of your cat? I understand why kitten food might require different concentrations than adult food (although I have read often about people putting their kittens on adult food after a few months of age, though I'm not sure why) but I'm curious how important people find it to feed their older cats 'senior' food.

I've mainly been curious about the issue because I've noticed a lot of the higher end foods I've been looking at state that they are suitable for all ages. Is it better to feed to go with foods specifically tailored to ages or are all-ages foods just as good? Are all-age foods better because they have a complete spectrum?

I'd be curious to hear people's opinions on the issue.

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With a kitten I use a kitten or a all life that is higher protein and fat than typical( note works for dry food ONLY ) ... most wet foods are very close to adult in micro and macro nutrients.,,

Seniors do not digest as well as they did in the younger years ( 7-8 is the beginning of senior and the time to take note of changes in kitty and get a senior blood panel ... If all is good no need for a senior diet or even possibly any diet change).. If there are senior issues beginning or other signs a easier to digest food is in order : could be a lower protein moderate fat( higher end senior foods often have = to higher fat than adult) This again is DRY only...

All life stage Normally = low % macro adult nutrient diet requirements( newer less studied no grain DRY foods are the big exception to this normally)... AFFCO only requires 30% protein for kitten growth and 26% for adult, most would find these very low ...


My 3-7 yr olds all eat the same rotation of food ... and likely always will unless one develops an issue that is treatable via diet...

My vet has a Masters in animal nutrition and YES that is rare.. she feed s her young ones ( to about age 7 or 8 ) raw and dry( no grain) ... at 7 or 8 she moves to more of a conventional diet

I actually did the opposite with her blessing with a crf cat .. who ate dry and wet her first 13-14 yrs by her death at nearly 19 she ate mostly raw and some canned... Basically NO one way works for all or at times even for the same animal

IMO there isn't much need to overthink it unless the cat has a special health condition.

AAFCO provides recommendations on minimum requirements for nutrient profiles for growing and maintenance diets. You can find them online, but the gist of it is that they are minimums, and they are pretty low.

From everything I have read though, unless on a very strict budget, there is no reason that a rich grain free food can't be fed for life (wet or wet+dry).

Simply buy a quality rich food (only the rich grain-free dry foods are comparable to good wet food on a dry matter basis anyway) and for kittens leave it out for grazing (in combination w/ wet feeding of course) and for adulthood weigh and feel your cat from time to time and adjust feeding portions accordingly to maintain an ideal body weight.

Dental hygiene for my seniors would be my concern, but you don't necessarily have to tackle that with a special kibble.

PS: I'll bump this thread in April 2029 and let you know the results.

Originally Posted by Arkadia

I recently read some speculation on a cat website (can't remember which one) that food intended for senior cats wasn't specifically necessary, and in fact could possibly be recommended against if the cat in question was fit and healthy.

I've been wondering about this question myself - how important is it to have food that is tailored to the age of your cat? I understand why kitten food might require different concentrations than adult food (although I have read often about people putting their kittens on adult food after a few months of age, though I'm not sure why) but I'm curious how important people find it to feed their older cats 'senior' food.

I've mainly been curious about the issue because I've noticed a lot of the higher end foods I've been looking at state that they are suitable for all ages. Is it better to feed to go with foods specifically tailored to ages or are all-ages foods just as good? Are all-age foods better because they have a complete spectrum?

I'd be curious to hear people's opinions on the issue.

Click to expand...

AAFCO has guidelines on the senior cat's diet. You can find their information online at the AAFCO site. That said, I have my own experience I can relate. I have 4 cats. At the time of my concern the age ranges were from 12 weeks to 14 years old. I was juggling senior, adult and kitten food. I was losing my mind trying to keep them out of each others food. So I checked with my vet. He told me to put them all on a premium adult food. Which I did and the cats have thrived. All 4 of them.

There is a complete spectrum from all age groups. There is a purpose for the individual formulas but the senior requirements are minimal. The 2 things I would worry about with a senior cat are weight gain and dental issues. That is another topic. Hope this helped in some way.

I have no idea how you find anything on the AAFCO site, but everything I have found says there is two "nutrient profiles" for cats, growth and adult. Do you have a link?

^ He probably has it printed out somewhere at work within easy reach. It's nice to have offline information, especially when some sites are so poorly put together.

As always, sharky's post on diet is correct. The reason for senior diets is simply to changing lifestyle of some cats and kidney function. The latter is more serious since you can't reverse CRF. But more important than just blindly switching diets is to regularly get blood work done for a senior cat. Then and only then can you know if there's an early problem.

IMO, more wet than dry is better for seniors. You aren't providing all the carbs that can add to weight issues and affect blood sugar that way. And they get the moisture they need.

Originally Posted by GoingPostal

I have no idea how you find anything on the AAFCO site, but everything I have found says there is two "nutrient profiles" for cats, growth and adult. Do you have a link?

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Let me see if I can find it. I have not looked for it in years. If I find it I'll email it to you. I'll check this weekend when I have some time. If I am mistaken I'll correct my original post but I'm almost positive I found it a long time ago when I was trying to see if I could feed all of my cats the same food instead of there, kitten, adult and senior.

I've ended up mixing my kitten's food with my older cats mix of Hairball Control, Indoor Cat and Dental Hygene food, simply because no matter what I did, I couldn't stop Dex from getting to Perrie's food, and it got to a point where poor Perrie couldn't find it, so he was eating Dexter's food instead.
I've no idea if it will affect Dex in the long run, but I don't really think it will.
My mother use to feed all our cats the same, and that was on cheaper brands, adult food right from when we got a 6 week old kitten, mainly because we usually already had an adult cat and it was just easier. There never was any obvious repercussions.

My two boys are on the more expensive supermarket brands, Dexter is 10 weeks old. I'll probably continue to mix their biscuits (Hairball, Dental, and Kitten) until Dex is 12 months, then swap the Kitten back to Indoor.

Originally Posted by NutroMike

AAFCO has guidelines on the senior cat's diet. You can find their information online at the AAFCO site. That said, I have my own experience I can relate. I have 4 cats. At the time of my concern the age ranges were from 12 weeks to 14 years old. I was juggling senior, adult and kitten food. I was losing my mind trying to keep them out of each others food. So I checked with my vet. He told me to put them all on a premium adult food. Which I did and the cats have thrived. All 4 of them.

There is a complete spectrum from all age groups. There is a purpose for the individual formulas but the senior requirements are minimal. The 2 things I would worry about with a senior cat are weight gain and dental issues. That is another topic. Hope this helped in some way.

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EDIT - So I spent over an hour on the AAFCO site checking for cat food standards for the senior cat. AAFCO only lists growth and reproductive as one category and maintenance as a second. Mea Culpa. I could have sworn I got Senior cat standard info from AAFCO several years ago. If it was there back then, it is no longer there today.

Originally Posted by GoingPostal

I have no idea how you find anything on the AAFCO site, but everything I have found says there is two "nutrient profiles" for cats, growth and adult. Do you have a link?

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I looked over the weekend and it was cumbersome. I could not find a link. I did an edit on my original post. I think it was about 7 years ago when I first started looking because my oldest, Hoot was 7 then and entering the senior time. I may have found it somewhere else. Now my curiosity has been piqued and I am determined to find it. I think I actually printed it out.

And yes, navigating the AAFCO site can be trying

Originally Posted by GoingPostal

There is no set nutrient profile by AAFCO for a senior cat, so there is no required difference in foods sold as "senior", honestly all this kitten, hairball, sensitive stomach, different breeds, every issue under the sun seems like a whole lotta hype and marketing for foods that are almost identical. Plus when is a cat a senior? 7? 10? 15? Older cats can have a harder time absorbing fats, but most senior foods I see restrict protein and fat since they seem to assume that older cat equals fat cat.

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I think the important issue is the "needs" of the cat. When I am talking with a customer that needs advice with a senior cat I listen to them carefully. I ask questions. In your example I would most likely steer the customer towards a more restricted protein and fat content (as you said) and steer them toward Natural Choice Healthy Weight.

The needs of the individual cat outweigh whatever "formula" one might think the cat should have.

I only feed kitten food to the kittens for the first 4-5 months maximum - then change over to adult foods. I don't buy the "senior" foods as a rule - the cats do fine on "all stages" regular adult food with no problems.

Since cats live to mid teens now, I don't consider 7 yrs old to be a "senior" cat - not sure why its that low. Senior to me is any cat that is over 12 yrs old!