I have an 11 week old kitten that refuses to eat kibble no matter how its served to him. Even when it is made into a mushy consistency he will not touch it. So I guess I have no choice but to feed him canned. I feed Friskies, Whiskas, the odd can of ideal balance, blue buffalo, royal canin. My question is how much should he be getting a day? I am lucky to get him to eat a full 5oz can of anything a day. Someone mentioned to me he should be eating 10-15oz a day! He will barely clear 5oz how am I suppose to get him to eat 10-15oz? I feed 3-4 times a day and I allow him to eat until he is full. He weighs 2lbs 7oz. Vet said he was healthy and that I should offer him only kibble if he does not eat it he starves. He told me a kitten will not let itself starve. Im desperate enough to go that route I really want him eating kibble. All the other cats get kibble and canned because I cannot afford to feed 100% canned to 6 cats while living in Canada with our prices.
. Anyway, no he shouldn't be eating 10-15 ounces at his age/size! It's when they get to be 7-9 months old that they start eating a ridiculous amount. Teenagers :lol3:. Kittens need 3-4 times more calories per pound than adult cats but he's so much smaller than an adult that the amount he's eating seems about right---if an average 10-pound cat will eat 5.5 ounces a day, then at 2 1/2 pounds he's 1/4 that size, so he's eating 4 times more calories per pound. So that's about right.
He should be eating plenty if you're letting him eat as much as he wants at those 3 - 4 meals a day, and as Willow says, he's eating enthusiastically. Once he's 4 months or so old, you can bring him down to 3 meals a day. The amount he eats will go up as he grows, and should peak out and come back down between 9 months and 1 year old. Most adult cats need *about* 20 calories per pound of ideal body weight - which, if you'll be providing 50% canned, 50% kibble, should be 1/2 a 5.5 ounce can of food and 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of kibble, depending on the kibble. The higher protein and fat / lower carb, the less of it he'll need.
