have noticed that one feral cat is heavier than the other cats. all of the original group have been TNRd. my question is would it be okay to feed the cats half KittenChow and hail adult cat chow for more protein.
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feeding kitten cow to adult feral cats during summer?
- Thread starter lisa1950
- Start Date
Are any of the cats kittens? Not sure why they would be needing extra protein this time of year. They do need extra calories and protein in the winter, but in the summer regular cat chow is just fine. Kitten chow has a lot more calories that adult cats do not need.
Also if you are in a climate that gets cold in the winter, if you can, it's best to feed some wet food. It is easier for the cats to quickly turn the wet food into energy so they can keep warm. The dry food takes longer to digest and the cats have to use energy to digest the dry food that could be used to keep them warm. I know in the winter it is so hard to feed wet food as it freezes.
Also if you are in a climate that gets cold in the winter, if you can, it's best to feed some wet food. It is easier for the cats to quickly turn the wet food into energy so they can keep warm. The dry food takes longer to digest and the cats have to use energy to digest the dry food that could be used to keep them warm. I know in the winter it is so hard to feed wet food as it freezes.
Do you mean, give a food containing more protein instead of the carbo filler, common in cheaper dry foods? As the carbo filler tends to make them fat.
As we know from humans, the fatttening up danger nr 1 is really not fat, but carbos and especielly, added sugar...
Yes, that is an idea. Either a high protein brand (probably more costly than the cheapest), or a brand for active cats / kittens from a cheap brand.
But as said above, in the summer they really dont need extra calories nor proteins, as they can surely catch quite some themselves, even if they arent good hunters.
Or turning around, if the cat is a wellknown good hunter, its OK to give a somewhat cheaper food, less nourishing. The cat will gets the proteins and good fats anyway.. Its so farm cats are usually in good condition, although most farmers give them cheap food brands.
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- #4
only one cat is less than a year old.he is about seven months old . all but two look lean but healthy. two of the cats are a little bigger than the rest. is this the norm? none act sickly. am giving them PURINA Cat Chow. I do not feel right about give them the cheep stuff.
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- #5
is it possible that the cats could have tape worms and that is why some look slimmer than others?
It is possible they have worms. Have you ever wormed them? I worm my ferals twice a year. You can order Drontal online without a prescription or there is a homeopathic remedy that you can place in wet food. The Drontal is very very nasty tasting and very difficult to hide in food. I use chicken flavored gelatin capsules and put the Drontral inside. Then I mix it into wet food and down the hatch.
If you can touch them, you can possible get Revolution from your vet. It treats some worms. But you have to put it on their skin.
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- #7
have never treated the feral cats for worms. will look into that. got some dewormer from a Holistic pet store that sell Holistic remedies for cats and dogs. have one four year old Shih Tzu that is over weight. still working on her weight and the rest of my family. the product I have recommends ten drops per cat two -three times a day. I only visit them once in the mornings. we put it in their canned food. does anyone have any suggestions on how to give them the dosage they need?
