Why does Wellness say I need to feed my cat 16.5 oz a day?

I'm giving my guy a break from raw while he works through a digestive problem.

I'm used to feeding him only 6 oz of raw a day, but the 5.5 oz can of Wellness suggests "1.5 cans per 6-8 pounds of body weight per day". He is a healthy weight of 16 lbs.

That can't possibly be correct, can it?

Thank you!

The feeding guidelines are developed for active intact cats. Neutered indoor cats need fewer calories. 20 calories per pound is a general guideline, so try to find out how many calories are in a can and go from there. Larger cats may need fewer calories per pound---I'd probably start with 250 calories or so.

If you know how many calories are in his raw food, try to match that.

Cat Dad said:

 
I'm giving my guy a break from raw while he works through a digestive problem.

I'm used to feeding him only 6 oz of raw a day, but the 5.5 oz can of Wellness suggests "1.5 cans per 6-8 pounds of body weight per day". He is a healthy weight of 16 lbs.

That can't possibly be correct, can it?

Thank you!

Click to expand...

I don't go by the food company's suggested feeding portions. Our cats would be so overweight if we stuck to their suggested guidelines. The food companies just want to sell as much as they can for profit. For our 8 pound adult cat, we feed her a total of 4.5 - 5 ounces per day. If we open a new 5.5 ounce can first thing in the morning, we usually have a little bit leftover for the next day. She's indoor, but she is very active and doesn't sleep much... always on the hunt, running around, climbing up and down the stairs, jumping around. 

Awesome advice everyone! 

The food says it's 156 kcal/can - so a 15 lbs cat at 20/kcals per pound, should be 2 cans per day?

Yeah, but like I said, sometimes larger cats need fewer calories per pound. Is he overweight at all? I'd probably try 1 1/2 cans and see if he does well with that.