Feeding a senior female cat and a 7 month old male kitten

susan denning

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I got a kitten (currently 7 months old) from my local shelter in September.  Things have been going very well so far (he's very friendly to me and to my parents and my senior cat tolerates him) except for the feeding issue.  I think I am going to have to do something to feed my cats (obese 18 lb senior and 7 month old kitten) differently than I am doing. I started out feeding the kitten science diet since that's what he was on and feeding the adult cat purina indoor which she has been on for a long time.  

When I became aware that eating out of each other's food bowls was a concern, I put the kitten's bowl on the cat tree (with the idea that the obese cat wouldn't climb it) and put the obese cat's food up for her to have when my parent's  or I got it down for her.  Well, it turned out the the obese cat will climb the cat tree if she's motivated.  And the kitten can climb up to the older cat's food.  As best I can tell, they have both been eating the kitten food preferentially.  Also, the kitten did vomit once when he had the Purina.  I did have lab work done on the older cat to see if she would need diabetic/or special kidney support food, and her lab work turned out ok.  

What's been stopping me from feeding them separately is that I don't want to ask my parents to do it (they don't see the need, and these are my cats after all). I don't get home until 9 o'clock sometimes so that seems a long time for the cats to wait. Also, the kitten seems to eat better when fed on demand.  I am leaning towards an all stage food, assuming that's a good choice.  However, I am under the impression that that might still be a bit too rich for the senior cat.

I've gotten very different advice when it comes to feeding them, and so have managed to thoroughly confuse myself.  The vet's office told me that 7 months was old enough to go on adult food (but did not specify how much fat/protein to look for).  Other opinions (pet store employee, veterinary office employee) have consisted of "How can a food be truly all stage", "it would be ideal to keep the kitten on kitten food for the full year", "kitten food has the right kinds of fats for growing animals", and "Susan can't feed her two cats the same food like you do as they are too far apart in age."  I would appreciate any advice you can give me.  My goal with the two cats is to make sure that the kitten gets all the nutrition that he needs to be a healthy adult cat and to keep the senior cat from gaining any more weight (or from developing pancreatitis/liver problems).
 
 

missmimz

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Feed them same the same food. 7 month old kittens don't need "kitten" food. While I'm not a fan of any Purina food (you weren't specific about what exactly you're feeding) it's fine to feed them both the same food. Wet food is much, much better than kibble, especially for a senior and a growing kitten. 
 
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susan denning

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Thanks.  That agrees with hat the vet told me, so I think I am definitely looking at adult food of some kind.  To give you the specifics of what I was feeding it was Purina Indoor for the senior cat and Science Diet kitten for the kitten.  I got confused when I went to look at the different Science Diet adult products (I think that would be the easiest for them to switch to without upset tummies) as they have varying amounts of fat).  I was concerned that a diet/low fat type food might not have enough fat in it for the kitten.  I think I will need to ask the vet's office (if they can) to give me a ballpark fat percentage to look for.

As far as Purina (and Science Diet also) I think what most people object to is them having fillers (like grain and corn) in them. Without bashing any particular brand, are there any concerns with fillers that I should be aware of?  My (uneducated) take on that has been that any brand should provide balanced nutrition (or should be off the market), but then I know people do have concerns about fillers.
 

missmimz

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Thanks.  That agrees with hat the vet told me, so I think I am definitely looking at adult food of some kind.  To give you the specifics of what I was feeding it was Purina Indoor for the senior cat and Science Diet kitten for the kitten.  I got confused when I went to look at the different Science Diet adult products (I think that would be the easiest for them to switch to without upset tummies) as they have varying amounts of fat).  I was concerned that a diet/low fat type food might not have enough fat in it for the kitten.  I think I will need to ask the vet's office (if they can) to give me a ballpark fat percentage to look for.

As far as Purina (and Science Diet also) I think what most people object to is them having fillers (like grain and corn) in them. Without bashing any particular brand, are there any concerns with fillers that I should be aware of?  My (uneducated) take on that has been that any brand should provide balanced nutrition (or should be off the market), but then I know people do have concerns about fillers.
The problem with lower quality foods (kibble, in particular) is they contain more fillers than meat based protein. The most important thing for both a kitten and a senior cat is protein. Cats are obligate carnivores, and need high levels of meat based protein. Cats don't process fat the same way humans do, so higher fat cat foods aren't really a bad thing, as long as they are also high meat based protein. Low end cat food often contain fillers like corn, wheat, potatoes, veggies, and other inappropriate ingredients to lower the cost of the food, because meat is expensive. However, these additives aren't biologically appropriate for an obligate carnivore. Cats can't use or digest those fillers. Both Science Diet and Purina are low quality foods, based on their ingredients. Fancy Feast classic wet food line is the only real decent Purina product. And Merrick, which was bought by Purina in 2015. 
 
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susan denning

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I'm trying them on Natural Balance all stage and will see how it goes.
 
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susan denning

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The other option I was thinking of was trying to find an adult food that would work for both.  I was afraid the senior cat would be missing out on something if I gave them both a 1-7 year type food.  Please let me know if you have thoughts on all stage vs adult or on finding a good adult food.
 

missmimz

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The other option I was thinking of was trying to find an adult food that would work for both.  I was afraid the senior cat would be missing out on something if I gave them both a 1-7 year type food.  Please let me know if you have thoughts on all stage vs adult or on finding a good adult food.
"age appropriate food" is a gimmick. There's nothing special in food labeled for "senior" or anything else. For any cat of any age you want high meat based protein, and as little fillers as possible. I'd basically avoid all kibble if you can. Here are the wet foods I like.

Low end

Fancy Feast classic chicken and turkey and giblet

Sheba pates

Available at Petco

Merrick LID

Nutro natural choice

Soulistic

High(er) end

Ziwipeak

Feline Naturals

Weruva 

Tiki cat

Bravo
 
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susan denning

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Then as long as neither cat would be missing out on anything, I will consider going with a brand of 1-7 year old food if the all stage doesn't work out.  My dad does feed them wet food for breakfast, which I understand to be good for hydration, so would also consider increasing that.  Thanks for your input.
 
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