How much should I feed my 4 pound kitty?

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
I have been feeding him using a 2tbsp scoop. He gets a whole scoop in the morning, half at lunch and 1 1/2 in the evening. I was giving him wet food at lunch but his poop seems like it's always soft and sticks to his fur so someone told me to cut back on the wet food. I cut it out entirely but his poop is still not well formed. I will be putting him back on probiotic to take care of that. I just wonder if he is getting enough to eat. He acts hungry often :(

I should add that he is eating Orijen Cat & Kitten which has 40% 20% fat moisture 10% max fiber 3%

It says on the bag as a recommended amount per day 1/3 cup which seems like not even close to enough.
 
Last edited:

tabbytom

Happiness is being owned by a cat
Staff Member
Mentor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
19,617
Purraise
36,726
Location
Lion City, Singa-purr
Hello BugsyBaby, a kitten needs to eat often like 4 - 5 times a day and of certain amount each day. They need food meant for kittens and proteins to grow. I presume that your kitty is around 3 - 4 months old?

The amount that you are feeding is not enough. Feed him as much as he can eat at one sitting and monitor the amount he eats for that sitting. Then take note how many times he eats a day and from here you have the rough figure how much to feed and how many times a day to feed him. If you find counting calories confusing, just go with the amount and number of times method. They won't over eat.

The other thing is, is he dewormed and his vaccinations up to date? If he is not dewormed, get him dewormed please.

He needs roughly around 275 calories a day that works out to about 70 calories per meal as kittens are very active. Calories will increase as he grows. I'm referring to wet food and not dry food. Following feeding amount instructions from a can is not accurate as it differs from kitten to kitten.

For his soft stools, he might be allergic to certain food or maybe some GI problems which is best to let the vet diagnose and confirm the results.

Hope this helps ;)
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
Thank you for your reply! This is very interesting. I was really worried he over ate when I allowed him to free feed cuz he ate so so much! I will take your advice and see how he does. He is five months old so he is a little small for his age but he is also a Minuet. He has been dewormed. I had his stool tested and results were negative for everything. Ill start the probiotic tomorrow and give him more to eat and see how he does. Thank you again for the info :)
 

talkingpeanut

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
11,793
Purraise
3,600
I would recommend reintroducing the wet food.  Feed meals of wet at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and leave the dry down for a nibble when he wants throughout the day.

I would have the vet check for other parasites since his stool is still loose.  You may also want to look into grain / protein sensitivities.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
I measured out what i normally feed him each day and put it all in his bowl at once. Then I put his bowl onto a shelf where the dog can't get it. He actually ate less! Now that I don't have to worry so much about the amount he eats it's time to focus on his soft poop. So for now I have removed his kibble, gave him some diarrhea medicine and have him on just canned food to see if his poop firms up. People keep telling me it's his food. One said take away the wet stuff so I did. Poop still soft. So now I'm taking the kibble away to see if he improves. The kibble he is on is called Orijen and it really is a great food but there may be something in it that is disagreeing with him. My breeder had him on royal canin which I didn't know till I put him on Orijen so canin might be better. But first I must eliminate what he is eating before im sure that's what it is. Thanks for the tip though about measuring out how much he eats doing free feed. I learned the amount I was giving him was actually close to what he would have eaten normally.
 

tabbytom

Happiness is being owned by a cat
Staff Member
Mentor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
19,617
Purraise
36,726
Location
Lion City, Singa-purr
That's good to hear. Just monitor his intake and sometimes soft stool is due to readjustment of food change of brands or just simply tummy upset. Observe his stool movements after the medication. Make sure he has fresh water as diarrhea can dehydrate him.
 

talkingpeanut

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
11,793
Purraise
3,600
It could also be a protein or a grain allergy. You may have to try limited ingredient or novel proteins.

I wouldn't leave his whole portion of wet out either.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #8

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
Here is what I did. Three days ago he got two doses of diarrhea medicine to help straighten his system out. I cut out all kibble and switched his wet food from the whole food designer stuff he was eating to royal canin kitten wet food. He has responded very well to that. His energy level is so much higher! I didn't even realize his energy was low! I have been adding little bits of royal canin kibble to his wet food now to try to acclimate his little digestive system slowly. Two days in a row he has had nothing but perfect poops! I'm so excited! It's been one thing after another for this poor baby so I am over the moon to see him doing so well! I will continue to monitor his potties for the next few days as I add more and more kibble to his diet while cutting back on his wet stuff. Hopefully he will be free feeding by the end of next week! Good stuff man! I'm stoked!
 

tabbytom

Happiness is being owned by a cat
Staff Member
Mentor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
19,617
Purraise
36,726
Location
Lion City, Singa-purr
Great to hear his normal poops are back. Keep monitoring till everything's settled. You are doing a great job looking after your kitty ! :clap:
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #10

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
I switched him back to Royal Canin can food and added a little Royal Canin dry to it. At first all was well so I added a bit more. Messy butt came back so I took it away again. Now that he is doing good again, I will try with the dry stuff little by little and see if he can acclimate to it. I'm starting to wonder if he is just a wet food sort of kitty. If he is, I can't afford a diet of Royal Canin wet. Sigh. At two dollars a can, with feeding recommendation of 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 cans per day day, I'll go broke. So I'll have to find a much less expensive brand.
 

tabbytom

Happiness is being owned by a cat
Staff Member
Mentor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
19,617
Purraise
36,726
Location
Lion City, Singa-purr
I switched him back to Royal Canin can food and added a little Royal Canin dry to it. At first all was well so I added a bit more. Messy butt came back so I took it away again. Now that he is doing good again, I will try with the dry stuff little by little and see if he can acclimate to it. I'm starting to wonder if he is just a wet food sort of kitty. If he is, I can't afford a diet of Royal Canin wet. Sigh. At two dollars a can, with feeding recommendation of 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 cans per day day, I'll go broke. So I'll have to find a much less expensive brand.
talkingpeanut talkingpeanut .............any recommendations?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #12

bugsybaby

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Nov 17, 2016
Messages
27
Purraise
3
Location
Redding, ca
When he is on the canned food he does well but if I give him even a teeny tiny amount of dry with his wet, he gets soft poop. Sigh. I now have two cat food bags to take back to two different stores. I just don't know what will work for him.
 

talkingpeanut

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
11,793
Purraise
3,600
I would agree that you should stick with wet food. Fancy feast pate is considered a fairly good and affordable wet food.
 

solomonar

TCS Member
Super Cat
Joined
Jan 13, 2017
Messages
938
Purraise
830
Location
Romania
Labels are only indicative in what it concerns the amount per weight unit (the precise calculation is by mediane, which almost nobody will do anyway) - so much better to rely on this forum advises and your own observation

Dry food is not 100% resistant to bacteria- at the end is still meat- also the manipulation can lead to additional infection (I buy dry food from 4-5 pet-shops - only 2 of them manipulate the food in a sanitary manner, the other are not very skilled in this regard - still not reaching the risk limit)
 
Top