Adopting a cat this week

kitkathaven

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Hello everyone! First, I'd like to say that I'm new to this website so it's nice to meet you all.

I'm adopting a beautiful cat this week, and of course I've done my research. His owner told me that she feeds him wet food at 7pm, dry food at 6pm then again dry food at 12am. When he wakes up (around 7am
), she gives him a little bit of dry food again.

He's an 19 month old cat and I personally feel like this is too much, what do you think? But I wouldn't wanna change his diet and cause some stomach issues!

Also, I want to balance the protein such as tuna, turkey, chicken etc... but I do know that turkey and tuna should be fed on rare occasions. Should this be every 2 weeks, or less/more? Also, how often should I give him treats (biscuits)?

Thank you.
 

tabbytom

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Hello kitkathaven, welcome to TCS :wavey:

Thank you for adopting your new kitty. As for the feeding, it's better to follow what his previous owner suggested as the kitty is used to the regime. But I want to remind you that things will change when the kitty stays at your house. It's a new place to him and he'll take time to get acclimatize to the house and people. So his old schedule might change and eating, sleeping and waking time will be changed.

As for the food, it is a very subjective topic. Hard to tell you what to feed as many here feed differently and also it depends on your cat and also your schedule too.

You just have to observe him and you adjust accordingly. Not all cats are the same. But if you have any questions, just shoot. Many will here will be glad to answer your questions.

Do introduce yourself and your new kitty in 'New Cats in the Block' under the General Forums and do post photos of your kitty ;)
 
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kitkathaven

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Thank you for your help! I appreciate it.
 

tabbytom

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You are welcomed ;)

Some cats eat more and some less. Don't forget to have fresh water if you are feeding dry.

There are many interesting topics in the Articles section and many good discussions in the forum page under 'Our Feline Companions'. Run through them and you might get an idea of your questions. If not just post any questions you want to ask ;)
 

ailish

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It's whatever works for the cat, but my own cat would not be able to go from 12a to 6p with only a little bit of dry food. I don't think it's how often you feed, but how much. I feed a half a small can of wet at 6a, 5p, and 10p. She then gets an 1/8 cup dry at 2a via auto feeder. The 2a feeding is in response to the fact that she was throwing up bile in the early morning before I could get her fed. That seems to have worked. My cat is a total vampire, so she gets hungrier at night than during the day.
 
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kitkathaven

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I see! I feel like I should leave some food during the day... i just get really paranoid with pets and I'm worried that I won't be feeding enough!
 
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kitkathaven

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Also, any ideas on how to gradually change his diet? I would rather he eat wet food more than dry
 

tabbytom

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Also, any ideas on how to gradually change his diet? I would rather he eat wet food more than dry
If your preference is more wet than dry, than you cut off dry and feed more wet food. I meant as in gradually wean him off dry. So no free feed of dry. Stick to timed feeds. For example, xxx amount of wet food by xxxx times a day or xxxx of wet food by xxx times a day. Experiment this for a week or so and you'll roughly can gauge his eating habits and just fine tune it from there but this is not foolproof. It's just a guide. As long as your kitty is not under fed, andos eating well, pooping well, playing well and sleeping well, it'll be pretty good.

My boy is on wet food and timed feed except certain days he has to skip one or two meals.
 
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kitkathaven

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How old is he and how much does he weigh? Is 3 times a day for a 19 month old cat fine? (He's not here yet so I can't check his weight)
 

tabbytom

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My boy is 13 1/2 months old and is neutered. He eats around 18 ozs (3 oz cans) a day divided by 6 times a day. Sometimes he eats more and sometimes less. He weighs around 5.1 kilos. I never restrict his amount of food and how many times he wants to eat he never over eats. Once he is filled, he'll stop eating even if there's some more food in his dish. Certain days he eats less than 6 times. Sometimes I have to beg him to eat and sometimes he begs me to be fed :lol3:

Like I mentioned earlier, not all cats are the same. My boy is a rescue and he experienced hunger before he was found. Your new kitty proably was taken care of since a baby. So between the two of them, it's a great difference. So you have to try out for some time to get it right
 
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kitkathaven

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Will do thank you [emoji]128513[/emoji]
 

ailish

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Ailish ate both wet and dry when I adopted her. She was about 18 months and had just had a litter. She was a bit underweight. I knew I wanted to switch to all wet, so I gave her some dry but mostly wet until I figured out what she liked. We very quickly switched to wet, as she is not a picky eater. She's gained some weight, but I'm not sure how much because her coat, which was kind of sparse when I got her, has filled in incredibly. When I got her she was 6.8 lbs and is probably now about 7.5lbs. She is small, she probably got pregnant before she was done growing.
 
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