Help! I think my kitties are getting overweight

emopi · Jun 16, 2005

So.. my kittens have now passsed a little over 4 weeks and the vet said to start giving them soft canned gravy type food. so i've been giving them special kitty.... different flavors and such...
and on the can it says to feed twice as much as adults.. which is 4 cans a day per kitty..
they dont eat that much.. i feed them every 6 hours... and they eat a little less than half a can each...
and.. well the past few days they have BALOONED out!! they poop like 3-4 times a day... but there stomachs have gotten HUGE!! like doubleing in size... it kinda looks weird... before they had nice little plump bellys but now.. they are massive!!
im not sure if i am feeding them to much! the vet said they should stop when they are full...
im not sure what to do?
any suggestions?

tnr1 · Jun 16, 2005

Originally Posted by EmoPi

So.. my kittens have now passsed a little over 4 weeks and the vet said to start giving them soft canned gravy type food. so i've been giving them special kitty.... different flavors and such...
and on the can it says to feed twice as much as adults.. which is 4 cans a day per kitty..
they dont eat that much.. i feed them every 6 hours... and they eat a little less than half a can each...
and.. well the past few days they have BALOONED out!! they poop like 3-4 times a day... but there stomachs have gotten HUGE!! like doubleing in size... it kinda looks weird... before they had nice little plump bellys but now.. they are massive!!
im not sure if i am feeding them to much! the vet said they should stop when they are full...
im not sure what to do?
any suggestions?

Have they received their first dewormer??

http://www.pethealthcare.net/html/bo...infection.html

Roundworms are not particularly pathogenic (harmful) to mature cats, but large numbers may cause life-threatening problems in kittens and debilitated adult cats. In kittens, common signs include a pot-bellied appearance, abdominal discomfort, depressed appetite, vomiting and diarrhea, or poor growth.

emopi · Jun 16, 2005

yeah when i took them in for the first vet appointment... maybe... a week ago they had their first dewormer

emopi · Jun 16, 2005

and they do eat plenty and haven't had diarreah

tnr1 · Jun 16, 2005

Ok...it was just a thought due to your description of them. The foster kittens I have are eating 2 cans of moist food a day (that is being shared with their mom) as well as twice a day feedings of dry food. One is definately pudgier than her sister...but I believe they are both within their weight. Have you thought about sending a PM to petnurse or Dr. Dolittle?

Katie

emopi · Jun 16, 2005

how old are your kitties? i haven't started dry food yet... what age should i start them on dry food? they reached 4 weeks on may 14... and... they eat around 2 cans of gravy food each a day... i can't seem to get them to drink water either.. i keep it in there area but they wont drink it....
i am not sure what you mean by pm or dr. doolittle?
i will be taking them in soon to get there 6 week vacinations but im just not sure if this is something i need to be concerned with now.. since htis is my first time raising kittens...

jen · Jun 17, 2005

Oh you can offer them dry kitten food. If they were 4 weeks on MAY 14 then they are over 8 weeks now. They are fine for dry food. Offer them both and then go less and less on the wet. Keep feeding the wet but just offer less the amount.

tnr1 · Jun 17, 2005

Originally Posted by EmoPi

how old are your kitties? i haven't started dry food yet... what age should i start them on dry food? they reached 4 weeks on may 14... and... they eat around 2 cans of gravy food each a day... i can't seem to get them to drink water either.. i keep it in there area but they wont drink it....
i am not sure what you mean by pm or dr. doolittle?
i will be taking them in soon to get there 6 week vacinations but im just not sure if this is something i need to be concerned with now.. since htis is my first time raising kittens...

The kittens I have are between 7/8 weeks of age (I got them with their mom when they were around 1 week). They are eating and drinking really well...actually, they tend to prefer the dry food. I'm feeding them Eukanuba kitten food. What does your vet say about the fact that they are not drinking water?? To me, that is a curious thing that I would want to follow up on.

I should have clarified....there is an option to PM (private message) someone on this board. Since I am not a vet tech or a vet, I thought you may want to follow up with Petnurse (vet tech) or Dr. Dolittle (vet) to see what they suggest.

Katie

emopi · Jun 18, 2005

actually i meant to say they turned 4 weeks on june 14th... there birthdays are may 14....
there bellies just get so huge after they eat.. like they are SUPER bloated.. but they are pooping fine... they still wont drink h2o...
they act really really hungry too
but i feed them 4 times day... and like i said they will can each eat about 1/2 a can of special kitty food a sitting... is that too much?
when should i start them on dry foood?

sharky · Jun 18, 2005

when is there next vet check??

I am not a vet or vet tech but i think mosten dry is okay about 5-6 weeks old

emopi · Jun 19, 2005

i will be taking them in next for their 6 week vac on july 1st

twofatcats · Jun 19, 2005

When I got Sheba and asked at the vet office what to feed her, I was told specifically not to feed her Special Kitty. I'm assuming they considered it an inferior food. She's an adult cat, though, so the formulas for kittens would be different. But it wouldn't surprise me if your kittens are eating excessively because their bodies sense a need for something in their diet that they are getting in too small quantities from that food and they are trying to get more. Perhaps if Petnurse (vet tech) or Dr. Dolittle (vet) check in, they might comment if this might be a possibility. If you change foods, though, you need to do it gradually to avoid upsetting their stomachs.

emopi · Jun 21, 2005

i have changed to nutro max cat kitten food..
they seem to like it a lo and are eating it all up... plus it is making there stools more solid and not so runny...
i just get confused with can guidlines and what one vet tells me from the next... they all tell me something different.. but i dont want to not feed them if they are hungry!!
but if there is food on their plate and they are full they stop eating... so i figure they do know when to stop... and you can't really over feed them.. right?

Help! I think my kitties are getting overweight

emopi

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