Kitten eating adult food and vice versa

Hi guys-

Last weekend I added my new kitten Theo to the house. My 2 yr old Sebastian has taken to him very well But I have a question on food.

I free feed dry all day...one dish kitten and one dish adult.
Then in the morning and night they each get wet food..again kitten and adult.

But I always catch Theo eating the dry adult food (I do see him eating the other on occassion) and Sebastian I am assuming is eating the kitten because it does get eaten...but the Adult food is always gone.

Then when I feed them wet I am constantly trying to get them to stay in their own bowls but they always want to switch!

Is it okay to just keep both out and let them eat what they want?

Or should I feed strictly kitten food to both of them?

Is it more important for Theo to eat the kitten or Sebastian the adult?

I always thought kitten food was more tasty but Theo loves the adult food for some reason.

Thanks for the input

How old is the kitten? And has the older one gained weight? You could just mix the two together. Kitten food is higher calorie then adult food, but if the kitten is 5-6 months old or older, then they don't need to be eating kitten food all the time.

My rexes were given kitten food till 4 months old - then gradually switched to adult food - they were fine. It depends on the body build/weight of the cat. Larger breeds would do better on kitten food longer then smaller breeds.

For example a maine coon which (as adult) weighs 14/15 lbs would be ok on kitten food for about a year. But a rex (adult weight 5-6 lbs) can't be eating kitten food for a year as they would become very fat in a short time. So it depends more on the body build then the age of the cat.

Kitten food is generally better for adult cats anyway, since it has higher fat + protein.

Theo is 15 weeks so about 4 months old...they are both Persians and the kitten is already 4.5 lbs so he is a big boy. Sebastian is about 12lbs but not fat just big.

Originally Posted by ShadowBaby

Kitten food is generally better for adult cats anyway, since it has higher fat + protein.

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Kitten food can cause your adult cats to become overweight which is definitely not good for them.

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Kitten food can cause your adult cats to become overweight which is definitely not good for them.

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That is what I am afraid of...Sebastian gaining weight. But I also want the kitten to get the right nutrients to be healthy as well.

I am currently also giving them the Kitty Bloom vitamin supplement so I am hoping that will help him get what he needs.

Have you considered an all life stages formula like Felidae, Natural Balance, or Innova?

I'm glad you posted this, I've been having the same problem with Harley & Davidson. I feed them both the same brand, same flavor - but Harley still always eats the kitten food. I tried mixing a little kitten food into his adult food, but he STILL eats Davidson's.... I hope to find a solution here!

Originally Posted by jlphilli

Have you considered an all life stages formula like Felidae, Natural Balance, or Innova?

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I did not know they had an all stages...I will check Petsmart or Petco.

Thanks!

At Petco you can get Natural Balance "Ultra premium." It's in a hot-pink colored bag and it's formulated for all life stages

Petsmart doesn't carry any all life stages formulas.

I started a thread on this a month or two ago when I added Leo to my house. He was always in Lilly's adult dry food (I, too, free-feed dry)... much like you described.

After talking with the vet, I gave up on the kitten dry food, and just put out adult dry for both of them. The vet said that he'll eat more of it since it's not as calorie-dense, but that it won't hurt him. Some kittens are taken off kitten food and put on adult food early because their digestive systems can't handle the richness of kitten food, so she said it wouldn't really be a big deal assuming he keeps growing, etc. (which he is).

They both still get their own wet food, and I separate them a bit and supervise so I can keep him out of her dish, which works pretty well.

You might try talking to your vet about what they recommend would be best for your particular pets. I sympathize; good luck!

My vet urged me away from Kitten Food almost all together at 4 months. Especially once my ladies got spayed. So we've been feeding almost primarily adult food. The baby got kitten food for the first month or 2 that we had him

I personally recommend feeding kitten food until at least 8 months. Because Mika was the runt of the litter and very small (and slim), we fed her kitten food for a full year.

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Kitten food can cause your adult cats to become overweight which is definitely not good for them.

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Kitten food doesn't cause obesity, overfeeding does. If you don't overfeed your animal, it won't become obese (generally). Also since it's usually 'kitten' because it has a higher fat/protein content, then it also has less carbs that promote obesity.

If you'll notice, foods like Felidae and Innova are classified as all life stages.. If 'kitten' food really had something extra (aside from higher protein/fat than the adult of the same brand), would kittens really be able to eat the 'all life stage' food? And does it somehow cause obesity when your adult eats the same 'all life stage' food as your kitten?

My 2.5 year old cat is still growing( and it is not out) ... I have her on kitten food with vet approval ... She maintains wt and the protein and fat make me happier since she wont eat raw ... ALL LIFE Stage is usually just an adult that has just enough protein ad fat for a kitten to grow

I suggest a talk with the vet not about what food but what type

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

How old is the kitten? And has the older one gained weight? You could just mix the two together. Kitten food is higher calorie then adult food, but if the kitten is 5-6 months old or older, then they don't need to be eating kitten food all the time.

My rexes were given kitten food till 4 months old - then gradually switched to adult food - they were fine. It depends on the body build/weight of the cat. Larger breeds would do better on kitten food longer then smaller breeds.

For example a maine coon which (as adult) weighs 14/15 lbs would be ok on kitten food for about a year. But a rex (adult weight 5-6 lbs) can't be eating kitten food for a year as they would become very fat in a short time. So it depends more on the body build then the age of the cat.

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im glad you wrote this, i have been wondering if i should keep my 8 month old on kitten food or not, she is a delicate build so the next bag of food she gets will be adult food, thanks