Calories?

[tabbysia]

Does anyone know what an ideal calorie count is for cat food, or does it just vary depending on the cat? The food that I am currently feeding is 366Kcals per cup. One of my cats is four years old, spayed, and weighs 9.6 pounds. She is an ideal weight, according to the vet, but she looks way too skinny to me. My other cat is 10 months old, neutered, and is almost 11 pounds. He has a big build, a huge head and feet, and is starting to look a little chubby--in my opinion. Both cats eat the same grain-free, limited ingredient adult dry food (don't judge--have had to struggle to find food that works for both without puking and diarrhea), and I free feed. I am not sure exactly how much they eat a day. They are nibblers and have little "snacks" all day. Scheduled feedings would not work due to my work schedule. I don't want them to be without food all day. I have two separate sets of bowls with food and water (I empty and refresh the water about 3 times a day), and they each pretty much stick to their own favorite bowls, but the kitten will sometimes nibble out of both. He seems to eat a lot more than my adult female cat. My "little guy" has never been able to be on kitten food (long story), but the vet does monitor his weight to make sure he is growing, and he definitely is. Back to my original question: Is 366 calories a number that could work for both cats?

 

[dianamc]

I can't help with feeding both cats but Wellness Kitten is 553/cup, Wellness Complete Health Adult Health is 550/cup and Nature's Variety Instinct Chicken Kibble is 465/cup, rabbit is 453/cup.  Your food seems a little lower calorie than some.

 

[scubacat]

The kitten's calorie needs are higher than an adult's, he should eat what he needs and wants. He is still going through growth spurts. Kittens get chubby, then grow, then get chubby, and grow... If he has a big head and such he might just be a big cat! 366 cals a day would be high for your 4 year old alone. She likely needs around 200 or so. 366 cals might be too little for both your cats to share. It might be about right on its own for the 11 lb kitten who may have double the caloric needs of an adult. While it depends on weight, activity level, whether you want maintenance/gain/loss and so on, a rough guide is 20 cals per lb for an indoor, averagely active, spayed adult. Most indoor female adults should be around 8-10 lbs...there are outliers (mine is smaller, but still healthy) but 9.6 lbs seems fine unless her body score is low? Kittens need a lot more (like twice as many calories per lb).

What does the feeding guide on the food say?

I am still working on transitioning my adult (newly spayed) kitty to all wet/raw but she gets 3 "meals" a day, 1/3 of her daily caloric needs at each. I leave it out (unless raw) to nibble on as she prefers 5-6 meals a day instead and she is not food obsessed or a gulper so I want her to eat all she will. She is a small cat & it is work to get her to eat enough to maintain! We both work so 5-6 meals does not work. I feed before I go to gym in am, after work, and before bed. I also have cat feeders to do scheduled feeds if we are out of house longer. She does still sometimes get a couple TBSP of kibble at night or as a meal in her feeder if we are out of house longer. Her grain-free kibble (Orijen) is 500 cals/cup so each TBSP is about 30 cals. Lots of "higher quality" kibbles are higher in calories (Evo, etc). The grain-free/low-carb wet foods I feed her vary from 100 cals per 5.5 oz to 220 per 5.5 oz, so I need to pay attention.

As you have multiple cats, feeding meals would let you see WHAT and how much each ate, but keep in mind kitten does need more.