How soon should I start the kittens on real food? Should I start with canned food or watered down dry food? They are 3 wks now and a couple days ago I gave them canned food, which they ate (when I could keep the bowl out of their mouths), but Momma cat got very angry. She tried to gobble it all up, even though she had her own and when I took it away she growled the whole time the kittens ate it. Then I gave it back to her and she growled the whole time she was eating. Then she moved the kittens. Obviously she didn't want them to eat it. Was it because it was just too soon? Or was she just jealous?
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Time to feed real food?
- Thread starter tina marie
- Start Date
I think 3 weeks may be a little young, maybe another week or two, but I am not an expert. Offer wet food with water or KMR mixed in and eventually they will get curious about the food left out for the mother cat and she will show them how to eat it. But they are only 3 weeks, they have a lot of time, they should be with her until 10-12 weeks old so take your time and do not rush them.
Plus the mother should be still eating kitten food and leave it out so that when she is ready, she can show the kittens what to do with it. They should be getting a high quality kitten food like Nutro or Chicken Soup or one of the many other high quality brands.
Plus the mother should be still eating kitten food and leave it out so that when she is ready, she can show the kittens what to do with it. They should be getting a high quality kitten food like Nutro or Chicken Soup or one of the many other high quality brands.
ry the bbyfood. It is easier on them...
Actually, 3 to 4 weeks old is not too young to begin introducing solid foods ... the kittens will still nurse from Momma. I would suggest a good, high-quality, canned kitten food and you can make it mushy by adding a little human chicken or turkey meat baby food, warmed up and mashed in to make it a little more palatable.
I always started letting my kittens taste canned kitten food mixed with pablum (infant rice cereal for human babies) and kmr at 3 weeks old, but did not really seriously get them eating til after 4 weeks. They still nursed on the momma for as long as they wanted/needed to, but it's good to get them eating too so they gain more nourishment and begin learning to digest. It takes some of the burden off momma too so she doesn't have to use up so much energy producing as much milk.
