Whole prey for kittens?

[cords]

I have a 3 month old kitten who wasn't very healthy when we got him, conjunctivitis, ear mites, worms and fleas he was also underweight, he was closer to the ideal weight for a 4 week old. Im wanting to give him the best start to life, a completely raw diet isn't an option so im currently weaning him from Whiskas wet food on to Lilys Kitchen wet food, and hope to change Iams kibble to Orijen or Innova Evo soon. Ive also been looking at giving him frozen whole prey but i dont know where to start, where to buy it from and if its safe to give him it incase he chokes on the bones? Just looking for some advice and information on this 

 

[silverpersian]

Cornish hens may be a good place to start. Most supermarkets have them in the frozen section. The bones are little. Since your kitten is new to whole prey, I would suggest that you cut the Cornish hen into pieces, then whack each piece with a mallet to make the bones easier to chew.

Another good choice is wingtips (the last joint) from a regular chicken. Again, whacking with a mallet will make it easier for kitty.  Most supermarkets sell hearts and gizzards (packaged together). They are nutritious and give his jaws a good workout.

Just remember: 1) keep these items under 15% of the whole diet to avoid imbalance in the nutrients and 2) no cooked bones.

 

[ritz]

Welcome to The Cat Site and the raw side
There are several threads about feeding kittens raw food; here is one.
There are also many articles and links about feeding raw, including whole prey, at the top of the Raw & Home-Cooked Cat Food forum.
Sources of whole prey include Hare Today and My Pet Carnivore. You can also look into sites that are geared towards snakes; they eat whole prey.
May I suggest you start out with something simplier: commercial raw. Among the brands mentioned are Rad Cat, Nature's Variety and Primal. Make sure they are 'complete', not 'supplemental' (usually prominently displayed on the label).
Regarding choking on bones: choose the smallest animal, i.e., pinkie mice, not full grown mice.
I've been feeding Ritz (female, around 5 years old) prey model raw (also known as frankenprey) for almost three years. I give her bone from quail and rabbit and occasionally the bone from a chicken breast. I cut the bone up to bite size pieces and she's never had a problem with chocking on bone; in fact, I don't recall reading on this site about any cat choking on bone. Note: bone must be raw NOT COOKED NOT COOKED.

 

[cords]

Thanks i will look into that. My partner has just brought him home some medium mice, was going to give him one once it has thawed. Do you think this will be okay?

 

[ritz]

Maybe cut it in half the first time and see ?

 

[cords]

yeah I think I will he doesnt seem interested in it. Being very cautious will just have to give him time i suppose. Thanks for the help

 

[ritz]

Were I ever to give Ritz whole prey (and, I've thought about it several times), I'd first buy a package at the local big box chain pet store, like PetCo or PetSmart. The whole prey companies I'm familiar with require a minimum order; you'd have to buy a lot of whole prey or mix and match prey model raw/ground. If your cat didn't like it, you may be stuck with a lot of raw meat. (I fed a small community cat colony. Only one cat will eat raw and I don't see that cat often.)