How important is it for kittens to eat kitten food?

Kayleigh: How important is it for kittens to eat kitten food?
I have a 3 month old kitten and an 11 year old cat. Both of them like to eat little and often so their feeding bowls are always out. They both enjoy dry biscuits and recently I’ve noticed that the kitten will push the big cat out of her way so she can get to his food, he then just wanders over to her food.
Is it important that she’s eating the right sort of food for her age? She really seems to prefer adult cat food.

Answers and Views:

Answer by Diego
very important.

Answer by cellar_door
She needs the proper nutrition at this age to set her on the right track for the rest of her life, and the kitten food is formulated for that. The adult food will not give her what she needs, and may be hard for her to digest. You need to find a way to get her to eat her food. Maybe feed the cats separately.

Answer by shayna<3=]
Well yeah it is and the Kitten should be eating kitten food not adult.And the other two should be eating the adult food.Anyways my cat eats Hard food but we mix soft food with it.

Answer by Kia Koala (Go Phils!!!)
Its very important, but there are several companies that make formulas that are appropriate for kitten AND adult (Innova, Wellness, Merrick’s etc). Try feeding those, then you don’t have to worry about it 🙂

Answer by Poppy
Eating adult cat food though it will not harm her, she still needs access to the kitten food. She will eat enough of it. Animals are good at eating what they need in their bodies, and kitten food has extra
vitamins and minerals.

Answer by chzbrgr
Very important if you are not feeding them a premium food that does not have separate formulas. Kitten food is more calorie and nutrient dense than adult food. If the kitten is trying to get at the other food, feed them separately.

Answer by lollipop
well the best food choice for the kittens is the kitten food because it meets all of their nutritional requirements. all of the other food is ok once in a while but not all the time.

Answer by Megan
Yes she has to eat kitten food because kitten food has a lot more calories, which kittens need. If they just eat cat food, they won’t grow and won’t be as strong. Try different types of kitten food to see if she prefers one over the other. Just make sure that your 11 year old cat doesn’t eat the kitten food because they will become very heavy, because of the extra calories.

Answer by Unicornrider
Since it is the minerals and vitamins that are of obvious difference to the two types of pet food, here is a general comparison of their nutritional contents:

1. Crude Protein

Cat Food – 30 percent
Kitten Food – 34 percent
2. Crude Fat

Cat Food – 18 percent
Kitten Food – 20 percent
3. Crude Fiber

Cat Food – 5 percent
Kitten Food – 3 percent
4. Moisture

Cat Food – 10 percent
Kitten Food – 10 percent
5. Ash

Cat Food – 6 percent
Kitten Food – 6 percent
6. Magnesium

Cat Food – 0.09 percent
Kitten Food – 0.10 percent
7. Taurine

Cat Food – 0.19 percent
Kitten Food – 0.18 percent
8. Linoleic Acid

Cat Food – 3.5 percent
Kitten Food – 3.5 percent
It is necessary in cat care that your pets be given the right pet food for their best nutrition. It should be noted that cat nutrition depends on their age. Again, kitten foods will not do any good to your adult pet cat and vice versa. So give your pet the right cat food. If it is followed properly, the cat’s nutrition will always be at its best.

Answer by Ken S
There is no such thing except in name. Besides they are both getting the same thing kitty crack

Nutrition since there are so many bad things out there is very important to your cat’s health
Contrary to what you may have heard; dry foods are not a great thing to feed a cat.
Please read the label on what you are feeding? What are the ingredients? Do you know what they mean? Is the first ingredient a muscle meat like chicken or meal or other things?
https://www.catinfo.org/#Learn_How_To_Read_a_Pet_Food_Ingredient_Label

Dry foods are the number 1 cause of diabetes in cats as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, u.t.i’s, constipation, and a host of other problems. Male cats are especially prone to blockages
from dry food. Food allergies are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin are all symptoms The problems associated with Dry food is that they are loaded with grains and carbohydrates which many cats (carnivores) cannot process. ( Have a fat cat?)
An even bigger problem is that it IS dry and it dehydrates no matter how much your cat drinks
Most of the moisture a cat needs is suppose to be in the food. Cats are not naturally big drinkers.
95% of the moisture is zapped out of dry foods in the processing. Think about it.
Another thing, most use horrible ingredients and don’t use a muscle meat as the primary ingredient and use vegetable based protein versus animal. Not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive.
https://www.catinfo.org/#My_Cat_is_Doing_Just_Fine_on_Dry_Food
You want to pick a canned food w/o gravy (gravy=carbs) that uses a muscle meat as the first ingredient and doesn’t have corn at least in the first 3 ingredients if at all.
THE BEST CAT FOODS CONTAIN NO GRAINS NO BYPRODUCTS
Cats are meat eaters not cereal or rice eaters
Fancy feast is a middle grade food with 9lives, friskies whiskas lower grade canned and wellness and merrick upper grade human quality foods. I would rather feed a middle grade canned food then the top of the line dry food.
Also, dry food is not proven to be better for teeth. Does a hard pretzel clean your teeth or do pieces of it get
https://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=librhttp:/
/www.felinefuture.com/?p=470ary&act=show&item=doesdryfoodcleantheteeth

Please read about cat nutrition.
https://www.catinfo.org/
https://www.catinfo.org/?link=feline_obesity

Vetinarian diets The reason your vet thinks so highly of the pet food they sell probably has more to do with money than nutrition. In vet school, the only classes offered on nutrition usually last a few weeks, and are taught by representatives from the pet food companies. Vet students may also receive free food for their own dogs and cats at home. They could get an Iams notebook, a Purina purse and some free pizza.
Nutritional Education Program website page for the American College of Veterinary Nutrition. Notice who they are receiving grants from for this program
https://mypetcarnivore.com/educational_grant.htm