In the wild, big cats know exactly what they need to eat. By feeding kittens the right food at the right times, we support their natural instincts as a carnivore and solitary hunter.
Ensure kittens eat special kitten food
For the first 4–5 weeks of her life, kittens get everything they need to survive from their mother. Kittens are normally weaned by 7 weeks old, but even from week 4 then can start eating a specially prepared kitten food like
Whiskas® Kitten Pouch.
Kittens have a small tummy but a big appetite
Cute kittens are small, but they grow very quickly, in actual fact they grow up to 15 times faster than a human baby! However, with a stomach that starts out the size of your thumbnail, they can't eat very much in one go. That's why it's important to feed kittens small meals at regular intervals – up to 6 times a day to begin with. In the early days, we advise spreading the food on to a plate so kittens learn to lick the food and get a taste for it.
From about 4 months old, one Whiskas
® Kitten Pouch is perfect for a single tasty meal. Kittens should be fed 3–4 meals each day until they are 6 months old. After that, 2–4 meals a day are recommended. At 12 months old, kittens are ready for adult food, which can be fed twice a day. Most cats enjoy wet food being served morning and evening with a bowl containing their daily allowance of dry food being left out to graze on during the day.
Kittens are careful eaters
In the wild, big cats are careful eaters, avoiding anything that tastes “off”. Kittens share those instincts and will prefer every meal to be fresh, served at room temperature in a clean bowl.
Don’t suddenly change your kitten’s diet
Introduce any new food very gradually and a little at a time, as sudden changes might upset a kitten’s sensitive digestive tract.
Cats shouldn’t drink cow’s milk
After kittens are weaned, they lose their ability to digest milk – so contrary to popular belief, cats should not be given cow's milk to drink! However, at Whiskas, we know that owners like to treat their cats to something special so we’ve created a safe version of
milk that cats love.
Encourage your kittens to drink water
Kittens have a super-sensitive nose and tongue that will easily pick up unfamiliar chemical smells. That’s why they may prefer drinking from puddles rather than her water bowl. To encourage kittens to drink more, good advice is to place their water bowl in a quiet spot away from the litter tray.
A healthy coat often means a healthy cat
A shiny coat, bright eyes and supple muscle tone are all good signs a kitten or adult cat is nutritionally healthy. If you feed complete and balanced food that's right for every stage of the
cat’s life , it will be reflected in her appearance.
Feeding your cat a mixture of wet and dry food
Cats seek variety in their food and enjoy different flavours, tastes and textures in their diet. Mixing wet and dry complete and balanced cat food, appropriate for the cat’s life stage and lifestyle, is a great way to keep a cat happy and healthy. Wet foods are high in moisture and rich in protein and fat, dry foods contain more carbohydrate. The crunchy and dry consistency of kibbles also helps keep a cat’s teeth and gums healthy.
