Kitten Food (1½-12 months)

Why use kitten food?

Nutrient needs are highest in kittenhood to support growth and development, decrease through adulthood, then increase again in mature cats. Our Vetdiet^® kitten food delivers the right amount of protein, fat, fiber and other essential nutrients to your kitten to fuel their growing bones, brain and immune system.

How do kittens’ nutritional needs differ from those of adult cats?

Since your kitten is growing and is usually very active, their needs will be different from a grown-up cat. Kittens need more protein in their diet as well as amino acids, minerals and vitamins.

However, too much is not better than too little. This is why veterinarians recommend you feed your kitten specially formulated kitten food, which already contains the right amount of nutrients for their development.

What nutrients should be found in kitten food?

Kittens have specific nutritional needs to support their growth. That’s why these nutrients should be delivered through kitten food in the right amounts and proportions to ensure your kitten gets started on the path to lifelong health. For example:

• Calcium and phosphorus must be delivered through the diet in the right amounts and proportions to support optimal bone development. If these are not correct, permanent bone deformities may occur.
• Vitamin A, which is necessary for the healthy development of eyes. If this vitamin is deficient in the diet, the kitten may become partially or completely blind.

• The essential omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is critical for central nervous system development, good vision and sense of smell. To improve the learning ability of kittens, we add this to Vetdiet^® kitten food.

These are only three examples of the importance of complete and properly balanced nutrition.

Can I feed my kitten dry food?

Yes. It is important to introduce dry food around 2½ to 4 weeks after birth.

When first introducing dry food to your kitten, you should moisten the food with water to soften the kibble. You can gradually decrease the amount of water you use as your kitten acquires more of their permanent teeth. Kittens have all of their permanent teeth around 6 months of age.

Remember that your kitten needs to have plenty of fresh, clean water available at all times in order to avoid health issues from dehydration.

What’s best: dry or wet kitten food?

When selecting food for your kitten, it is important to know the stages of development. When they are about 3 to 4 weeks old, they start to show interest in their mother’s food. The weaning process begins around 6 weeks of age and is usually complete by 10 weeks of age.

It is critical that kittens be fed a complete and balanced kitten food from this time until one year of age. From Weeks 3 to 10, if you are feeding them dry kitten food, you should moisten it with warm water.

Offering dry and wet kitten food in separate dishes will provide some variety for your kitten. When mixing food this way, you should follow the feeding instructions on both foods to balance the calorie intake.

Why is Vetdiet^® dry kitten food the best?

At Vetdiet^®, we follow all of the latest scientific data to provide optimal natural nutrition for the healthy development of kittens.

As kittens mature into adulthood, their metabolic processes change from growth to maintenance. It is important to provide the right level of nutrients and energy for lifelong health.