A guide to feeding your kitten

Young kittens should always be fed specialised kitten food. This is because it’s been specifically formulated to provide all the essential nutrients they need at this stage of their lives, ensuring they grow up healthy and strong.

On the other hand, feeding an unsuitable or unbalanced diet during kittenhood can have serious consequences, not only on their developmental growth, but also their overall health and immunity later in life.

Kitten food: your choice

Most importantly, you should feel comfortable and happy with the food you choose for your kitten, not pressured into making choices you’re not entirely satisfied with. Whether you choose to feed dry food, wet food, raw food or a mixture of all three, be sure to thoroughly read the pet food label and understand its contents. Unfortunately, many pet foods are not as good as they may first appear on the front of the packaging or on TV.

Tips for choosing kitten food

Ideally, you should be able to recognise all the individual ingredients listed on the packaging. They’ll typically be presented in order of the highest inclusion to the lowest.

Look for a food which states natural ingredients, the inclusion of high-quality meat and minimal processing, together with the company having freely available information and being able to provide professional help and advice if needed.

Ensure a high meat-based diet

Cats are carnivores, meaning they should naturally eat a diet consisting mainly of meat. Essential nutrients, such as taurine, are found in animal proteins and, unlike dogs, cats cannot synthesise taurine themselves, meaning they must get the correct levels through their diet.

A high meat-based diet is important to get your kitten off on the right paw. Good quality pet food should have their meat listed first as this indicates that the food is predominantly made from meat.

However, be aware of “meat derivatives” and “animal by-products” as this doesn’t reveal the type of meat being used and could be a mixture of several different animal proteins.

Feeding your kitten fruit and veg

A small amount of vegetables and/or fruits may be included in a natural diet. This can replicate the stomach contents of a prey animal caught by a cat in the wild, such as a mouse which has been feeding on wild raspberries.

Blueberries, cantaloupe, strawberries, bananas, and watermelon (without rind or seeds) may be ok. Avoid grapes, raisins, and citrus. Just remember, fruits should only make up a tiny fraction of their overall diet.

Things to avoid feeding your kitten

Avoid artificial colours, preservatives and sugars, especially with young kittens as these ingredients will often result in hyperactivity and the inability to achieve complete rest, which is an essential part of growing up and learning. 

• Can kittens drink milk?

Very young kittens drink their mother’s milk, but once they’re weaned, most cats become lactose intolerant. Giving milk to older kittens can cause diarrhoea and stomach upset, so fresh water should always be their main drink. If you’d like to offer milk as an occasional treat, specially formulated cat milk is safer than regular dairy milk.

• Can I feed a kitten tuna?

Tuna shouldn’t be fed regularly to kittens, as it doesn’t provide complete nutrition and may lead to deficiencies if it’s given too often. Some tuna also contains high levels of salt or mercury. Some sources suggest you can offer tuna as an occasional treat, plain, cooked, or canned in water (not oil), but it’s best to stick with balanced kitten food for their main diet.

More information

Thanks to Natures Menu for contributing this article. Find out more about their kitten and cat food here.

For more advice on kitten health, diet and behaviour see our range of expert guides and advice.

Is your kitten insured? With our kitten insurance you’ll have peace of mind knowing your newest family member is covered against many common health conditions, dental illness, and injury.