For those who’re a first-time cat proprietor, “How a lot ought to I feed my cat?” is more likely to be one in every of your first questions if you convey your cat house. Even in the event you’ve owned cats for years, you could generally ponder whether your cats are getting too little meals or an excessive amount of. Let’s undergo just a few components to contemplate when answering “How a lot ought to I feed my cat”?
How a lot ought to I feed my cat? The fundamentals
The reply to “How a lot ought to I feed my cat” is predicated on many variables, together with a cat’s weight and a cat’s age, whether or not you’re feeding moist cat meals or dry cat meals, the cat’s exercise degree, and whether or not or not she is pregnant or nursing.
The model of meals you’re feeding additionally makes a distinction once we’re answering the query “How a lot ought to I feed my cat.” A dense, top quality dry cat meals will include extra vitamins by weight than a low-quality meals, and thus require smaller parts to ship the identical quantity of vitamin on your cat.
Many cat homeowners permit their cats free entry to dry meals, supplemented by canned meals a couple of times a day. A dry-food-only weight loss plan shouldn’t be essentially a nasty pet weight loss plan in the event you’re feeding top quality meals, however it does require that you simply encourage your cat to drink much more water to compensate for what she’s not getting in canned meals.
When to feed your cat
Whenever you convey a brand new cat house, it’s essential to proceed to feed her the identical quantity of the identical meals on the identical schedule that’s she’s been accustomed to, then progressively migrate to your personal meals and schedule. Cats are very delicate to vary, and a brand new cat might be coping with a number of new-environment stress, so maintaining the meals and schedule constant will ease her transition and preserve intestinal upset at bay.
Whenever you’re able to transition your cat over to your personal meals and schedule, you’ll want to find out what sort of meals you’ll be feeding her (moist or dry, uncooked meals or a combo), and utilizing the calorie counts in every meals, decide how a lot of which sort to feed her.
What to feed your cat — moist meals or dry meals?
One other essential consider answering “How a lot ought to I feed my cat?” is contemplating what you’re feeing your cat. The muse of a wholesome cat weight loss plan is flesh-based protein like meat, fish or poultry. Dry meals ought to be excessive in animal proteins, and low in plant proteins (which cats are ill-equipped to digest). Carbohydrates ought to make up not more than ten % of the combo of cat meals elements.
Moist meals ought to consist predominantly of meat with as few by-products and fillers as attainable.
Nonetheless questioning, “How a lot ought to I feed my cat?” Some calculations
Based on the Animal Medical Heart in New York, a wholesome, energetic 8-pound grownup cat requires about 30 energy per pound per day. So, the common 8-pound cat requires about 240 energy per day.
Usually, dry meals comprises about 300 energy per cup, and canned meals comprises about 250 energy in every 6 oz can. (or, 125 per 3-ounce can). Utilizing these counts as a information, an 8-pound cat would want 4/5 of a cup of dry meals or simply lower than a full 6-oz can (or two 3-ounce cans) of moist meals per day. You possibly can alter the proportions based mostly on whether or not your cat prefers kind of dry or moist meals.
For those who’re free feeding your cat dry meals, every day measure out the day’s allotment of meals into your dry meals feeder. This decreases the quantity of meals that will get stale and must be discarded. It would additionally assist you to monitor how a lot your cats are consuming. If you need to take a skinny cat to the vet, it would assist in the analysis in the event you can determine precisely how a lot she eats per day.
Portioning out the meals will preserve your cats from overeating. Free alternative feeding is among the prime contributors to feline weight problems.
How usually to feed a cat
One other consider figuring out “How a lot ought to I feed my cat” is dependent upon how usually you feed your cat. And the way usually to feed a cat is dependent upon what you’re feeding her. Most cat homeowners feed their cats within the morning and at night time, and will or could not complement these feedings with free feeding of dry meals all through the day.
Is your cat consuming sufficient — or too little?
All through your cat’s life you will want to change her weight loss plan to accommodate altering metabolism and dietary wants. Really feel your cat’s spine and ribs. If the ribs and spine present by means of her pores and skin, she is just too skinny. For those who can’t really feel the ribs, your cat is probably going obese. Regulate her parts accordingly.
Holding your cat from changing into overweight is far simpler than forcing an overweight cat to weight loss plan. And it’ll make each you and your cat quite a bit happier.
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This piece was first printed in 2009.
