View Single Post
  #14  
Old April 27th, 2006, 12:54 PM
macdonv macdonv is offline
Molly & Mrs Norris's mum
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Windsor, Ontario
Posts: 11
Quote:
Originally Posted by busterandmoe
After reading through all this, I'm convinced I need to switch my two six month old kitties from Purina to a better kitten food. I'm a bit overwhelmed by it all, but I ended up choosing Nutro's Natural Choice for Indoor kittens (dry). However, I noticed it has Corn Gluten Meal as the third ingredient, dried plain beat pulp as the fifth, and ash at 7.25%. Is all this okay?

Also, should I not let them free feed all day? I thought my vet told me to do that. One kitty does seem to be getting a pretty good lil' belly!

Should I add some canned as a treat?

I've learned so much from this website!

Thanks.
I'm by no means an expert, but by reading as much as I could here, I've learned that ash as an ingredient is not the best. Natura Pet Products has a line called Healthwise Cat 'N Kitten, and it contains Corn Gluten Meal, but this is what it says about it: Corn gluten meal is the dried residue from corn after the removal of the larger part of the starch and germ, and the separation of the bran by the process employed in the wet milling manufacture of corn starch or syrup, or by enzymatic treatment of the endosperm.

Corn gluten meal is a low ash source of protein and acts as a urine acidifier in HealthWise Cat 'N Kitten formula. Cats vs Dogs: While not the best quality source of protein, the use of corn gluten in small amounts offer preventive health benefits for cats. In addition, unlike dogs, cats do not usually show signs of allergic reactions to corn products. Natura does feel strongly, however, that there is no justification for the use of corn gluten in dog foods and considers it to be only a cheap protein filler when used in this manner.


Natural Balance is good for all life stages, and has a lot of info on kitten feeding.

Since your kittens are still growing, I'd let them free-feed. That way, they can eat when they need to. Once they're full-grown, if one stays chubby, then you may need to switch to specific eating times.

I give my girls canned as a treat (mostly to try and put some meat on Mrs Norris's bones!), but not every day. Right now I'm trying a variety of brands and flavours to see what they like best. They seem to love Eagle Pack Salmon & Shrimp, and Natural Balance Ocean Fish. Mrs Norris also *loves* PetsMart's Sophisticat brand Poached Trout.

Good luck with your kitties!
__________________
:love: Love your pets as they love you - unconditionally. :love:

Reply With Quote