How much should kittens eat?

L1985

Hey guys.quick question. We have 2 baby kittens around 10weeks old they are getting a tin of cat food a day between them and some days some other scraps etc as well. These are outdoor cats firstly but they will be well looked after. My q is they still seem hungry on that amount but I don't know if one of the kittens is just trying it on. She's the cheeky one and bullies her poor sister a bit. Every time I go outside she's bawling at me and a lot of the time it's for attention (which she gets) but I'm a bit worried that they are hungry.are we feeding them enough?its been a long time since we had kittens but they are only little scraps of things!!

Nody

The tin should state the amount on it but each cat is different; kittens in general tend to need several smaller servings which helps keep them filled over the day so if unsure why not leave them some kibble (make sure it can't get wet or left out for rats) to eat during the day?

L1985

Yeah we were but the kittens decided they didn't like that outhouse (which came with pillows and a duvet for them) and the cheeky gits moved into the dogs house and robbed his bed!!so we were feeding them there and closing the door for an hour or so then letting the poor dog back into his house. If we leave dried food out the dog will eat it. I might just put it up somewhere high where he can't reach it thou. But one can does sound roughly right yeah?

Nody

L1985 wrote: »

Yeah we were but the kittens decided they didn't like that outhouse (which came with pillows and a duvet for them) and the cheeky gits moved into the dogs house and robbed his bed!!so we were feeding them there and closing the door for an hour or so then letting the poor dog back into his house. If we leave dried food out the dog will eat it. I might just put it up somewhere high where he can't reach it thou. But one can does sound roughly right yeah?

Depends on the size of the can, they go from 50g to 800g after all

Taking Granata Pet 200g cans they recommend 100g a day for 2kg cat; however being 10 weeks old that has to be served in at least 3 separate meals.

L1985

I think that might be where we are going wrong. The house they were in we could close the door and go off but we have to babysit them eating now so they were only getting fed once a day and it looks like it's not enough. Just standing in the cold at the moment watching them eat isn't great. It's the normal size cans. Now to try persuade the little monkeys that their original bed is nicer then the dogs (which it is!).they are just nosy and we can get it sorted. Thanks everyone them

aonb

As Nody says, kittens, puppies, any baby animal have a tiny stomach, and needs several feeds per day. I would be looking at feeding an outdoor kitten (being outdoors they use more energy to keep warm) three times a day. If you space the feeds out to morning, afternoon and evening. Put them someplace with their bowls that the dog cant reach, and enclose them with the food. Remember they will need a bowl of water too! They will very quickly get into a routine of WHERE and WHEN they are going to be fed. Routine is very important - if they are outdoors you wont want to leave food lying around where it can be eaten by rodents or birds (or your dog) - so they will come and eat their food at those routine times. Since they are so young, if you lock them into their own space at night, I would leave a bowl of kibble too - a night is a long time for young tummies to be empty!

L1985

Any advice how to lock them in? We thought we had!!they are little escape artists and have decided that the first accomadation (which was where food,water etc was laid out for them) wasn't to their liking. We don't have cages and I wouldn't like locking them up in one either and the other houses they can get out of.i think height will be our friend so the dogs can't get to it. They come when called v friendly and they have been worked and vaccinated etc and are already bulling the poor dogs so should be interesting when they are older. Will increase their feeding times anyway. Thanks for the advice

intheclouds

Is there any particular reason why they can't be in the house and confined to a section or couple of rooms? Very cold outdoors for small kittens.

aonb

OP, if you keep putting their food in the same place at the same (roughly) times every day, they should consider that place, their 'home' - course being cats, they will do what they like, but get them into the habit of going to the shed you want them in by putting food/water there. Routine/routine/routine and to keep their little tummies 'full' will be key.

They will no doubt boss the dogs about, and sounds like your dogs are 'good' and wont harm them - ideal!

If they must be outdoor cats; you are feeding them, and providing them with dry shelter (duvet was mentioned, so nice bed too) so they will be ok.

L1985

They have been given two beds now with duvets and pillows although to be honest all of our previous cats give that up after a few months and sleep in the hayshed where it's v warm. We don't ever have cats indoors my dad hates it and once they start coming in it's hard to stop them. They have loads of shelter and love running around the yard.we ideally wanted them locked in for another few weeks but we don't know how they are getting out of that house. I have checked all the obvious escape routes and can't find it and they give out stink when I put them back in there. I'll just feed them more regularly and hopefully it should be ok. They are more inclined to want to be where the action is and I think they got bored being confined. It is cold but honestly they have loads of places for warmth if they decide to ignore the dogs bed lol. We wouldn't have for a cat without knowing the dogs would be ok they are a bit nonplussed by this tiny balls of fluff but we have hens as well so I knew it would be ok. Did watch them the first few interactions thou