Feeding your new kitten

The most common worry when a kitten goes to a new home is that she won’t eat.  It’s understandable, everything is strange and she doesn’t know anyone – ‘where’s my mommy?’  She may be really hungry but it’s all so different.

The kittens we have ready for adoption are all like little gannets – they are good eaters!  Some of that is sibling rivalry, also they are used to the food we give them.   We’ll tell you what they are used to and what they like best. It sometimes takes a day or two and lots of cuddles to get them going though so don’t panic.

We feed kitten pouches, also kitten biscuits are put out all the time for them to snack on whenever they like.   Kittens like milk but it has to be special kitten milk or goat’s milk which is also easy to digest.  A saucer of milk every day is good for them if they like it.   Also a spoonful or two of goat’s milk yoghurt keeps their tummy healthy and most kittens and adult cats love it.

We also offer lots of fresh food and the kittens love it.   A portion on mince is pounced upon, also lightly cooked white fish (just a few minutes in the microwave and with a splash of goat’s milk to cook it down) or sardines – especially yummy. Chopped chicken goes down well – we have big bags of ready cooked frozen chicken available so you can buy that from us and its much cheaper than buying from the supermarkets.

This all provides variety and gets them away from all the animal derivates (what are they?) and sugar that is so often in processed factory made cat food.  Cats lived very healthy lives in the days when there wasn’t a pet food industry — which is nowadays worth billions of pounds a year to manufacturers.   Little wonder they can afford such  glossy and seductive advertising!

Cats aren’t vegetarians, they need meat and also an amino acid called taurine.  It’s essential for them to have this and it’s why they catch and eat bluebottles and flies – they are a rich source of taurine.  Kittens only need a very small amount but if it’s not available they can suffer from heart disease and blindness.  Premium cat food has taurine in it and other vitamins and minerals.  We like a balanced diet best.

Look for kitten food with human quality ingredients – otherwise you might be feeding your new baby cat with meat from diseased animals, yuk!  We like Nature’s Menu ready raw frozen or pouches best, cats do very well on it, theres no sugar (which a kitten can’t break down and assimilate – it’s put in because it’s addictive!) Nature’s Menu is all natural, human quality and you don’t have the smelly litter trays you get when you feed processed.

You can buy it from us (and widely available in pet shops) we’re very competitive on price, your purchase helps the sanctuary and it’s easy to park and pick up.