Cat Feeding 101: What Best Food Should We Feed For Our Nursing Cats?

When tasked to care for a pregnant or nursing mother cat, there are a few things that you should consider first. These considerations will help you become a better caregiver for both mother and kitten in the long run.

It will also give you the chance to witness how a relationship between a mother and a child slowly develops. You will be able to see how the care for each other and what makes them do the things that they do.

Your job as the fur parent is to make sure that they have a safe and loving environment to grow in as both mother cat and kitten. One of the many ways to do this is to feed them the right kind of food. However, which types of food should you feed the nursing cat?

This article will try to answer this question and much more. It will also do its best to show you just how fun taking care of mother cats and their kittens could be. Would you like to learn more about it? Go ahead and give it a shot. You will not regret your decision to continue reading.

Part One: The Required Nutrients

The first food type that you should consider giving your feline pet would be something that is filled with nutrition and vitamins for both mother and kitten. You should provide a diet that can give them enough energy and calories to produce milk for the mother and something that would Foster growth and development for the kitten.

Some of these important nutrients include:

Protein
Fat
Calcium and Phosphorus

Additionally, you should choose types of cat food that are easily digestible. Add fiber to their diet so that you can be sure that their digestive systems and processes remain on track. This way, they will not end up with indigestion which can ruin their appetite in the long run.

Part Two: Some Frequently Asked Questions about Pregnancy, Diet and Nutrition for Cats

Before we go any further, let us first discuss some of the frequently asked questions regarding food and additional value as well as animal diet for pregnant and nursing felines. The questions are listed below:

1. Why Is Having Energy And Fat In Their Bodies Important For Nursing Cats?

Energy is important for nursing animals mainly because nursing itself takes a lot out of the body. It is one of the most highly demanding activities that a mother can do for her child. Having enough energy in the body as well as facts will allow the mother cat to recover quickly after nursing.

2. What Is The Meaning Of Digestibility And Why Is It So Important For Nursing Cats?

The term digestibility refers to be exact amount of food that is actually digested and goes into the feline body. Food particles with high digestibility factors are important for intake because the energy requirement of the cat who is nursing is very high.

In addition to this, there is a smaller room for additional food inside the feline stomach. The average cat’s stomach measures roughly around the size of a common ping-pong ball. It was physically designed to hold no more than 1 to 2 tablespoons of food at a time.

This is why a nursing cat needs to eat as many times a day as she can. Eating frequently will help her keep up her energy while taking care of her offspring.

3. What Should I Feed My A Nursing Cat?

If you’re asking for recommendations for a specific type of cat food, any kind of cat food will do as long as it is organic and doesn’t have other chemical additives in it. This way, you can be sure that your pet remains safe while taking care of her own progeny.

4. How Should We Feed The Cats?

It depends on the condition of the cat itself. For pregnant cats, you should follow the instructions of porting to the label. This way, you will be able to measure the specific amount of food according to the instructions.

For nursing cats, you should give the available food to the mother cat at all times. Make it so that she has access to the food anytime in the day. This will be beneficial in two ways: it will allow the mother to keep up her energy by digesting the food regularly and it will also trained the kittens to add regular food into their diet slowly but surely.

Important Reminders about Caring For Pregnant and Nursing Cats

When caring for nursing her pregnant cats, it is important that you are aware of just how long it would take for them to carry the kittens inside their bodies. Normally, it takes them about 63 to 65 days to carry a kitten full term.

During this time, it is also important that you as a caregiver visit the veterinarian with your pets regularly. From here, you will be able to monitor their food intake and have the opportunity to learn more about what kind of diet you should provide for the cats.

It is also important for you to do your research regarding the kind of food that the normally do eat even when not pregnant. This way, you will have an ad as to how to adjust a diet of 14 lee as soon as the mirrors their litter.

Part Three: Learning About the Regular Cat Diet

To further understand what nursing cats need to survive in terms of their diet, it is also important for us to learn more about their regular food intake. What kinds of food do they normally eat? Is it healthy? This section will answer those questions and much more. If you would like to learn more, please go ahead and continue reading.

Feeding the Adult Cat

If you really want to have a healthy fuel and pat, it is important that you are able to figure out how much and how often you should feed your cat regularly. This way, you will be able to gauge whether or not the food intake is still in the safe zone when it comes to regular intake.

This section will also discuss some healthy alternatives that you can feed your cat to keep him or her alive and well for very long time. Would you like to learn more? Read on below as follows:

One way of checking whether are not the cat food is healthy for your pets would be to check for the AAFCO seal of approval. If you see this particular seal and any cat food packaging, it means that the product is safe for your pets to feed on.

In addition to this, you should always be a balance of nutrients within the cat food. From proteins, carbohydrates and vitamins as well as minerals, the cat food and a brand selling it should be able to provide equal amounts of these nutrients the animal.

This way, you can be assured that the food your pet is eating would be healthy not only for herself but for her kittens as well.

It is no different with the human diet. There should be equal protection of nutrients for the diet work. If one exceeds the other and vice versa, the plan will not work.

Measuring the Nutrients

The measurement of the nutrients is based off the dry matter within the food itself. This means that dry cat food may have more nutrients than a cat food brand that offers moist versions of the same product.

Part Four: Comparing Canned vs. Dry Food: Which One Would Be Better For Nursing Mother Cats?

Both have pros and cons when it comes to giving nutrients to nursing mother cats and even at adult cats in general. Here are some of those pros and cons according to experts.

The Pros and Cons of Adult Cat Food

It is economical (affordable)
It doesn’t spoil easily. You can leave it out for hours in a day without having to worry about spoilage.
It is packed with a lot of calories which is good for energy consumption.
This product has about 10% moisture content
The product has more carbohydrates than your average cat food. Aside from this, it also has less protein than wet cat food.
Experts say that it is slightly better than canned food when it comes to preventing dental disease for felines.

As compared to the canned cat food, here are some pertinent information about the products that could make you think about purchasing it for your own nursing mother cat.

Canned adult cat food spoils easily
It requires refrigerating after opening
It has less consumable calories
It has up to about 78% moisture, which can be bad for feline health
Canned cat food tends to have more fat and protein and any other nutrients inside. Too much fat is dangerous for the animal. So you have to avoid it at all costs.

For these reasons, you should focus on getting dry cat food for your feline friends. It will allow them to take in more nutrients while keeping their kittens safe from possible complications in the long run.

However, all is not lost if you want to buy cat food that has a lot of moisture in it. Research shows that moisture-filled cat food tends to have favorable effects on cats with urinary tract infections.

This means that if your mother cat is nursing and has this particular condition, it would be best for you to try and find canned adult cat food to feed her. It will help her recover quickly.

How Much Food Should I Feed My Mother Cat?

As compared to adult cats, mother cats have different nutritional needs to have to be taken into consideration. Much like a pregnant woman, as long as the cat eats healthy amounts of cat food every day, it would be best to let her be.

If you’re still in doubt regarding the intervals of food and pay for nursing cats, it would be best free to consult your veterinarian for more information regarding the subject.

This way, you can be assured that what you’re trying to feed your cat would be safe not only in terms of professional value but also in terms of measurement.

Part Five: Checking Up On Your Own Cat

That being said, it is also important to check on your feline friend’s weight every so often. Check on your mother cat’s silhouette and touch the belly from time to time. If you don’t feel your cat’s ribs or bones any longer, it would be best for you to dial down on her diet. Just make sure that she still gets enough nutrients to feed her own kittens once you adjust the diet.

What is important here is that you are able to watch over your feeling friend and her kittens regularly. By doing this, you will be able to help the mother cat care for her offspring without much difficulty.

It will also help train you to become a good parent someday. A good parent always puts the welfare of her children first more than her own. If you want to succeed in taking care of your pets, you have to think like an actual parent sooner rather than later. Then and only then will you succeed in taking care of your cats.

Closing Statement

While taking care of cats is already a big responsibility, caring for a nursing cat is another entirely different ballgame altogether. You have there are so both physically, mentally and emotionally for the hard work that goes into caring for your pets.

It would be doubly hard mainly because you are not only taking care of your cat, but also her kittens. However, the good news is that as long as you take care of the mother cat, she will be in her best shape to take care of her own litter. You just have to find the right amount and kind of food specifically for her needs as a mother.

Again, if you have any inquiries regarding taking care of the mother cat and her kittens, it would be best to consult your local veterinarian. They will be able to give you advice regarding the diet and how to effectively care for a pregnant or nursing cat.