Help - greedy 22 week old kitten!

[BaitandSwitch]

Our kitten is always pestering for food and sometimes can get a bit tetchy if not fed on demand. I've checked with guidance and we are feeding him the correct amount (definitely not depriving him) and he looks to be about the right weight - though I don't think he should be any heavier (he weighs 6 and a quarter pounds).
Currently he gets 60g dry food and 1 sachet 85g wet food. I've seen advice where it's suggested that as wet food has a better "fullness" factor, so am thinking of moving to 40g dry and 2 sachets daily instead. Has anyone similar experiences / any advice for me please?
I had hoped he would want to be out and about more exploring all the exciting world outside the catflap, but he has slowed down since being neuteured and I'm hoping he won't grow into a lazy, greedy adult cat!

[Prestel]

I suspect you're going to get a lot of advice on this, all completely different and conflicting but here are my thoughts fwiw.

First of all, kittens are still growing at this age, so he may genuinely need a bit more at this stage.

Second of all, what cats find filling is protein, so if he seems unsatisfied try and see if you can find foods with a higher meat content as a first step.

Lastly, I think the combination of one wet sachet plus dried food is a good balance and putting a bit more dry food out rather than more wet would be what I would do as dried foods can be left out longer for them to graze on as and when.

[Fluffycloudland77]

I feed kittens whenever they ask, they are little eating machines like babies. Ours was on 4.5 pouches a day all his life.

[BaitandSwitch]

Thanks Prestel for my first response - I'm hoping others will share their thoughts too. Darling cat (kitten) is currently asleep at the moment but you can set the clock by him when it comes to mealtimes.

[BaitandSwitch]

Fluffy, how big are your cats now - the advice seems to be 4 - 5 pouches a day, or 20g dry food in lieu of a single pouch (up to 80g daily). Yes, he certainly is one eating machine!

[dementedpixie]

I just leave dry food out and give wet food a couple of times a day and mine are now nearly 4 years old. I've never weighed their food

[Fluffycloudland77]

He was a 6-6.5kg Bengal.

Out of 6 cats I’ve only had one piglet & it was a Persian who weighed what the Bengal did on a much smaller frame.

Here he was in his prime, he was all muscle.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

I'm not sure how relevant any of this advice is without a photo of said greedy kitten .

However being serious 4 to 5 100g pouches a day sounds a lot to me. My four adult cats generally get through about 12 pouches a day between them. Three smallish cats plus one who is just shy of 6kg.
Mind you my first ever cat (who was a stray who moved in with me) used to eat three large (400g) tins a day . He was built like a brick shithouse (a two or three year old complete Tom cat) and never had any fat on him at all.

[IDontMindMarmite]

My 4 month olds get 2 pouches a day plus a handful of biscuits. Plus treats. They've never turned food down and could eat constantly as far as I can tell.

[BaitandSwitch]

Fluffy, your Bengal looks amazing! Grumpy - I've just tried to take a pic of greedy kitten but he's out and about. Watch this space and there will be one later!

[BaitandSwitch]

And here he is!

[Prestel]

I notice some people are comparing the amount of food the OP's 5 month old kitten is eating to what their adult cats eat, but at some stages kittens will need to eat more than an adult cat so it's not really comparable. I assume the OP is taking the guidance of up to 5 pouches or 100g dry food a day from the kitten food she's using and it does sound like it could be right for a larger boy kitten at this age. The recommended amount will go down again by the time he stops growing at approx 1 year.
He may be asking for food a lot because he's naturally a grazer and would prefer to eat a lot of smaller meals. Or because the food he's eating lacks protein. Or he likes the attention and ceremony of being fed. Or he wants to fulfil his destiny as a big, round British hearth cat. He could, on the other hand, be asking for food a lot because he's busy growing into a bigger than average cat and genuinely needs more food right now, so I wouldn't cut back and maybe even give a little more. In a month or two he may well be asking for and eating less as his growth spurt slows down.

[Prestel]

Posted before I saw the pictures. He's gorgeous. I don't think he's heading for Garfield territory at all. He's probably just hungry because he's growing into a big, athletic tabby boy who needs the energy for lots of mischievous adventures .

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

Do you worm him regularly?

[Prestel]

Just in case, though, you may find this link to a Cat's Protection poster for working out if a cat's overweight useful:

www.cats.org.uk/media/3561/overweight-cats-infographic-web.jpeg?width=800

[Mincepiesallyearround]

Sorry to hi jack the thread, but those feeding more than two pouches a day - what brand is it? Kitten food is bloody expensive! I’ve got two young kittens arriving soon and just trying to work out how much food costs per week will be. Eg a pack of 8 pouches can be a fiver or so.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

Thanks OP. Very cute kitten.
He doesn't look like a fatty so I'd just let him get on with it. We've always fed our cats on demand anyway. Since he"s nearly 3kg at 5 months I suspect he may end up being a big chap.

[Prestel]

Atmincepiesallyearround We feed Iams dry food and Felix(As Good As it Looks). The Felix was because it was what kitten no 2 was eating when she came to us, our other cat discovered he liked it too and that was that. You'll need to continue the same food your kittens were eating at their previous home at first, so make sure you ask before you get them, but you can gradually introduce a new food after a month or so once they're settled. I find dry foods tend to be better quality, pound for pound, than wet food, so mostly feed that and just give a sachet of wet food a day for variety.

[Fluffycloudland77]

Oh he is beautiful, he has stunning eyes. His appetite should tail off after a year when he stopped growing but tabbies do tend to be hefty.

[BaitandSwitch]

I've just fed him (again) now, thanks for all the lovely and helpful comments. He's fed on James Beloved Kitten Fish for the dry stuff and Wainwrights for the pouched food. Plus anything he can get his mitts on when we're not looking (he is great at doing pre-wash on the dishes).

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

As I asked earlier is he wormed regularly?

[BaitandSwitch]

Yes he is wormed every 3 months as per vet care plan ...

[Mincepiesallyearround]

Cool, will check what they’ve been on!

[violetbunny]

One of mine went through stages of howling for food all the time as a kitten, followed shortly by a massive growth spurt. I don't think there would be any harm in that age in giving him a bit of extra food if he's demanding it. If he starts getting a bit tubby then just reduce it back down (but most likely he will grow into it anyway).

[Bargebill19]

My three 7 month old kittens will eat 4/5 pouches just for breakfast plus dried food, three more pouches in the evening and several treats. Here one waiting for bedtime snack. Just over 2.5kg.

[Bargebill19]

The older cats eat very little in comparison.