Can I feed my kittens only dry food?

[summercompanion]

I have heard several people say you can feed cats only dry food.

When I last had cats - 30 years ago- we gave them tins of cat food.

But I would much rather give them only dry food- if so - which one should I use?

I'm getting my kittens this week - they are 14 weeks old.

Can you recommend what websites I should look up in order to care for them?

Just seem to be reading lots of adverts at the moment.

Can you tell I'm panicking a bit? 😃

[resuwen]

I also feed mine IAMS, a mix of wet and dry. Wet once a day and dry food always available.

[ExtremelyDedicated]

We do a mixture (two female adults). Share a small tin of wet food morning and evening, then they get dry food to munch on between meals. We keep ours in a caddy with a scoop so they get a measured amount. Fresh water every time we put out dry food

[dizzygirl1]

My 17 year old had dry food only from about 6-12 months, vet recommended. She'd never had any problems and had fantastic teeth -vet always commented about their condition.
She had iams, used hairball or senior. In the last couple of years she's had meat once a fortnight or so.

[whenwillthemadnessend]

I like Iams
But most of the premium ranges are ok.

Mine love whiskas but it's like junk food to them so I don't give those types of food.

[Pixiedust1234]

There are problems with both.

Alll wet food can cause dental issues but all dry can cause kidney problems esp in males. Cats are notorious for not drinking enough so adding dry food to a dehydrated animal is not good. Disclaimer - some cats will drink enough when dehydrated.

The best approach is a mix. The wet helps hydration and the dry helps with cleaning the teeth.

[summercompanion]

An thanks @HouseofHolbein and @whenwillthemadnessend do you mind telling me what brands you use and I will look for that.

They are loving both wet and dry at the moment.


The benefit of the wet packets is that it's easy to measure out- so I'm not worrying about giving them too much- with dry I could pour out loads and not know when it's too much.

But would 100% prefer to go for dry if I can

[whenwillthemadnessend]

Mine are 7 and have fabulous teeth.
Wet food is really bad for the teeth and most cats won't let you brush them.

Mine have always had dry. With the occasional tuna treat or cheese ham etc.

[HouseofHolbein]

My 3 are 3 now and have been fed exclusively on dry since they were weaned. Vet approves... says they are super healthy and it's good for their teeth.

[ItsSnowJokes]

@SoupDragon

Get a high protein, grain free dry food if you really have to but dry food is really not great for cats. It's full of carbs and just sugars.

the common wet food I've just looked at all have "various sugars" as an added ingredient. Unlike the dry food.

Yes the mainstream crap like whiskers and felix will have a load of sugar etc..... we feed a high meat content wet diet which is at least 80% meat content and you don't have these issues.

[SoupDragon]

Get a high protein, grain free dry food if you really have to but dry food is really not great for cats. It's full of carbs and just sugars.

the common wet food I've just looked at all have "various sugars" as an added ingredient. Unlike the dry food.

[summercompanion]

Ok thanks- I'm now giving them a small amount of wet food for breakfast and evening meal.
And a small amount of dry food for lunch and before bed

[Spiider]

I guess you can - obviously make sure you buy foods that are suitable for kittens , but personally I wouldn’t. I think a mixture of dry and wet is generally recommended.

I definitely wouldn’t feed only dry if male cats as feeding some wet will help reduce the risk of urinary stones.

[coffeecupsandfairylights]

As long as it's suitable for kittens, you can feed whatever type of food you like.

Personally I wouldn't feed an all-dry diet, especially if you have male cats.

[ItsSnowJokes]

Get a high protein, grain free dry food if you really have to but dry food is really not great for cats. It's full of carbs and just sugars.

A high meat content wet food will be cheaper in the long run as they don't need so much of it.

[Stuckforlong]

Try Pets at home web site .
I have a kitten and have purchased I ams dry kitten food and whiskers ,

[Fluffycloudland77]

No they need kitten food.