Kitten Feeding Problems

by Amber
(Raleigh, North Carolina)

Other questions were similar but not exactly what I need. I have a litter of three 3 month old kittens. Two of them are eating both wet cat food and dry kitten chow just fine. The third kitten will only eat wet cat food and we feed her multiple times a day as this is the only thing that she will eat and we don't want her to get sick from malnutrition. We have tried softening the dry food with water and mixing it with the wet food and she just picks around it. We have also tried putting little pieces in her mouth and she spits it back out. All of our other cats have never had this problem and I was just wondering if there was anything that we have not tried that might work to get her to eat dry food or if she is maybe just a picky eater?


Dear Amber,

Recent research suggests that canned food is actually better for cats for multiple reasons. Canned food is lower in carbohydrates and higher in moisture, which can lower the risk of diabetes, urinary tract issues, and kidney disease to name a few.

If you have the time and can offer canned food multiple times a day, continuing to feed the kittens, especially the picky eater, canned cat food is fine. Aside from continuing to feed the canned food and leaving dry out for the kittens, as the picky kitten gets older, should you decide to wean her off canned food, the longer she is left without the canned, the more likely she will be to eat the dry.

Regards,
Dr. Neely