You are here:

Cats/kitten eating premium cat food

Advertisement

Expert: - 9/13/2010


Question
i bought at discount 6 bags of castor & pollux natural ultramix for cats.  the crude fat max/min = 14.5%/11.0%.  the protein is 36%.  from reading on the internet it sounds like the protein content should be enough for my kitten, but i'm a little unsure of the fat content.  i've read with  holistic premium food, it is wholesome enough in comparison with the commercial brands that:
the natural ultramix will be sufficient for the fat% needs of a 4 month kitten? (usually seeing 22%)  thanks, akua

Answer
Akua,

I am not familiar with this particular food, but I do not go by crude protein or crude fat content.  Rather I look at the list of ingredients.  Please realize that cats are obligate carnivores, which means their bodies can use protein only if it comes from animal sources.  Thus protein from grains or legumes is useless for the kitten. So, I look at the list of ingredients. The list is in order of largest amount to smallest amount. Thus, if meat sources are listed at the top of the list, then most of the protein will be animal protein. The 16% crude fat listed is a bit low, it would not hurt to supplement the kitten with a good fish oil product. We like Dream Coat by Halo.

BTW, we feed a mixture of wet food, raw meat and some dry which we supplement with Dream Coat and a vitamin mineral mixture we concocted.  The dry food we use is Holistic Select.

Best regards... Norm.  

Cats

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Norman Auspitz

Expertise

I can answer most non-veterinary questions about cats. My particular expertise is pedigree cats, breeding and showing. However, I am versed in feline behavior, cat breeds and their characteristics, general feline husbandry, and the like.

Experience

I judged for the Canadian Cat Association from 1975 until 1982. I am currently an approved allbreed judge for the Cat Fanciers'' Association (the world''s largets cat registry), and have been judging for them since 1991. I have been breeding pedigreed cats since 1971 and have been exhibiting pedigreed cats in shows since 1970. I obtained my first pedigreed cat in 1970 and have never looked back. In 1971, I obtained my first Abyssinian which has become my primary breed. In addition, I have bred Manx and Persians. Currently, besides the Abyssinians, I am also breeding Maine Coons.


Organizations
Cat Fanciers'' Association, inc. (CFA) and the Manx, Maine Coon, and Abyssinian breed councils. I am currently Abyssinian breed council secretary.

Publications
Cat Fancy Magazine, The Abyssinian Chapter in The Cat Fanciers'' Association Complete Cat Book, and Articles for various editions of The Cat Fanciers'' Association Yearbook

Education/Credentials
I received a B.S. from Drexel University in 1968, a M.Math from University of Waterloo, in 1970, a Ph.D. from University of Waterloo in 1975, and a MBA from McMaster University in 1980. I received my approved allbreed judging status in the Cat Fanciers'' Association in 1999.

Awards and Honors
We have produced a number of Cat Fanciers'' Association (CFA) National winning Abyssinian and Maine Coons. We have produced a number of Abyssinian and Maine Coon Distinguished Merit females (an award for a top producing cat), including the first Distinguished Merit Abyssinian in the red (sorrel) color. I am the CFA Abyssinian breed council secretary and belong and/or hold office in a number of cat clubs. I am also a member of the CFA Judges Association.

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.