Cat Care: Caring for Kittens

Feeding Your Kitten: Chapter One

Kittens are very delicate and kind little animals. It is important for kitten owners to remember that kittens are only babies. They need special care, like a human baby. Most of all, they need a mother. But, when a kitten is older and does not need its mother's milk any more, he or she will have to have nutritious kitten food. A brand of cat food that I recommend (and is vet recommended) is hill's pet food. Here is a link to their website: http://www.hillspetfood.com/cat-care.html. You can buy cat food specifically designed for ether kittens, adult cats, or mature adult cats.

A Balanced Diet

Having had many kittens in my house myself, I know that they need a healthy and balanced diet. All cats need fats, calcium, sodium, carbohydrates, phosphorus, proteins, and omegas three and six. Cats also need vitamins A, D, C, and E. All of these vitamins, minerals and other nutrients have different and important benefits. For kittens, it is critical for their growth to have these things.

You can give wet food once in a while, but usually wet food does not have as many nutrients as dry food. Also, dry cat food is good for a cat's teeth. A cat has to have clean teeth. Like humans, dirty and unhealthy teeth can lead to health problems. Simimoist cat food is also a choice of cat food. It does not have the same benefits as dry cat food, but semimoist cat food can be used as cat treats (also try using damp cat wet food or small bits of cheese for treats).

For more information on feeding your cat the right food, view my blog post 'Kitty Tips-Feeding Your Cat'. Here is a link to that post: http://thepurplepaw.blogspot.com/2011/11/kitty-tips-feeding-your-cat.html Thank you!

A Healthy, Happy Kitty

From when a cat is a kitten to an adult, they are always looking for pants to chew on. This is an instinct that the cat has. In the wild, away from the protection of a human home, cats chew on wild, long grasses. These grasses circle any poisonous or indigestible foods. This food is than regurgitated. This is good for a stray cat. It keeps the cat healthy. But inside, a cat has to eat different plants. Some plants are poisonous to cats and may kill the cat or make him or her sick if she or he eats them. Some of these plants include mistletoe, ivy, buckeye, corn plants, Castor bean, lilies, morning glory, poinsettia, daffodil, holly, dumb cane, clematis, foxglove, iris, rubber plants, weeping figs and yew. These are not all of the plants that are poisonous to cats. These are just a few that I wanted to list.

To stop your cat from eating your plants, you can keep a special kind of grass in your house for your cat. This grass is good for your cat to eat and will keep your cat away from your house plants.

There are also plants that are not poisonous. The spider plant is among the many. Cats can chew on the leaves of the spider plant and other non-poisonous plants and special grasses in safety.

A picture of a spider plant:

Keep in mind: Buy healthy cat foods full of the nutrients that a growing cat (or adult cat) needs, like hill's science diet pet foods. Dry food is healthier for a cat's teeth than wet or semimoist cat foods. Do not have poisonous plants in your cat's reach. Buy no-toxic plants like the spider plant and non-poisonous grasses.

Using the right knowledge of how to care for your kitten, I can assure you that you kitten will grow up to be a very healthy kitty.

-KittyLover8