Mix It Up For Better Kitten Health


Some kitten owners swear by wet food. Others insist dry is best. And according to the WALTHAM® Centre for Pet Nutrition, both sides have merit. In fact, WALTHAM® research shows that mixing wet and dry cat food together is beneficial to your kitten.

Benefits of Mixed Feeding

  • Improved Urinary Tract Health — When you feed your kitten a diet of dry kibble mixed with a high moisture wet food, it increases your kitten’s water intake, resulting in more urine production. The higher volume dilutes the urine while increasing the frequency of urination — both of which help prevent the formation of mineral crystals or urinary stones.

  • Better Weight Management — WALTHAM® studies have shown that kittens fed a high-moisture diet eat less, gain less weight per calorie eaten and have increased activity levels compared to kittens fed only dry food. What’s more, owners tend to better control the size of their kitten’s meal portions when part of the diet contains wet food.

  • Healthy Metabolism — With more real meat and fewer carbohydrates, wet food provides a healthy balance of proteins, fats and carbohydrates that satisfies a kitten’s instinctive feeding behavior and helps maintain a healthy metabolism.

  • Enhanced Eating Enjoyment — When given the choice, kittens prefer to eat a mixture of both wet and dry foods. Wet food is shown to increase enjoyment whereas dry food satisfies her desire to eat many small meals throughout the day.

  • Improved Oral Health — The crunchy texture of dry food helps keep teeth clean by scraping away plaque and tartar.

Recommended Mixed Feeding Program

While each kitten is different, WALTHAM® studies have shown that a mixed feeding program for both weight management and urinary tract health has positive results overall. For weight management, at least 1/3 of the total daily volume should be fed as wet food. If urinary tract health is the goal, wet food should make up a least 3/4 of the daily volume.

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