Breeding stunning Maine Coon Cats for health, temperament, and joy
What to Feed a
Maine Coon Cat
What cats should be fed has been a debate amongst breeders and veterinarians for years. However, we do know these 3 things about cats and their diet.
1. Cats are carnivores by nature. This means they require a diet that consists of meat, rather than plants and starches. Because of this, foods that are high is protein and low in plant products and starches/carbohydrates are ideal. But unfortunately, most dry cat foods are low in protein and high in plant products and/or starches/carbohydrates.
2. Cats need a lot of water and have a low thirst drive. Having a bowl of water out for a cat is not necessarily enough to keep him/her well hydrated.
3. When you combine foods that are low protein, high in plant products and/or starches/carbohydrates with low water intake, this contributes to much of the kidney problems and diabetes we see in older cats.
We also need to be aware that there is some strong evidence out there that suggests plant products contribute to heart problems in animals. Peas, legumes, lentils, potatoes, and soy are amongst the worst ones.
So what should we be feeding our cats?
A diet that is almost 100% wet food is proving to be the healthiest for cats overall because it gets so much moisture in their diet without the cat needing to drink water. Feeding raw is hands down the best because it is all protein with no plant products, starches or carbohydrates. Store bought canned food is the next best option for the moisture content and low carbohydrates, but it is usually still filled with plant products.
What do you feed your cats?
We would love to feed raw, but right now that is not realistic for our cattery. So, we feed a mix of wet and dry cat food. We do our best to make sure they get plenty of wet food on a daily basis and closely monitor their feces to be sure each cat is having frequent bowl movements that are not dry.
To figure out which brand of cat food we were going to feed, we spent over 30 hours reading and researching over 150 different cat food brands. After all this we settled on feeding these products to our cats and kittens both...
Dry Food
For dry cat food we feed Young Again. This is a small company that only sells direct to consumer. They are also endorsed by TICA and CFA. We have chosen Young Again because they are the only dry food on the market (that we could find anyway), that has 6% or less carbohydrates and starches, no plant products, and is 50% protein. This makes it the ideal dry cat food, and also eliminates many of the concerns with dry cat food. Another added benefit is that because it is so high in protein, cats eat less of it than they do other dry cat foods.
We love Young Again cat food and are watching our cats and kittens thrive on it! They have many different food options (for not just cats), but this link will take you to their website to see the formula we feed in our cattery. You can also use our ID number (221672) when you check out, to get 10% off your first order. It does seem a little pricy at first, but because cats eat less of this food, a bag of their food will last you much longer than other brands. In most cases it breaks down to about $0.42 a day. You can click here to use their food calculator and find out how many bags of food you will likely go through in a month.
Wet Food
We feed all of our cats and kittens Evangers Compliments wet food. You can find it on Amazon or Chewy. It has very limited, whole food ingredients that all of our cats love. This specific food is not meant to be fed alone, as it is not formulated to be a complete, balanced diet. We feed it once a day mixed with their vitamins and supplements and extra water to be sure they are plenty hydrated. We also feed this Evangers wet food found on Amazon or Chewy that is a complete, balanced diet. If you wish to feed your kitten a diet of 50% or more wet food, this is the one you will want. There are a couple different flavors our cats love.
Young Again Pet Food
Use code 22167 when you check out to receive 10% off on your 1st order.
You will be required to keep a kitten purchased from us on Young Again cat food for a minimum of 30 days after you bring your kitten home. This will likely require you to buy just 1 small bag of Young Again food, unless you decide to keep your kitten on it longer than 30 days. See the purple box above for a code to receive 10% off your 1st order of Young Again food.
*Changing food sooner than 30 days could result in the health contract becoming null and void.
A high quality diet is extremely important for any cat. It will help them look and feel their best, help fight off illnesses, as well as make their trips to the litter box more pleasant for everyone. However, high quality food is especially important for a Maine Coon kitten. They require a quality, high protein diet to grow appropriately and reach their full potential. Proper food is a must for the first year of a kitten's life, but ideally for the first 4-5 years as they continue to grow until 4-5 years of age. This will especially help their bones and joints and prevent future problems as an adult. While tempting, grabbing any bag of cat food off the shelf at the store without much thought can ultimately do more harm than good for your kitten.
Links
Here are some links to help you start your own research on cat foods, as well as some helpful information...
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We earn a small commission from Young Again when the 10% discount code is used, and for anything purchased with one of the Amazon links on this page.