Switching Your Cats Food | Alaska Mill & Feed

When switching a cat from one food to another, a gradual approach is often helpful. Over the course of a week, feed a mixture of old food and new. As the week progresses, decrease the proportion of old food and increase that of the new. If the animal seems to be having trouble adjusting to the new food, slow the rate of transition. 

Pay careful attention to the recommended quantity of food. Foods made for cats vary greatly in their nutritional density--the number of usable calories per cup or can. When switching foods, compare the recommended serving size of the new food with the recommended serving size of the old food. For example, if the old food carries a recommendation of two cups per day for an eight-pound cat, and the new food carries a recommendation of one cup per day for a eight-pound cat, then the new food probably has about twice as many usable calories per cup as the old food.

In praise of variety. Most cats do best with a varied diet. Variety helps keep immune systems strong and maintain good health. It also may help prevent food intolerance, obesity, allergies and other problems. Variety may also protect a cat from nutrient deficiencies not yet discovered by science. Many people provide variety by first feeding a dry food that matches the dietary requirements of the breed, age, activity level and overall health. Then they rotate high quality canned or raw foods for protein from a variety of sources.

Food Transition Calendar