How much to feed a young cat living outdoors?

joeKel73

We had a feral/stray kitten with an injured leg come into our back garden about 5 weeks ago. We fed it and Galway Cat Rescue kindly came around and trapped it. They brought it to the vet and got him neutered and the leg looked at, it'd started to heal naturally. We agreed to look after the little fella and we've been feeding him since. They reckon he was born early in the Summer.

He was very edgy with people and would disappear into the corner, under an oil tank, if anyone came to the back door. Now after 5 weeks he's a lot more trusting and will cautiously come up to feed beside you, but any sudden movements and he runs back.

Anyway we were advised to feed him 2 pouches of cat food / day at the start. He's grown a lot now and seems to always be eager to eat. We give him 3 pouches and some dry food now.

Is this enough? We don't want to have him hungry but don't want to overfeed him either. The box recommends 3-4 for a grown cat, he's still fairly young but would that fact that he lives outside mean he needs more? He gets into a small outdoor shed now at night.

Also in terms of feeding him leftovers, is there anything he really shouldn't be given? We've pretty much stuck to the pouches and dry food so far.

fishy fishy

feed your cat a good dry food - good quality and instead of buying the pouches of cat food, just mix a bit of tuna, or chicken into the dry food for variety. (my vets advice). Make sure your cat has plenty of water.

whether you give your cat wet or dry food just make sure that it is of good quality and make sure he has access to plenty of water.

gipi

You might find that it's eating a bit more since the weather turned a bit cooler - my pet (who is an indoor/outdoor cat) is 10 months old and has definitely increased her food intake - at least 3 pouches per day and dry food as well.

Other cats I had did it too, to "bulk" up for the winter.

joeKel73

Thanks for the replies

fishy fishy wrote: »

make sure he has access to plenty of water.

We always have water out, and empty/refill it every time we put food out. Never see him drinking it though, unless he's at it on the sly. It's out uncovered so the Galway showers will ensure it never goes dry during the day anyway!

Irish Stones

J o e wrote: »

Also in terms of feeding him leftovers, is there anything he really shouldn't be given? We've pretty much stuck to the pouches and dry food so far.

Cats should avoid salt. Any salt in the food is potentially harmful on their kidneys. So if you want to feed him some leftovers make sure they have no or little salt. Anyway I wouldn't recommend to feed a cat or a dog food from our kitchen or table.
Pet food is very well balanced for their needs. Read the label for quantity and ask your vet. Use only high quality or premium pet food, it may be more expensive but it'll save you more money when your cat doesn't get ill from the low-quality food.
Avoid any food with sugar as well, it might make your cat with diabetes. Some people don't recommend tomatoes or potatoes too.
No onions or garlic, they can cause hemolytic anemia in cats and dogs.
And absolutely no chocolate, it is potentially fatal.

EDIT: Avoid raw meat, and pork, these foods can give your cat worms and could cause an infection by toxoplasmosis.