Thats such a good way to do it, I just checked out that link you posted too which was deffo a good read. As for being up this late!!!:- If i went to bed before 12midnight i would be awake at 3/4am twiddling my thumbs! LOL!!!

We first went to see them last sunday, when they were a little over 3 weeks old, luckily we were the first to see them,so got first dibs!
I am going to try and sleep now! Will ask the fosterer tomorrow about what food, and let y'all know.
Thanks for the posts, and I hope your brothers flight gets in on time for you Cat Slave!
xx Emma

this is a very informative website!! http://www.ukbarfclub.co.uk/about-ba...barf-diet.php:)

Take a naturalistic view; the feline digestive system spent most of its time evolving to cope with the raw meat of prey that it had caught. It is only relatively recently that humans have put any form of diverting selective pressure on kitten development.

It is largely for this reason that a raw diet is increasingly considered the ideal by broad sections of the kitten care community. It certainly possible to wean a kitten straight onto raw food, however, if they have been weaned onto something else then you really will have to start very gradually.

Also, remember that cats are obligate carnivores - they need lots of protein, vegetables are not required at all but will certainly do no harm in small amounts if indeed your kitten will eat them (many simply eat around them).

So, with all this in mind, I would suggest that you try the kittens on some minced meat - maybe even on the end of a teaspoon. Do not do this at the same time as their normal feeding, just do it as a little extra - see how they take to it and go from there.

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Well I have just phoned the kittens fosterer, she said they are getting big, playing great and are still on mums milk. She said she did try to wean them because they are so big for their age (4WEEKS and 4DAYS) but they were not interested so she is going to have another go next week when they are 5 weeks. I asked her what she will be giving them when she does wean them onto solids, and she said a brand kitten food,only a little, mixed in with cooked chicken and warm water. So that is what they will be eating whilst at their fosterers. So I guess any more advice on introducing it gradually will be a great help.
Thanks for all the info, Emma

Hi, Thanks for the post, I could not get on the link though. I will do a google search just for the ukbarfclub...sounds omminous though doesnt it! p

Not much to add really but it doesn't matter what they are being weaned onto, whatever it is any change of food should be done gradually. Agree with everything else, they need muscle meat, organ meat and bones. Veg won't harm them if they want to eat it but they don't need to have vegetables in their diet.

Thats great to know thank you, I just assumed they needed veg! But I will be going to my local butchers and pricing up after!

Thanks everone. xx

Feeding Your Cat** Know the Basi is another excellent site to look at for advice on feline nutrition

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Vervain Cats

I agree about the difference in the quality, softness and shine of raw-fed cats' coats - my two have changed over to raw, and while the kitten just can't get enough of her raw meat, the older girl (only 1 year but knows what she likes) has been slower to make the transition. Still, we're almost there! Just a word of caution re feeding raw later in the day - I assume you therefore give them commercial in the morning? Commercial food has a longer digestion time than raw, and can back up the raw in the gut, giving it time to potentially develop bacteria such as salmonella. If feeding both raw and commercial, allow time between: Raw takes 6-12 hours to digest (depending on density/amount of meat, eg. poulty takes less time than beef or lamb); commercial takes 12-24 hours to digest (grain-free, good quality min.60% meat content commercial takes less time). I try to follow this rule at this early stage when the raw doesn't always work out with defrosting and preparation.