When we welcome a pet into our home we must know that one of our main responsibilities as owners is to offer our pet adequate food that allows him to enjoy a good quality of life.
However, the diet is not static but must be adapted to the different life stages that our pet goes through, since specific nutritional requirements are produced in each of these.
In this article on our site we talk about the feeding a pregnant cat.
The cat's weight during pregnancy
To deal with this topic we will start from the ideal situation, which is a reproduction desired by the owners in which an adequate home and care for the puppies is ensured.
It is very important that responsibility acquires a great sense when it comes to the reproduction of our pets, since the numbers of animal abandonment are critical and an unexpected reproduction can contribute to aggravate them.
In this case we must also worry about the body weight of the cat before pregnancy, as we will see later, during pregnancy and after giving birth the cat will present increased nutritional requirements and the best way to ensure that her body has adequate fat reserves for pregnancy and lactation is for the cat to be at a normal weight before pregnancy, so the proportion of body fat balances more easily. Therefore, both overweight and underweight situations should be treated before the cat becomes pregnant.
What nutritional requirements does the cat have during pregnancy?
During pregnancy, the cat's body must have enough energy to ensure proper fetal development of the puppies, but it must also increase its fat reserves to prepare for lactation.
Unlike what happens with the dog's pregnancy, the cat has great difficulty maintaining a percentage of body fat close to the 25% necessary for milk production, therefore, the diet of the cat during pregnancy must guarantee this increase in fat.
The pregnant cat needs an additional intake of energy (calories) that should be increased mainly through animal protein, but she will also need an extraordinary intake of calcium, a very important mineral for the fetal development of puppies.
How should I meet the nutritional requirements of a pregnant cat?
The best way to provide your cat with all the nutrients she needs during pregnancy is to offer her food for kittens, since this type of feed contains a high energy value and very important nutrients for development. Obviously, the transition to this type of feed must be gradual in order to avoid any digestive discomfort.
The feed for kittens not only fulfills the important function of adequately nourishing the cat during pregnancy, but also, after delivery, when the weaning phase occurs,the kittens will go to the feed instinctively and will start more easily with the food they need.
How much food does a pregnant cat need?
A pregnant cat must be fed with the method ad limitum, that is, she must always have feed available and eat the amount you want, without any restrictions.
This way of feeding her will guarantee us enough body fat gain during the pregnancy, however, at the end of the gestation stage we will observe that the mother's appetite gata is decreasing We should not worry as this is normal and is due to the size of the uterus pressing on the stomach cavity.
Finally, we recommend that you regularly visit the vet during the cat's pregnancy so that he can carry out regular check-ups and monitor the condition of the cat and the puppies.
