My 6-week-old kitten won't eat dry food and has bad breath. Should I worry?

Hello, and thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Kitten food is actually more nutritious than KMR - KMR is really for those tiny kittens who are so little they're not yet ready to try solids on their own. So, if your kitten is willing to eat canned kitten food well, I would work on weaning her off the KMR. However, if she's refusing to eat anything for more than 1 meal in a row, then I would take her right in to your vet. Little kittens like Baby can get dehydrated and sick very quickly, so prompt medical care is important if she's not feeling well. Hope this helps!

Meshmesh should not have bad breath. He may have an infection in his mouth. If you are unsure or worried, you should have him examined by a veterinarian. He also needs his first vaccinations now and needs to be wormed as well.

Sounds like Diva might be living up to her name ;-) She might simply be a picky eater, some cats are picky eaters. I hope that she is at least eating wet food, and getting nutrition from there. If she isn't eating at all, then there may be something medically wrong, and she should see a vet. I can give you a few tips to maybe help with this problem. First, make sure the food is kitten specific. Kittens need more of certain nutrients to help them grow, and an adult food won't provide that. I would try mixing the wet food and the dry food. Make a 50:50 mixture, and as she eats that, slowly decrease the amount of wet food, and increase the amount of dry food. I would do this over the course of at least 2 weeks to get her more used to the dry food, and eventually, you should have her on dry food only. If that doesn't work, you can try wetting the dry food with a can of chicken broth, but make sure the chicken broth is unsalted. See if these tips work for getting Diva on a dry food, as dry food does help keep their teeth clean.

Hi, it looks like you're offering both canned and dry food which is great. Little kittens don't eat very much, so maybe he is just full. He may also have parasites like intestinal worms which make him feel full. If he doesnt eat tomorrow, you should take him in to a vet. Good for you for adopting him.

Given her age there are several things that cross my mind, but a common issue in these young kittens is parasites. Sometimes their parasite burden can be so high that they cannot maintain adequate glucose levels, and also can become uninterested in food and sometimes will begin vomiting. I would recommend deworming her. Also, it would be important to rule out signs of infection and/or sepsis. I think she needs to be seen by a veterinarian right away. Such a young and small animal can deteriorate quickly even with easy to resolve issues like gastrointestinal parasites.

If the kitten is 4-6 weeks it should be fed solid food, not milk. You should try kitten wet food, warm it up before offering to the kitten. If kitten allows, you can hand-feed or even syringe feed. Please, remember that kittens at that age should be fed very small amounts every 2-3 hrs.

Some cats prefer one type of food over another. I would just leave dry food out for him to nibble on and then feed him small amounts of canned food twice a day. He has plenty of teeth that he should be able to chew small kibble. He will begin to eat more dry as he continues to get older and gets hungrier. I hope this helps!