Keeping Your Cats and Kittens Food Fresh

Keeping cat food fresh is one of the simplest but most effective ways to make feeding your breeding cats and your kittens easier. Cats have an incredible sense of smell. If the food smells stale or even slightly off they will often refuse to eat it. That means wasted food and frustrated owners.

Cat food, especially premium and super premium food, is expensive. It is also an investment in the health of your breeding cats so it makes sense to store it properly so that it stays fresh, palatable and full of nutrition.

Why Fresh Food Matters for Breeders

Breeding cats need to be in peak condition. They need excellent quality nutrition at every life stage from kittens through to active stud cats and pregnant or lactating queens.

If food goes stale it loses flavour and can lose nutritional value. Kittens are particularly sensitive to smell and will turn their noses up at stale food. Good storage habits are an easy way to prevent this problem.

Buying Food in Bulk

One of the best ways to save money as a breeder is to buy food in larger bags. The savings can be significant. The downside is that once a large bag of food is opened it can go stale before it is all used. Even smaller bags will lose freshness quickly if they are not stored properly.

The solution is to divide the food into smaller portions and use good quality storage containers.

Using Ziplock Bags for Cat Food

Some small bags of dry cat food come with a zip style closure but these are often not very airtight. You can buy thick ziplock bags and divide a large bag of kibble into smaller amounts. Keep the smaller bags sealed tightly and top up a serving container as you need to. This keeps the bulk of the food sealed away from air.

Storing Cat Food in Containers

A set of well sealed plastic containers can make a huge difference in how long cat food stays fresh. Fill the containers close to the top so there is as little air as possible inside. The less oxygen, the slower the oils in the food will oxidise.

Look for square or rectangular containers that stack neatly. I like the Decor Tellfresh tubs as they are easy to handle, they stack well and you can clip in little tags to write on. That is especially helpful when you feed different diets to different cats.

Ceramic jars and tins with loose lids are not airtight so they are not a good choice for dry cat food.

If you have a very large bag and lots of cats you can also use an airtight storage bin. In that case it is better to put the entire bag inside the bin. That way the kibble stays in its original bag and you do not have to scrub out the large bin every time you finish a bag.

Clean Containers Are Important

One very important step that is often forgotten is cleaning the storage containers.

Do not keep topping up the container without washing it. Cat biscuits are oily and these oils coat the sides of the container. Over time, with air exposure, those oils oxidise and become rancid. If you put fresh food into a container that has rancid oils in it, the new food will quickly pick up the stale smell and flavour.

Wash containers in hot soapy water, rinse well and dry them completely before filling them again. Have several containers so you can rotate them. A soak in hot water will help to lift any oil film.

Keeping Wet Cat Food Fresh

Freshness is important for wet cat food as well.

Wet food usually comes in smaller amounts but bowls still need to be washed between meals. Use multiple bowls and rotate them. Plastic bowls can develop fine scratches that hold bacteria so make sure they are cleaned thoroughly. If you rinse them first they can be washed in the dishwasher.

For half servings, place the remaining wet food in a small sealed container in the refrigerator. Cans should be emptied into a sealed container rather than left open. If you are using sachets you can fold the top over tightly and clip it, or spoon the remainder into a small container.

Dry Food Bowls

Even dry food bowls need to be washed regularly. You can fill them for a couple of days but they should be cleaned out and washed frequently so that the oils from the kibble do not build up on the bowl.

Final Thoughts

Storing cat food properly is an easy way to protect your investment in quality nutrition. It keeps your breeding cats and your kittens happy and healthy and avoids wasted food.

If you are a new breeder and would like more practical advice on feeding routines, nutrition and setting up a smooth running cattery, come and join my New Cat Breeders Club. It is a friendly and supportive place where you can learn from other breeders who are working toward the same goals.