Kittens need special diets to grow big and strong. They require a formula packed with essential nutrients, minerals, and proteins. If your kitten doesn’t get the right level of vitamins, the chances that it will develop health problems in the future will increase. This is why picking out the perfect wet cat food for your kitten is so incredibly important. Not only will it get everything it needs to develop into a strong adult cat, but the wet food will also help it maintain hydration as well.
Our Top Picks for Kittens
We’ve compiled the best rated wet cat foods for kittens from this guide for easy viewing. You can view a full breakdown of our reviews further down this guide, including side by side images, full ingredient lists and how we chose which ones to test.
Best Wet Food For Kittens: HiLife Kitten Food Tender Chicken 5/5
Close 2nd Wet Kitten Food: Applaws Kitten Food Tin Tuna 4.5/5
If your cat is 12 months+ you may find some better suited reviews in our best wet cat food guide.
Our Favourite Dry Kitten Food is made by Scrumbles. It is made of completely natural ingredients, and is packed full of high quality, digestible meat (77% Chicken) which provides the perfect diet for your little kitten. What’s more, the food excludes common allergens like gluten, eggs and dairy for the perfect gut friendly meal.
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Wet Kitten Food Reviews
We have compiled a list of the best wet cat food options for kittens available in the UK. You can find a list of the products that we considered and researched, before buying and testing our shortlisted 5.
1) HiLife Kitten Food Tender Chicken Pouches
HiLife Kitten Wet food comes out at the top of our ratings. This wet food is made from 100% natural ingredients whilst being packed full of protein (over 50% Chicken).We loved the flakey texture of this cat food, which was moist and flakey making it ideal for kittens small mouths.
Kittens can be prone to upset stomachs due to allergens early on in life, but with no soya or GMOs, this food was by far our favourite. Our kitten testers gobbled this up with no trouble at all, and it was the preferred choice of our kitten parents who preferred the texture, packaging and freshness of this food.
2) Applaws Kitten Food Tin Tuna
Applaws Tin Tuna for Kittens is a premium wet cat food. Their kitten formula is all-natural, incredibly high in protein, and uses seafood as their main ingredient. The texture of the food is slightly more blended than the flakey HiLife competition, making it the softest food we tested.
Applaws also provide a tuna product for adult cats which is much more flakey (almost identical to a tin of tuna), whereas this has a much softer texture. Our kitten testers loved this product, and our kitten owners loved that the tins were fully recyclable. You can compare the ingredients of this product to its competition in the table and side by side images at the bottom of this guide.
3) IAMS Delights Wet Food for Kittens 1-12 Months with Chicken in Gravy
IAMS Delights focuses on using real ingredients that provide as many health benefits to your kitten as possible. This kitten food is packed full of high protein meat content, and is more affordable than the competition that has come before.
This cat food had a very different texture to others tested, and one of our testers kittens had trouble chewing this food which moved it down our rankings. All other kittens were fine eating this, and the owners rated this product the best value for money with it coming in as the cheapest tested.
4) Whiskas 2-12 months Kitten Pouches Pure Delight Fish Selection in Jelly
Whiskas kitten pouches are one of the most popular kitten foods bought in the UK. We weren’t overly fond of the texture of the food, with it containing significantly more jelly than we expected. The jelly meant the food required significantly more break up using a fork or similar before feeding it the kittens.
Our kitten testers were complementary on the freshness of the product, and the kittens enjoyed the jelly and meat (the chunks of meat were slightly smaller than IAMS. This product was dropped down the ranking as the percentage of natural meat and protein was significantly lower than everyone else tested.
How they compare
We have compared our 4 shortlisted products below. Our highest rated product was C (5/5) which is bolded in the table below.
| Name | Main Ingredients | |
| A | Applaws Kitten Food Tin Tuna | Tuna Loin 40%, Fish Broth, Vegetable Jelling Agent |
| B | IAMS Delights Wet Food for Kittens | Meat and animal derivatives (28% chicken, 6% pork), oils and fats (0.2% fish oil), derivatives of vegetable origin (0.6% beetpulp fibre), minerals. |
| C | HiLife Kitten Food Tender Chicken | Chicken (50%), yeast extract, cassava extract, minerals, sunflower oil, chicory extract (50 mg/kg), yucca extract (50 mg/kg) |
| D | Whiskas 2-12 months Kitten Pouches | (With Salmon Flavour) Meat and animal derivatives (21%, of which 100% natural), vegetable protein extracts, fish and fish derivatives (100% natural, including 4% Salmon), minerals (0.96%), various sugars. |
How we chose our shortlist
During the research for this guide we researched over 40 different wet cat foods to consider for inclusion in our final guide. We shortlisted 8 products in total for this guide, before cutting this down to 4 products to buy and test with our kitten testers. The 4 products that didn’t quite make the cut are listed below:
- No products found.
- Felix As Good as It Looks Chicken
- Purina Pro Plan Nutrisavour Junior Wet Cat Food
- IAMS Delights Land and Sea Collection
We used the following criteria when deciding whether a wet kitten food should be included:
- Ingredients – This had the biggest weight in our decision making. We considered whether the food included high levels of taurine and protein as well as the necessary fats, vitamins and minerals for your kitten to prosper.
- Value for money – We have included a range of prices in our reviews, but we think all offer excellent value for money for the level of ingredients included in them.
- Reviews – We took into account what other kitten owners were saying about the food. Did their kittens transition to it OK? Was the smell and texture OK?
What to look for in a cat food for kittens
When looking for a cat food for your kitten, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals are key. In addition, you should look for high levels of taurine, which is generally found in foods that contain high levels of animal-based protein (e.g. meat). Because of this, a wet cat food is generally considered the best option for a kitten as they contain higher levels of moisture (to help hydration) and protein, and lower amounts of carbohydrates providing the perfect diet for your kitten.
- Protein – is needed to develop strong muscles and tissue which help your kittens growth and development
- Fat – is a carrier of fat-soluble vitamins and the calories needed for your high energy kitten.
- Minerals – help to grow and strengthen their teeth and bones
- Taurine – critical for normal vision, digestion & heart muscle function – is an essential amino acid that cats are unable to generate themselves, so must be included regularly in their diet – so look out for high levels of animal proteins
Buying Guide
When looking for new wet food for your kitten, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals are key. You need protein to develop strong muscles and tissue. Fat is a carrier for fat-soluble vitamins and energy. Your kitten needs minerals, of course, for the development of strong teeth and bones.
Usually, you’ll find wet foods that contain all of these things, but it doesn’t mean that every wet food that throws some minerals into their formula is acceptable. Look out for some keywords and at the cat food as a whole.
Order of Ingredients
Ingredient amount is listed first to last, most to least. Because protein is so important for your kitten, find a wet food that has its protein base listed first. Any sugars that the manufacturer may add should be listed last.
Protein Amount
Protein is maybe the most important thing that you can look for in your cat food. Protein ensures that your kitten is on the right track to perfect health. Look for high percentages of natural and named proteins—the higher percentage of named protein on the “meat and animal derivative” list, the better.
Taurine
Taurine is a chemical that your cat cannot produce naturally but promotes strong bone growth and heart health.
Water Content
Look carefully at the back of the wet food cat package. Find the water content. One of the biggest benefits of feeding your kitten wet food is that it aids in hydration. Though it isn’t a substitute for a water bowl, it’s great for when your cat is feeling picky and doesn’t want to drink from it.
Named Oils
Named oils, like sunflower oil, lets you know that the oil the manufacturer is using is natural. Look out for fish oil in particular. It is a great oil for your kitten and promotes healthy skin and fur. It is also great for their heart.
Conclusion
If your kitten is not eating a balanced diet, it can suffer serious health problems in no time. The wet kitten food formulas that we have listed provide not just energy but also the right supplementary nutrients, as well. Kittens are just like people. They need to eat specific foods while they’re young to help them grow up into healthy adult cats. That’s why we researched and chose with care. Just remember, your kitten is still a cat – picky! So if they get picky, try a different brand.
Would you like to test products for us?
If you own a dog, cat, rabbit, ferret or hamster we would love to talk to you about testing some of the products that we feature on Cutely. As a tester, we send you products (completely free of charge, and you keep them after!) to test and review with your pet. In return, we ask for your thoughts on the product, what you liked and didn’t like, and some photos of the product being used by your pet (all sent via email).
