2 questions : water and food.

[cathyann]

Hi. Two dietary questions:

My cats wont drink water, I bought a fountain and they still weren't interested. I switched to wet food and it's not been an issue. I'd like to go back to kibble and free feed during the day, and help strengthen their teeth. Will cats start drinking water if they don't get wet food? I'm nervous to try. Or just abandon the thought of dry food all together?

Also, after eating wet food twice a day, one cat runs around in the back of the house yowling and I think she might be in pain. She does gulp her food down instead of slowly licking like my other cat does. They don't eat next to each other.

So, think I should switch to a different wet food? They share a 5oz can of Friskys Pate poultry platter in the morning and another shared can at night. 5 total ounces a day per cat. Both cats are 5 yr old females (not litter mates). Digit is 12 lbs and eats at normal pace, S'mores is 8 and she's the one who yowls after eating. Both cats are healthy weights.

I feel like I should try a diff wet food to see if she's more comfy but don't want to break the bank. Friskies Poultry Platter is roughly .60 for a five ounce can. I'm spending $1.20 a day to feed both. A total of $40 a month. Got any suggestions ?

Sorry for the long post. I did a search before asking but didn't find much. Thanks!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Welcome - we're glad you're here!

If there's anything else that your cat is exhibiting, you'll want to talk with your vet;
35 Signs That Your Cat May Be In Pain

There is a section here for gulpers (#13) that might help:
18 Awesome Cat Feeding Tips By Thecatsite Staff Members

Tips To Increase Your Cat’s Water Intake

Does Dry Food Actually Clean Your Cat’s Teeth?

There might be something here that helps, and fancy feast pate foods are decent foods.
Cat Food Deals Forum?

 

[Kieka]

I would stick with the wet food. Dry food doesn't have any dental benefit, its an old myth. My guess would be that one started to convince people to feed dry or was just really misguided unsupported advice. Wild cats teeth are cleaned by feathers, fur and bone chewing which just can't be replicated with commercial diets regardless of the food form. For dental health, your best bet is regular vet visits, cleanings as needed, and learning to brush your cats teeth at home.

Wet food overall is just better for cats. Normally has fewer fillers and a higher water content, both of which are better for overall health. A cats natural inclination is to stalk, catch, kill, eat so it could be your one cat is just hyper after eating. You could try playing with her before meals and see if a little energy release before helps.

Another idea would be a slow feeder (commercial or homemade, homemade can be as simple as ping pong or foil balls in the bowl). Or add some water and mash her food up so its hard to gulp down.

Does your one who yells have regular litter box habits and everything else is normal? That would be more support it is behavioral not physical. Do you normally go to bed right after they eat? I know I normally have about an hour after meals before my boy protests because he wants to go to bed, because (of course) he has decided means I have to go to bed too. He will get randomly hyper, bring me toys, jump all over, and yell loudly until I go to bed and then he is sound asleep in under 10 minutes.

 

[cathyann]

Big thanks to both of you! Great links, good to know about dry food & teeth, I'll continue the wet stuff and water it down some. Some of the desire to feed dry and getting them to drink is being able to be away for a night or two and knowing they'll have food. I wish there was an auto feeder for the wet stuff.

Normal litter box habits. We have 3 boxes in different areas of the house. They eat dinner at 6pm and I stay up late so I'm guessing it doesn't have anything to do with eating Times. When I go to her while yowling she's fine. She'll start again after I leave.

She's never been a cuddle cat and doesn't like being picked up. But in our bed at night it's a different story. Lots of purrs and happily meowing.

I'll try brushing teeth. I don't think they'll be very cooperative though.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

 

[Kieka]

When I go to her while yowling she's fine. She'll start again after I leave.

Ahhhhh..... yeah, thats attention demanding. She's starts again because you left and she lost the attention. I usually hang out and talk to Link, play with him and he will stop for longer.

There was a Kickstart project to auto feed wet. There are timed feeders that you can add ice packs so the food doesn't spoil that are good for 24 hours.

 

[daftcat75]

These feeders work well for my (almost) 16 year old who can no longer eat large meals. So she gets fed pretty much every three hours. If I'm not going to be around to feed her (like if we ever return to the offices again) or overnight where I'd like more than 3 hours of sleep at a time, then I load up a couple of these feeders. They have removable gel packs that can keep the food cold for a good long time. I don't know if you can get away with a couple of nights worth of meals but it would allow you to fill in gaps where you can't get a friend/family member/cat sitter to feed. They are cheap too. You could set out as many as you need to make sure each gets their fill.

Pet Supplies : WOPET Automatic Cat Feeder, Pet Feeder for Dogs and Cats with Ice Pack Included - 2 Meals : Amazon.com

 

[jen]

I leave wet food out all day for my cat with no issues. She snacks on it throughout the day. If it starts getting dry I add some water to it. Dry food cleaning teeth is a myth. Wet food is so much better. Just reiterating the facts, I know this has already been said. Stick with wet! Dry is nice for exactly that reason, if you leave for a few days and need something in a pinch. I do keep a bag of dry around in case. But it is definitely not the bulk of Nora's diet.

 

[MissClouseau]

For my cat I prefer a diet of both dry and wet food, with more wet food than try. One of the reasons is that my cat can't eat too much in amount and even the highest calorie wet food - she would need to eat 3 cans minimum and she doesn't eat more than 2. If she has to and eventually eats, she gets very crampy. In case this might be happening to your kitty.

I have found (pate texture) wet food leaves a residue on my Hima's gum line which isn't good for dental health. Since it's not possible nor recommended to brush their teeth after every meal, I give a bit dry food between wet food meals. That seems to help removing the wet food pieces off her gum.

 

[Bobsk8]

Wet food starts to go bad after a couple of hours. Not very healthy.

 

[syzygycat]

You've got some good info already- dry food does nothing for teeth. If a smaller fraction of your cats food is low carb dry food by itself it won't have ill effects but free feeding in general is not good, and they wont be drinking enough to compensate for the lower water content. I think its a step in the wrong direction.


That said Nothing good comes from feeding just one type of wet food. The same food, specially constantly the same meat source increases the likelihood of food allergies of generally
Friskies is the most affordable food that isnt terrible for your cat. not sure but it may cost less than good dry food. If you stick with Friskes you should still vary the flavors/type of meat. Authority is one of the cheaper foods much, better quality than Friskes. 5.5oz cans are $1.10-ish at petsmart. If your cats do like it, a 24pack on Chewy comes out to 88cents a can.

Poultry platter is one of the lowest carb flavors that has more real meat than bi-product (usually why most people pick it). But its also got the most fat; around 11% carbs, 59% fat, 40% protein) Many of flavors that list meat first are 16% or less carbs and a lot less fat (I believe all if the Prime Filets in Gravy do).

Cats that like Friskies pate, usually love Fancy feast classic pate's. They are have a bit less carbs and and fat than any friskies, and they also have a few less nasty ingredients. It's double the price, not what you asked for, but IMO the most likley food your cats will easily transition to, might be worth feeding them the beef pate for a couple of weeks, if only to see if the allergens or poultry friskies in your current food is causing issues.

Lastly, a lot of us swirl some water with the left over bits of food in the can, pour it on their food. Easy way to get a little extra water in them.

 

[cathyann]

Hi everyone, thanks again for the reply's.

The idea of adding a little water to the food and mixing it all together is indeed slowing Smores down. I give them a few little pieces of dog kibble (6 lol) to help rid their teeth from the wet food residue. I'll have to check out those feeders if ever expect to go away overnight.

I was at Costco today and they have a box of friskies pate but it's all different flavors. Is it safe to use different flavors? I worry about upset stomachs?? I've only seen syzy mention it's ok to switch things up.

Thanks again.

 

[Furballsmom]

Is it safe to use different flavors?

It depends on your kitties, but it should be. I use variety boxes all the time for my boy.

 

[SpecterOhPossum]

Introduce different flavors and protiens slowly, afterwards you may rotate them fine.

 

[cathyann]

Hi guys, just checking in, thanks for all the advice!

I really didn't change much. My cats are pretty smart, I try to add water to their food, but if it's more than a few drops they don't really eat much.

On a side note, they had their dental cleanings and are doing well.

 

[Caspers Human]

We used to keep Casper's water bowl in the kitchen, near his food but he only drank from it a little bit.

We tried one that works like a water bubbler with a reservoir on the top. We tried a fountain. He, pretty much, didn't use either.

One day, we noticed that Casper was drinking from the dripping bathtub faucet. I was going to get it fixed but decided to leave it be because he drank water from the faucet almost daily.

Later, we got a fishbowl and discovered that he liked to play and drink from the fishbowl. When the fish went belly up, we cleaned the bowl, refilled it and left it for Casper to drink from.

We also found him drinking from the watering can that we keep on the shelf, under the plant table in the living room. Now, we make sure that there is clean water in the watering can at all times. No, we don't put any Miracle Gro in the watering can. Casper is big enough as it is!

In the end, we found that it's not WHAT the cat drinks from that makes the difference. It's WHERE. Location makes the biggest difference.

Humans drink their water or other beverage with their meals and, thus, tend to think that water goes next to the food. Therefore, we think that it logical to do the same for the cat. In real life, cats in the wild don't usually get their food and water from the same place. A cat's natural food is mobile. They have to catch it and eat it, pretty much, in random places where they hunt. They might have a regular source of water that they return to from time to time but their food and water are usually in different places.

I suggest putting out containers of water in various places where the cat hangs out to see whether you can encourage your cats to drink more water that way. You could leave a faucet dripping in the bathroom. Maybe let it drip into a bowl.

In the end, it was Casper who told us where he wanted his water sources to be.

Maybe you can get your cats to tell you where they want their water sources to be, too.

 

[Furballsmom]

they had their dental cleanings and are doing well.

Good for you, and them !

 

[cataholic07]

Friskies isn't the best food, I always suggest carrageenan free wet food as otherwise it can cause stomach irritation. Fancy feast pate is the cheapest you can find that doesnt have any carrageenan in it. Looking at good sales for different food is something I always used to do. I never found that dry food helped with the teeth, all my cats used to just swallow it whole. Now I feed my cats raw chunks mixed with tc feline, dehydrated chicken meat thats really hard to help with their teeth, and chicken necks twice a week. DIY can even be cheaper then dry food but its a learning process. I am glad you are doing wet as it really is the best for cats