Feral Advice

[shadowsrescue]

Wet food is the best. Cats don't drink a lot of water and need water from the wet food. How old is Cat? I didn't think she was still a kitten? If she's not a kitten, she doesn't need the extra calories or protein. Once cats are inside, they more sedentary and prone to excess weight. Kitten food is high in calories.

I make my own homemade cooked cat food, but also keep some canned food in the rotation. I feed Wellness canned. I usually order from Chewy or Petflow as they have the best prices.

 

[angela15]

We are assuming she is between 6-9 months.

She never ever ever ever drinks plain water out of a bowl. (Of course, while she was outside I don't know where she was getting her water from).

Since we have been feeding her, she gets "soup". I add a good amount of water to the kibble. She always drinks the water first and then eats the dry food (which at that point is wet). Doing this, I know at the least, she gets two bowls of water a day. She seems to pee several times a day so I am assuming she is well hydrated.

At how many months would she not be considered a kitten anymore?

 

[shadowsrescue]

It depends. Some people feed kitten food for a full year. If you do use kitten food, I wouldn't use it for long. Usually by 9 months, the cat is old enough for regular adult food. So if you switched to kitten food, it would just mean another switch in a few months. Also when you do switch, do so gradually. Doing a quick transition can lead to diarrhea.

If possible, I would start to give her some canned food too. It really is much better than dry food which has so many fillers in it. Dry food can be given too, just in a lesser amount. I don't feed dry food any more as one of my male cats developed a urinary blockage. Dry food can sometimes lead to urinary issues. I just decided wet food or home cooked is best.

 

[angela15]

I can start to add some canned food into the mix. Any particular brands you prefer? Should i still be making soup, or will the moisture in the canned food be enough? She doesn't ever touch the water bowl

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Wonderful news!

I don't have much experience with those foods, simply because Hekitty won't touch ANYTHING but Friskies kibble! And I've spent a small fortune trying to get her on a decent wet food. I'll keep my slight advice very simple...whatever you decide to feed her, mix the new in with the old and transition slowly to avoid tummy upsets.

 

[shadowsrescue]

I have always used Wellness. I also used to use Trader Joes. My cats liked the turkey, chicken and seafood variety. It was reasonably priced too.

I would still add some water to her dry if she likes it that way since she doesn't drink much water. If you do add wet food, cut back on the amount of dry. Still keep feedings on a schedule. If you just leave food out for a cat to graze that can sometimes lead to overweight cats. I used to feed my cats 1/4 of a 5 oz can in the morning with 1 T. dry food and then 1/4 can of wet food in the evening with
1 T. dry and then 1 T. dry before bed. Yet each cat will vary.

 

[angela15]

To minimize tummy upsets with the switch, should I mix some of her current dry into the wet?

Right now she doesn't graze.. We wanted her to associate us with her feedings so that we have more interaction if that makes sense...

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Start out with mostly the old food, and over the course of several days, make the mix more and more the new.

 

[angela15]

Shredded? Chunks? Pate? Too many choices!!

 

[shadowsrescue]

My cats prefer pate. I wouldn't mix the dry into the wet. Just use two bowls. Offer a tablespoon of wet in one bowl and the normal amount of dry she gets minus a little bit to compensate for the wet food. Each day add a bit more wet food. You can offer the wet food 2x a day. She would do well to eat about 1/2 of a 5 oz can each day. My cats do well with the food cold out of the fridge. I usually add 1 T. of warm/hot water to it so it takes the chill off. I used to zap it in the microwave for a bit, but they often didn't like that. They do fine with the warm water.

 

[white shadow]

.

Diet is the brick and mortar of health. This web page lays out some often-ignored principles of feline nutrition and explains why cats have a better chance at optimal health if they are fed canned food (or a balanced homemade diet) instead of dry kibble.​

Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition – Common Sense. Healthy Cats.​

.

 

[angela15]

Tried some canned cat food tonight. She LOVED it. Literally licked the dish clean!

If we begin to feed solely wet food, should I worry if she doesn’t ever drink out of her water bowl? Is she getting enough liquid from the wet?

By eating her soup (the dry food with water in it) she was urinating enough that we were taking several hockey puck sized litter clumps out of the litter box daily.

 

[shadowsrescue]

You can always add a bit of warm water to her wet food. I always add at least
1 T. when the food is cold ( from the refrigerator). I have 2 cats that never ever drink out of the water bowl, yet they urinate plenty with from the wet food and added water.

So glad she liked the food. Remember to go slow. You don't want diarrhea.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Yep, most cats do get plenty of water from their wet food. That's how they evolved, from small desert cats who got over 90% of their water requirements from their prey.

Someone very like this was the ancestor of our cats today:

 

[angela15]

Sorry it has been a few days!

Cat is continuing to settle in. Unfortunately I think I upset her tummy with the food switch, but we have reevaluated the plan and I believe now she is back on the right track.

Since Friday morning, her cage door has been left open. She definitely roams the room at night, but isn't making a mess. She continues to use both litter boxes.

I had been gradually switching her dry food, and also added a bit of wet as well. We noticed that from Friday until Sunday she had only peed in the litter box. She was hissing a bit at things she wouldn't normally be hissing at (us moving around the room, trying to play with her with her toys etc.) Since we've turned her world upside down over the last few weeks, its hard for us to determine "unusual behavior" because we aren't quite sure what her usual behavior is yet.

Anyways, after using the litter box Sunday I noticed a bit of blood on her bum. My husband (points for him) examined her stool and found no evidence of blood at all. I reverted back to her original dry food and increased the amount of water that I added to it. Monday morning her stool looked completely normal and her bottom was also back to normal. To be honest, I was quite surprised because if anything I was expecting diarrhea, but we had the opposite issue. I nixed the new dry food completely (I don't really think she was a fan anyways).

I have been giving her "soup" made with just her original dry food in the morning, and wet food (Weruva) in the evenings. She seems to be doing well with this combination. She INHALES the wet food and licks the bowl absolutely clean. It is pretty funny. Eventually I would like to phase out the dry foods completely and give her all wet, but want to make the transition more slowly.

Yesterday was a really positive night for her! After feeding her dinner, she played with one of her mouse toys for about 30 minutes! At first she started playing with it in her carrier, but eventually moved the play into the crate itself. I have a small scratching post in the crate with a ball toy attached to it and at one point she was playing with the mouse and the ball at the same time. She was on her belly grabbing at both. It was funny to watch and it really looked like she was enjoying herself. When she was done playing we gave her a composure treat and instead of crawling back into her carrier like she usually does, she snuggled between the carrier and the scratching post. A small difference, but a big improvement!

This morning when we woke up she had used both litter boxes (stools looked normal). She also must have spent time in a box I left in the room, on the night stand, and in the cubby in the condo because the couple of pieces of kibble I left at each spot was gone in the morning.

The hissing has definitely decreased, but she still does it here and there. This morning I sat on the bed as I fed her and she went around the corner to look out of the window. I peeked around slightly and must have startled her and got a few hisses. I am guessing she wasn't liking that I had moved closer to her. On other occasions though (especially when feeding) she will sit inches from us. I guess she just needs to continue to get used to us!

Sorry for the long post!

Here is how we left her before we went to bed last night. Usually she climbs back into her carrier. She was tired out after a long play session!

 

[shadowsrescue]

She is really doing so well. The hissing will reduce as she grows more and more comfortable. It is just her warning sign that she is a bit stressed. Look how far she has come already!!

 

[angela15]

Cat is becoming so playful! It is so nice to see. I am getting the sense that she is realizing she wants to be our friend! Still on the fence about it, but she is considering it for sure.

As soon as we open the door to her room, she comes out of her carrier. She is loving playing with mouse toys (she likes to bring them back into her carrier and swat them around) and had a lot of fun with a feather on a string toy too! Last night she sniffed my husbands hand and rubbed her nose up against his hand after they played for quite a bit.

We get little tiny tiny meows when we bring her bowl or a treat! Her digestive issues seem to have gone away and things are back to normal in that department.

She is definitely spending more time out of the crate while we aren't home/at night. I find that the couple of pieces of kibble are missing from the different spots, and there is a bit of hair and litter tracked around the room.

This morning she SCARED me good! Although she is definitely exploring the room more, whenever we knock and open the door she is in her carrier. This morning when I went to check on her I found an empty carrier. I did a quick scan around the room and started to panic! Logically, of course she couldn't have gotten outside unless she opened locked windows (and closed and locked them behind her too haha!).

I called her name a bunch of times and a little head popped out of the cubby in the condo! She was snuggled up in the sun. I don't know why I didn't think to look there! I am glad that she is beginning to enjoy the space.


Climbed all the way to the top last night to get her turkey treat! She is getting long but still has such a petite face and paws.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Cat is really coming along! She's settling in and doing so well, and I can't say how proud I am of you, handling her just right!

You know, she may always be just a little hissy. You can take the feral off the streets, but always and forever they retain just a twitch of wild in them. They have learned to trust, and to love you and to love their new lives, but they never quite forget, and are a little more spooky than other cats. It just adds to their charm!

 

[angela15]

Cat is really coming along! She's settling in and doing so well, and I can't say how proud I am of you, handling her just right!

Thank you so very much for your kind words! For someone who has never had a pet before, this has truly been an adventure, but I am happy that she seems happy! The support and encouragement from everyone on this site has been amazing, especially on days that I feel like I have NO idea what I am doing.

The most important thing to me is that I know she is warm, well-fed, and safe inside! These past few days, our lawn has been covered in frost each morning and I really feel like Cat is better off inside with us.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

She is far, far better inside! At the best of times, it is a big, dangerous world, and they are so small!