Freeze-dried Food & Not Rehydrating

[qtpidani]

My crew are such picky little snots, especially my little diva kitten
Initially, Aggie took to raw, but didn't like EZ complete. I went on the hunt for something new she would like and finally found a pre-made she would eat (Quest) until she started turning her nose up at that too. She now will eat wet food (somewhat.... mostly just licks at the gravy and won't touch pate), but I feel like she misses her raw, even though she regularly will still turn her nose up at it, leaving me to toss it. She will nibble on dry food, but it's not her favorite.

3 of the 4 cats do like freeze-dried, but I've found that none like it when I rehydrate it, and again it goes to waste. I started leaving it out dry, and not adding water to it. I know the benefits to adding water, but they won't touch it unless it's dry.

How bad is it, in your opinion, to let them have it dry? I leave it out for them to graze on like I do dry food. Would giving them the freeze-dried as be the equivalent of dry food, from a moisture standpoint? All 4 cats love drinking out of my bathroom sink and our morning routine is for me to leave the faucet on for them, so I feel like they are getting a good amount of water. I've had cats with crystals in the past, so I'm super paranoid.

Also, I'm so thankful I have a dog to minimize some of the food waste.... at least she gets to enjoy it

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
They also drink water throughout the day? I personally think leaving out freeze dried is fine I don't know about a comparison between freeze dried and heat dried foods but I'm thinking dry is dry.

My boy likes canned fancy feast but there are a number of pouch foods such as Merrick Backcountry, natural balance and Tiny Tiger that he won't touch the morsels but really likes the gravy. I'm fine with this as I've read the nutrients are mostly in the sauce anyway plus it gives him a broader range/exposure of ingredients.

 

[darg]

My cat was a dry kibble eater for his entire life. Finally got him over to canned a few weeks ago and he's getting much better at set meal times now (3x per day). I supplement with Stella and Chewy's freeze dried morsels. He'll eat them re-hydrated or dry, but he really vacuums them up, dry. Like crack for cats. I only feed a couple of them dry as treats. I don't want to get him thinking he back on a dry diet. At any rate, I generally mix a few morsels in with his canned food to increase the calories a bit. My cat drank lots of water when he was eating dry kibble. If all I was feeding was the freeze dried without re-hydrating, I'm sure he would drink plenty. But every cat is different.

 

[lisahe]

Yes, feeding freeze-dried without rehydrating is the same, moisture-wise, as feeding dry food. Personally, I wouldn't do it unless I absolutely had to, meaning if it that was the only thing the cats would eat. Because of the whole water issue, I'd rather feed canned food than dry freeze-dried raw food. I looked on Primal's site and found their FAQ on the matter: Can I feed Freeze-Dried dry/without rehydrating? : Primal Pet Foods

Basically, they don't recommend it but of course it's not the end of the world if the cats are drinking a lot of water. They mention that you could rehydrate with goat's milk. We sometimes rehydrate with homemade chicken broth, made from just poaching chicken in water. Another thing you might try: crumbling freeze-dried on top of canned food that you've added a little extra water to. Our cats like that. Or you could crumble some freeze-dried on top of some rehydrated freeze-dried -- that's how our cats eat it! I think it's safe to say that one of our cats, the dining diva, will only eat it that way. Maybe it would work for your diva cats, too?