Is it safe to starve my picky cat into eating his damn food?

[Dana_And_Monster]

There are many good dry foods out there, if they were that bad for cats there would be a revolt.

Dry food is inappropriate & unhealthy for cats, scientifically and biologically; regardless of anecdotal evidence or lack of outrage.

Research in full...

1. See here.
2. See here,
3. See here.
4. And..More
5. Even more.

Lack of revolt means absolutely nothing compared to biological facts and science - which I've presented.
Biologically, felines are not adapted to drinking their daily intake - they're adapted to getting fluids through the food they eat; as described in the articles above. Research feline biology. Water dishes and water fountains mean nothing.

Cats will literally starve themselves before eating food they don't like.

This is why we are suggesting a slow transition. Cats require slow transitions from food to food, this is not a reason to give up and compromise your cats health due to their biological scientific reality. This point is silly.

I have had cats live their entire lives on dry food.

Answered here.
And again... Lack of revolt means dirt, nothing, nada.
Most cat owners are unaware of feline biology, most people are unaware of feline biology. This does not change science.

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

Is it really worth the fight when the only wet food he will eat is junk food?

Again, this process takes months. He's not even three years old. No reason to give up on his health. Refer to those transitioning articles I gave you and take our tips. Ultimately, any wet is better than any dry biologically speaking, so yes, it is.

 

[klunick]

I have always been curious how one would go about feeding wet food 5-6 times a day when one isn't home most of the day? If I tried it, I would have to feed them at 3am, 3pm, and then three more times between 3pm and 8pm since that is when I go to bed during the week? I can't see my kittens eating four times in 5 hours.

 

[di and bob]

Unless a cat has an underlying disease, like kidney problems, there is nothing wrong with hard food. Cats have survived on hard food for hundreds of years. With ferals there is really no other choice, especially in the winter. I have fed cats hard food for over 50 years and even having autopsies I have never had the hard food blamed for their deaths. Wet food is better, I agree, but just like with people cats have preferences. As long as you can supplement with a little wet food, or shaved turkey, etc, they will be fine. There are no 'scientific' studies that have proved hard food kills cats. You can get anything you want on the internet, dig deep enough and EVERYTHING in the universe will kill you......

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

I have always been curious how one would go about feeding wet food 5-6 times a day when one isn't home most of the day? If I tried it, I would have to feed them at 3am, 3pm, and then three more times between 3pm and 8pm since that is when I go to bed during the week? I can't see my kittens eating four times in 5 hours.

Auto feeders. Tons exist for wet food.

 

[klunick]

Unless a cat has an underlying disease, like kidney problems, there is nothing wrong with hard food. Cats have survived on hard food for hundreds of years. With ferals there is really no other choice, especially in the winter. I have fed cats hard food for over 50 years and even having autopsies I have never had the hard food blamed for their deaths. Wet food is better, I agree, but just like with people cats have preferences. As long as you can supplement with a little wet food, or shaved turkey, etc, they will be fine. There are no 'scientific' studies that have proved hard food kills cats. You can get anything you want on the internet, dig deep enough and EVERYTHING in the universe will kill you......

That is what I thought too. Wasn't until I came on here that I heard about an all wet diet. Growing up, our cats got wet and dry. As an adult, ours got only dry. With the new kittens, they are getting both but wet only twice a day. We've never had a cat die before age 16 and never had one go past 21 so I was shocked when I read so many people say dry food was horrible to feed to a cat.

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

That is what I thought too. Wasn't until I came on here that I heard about an all wet diet. Growing up, our cats got wet and dry. As an adult, ours got only dry. With the new kittens, they are getting both but wet only twice a day. We've never had a cat die before age 16 and never had one go past 21 so I was shocked when I read so many people say dry food was horrible to feed to a cat.

Plenty of people live off of McDonalds, fact is, it's unhealthy. That's it. Not that it's going to make you drop dead on the drop of a hat, but it's extremely biologically unhealthy and therefore, you shouldn't feed it.

 

[klunick]

Plenty of people live off of McDonalds, fact is, it's unhealthy. That's it. Not that it's going to make you drop dead on the drop of a hat, but it's extremely biologically unhealthy and therefore, you shouldn't feed it.

I get that. Just never heard of an all wet food diet before. But... I've never been on a cat forum before either so there's that.

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

Anyways, enough derailing.
Here's another page on how to transition, danteshuman .

 

[di and bob]

People can get VERY radical. If you listen to them getting Covid 19 will kill everyone it infects too, when the "science" says it is the opposite. Needing to wear masks outside when you aren't close to anyone is another myth. Wet food is better, I agree, but to say it will certainly kill your cat is ridiculous.

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

People can get VERY radical. If you listen to them getting Covid 19 will kill everyone it infects too, when the "science" says it is the opposite. Needing to wear masks outside when you aren't close to anyone is another myth. Wet food is better, I agree, but to say it will certainly kill your cat is ridiculous.

Did I not JUST say it won't make anything die at the drop of a hat? Literally at no point has anyone said it's just flat out going to kill your cat. It's scientifically and biologically unhealthy and you shouldn't feed it. Cats are designed to hunt and eat small prey animals -wet; raw meat and bones - and evolved in desert climates; therefore they've adapted to getting their fluids from their prey. Not kibble, not bowls of water. Period. That's it. This is basic biology. Now please stop derailing the thread with your opinions backed by no sources and no actual research and let us get back on topic.

 

[AbbysMom]

Now please stop derailing the thread with your opinions backed by no sources and no actual research and let us get back on topic.

Will you please stop shouting at everyone?? Yes, capital letters and bold font are shouting. You will get your point across better if you stop it and improve your tone.

Before you start lecturing me, my cat is on an all-wet grain free diet. As much as you and the vets you quote like to profess that's best, it doesn't work for everyone. The best diet for your cat is the most nutritious that you can afford and that your cat will actually eat. Shaming people because they are not feeding their cat what you think is best is not helpful.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Here are a couple ideas and thoughts, my apologies if you've already tried them;

Tricks to get my cat to eat a food she doesn’t like?

CatFoodDB - Cat Food Reviews to help you find the best cat food for your cat

On Chewy, they have a brand called Tiny Tiger you could consider, and also there's a way to sort cat food by price lowest to highest. You can additionally filter the sorting, which could be helpful for you.

How Much Food Should I Feed My Cat? – TheCatSite Articles

11 Key Facts About Food Allergies In Cats – TheCatSite Articles

 

[danteshuman]

Hi!
Here are a couple ideas and thoughts, my apologies if you've already tried them;

Tricks to get my cat to eat a food she doesn’t like?

CatFoodDB - Cat Food Reviews to help you find the best cat food for your cat

On Chewy, they have a brand called Tiny Tiger you could consider, and also there's a way to sort cat food by price lowest to highest. You can additionally filter the sorting, which could be helpful for you.

How Much Food Should I Feed My Cat? – TheCatSite Articles

11 Key Facts About Food Allergies In Cats – TheCatSite Articles

Thank you!!!

Jackie gets fed 4 times a day because I’m home all day and wake up all the time. So feeding him at 6 am (& going back to bed), then noon, 6 pm & midnight works for me.

However after 18 months of fighting him I’m just plain worn out trying to get him to eat his food!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hang in there with him, I can truly relate to the feeling, (Poppycat put me through the ringer with his food too )

 

[Dana_And_Monster]

Will you please stop shouting at everyone?? Yes, capital letters and bold font are shouting. You will get your point across better if you stop it and improve your tone.

Before you start lecturing me, my cat is on an all-wet grain free diet. As much as you and the vets you quote like to profess that's best, it doesn't work for everyone. The best diet for your cat is the most nutritious that you can afford and that your cat will actually eat. Shaming people because they are not feeding their cat what you think is best is not helpful.

"Caps are shouting".... Lol...That's your opinion, congrats on having that opinion; I guess...?

The best diet for a cat is the diet cats are biologically wired to eat. Who's shaming? We were debating about feline diet. Enough with your weird perspectives and opinions. No one asked and as I said, I'd like to stop derailing with this no-evidence "debate". Cats are obligate carnivores, biologically wired to eat a wet diet of meat. That's it. I've provided the sources and seeing as no one else is, this conversation is pointless.

 

[Willowy]

Research in full...

While I do agree that wet food is better, those sites are not scientific studies. They're someone's opinion like everything else. There are some scientific studies, although not a lot.

Fancy feast is dirt quality, terrible ingredients comparable to mcdonalds fast food

Hmm. What makes it "dirt quality"?

how one would go about feeding wet food 5-6 times a day when one isn't home most of the day?

I just leave it out. It won't go bad in 8 hours unless your house is really hot. Might be iffy if your cats are prone to "scarf and barf" though.

Cats have survived on hard food for hundreds of years.

Well. . .no. Pet food was invented barely 150 years ago and wasn't terribly popular at the beginning. People used to go to the butcher and get meat scraps, horse meat, etc., and also feed table scraps, including inappropriate things like porridge. It wasn't until WWII that commercial pet food really caught on.
The History of Commercial Pet Food: A Great American Marketing Story - The Farmer's Dog.

"Caps are shouting".... Lol...That's your opinion,

I thought that was fairly well accepted on the internet, hmm.

For the original issue, no, you can't starve him but there's no harm in letting him get good and hungry. Make sure he knows that if he skips this meal he won't get anything until the next meal (of course making sure to offer something you know he'll eat at the next meal so he gets enough calories per day). I think some cats just get a kick out of watching us open a lot of cans!

 

[Furballsmom]

I just leave it out.

I leave Poppy's wet food out daily too.

 

[klunick]

I leave Poppy's wet food out daily too.

We get ants if I leave food out or if Boone throws too much food out of the bowl on the floor. They congregate under the kittens' place mat. Little tiny ants.

 

[zoes]

I'm sorry you're having such a hard time transitioning your kitty. That sounds very, very frustrating, and I'm sorry that you've gotten some combative responses here. Although I do fully agree that wet is better than dry, I don't want you to feel like you're doing everything wrong and risking your cat's health if you get frustrated and give him dry food just so he'll eat something.

Anecdotally: My two oldest cats, now 15-16 yo, were on a diet of mostly dry for most of their lives and are in great health. My third cat, who is only 5, started developing crystals occasionally and now all are switched to wet food which has solved that problem, and all their bloodwork have improved. So no, kibble is not a death sentence, but yes, wet food is healthier and worth taking the time to transition him. Even if it takes a long time. Don't stress out about it - he's young, and it's a process.

Anyway, my transition was a bit of a challenge too, though not as bad as yours. I'm sharing my tips in case it helps you, because I also found it very stressful so I had to find a way to do it in a way that felt sustainable.

First, get a few of those silicone wet cat food lids. They make wet food last a long time in the fridge, so you will waste less.
Second, plan to feed small offerings of wet food. This is just to reduce waste as you experiment. I have a neighbour with a cat who will eat anything so at least it doesn't go to waste.

My daily system was to figure out what the bare minimum amount of kibble was that they needed to survive. I forget what that was now, but I did some research on how much calories cats burn in a day per pound of bodyweight, how much they need to live, and came up with an amount that I felt okay with. I knew it would leave them hungry and not be sustainable forever as their sole source of nutrition, but I felt okay with that knowing that I wouldn't be starving them or risking fatty liver disease (also, none of my cats are overweight - if yours is, that may complicate things, and I'd consult your vet and do further research.)

Then, I fed them that dry food in the morning. Beside the dry food, I'd also give them a small portion of wet food. Sometimes, after eating the dry food, they'd come back a few minutes later and sniff or taste the wet food.

Throughout the day, when I'd do into the kitchen, they'd follow me in and meow at me for kibble. I'd give them another offering of wet food - sometimes 6x per day. Sometimes they ignored it, sometimes they ate it, sometimes they sniffed it. I made a list of the foods and ingredients they seemed to prefer. If I found a food they really liked, I'd get more of it and mix in foods they didn't like as much. After a time, they started to eat more of the wet food, because they were hungry and I guess started to figure out that more kibble wasn't coming till morning.

I would experiment with the wet food. Warmed up, added water, added Omega 3 salmon oil. I tried toppers and different flavours and consistencies. I tried cheap foods and expensive foods. I tried mixing two foods together. I tried those freeze-dried nuggets that you rehydrate with water. As I learned which foods they would tolerate, which toppers they liked, etc, I would fine tune my recipes and they would start eating more of it. It sounds like a ton of work but it actually wasn't too bad.

After a while, they seemed to get less picky, and now they generally eat what I put in front of them, and I have phased out dry food altogether.