Kitten Will Not Eat Dry Food

[rgwanner]

I am fostering 3, 6 week old kittens through a shelter. They were getting wet food in the morning as well as dry food. The wet food gave them diarrhea so on the advice of the shelter I discontinued the wet food and gave them some pumpkin. 2 of the kittens are eating the dry food and appear to be doing better. The problem is Dave. He will not eat the dry food. He did not have diarrhea on Monday morning. I brought him to work to feed him during the day. By the evening he has developed diarrhea. So wet food is giving him problems but he will not eat dry food. He just lays his head in it and licks it while kneading. He is getting a high quality food (I can't remember the name) from the shelter. I was thinking of trying Royal Canin Kitten dry food. Or I was thinking of putting the dry food in a coffee grinder and letting him lick that. Or I could put some dry food in with the wet food to get him used to the texture and feel. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions? Thank you for any help.

 

[cat_lover_Cass06]

When I first got one of my cats, she would not eat dry food for awhile either. Her food and water dishes were right next to each other so she started putting her dry food in water and then eating it. Once I realized she was doing this, I started putting a little water on her dry food to make it a little soggy. That solved the problem and after a while, she started eating dry food. I hope this works with your foster cat as well.Best of luck!

 

[Azazel]

What wet food were you feeding? If it’s giving them diarrhea it’s probably not just by virtue of the food being high in moisture. It may be an ingredient in the food. I would try giving a different kind of wet food and maybe mixing some pumpkin with it.

 

[lutece]

Was Dave doing okay on this same brand of wet food at the shelter, or did he have diarrhea at the shelter too? Have you tried mixing a little of the pumpkin into the wet food (instead of discontinuing the wet food and just feeding pumpkin)?

You might also try to find a different wet food that Dave tolerates better. It's not necessary for cats to eat dry food, it is fine for them to eat exclusively canned food (although less convenient for the owner). One of our cats (the one in my profile picture) refuses to eat dry food, she would rather starve than eat it Another of our cats gains a lot of weight on dry food and is healthier if we feed her only wet food.

As far as dry foods that kittens will eat, I find that the Royal Canin Baby Cat (light pink bag color) is appealing to kittens and easy for them to eat. I would suggest that instead of the Royal Canin Kitten (dark pink bag color).

 

[rgwanner]

I was told to give 1 cc of pumpkin only. I believe he was eating the same dry food. But if all 3 were being given wet food and dry food together the former foster might not have noticed he was not eating tbe dry.He was bottle fed.
I meant the RC Baby Cat I might try that.
I will let you know

 

[rgwanner]

What wet food were you feeding? If it’s giving them diarrhea it’s probably not just by virtue of the food being high in moisture. It may be an ingredient in the food. I would try giving a different kind of wet food and maybe mixing some pumpkin with it.

H

 

[rgwanner]

H

He was eating Friskies turkey mixed with water which the shelter gives to all the kittens. I might try the Royal Cabin wet I was told to give 1 cc of pumpkin to all 3 once a day They are only 1 lb 11 oz and 1 lb 8 oz. Waiting to see how they do tonight Thanks

 

[Azazel]

It could also be that there is an entirely different issue. Is he acting lethargic at all?

If he's having diarrhea it's really important to keep him hydrated because kittens can get dehydrated fast. This is also why it would be good for him to eat some wet food.

 

[duckpond]

I think first thing would be a vet visit, could be something like giardia?

Royal canin baby cat wet food has carrageenan in it, some cats that will upset the stomach and cause diarrhea. Their kitten minced wet food does not. I also always had good luck with fancy feast wet kitten food, the turkey. For Dry kitten food Merrick worked well for my guys, i have not tried the Royal canin dry kitten food.

 

[lutece]

I'm not a fan of Royal Canin wet foods, for wet food I most frequently use fancy feast classic pate, it's pretty simple, palatable and well tolerated by most cats.

The RC "Baby Cat" dry food is special because the kibble is extremely small and palatable to young kittens who are just starting to eat, it's the only dry food designed for young kittens. Almost everyone loves it and I have never had trouble with anyone tolerating it. (The RC "Kitten" is not so good.)

And I agree with the previous posters that there may be something else going on.

 

[rgwanner]

Dave(and his siblings) have been treated for parasites and worms so I don't think he has parasites. (They got Panazaril (sp?) and Strongid)
Last night I went and got a bag of RC Babycat dry food. HE ATE IT! I am so excited. I will transition him back to the dry food from the shelter, but for now he is eating dry food which is the important thing. Also I am giving them all about 1cc of pumpkin at night.

This morning he still had diarrhea but the poop was a little better. Fingers crossed.

Mon and Tues I had taken him in to work with me so I could feed him several times. He got lots of visitors - disrupted the office. Folks are going to be disappointed today that there is no little yellow furball.

 

[rgwanner]

It could also be that there is an entirely different issue. Is he acting lethargic at all?

If he's having diarrhea it's really important to keep him hydrated because kittens can get dehydrated fast. This is also why it would be good for him to eat some wet food.

 

[rgwanner]

He is very active, he has been treated for parasites. I think he was just a little slow in wanting to eat a dry food. I see them drinking water anf I test for dehydration. See my other posts.

 

[rgwanner]

I think first thing would be a vet visit, could be something like giardia?

Royal canin baby cat wet food has carrageenan in it, some cats that will upset the stomach and cause diarrhea. Their kitten minced wet food does not. I also always had good luck with fancy feast wet kitten food, the turkey. For Dry kitten food Merrick worked well for my guys, i have not tried the Royal canin dry kitten food.

 

[rgwanner]

I have not tried Merrick. RC has worked well as a transition food in the past. Some folks at the shelter refer to RC Babycat as "kittie crack" because usually they dig in.I will keep Merrick in mind.