My Cats Dont Want To Eat Anything

[Yanaka]

Hi there, me again...

Now they are turning up their noses at Rad Cat, which they loved up until a few days ago. I started introducing them to a few canned Merrick because I want to feed them something less expensive (I spend $40 a week for the rad caf), and now theyre not only refusing the cans, they are also snobbing the initial food.

They are visibly hungry and slimmer, yet they won’t eat anything (apart from dry food, which I limit because I don’t want them to get crystals). They usually end up eating the Rad Cat (reluctantly, now) but they spend time being hungry and unhappy first... it breaks my heart.

What should I do and why are cats so difficult with their food?? Why do they let themselves be hungry like this...

 

[di and bob]

Because they are cats! I would research dry food and see what is acceptable in it. Some cats just don't like wet and would rather starve then eat it. I think they would eat eventually, but it is too hard to let them go that long. I would research dry foods and see what is recommended there. There are dry foods formulated for urinary health (so see, you are not alone) There are also liquid supplements to put in their water to prevent urinary issues. I hope this helps!

 

[maggiedemi]

I think canned food must not taste as good as it used to years ago. My childhood cats would go crazy when they heard the can opening. They ate every drop and licked the plate. It didn't matter what brand or what flavor, they loved wet food more than dry food. Now it's the opposite, my cats prefer dry food. But they have to eat some canned food or they get UTIs.

 

[Yanaka]

My cats don’t have health issues but dry food provokes crystals especially in males, because of cats’ low thirst drive... which is why I really don’t want to feed dry food exclusively...

They were always on wet food but now they don’t want anything at all

 

[lisahe]

Because they are cats! I would research dry food and see what is acceptable in it. Some cats just don't like wet and would rather starve then eat it. I think they would eat eventually, but it is too hard to let them go that long. I would research dry foods and see what is recommended there. There are dry foods formulated for urinary health (so see, you are not alone) There are also liquid supplements to put in their water to prevent urinary issues. I hope this helps!

Yes, "because they are cats" is right! And another yes to some cats preferring dry food so much that they'll avoid wet food, waiting for the dry food. Our cats used to do that. I wonder if that might mean that the choice may be to either totally cut out the dry food or find a way to feed it in a way that works for you and the cats, Yanaka . We weaned our cats off all dry food a few months after adopting them and it's worked out well, probably because we never have any in the house for them to smell.

One of our cats is pretty picky and fickle but lots of variety -- freeze-dried raw, frozen raw, homemade cooked, canned -- in the menu keeps her eating. So does sprinkling Pure Bites and/or a little Feline Natural freeze-dried dust on some of her meals. She's pickiest about canned foods (I wonder if M maggiedemi might be right about palatability!) so I've added in some foods she's pretty much guaranteed to eat: more Nutro Natural Choice and occasional Fancy Feast Classics. Even though they only split one small can of food a day, I see most commercial foods as a "pick your poison" sort of proposition so spread out the ingredients that I consider risky so there's just one brand with menadione (FF), not all have gums, fish is only occasional, etc., etc., etc. For these cats, the most important thing is high protein and low carbs. No menu is perfect but there's only so much Cat Catering's patience and budget can handle! There's also only so far a cat's will can be bent plus cats pick up on our moods so much that I think it's worse to get stressed out about them not eating than to feed them something they'll love and devour, even if we think it's less than ideal food.

Anyway, good luck! Finding the right balance can be hard, particularly because it so often has to be adjusted for various reasons!

 

[Minxxy]

Have you tried Friskies Classic Pate ? It is a cheaper brand but most cats seem to like it. If you need to get them interested in wet food this may help. Just avoid the seafood varieties.

 

[Tobermory]

There are always toppers for the canned or raw, my go-to strategy for my picky eater.

• FortiFlora — A mediocre probiotic you can get at vets or online, but it’s very smelly and cats love the taste of it.
• Grated Parmesan cheese
• Crushed crumbles of dry food — There are some higher protein/lower carb / grain free brands such as Dr. Elsey’s Clean Protein
• Bonito flakes — Can be found at Asian markets or sometimes in the Asian food section of a large grocery store.
• Freeze dried treats -- Cumble into dust or small pieces over food. I use Pure Bites chicken and Northwest Naturals liver treat but there are lots of them.

 

[Yanaka]

They don’t want Nutro or Fancy Feast which are both pretty yummy usually for cats. I use nutritional yeast which they love but will lick that and leave the rest. The sister doesn’t like the dry food either

They look like they’ve lost weight and I’m really bummed. I’m not stressing anymore about it with them because I kind of gave up and got used to them being so difficult and I keep trying new food. But I don’t like that they are hungry and lost some weight

 

[maggiedemi]

Have they been treated for fleas, worms, and hairballs? Those are the 3 things I always think of when my cats lose weight.

 

[duckpond]

My cats go on and off on their favorite wet foods all the time Right now the favorite at our house is Tiki After dark, and the minced flavors of american journey. I have also found that crumbling up pure bites on top will get them to eating.

 

[Yanaka]

Have they been treated for fleas, worms, and hairballs? Those are the 3 things I always think of when my cats lose weight.

Good points, but I really think it’s the not eating that makes them slim down.

My issue is that the brother is allergic to chicken so I already have *that* obstacle. They go off and on flavors they like... it’s driving me nuts

 

[maggiedemi]

Yeah, but fleas, worms, or hairballs can cause a cat to not feel good. And when they don't feel good, they don't eat as much.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - just a quick comment, bonito flakes are available at pet stores.
I'm going through something very similar regarding unenthusiastic eating.
The bonito helps to get the Big Guy to finish his used-to-be favorite food, I've found three-four others he seems ok with(maybe ) by hunting through this site's cat food threads and also the local grocery and pet stores, and I've just ordered some fortiflora.

 

[himawari]

Sorry to hear they are reluctant to eat. Did you feed them the same Rad Cat protein for however many times a day until now? I'm only asking because when I first had my cat, he refused to eat and I didn't know why until I switched proteins and/or texture every meal. Turns out he just grew bored with his food -- his food issue now is entirely different though.

Toppers are good. Have you tried the crushing a few of the kibble they do eat and putting that/mixing it with the can food? Or maybe adding boiled, warmed beef to the meal to entice them via smell? Can you try other wet brands to experiment?

 

[chandler49]

They don’t want Nutro or Fancy Feast which are both pretty yummy usually for cats. I use nutritional yeast which they love but will lick that and leave the rest. The sister doesn’t like the dry food either

They look like they’ve lost weight and I’m really bummed. I’m not stressing anymore about it with them because I kind of gave up and got used to them being so difficult and I keep trying new food. But I don’t like that they are hungry and lost some weight

What Nutro formula are you feeding? I've had to go the their kitten formula to get cat to eat canned.

 

[Yanaka]

The pâté ones because they used to love them....

I rotated between turkey, chicken and beef for Rad Cat. I recently took the chicken out because of the allergy issue, and they were content with turkey and beef. I stopped the chicken like ten days ago. I swear. I’m so worried and anxious because they are not eating. I have dozens and dozens of discarded cans.

I guess I can try the Tiki Cat again but I don’t have high hopes.

 

[mprpladi]

I would try Against the Grain. I bought a few cases (1.00 per can) from a website that I frequent. They really like the chicken with pumpkin and the chicken with cheese The other food my cats love is called small batch raw chicken, (for both cats and dogs) I bought some from a local Grain Free pet store because it is raw. It is just 100% ground chicken (the cheapest flavor 6-7 bucks for 2 lbs) The also have duck and rabbit and beef ( more $$$)
The other food that they like is a dehydrated one I found at Grocery Outlet called Ubite dehydrated chicken salmon cod flavors. I keep that out all the time because it is dehydrated. Vital Essentials sells Minnows which are also freeze dried.
If you do not have access to a Grain Free Pet Store, there are places online to buy it like chewys or mypetcarnivore

 

[Furballsmom]

Try toppers, they help a lot.

 

[mprpladi]

The Ubite if you can get it for 1.99 at Grocery Outlet makes a great topper when crushed as well as the minnows which are a little pricer from Vital Essentials.

 

[Yanaka]

Unfortunately one of my cats is allergic to chicken and he’s hard to keep away from his sister’s food haha. But I’ll look up those brands.