Not Fond Of Canned Or Raw

[yogakitty]

Ive run into a bit of a rut. Simon isn’t too keen on raw anymore. I can’t tell you guys how many bowls I’ve thrown out after a good couple of hours. Half a day sometimes. He doesn’t want anything to do with raw anymore when he used to love it. I even switch up the protein sources to make sure he doesn’t get bored of the ones he likes. Nothing.

So I’m also trying some canned. He’s ok with fancy feast pate. Other than that he doesn’t care for anything else. He’ll nibble here and there on other brands. Wouldn’t call it proper eating.

I take him to my parents place on some weekends. He likes to munch on their cat’s dry food. And drinks a lot of water.

I’m wondering if I should start giving him some good quality dry during the week? Or am I making the wrong decision? What should I do? Running out of options. Do I just keep feeding the fancy feast and nothing else?

Help!

 

[1 bruce 1]

Do you know how much dry food he's squirreling away over the weekends? If he's eating a lot of dry food and picking at your offerings, I'd imagine he's no longer a non-kibble addict and is doing the same as a small kid--picking at dinner, gorging on "other stuff" they find more palatable =)
If he's only munching on dry food (and drinking lots of water?), it might be time for a vet check up.

 

[duckpond]

I feed wet and dry, two wet meals a day, and leave out Dr. Elseys dry for free feeding. i have 4 cats, some prefer wet, some dry. I dont see a problem with feeding both.

Cats, especially males do need moisture, maybe more than from water bowls alone idk. i would keep offering the fancy feast if he will eat that, and maybe a bit of a high protein, moderate fat, low carb dry. Dr. Elseys is the best i have found that mine all like. Ziwi makes a good dry, but its more like jerky and only one of mine will eat it. Instinct has some good dry, as does Farmina. Just watch as some dry is so high in carbs.

We all have to decide how and what to feed our cats, im sure others will weigh in as well, so listen to what everyone says, then decide. and yes if he has not had a recent vet visit one may be in order.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - when you were trying different raw foods was it still all from the same brand? My thinking being that the manufacturer changed something to the point that it's no longer palatable...but if you were trying different brands of raw, that thinking doesn't apply.

In any case, you certainly could stick with FF pate - I'm in pretty much the same situation but I keep trying different canned foods along with toppers. The one I've found seems to get him to eating well, at least with the foods he's a bit interested in, is bonito flakes. I also just saw a mention of using nutritional yeast in this article, in the comments section;
18 Awesome Cat Feeding Tips By Thecatsite Staff Members

 

[Neo_23]

Are you sure there are no health problems? You said he’s not eating much and drinking lots of water. That could be a sign of a few underlying health issues..

 

[yogakitty]

Are you sure there are no health problems? You said he’s not eating much and drinking lots of water. That could be a sign of a few underlying health issues..

No, he is only drinking a lot of water when he eats dry....ie: on the weekends at my parents place. He picks and nibbles at wet food at home....and I brought dry back this weekend from my parents place in a small bag, just to have in case....I put it in a cupboard and he knows exactly where it is. He started begging for it. I gave him some wet and he ate, but with a frown lol. It just seems like he really likes the dry, unfortunately. And he doesn't at all take to the raw anymore.

He's active, happy. Doesn't seem like there are any health issues with him.

 

[lisahe]

Hi - when you were trying different raw foods was it still all from the same brand? My thinking being that the manufacturer changed something to the point that it's no longer palatable...but if you were trying different brands of raw, that thinking doesn't apply.

This is a good question: recipe changes can make a big difference as can individual batches. Our cats have completely rejected a few bags of Primal over the years. Freeze-dried foods (particularly Primal) seem to vary enough that the cats notice the taste and I notice the crumbliness.

And then some cats do just get bored with their food!

 

[orange&white]

I would consider a blood panel and urinalysis, plus thyroid, even if he seems healthy and active. I had one kitty who I kept having tested and he always came out "normal". He was very strange about food though, and had a hard time keeping his weight up. After eating a raw diet for 3.5 years, he suddenly refused it and would only eat kibble for his remaining years. I did see a health decline switching him to dry food, but it was all he would eat, and he did seem willing to starve himself if he didn't get the food he wanted. He was something of an extreme case though.

 

[yogakitty]

This is a good question: recipe changes can make a big difference as can individual batches. Our cats have completely rejected a few bags of Primal over the years. Freeze-dried foods (particularly Primal) seem to vary enough that the cats notice the taste and I notice the crumbliness.

And then some cats do just get bored with their food!

I was sticking to one brand for awhile...then I also actually tried Primal. He ate it once or twice and then turned his nose up at it.

I think I may have spoiled my cat...

 

[yogakitty]

He'll be 2 in June, so many I'll ask for blood work to be done just to check then.

 

[lisahe]

He'll be 2 in June, so many I'll ask for blood work to be done just to check then.

It's a good idea to have basic blood work done around that age anyway -- having baseline results can be very useful later on.

 

[1 bruce 1]

It's a good idea to have basic blood work done around that age anyway -- having baseline results can be very useful later on.