Stella And Chewys Freeze Dried

[lindsey.design]

Howdy all-

I used to feed Stella and Chewys freeze dried raw every morning for breakfast for the crew. Lately, my one male cat has decided he isn't into it anymore really. I want to keep it in their rotation since it is such a good food. He will eat a few bites and lick the water up but then leaves a ton of it. The other two have no problems finishing their portions so I don't think it is a change in the food. Any ideas? Sprinkling a freeze dried chicken treat on top works sometimes to help entice but he still leaves it. I'm confused and at my wits end. He just doesn't seem interested in breakfast anymore. I've even back it back down to only 2-3x a week and decreased the amount. I dont know if it is because he is the only long haired cat and it is hot as the Devil here but they are indoor cats in the A/C so, I wouldn't think that was the issue. He is otherwise fine.

It's very frustrating.

 

[Azazel]

Is he eating anything else? Have you tried giving him something else for breakfast? That would be a good way to determine whether it’s the food or some other issue.

 

[lindsey.design]

He eats much better in the evenings and yes, we have a variety of foods- Stella and Chewys pate, Weruva BFF Play, and Tiki Cat. We incorporate some Koha too every now and then since it is higher fat. He used to love the Freeze dried raw and loves his FD treats so I don't know what the issue is. He went through a bout of IBD I think for a few weeks but the vet wasn't too concerned.

Sometimes he will eat a decent breakfast and times like this morning, he eats a few bites and then decides he would rather sleep. It worries me to no end even though he seems fine. He had a nice pee this morning so I know he is hydrated but, he lost some weight with the IBD attack. I constantly worry over him eating.

 

[Azazel]

Is he eating other foods for breakfast? Or is just the S&C he refuses at breakfast? Will he eat the S&C in the evening?

 

[She's a witch]

If he was eating the same food everyday for breakfast it’s totally possible he simple got bored with it. My cats certainly would. You could maybe try other brands and flavors of freeze dried to see if he would accept these.

 

[lindsey.design]

The don't eat the same everyday- I switch it up quite a bit, was rotating 3 flavors of freeze dried even, hence, my confusion. Sometimes he will eat a whole 2.8oz pate and other times, maybe half-2/3 of that. He's so inconsistent!

 

[Azazel]

If he's eating other things for breakfast and just not the S&C then just feed him something else. If his appetite has gone down, you'll want to also consider his play level, whether he's sleeping more than usual, or if there are any other changes that might signify an underlying issue. How are his teeth? He could be having tooth pain.

 

[lindsey.design]

Just had teeth cleaned in May! No extractions and all pearly whites )) Blood work was good then too!

 

[ailish]

If he's still eating other food and you don't think he's bored with the S&C, there's just one explanation.. He's a cat! He can like what he likes when he likes it. S&C freeze dried is crack to my cat. Until it isn't.

 

[lisahe]

If he's still eating other food and you don't think he's bored with the S&C, there's just one explanation.. He's a cat! He can like what he likes when he likes it. S&C freeze dried is crack to my cat. Until it isn't.

This is about right! Cats sometimes just get tired of certain foods.

Ours have been eating the same thing for breakfast for years: freeze-dried Primal. I'm just waiting for the day they've had enough. Oddly, they're okay with monotonous menus for their raw food -- Primal at breakfast and Stella and Chewy's Selects for an evening snack -- but they're more choosy about their homemade and canned meals. I have to mix those up a lot!

 

[ailish]

Well, Ailish is good for two meals of the same thing, will tolerate a third and will eat some of a fourth. That's canned food. She gets one small dry meal a day because I feed her with the automatic feeder at night. THAT food has been the same flavor of the same brand for over a year and when she hears me open the feeder to add food or see if it is getting empty she will come like a bat out of hell from the furthest regions of the house, when she is in a dead sleep, to nosedive into the top of the feeder. Cats!

 

[darg]

My cat is crazy about the S&C freeze dried but he doesn't like it re-hydrated, at least not by itself. He used to eat it any way he could get it, including re-hydrated. He still wolfs it dry but I don't give it to him dry other than a couple of nuggets as a treat once in a while and usually a single dry nugget, broken up, as a side to his main meal. He would also still heartily eat it re-hydrated if I crumble it up so it's more of a pate rather than soggy nuggets. His preference for it dry probably goes back to the fact that he ate dry food exclusively for 12 years. At this point, I use the freeze dried as a mix in with his home-made food. I think it adds some flavor and he is really starting to enjoy his homemade with a crumbled nugget mixed in. And, as mentioned, just a single nugget on the side with his canned food.

I'm probably feeding around 30-40 calories of the freeze dried turkey (about 8-10 nuggets) per day. That's maybe 20% of his daily calories. My issue with feeding more of the freeze dried is the high bone content. I have noticed some harder stools and some borderline constipation when I was feeding more of the freeze dried.

At any rate. You can try crumbling it up and then rehydrating, turning it into more of a pate. He may prefer the texture that way and start enjoying it again. You could also try to feed it dry but you'd have to be sure he was drinking enough additional water and you may want to break them in half, or smaller if you do feed them dry.

 

[lisahe]

My issue with feeding more of the freeze dried is the high bone content. I have noticed some harder stools and some borderline constipation when I was feeding more of the freeze dried.

Yes, bone content is a problem we have with a lot of freeze-dried foods, too: we have a cat who can't seem to handle foods with 10% bone, even if they're only a relatively small portion of her diet. Reducing her bone intake and adding tiny bits of pumpkin to her diet has helped tremendously.

I've never wanted to feed a lot of Stella & Chewy's (other than the Selects foods, which are boneless) because of unconfirmed bone levels that seemed likely to be high, based on very high phosphorous levels, texture, and lots of bone chunks in the food. (I realize that finding pieces of bone in raw food doesn't necessarily mean overall bone content is high but there were a few times when it really seemed excessive!) Historically, the company hadn't released a lot of information about those foods, though maybe now things are different?

 

[Azazel]

I’m always very weary of feeding raw bone. I think small amounts are fine, but most raw food companies put way too much in there. Even when I make my own food I prefer to use a different source of calcium such as eggshell powder. Cats who catch and eat their own prey usually don’t finish off all of the bone. I’m often concerned that we are giving cats way too much of it. I personally wouldn’t feed S&C.

 

[lisahe]

I’m always very weary of feeding raw bone. I think small amounts are fine, but most raw food companies put way too much in there. Even when I make my own food I prefer to use a different source of calcium such as eggshell powder. Cats who catch and eat their own prey usually don’t finish off all of the bone. I’m often concerned that we are giving cats way too much of it. I personally wouldn’t feed S&C.

Yes, Ireland would definitely say we're giving cats too much bone! She is a much happier cat since I reduced her bone intake.

The S&C Selects have a non-bone calcium source and the supplements I use have non-bone calcium sources, too, so I'm sure that contributes to Ireland's happier disposition!