Switching to EVO, then maybe raw.

[klag]

Speaking of Claire, she now expects me to hunt her down and present her with the wet food. So, now, if I can get my hands on her, I will pick her up, her screaming the entire time, and carry her to her wet food on the table. Funny though, when I sit her down in front of her bowl, she doesn't dart off, just starts eating like nothing happened. That cat is a hot mess.

Heh, I have to do that with a few of my cats as well sometimes.  They fuss and resist but when I plop them down in front of the bowl, they just eat like nothing happened. 

Sounds like Claire isn't too terribly scared of you if you can pick her up and carry her, even though she screams the whole time.  I care for some ferals too that live in the woods behind my house and I can even pet one of them and scratch her behind the ears.  But if I tried to pick her up and carry her anywhere, I'd probably lose an eye, half my fingers and a few pints of blood.  Then she'd go around to the front of the house and let the air out of my car tires....

 

[ldg]

How's Riley doing? :cross:

 

[rafm]

How's Riley doing? :cross:

He's good. Back to treats only. I'm going to take him for a weigh in tomorrow. Won't eat wet or dry, just treats. But if that is what he wants, that is what he'll get.

The others though, they don't have a choice. :lol

Thank you for asking.

 

[ldg]

Aw, glad to hear he's feeling better!

Happy Easter!

 

[feralvr]

HI!! Just want to mention the I have had incredible success with Rad Cat :nod: The lamb and the turkey. The chicken is not well liked by three of my six so I won't keep that one in rotation. Rad Cat is the only raw meat that the four P's have eaten at 100%. I am glad that you are making some progress. Some days can be very frustrating. :frusty: I am so grateful the Wendall and Walden are true carnies and a piece of cake. Those two boys will eat anything raw I drop on their plate. The other four - not so. Takes some convincing!!!

 

[rafm]

Thanks for the encouragement and reviews on Rad Cat. We aren't quite to raw yet but things are looking a bit more hopeful around here.

We did have a setback this weekend though. DH and I were going to be out the entire day on Saturday so I had no choice but to put out some dry (EVO). Well, Simon and Claire thought that meant they didn't have to do wet anymore so Sunday and Monday were a struggle getting them to eat wet again. You would have thought I was starting from scratch. DH and I did not put out ANY dry Sunday but DH put out a tiny bit on Monday, he was worried about them eating at all. I gave wet again last night and they nibbled on it but I refused to put out dry. This morning they both ate wet like champs! :lol They ate an entire can between the 3 of them. And when I went to have a play session, they all just laid on their sides and batted at da bird. They were just stuffed.

Updates

Riley: he has decided that he does like EVO dry. He has eaten it twice in a row so I am very happy about that. Fingers crossed he continues to eat it.

Fred: no change. Eats anything.

Simon: finally started eating wet again this morning. He hurt his paw playing this weekend so he is on rest from play time right now. He's a big jumper so I'm pretty sure he just jammed it good. He's been walking on it just fine but holds it up some when he's just sitting. A couple of days rest and he'll be good as new.

Claire: she was so hungry this morning she actually came to the table for breakfast. And she cried at me too. She ate all but a couple of bites of the wet.

What was really amazing to me was when I fed Riley the dry. Only Simon got up on the table, Claire and Fred pricked their ears but didn't budge toward the kitchen. Simon jumped up but just laid down on the edge. Normally he would have been pushing Riley out of the way. I just can't get over the difference in their satisfaction.

Going to buy a baby scale today. We need to be able to check Riley's weight at home and I want to keep tabs on the anticipated loss for the other kitties. I think Fred may have gained some weight.

 

[feralvr]

Good idea on the baby scale :nod: Most of do "weigh-ins" in our threads just to make sure we are keeping track of kitties weights!! I have a digital people scale. I just weigh myself first and then pick up each cat and subtract my weight from the total. Don't worry too much if you have to feed them the EVO on days when you are gone all day. They will get back on the wet and you can always mix some dry in with the wet food too :nod: OR crumble up some EVO kibbles and sprinkle that on top of the wet food. I have learned never to expect anything other than the unexpected throughout this whole transition process. :rofl: Each day can bring about something completely new and different.

 

[ldg]

Yep, the kibble addiction can be hard to break! I think Tuxie still asks me for it - and he hasn't seen or smelled a kibble since... January. :lol3: BUT... hunger can totally work in our favor. :nod: It's hard to know how far to push it at times, but it's always such a relief when they finally eat what you want them to!

And YES! I remember the transition to wet - SO much more satisfying for them to eat than dry! And we just went through the same thing with raw - and you'll see it when you get there. :nod: They just simply do not bother me for food between meals. No one wakes me up at night. Well - occasionally Lazlo wants food before breakfast. But his tummy over produces acid despite the pepcid a/c at night, so I keep the freeze dried chicken treats handy so he doesn't get sick from acid over production. :nod:

 

[rafm]

Interesting development with Riley over the past 2 days. He has decided he does like EVO dry, however, he won't eat it out of a dish. We have to give it to him like treats, 10-12 pieces at a time, all day long. I can't decide if we are spoiling him or if we are just plain nuts for doing it. I'm leaning toward nuts.

 

[ldg]

Sometimes it takes being nuts. None of the cats were allowed on the counter. Now Flowerbelle eats there. Spoiled? Or solution to her eating ADD problem? :dk:

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Interesting development with Riley over the past 2 days. He has decided he does like EVO dry, however, he won't eat it out of a dish. We have to give it to him like treats, 10-12 pieces at a time, all day long. I can't decide if we are spoiling him or if we are just plain nuts for doing it. I'm leaning toward nuts.
 

Now THAT made me laugh out loud

.  Nuts you may be, but then we all are, I'm guessing

 

[feralvr]

Interesting development with Riley over the past 2 days. He has decided he does like EVO dry, however, he won't eat it out of a dish. We have to give it to him like treats, 10-12 pieces at a time, all day long. I can't decide if we are spoiling him or if we are just plain nuts for doing it. I'm leaning toward nuts.

OMG - we are ALL absolutely nuts.... and I love it. The lengths we will go to for our kitties is just WAY too funny. I think we all have "bent the rules" in a major way just to get these cat's eating healthier!!! :lol3:

 

[rafm]

:lol3: Riley's still eating the EVO. We got some Felidae today to see if he was interested. Nope. Oh well, he's eating something nutritious again so that's good. I'll take it!

The baby scale arrived today. :nod: I was so excited to get everyone weighed. I've been really worried about Riley and Claire's weight. I was concerned they weren't eating enough and were losing weight too fast. Actually, Riley doesn't really need to lose so I was hoping he wasn't getting too thin.

So, the weigh-in results:

Riley: 9 lbs 11.5 oz; This is pretty steady with his last weigh-in at the vet

Fred: 13 lbs 10.5 oz; actually a little lighter than I was anticipating

Simon: 14 lbs 10 oz; he's a larger cat so I think he's about 2 lbs overweight but more than weight loss, he needs to tone.

Claire: 15 lbs 15 oz; this is actually about a 2 oz loss from her last vet visit. I'm pretty happy with that. I was really worried that she wasn't eating enough and that she was dropping too much too fast. Now though, I'm worried she's eating too much. She is terribly overweight. I'm very disappointed in myself with regards to her weight. She should probably be around 9 pounds.

 

[rafm]

Interesting, I worked late the other night and DH was heading out so he gave the cats some dry food....Simon couldn't handle it and threw up. He may have eaten too much but it wasn't a mass of undigested cat food so I think it was just too hard on his system.

And we have not observed Claire trying to lick herself constantly. I think her cystitis is much better thanks to the wet. It makes me so happy.

 

[feralvr]

AW sorry Simon on the dry... I am sure he gorged himself YES - the wet food will help with Claire's urinary track health too! I am so happy to hear that everything is going so well overall !!!

 

[ldg]

Aw, I'm sorry about the tummy trouble - but it does help reinforce the decision to switch to canned! I'm SO GLAD to hear about Claire!

 

[rafm]

I didn't realize it had been almost a week since I updated, ugh. Work is handing it to me right now.

So, updates:

Riley:
weight check: 9lbs 13oz, gain of 2.5 oz
Riley has not had a treat in a week. When he cries for food, we put a bowl of dry EVO down and he eats some of that, then we pick the bowl up, put the lid back on and it's ready for the next time he's hungry. He has free fed for 14 years and has always been a grazer so since we can't leave the dry out because of the fat cats, he just has to ask us for it. It's amazing but Riley has never had a weight issue, he's always managed his free feeding very well. I have noticed though that when he cries for the dry, it isn't the same desperate scream for food, rather it's a bit quieter and not as frequent. He's in a good place with his diet right now.

Fred:
Weight check: 13 lbs 3.5 oz, loss of 7 oz
I'm thinking this is too much of a loss for 9 days

Simon:
Weight check: 14 lbs 1.5 oz, loss of 8.5 oz
Too much weight loss for 9 days
Simon is still not eating enough at one setting. He wants to graze on the wet, keep coming back but I can't leave it out because either Fred will eat it (which he doesn't need to do), the little dog Abby will sneak into the feeding area and eat it (she certainly doesn't need it) or it will sit and go bad (this food is too expensive to lose a can).

Claire:
Weight check: 15 lbs 8.5 oz, loss of 7 oz
Claire can still be difficult but not as difficult as she had been. I'm no longer taking foo TO her, she has to eat in the kitchen. Even if that means I have to carry her in there. She wouldn't come out to eat last night and when I saw her finally I got some food out and put it on the table but she wouldn't let me get my hands on her nor would she go get on the table. It was time for me to go to bed SLI had to put it up. When I got up this morning, she literally ran to the table. I haven't seen her run in a long time. It was good to see. And it proves she can come out on her own.

Even with the high weight loss this week, the only change I've noticed in the kitties is an increase in their activity level. They are beginning to chase each other, when we play with da' bird, their feet actually leave the floor and instead of just rolling onto their backs to bat at it, they actually chase it (some faster than others). They are all much more active. Since they are so overweight, do you think the losses are inline with increased activity level and decreased amounts of food? Or, would we be wise to add another feeding?

I'm super happy with Riley's activity level. He has always played with the small dog but he has really increased the duration. Last night they chased each other through the house, Riley was on his back popping and play biting Abby, then he'd jump up and pounce her like he was a kitten. This went on for 30 minutes. It was so much fun to watch.

Even my DH, who was skeptical at first, has noticed a difference in the kitties. He has commented on their coats and how soft they are becoming (and they were very soft before, but now, they are becoming like silk). He also noticed that Fred, who's always had a weepy eye, full of goo and red, well, his eye is as dry as can be, no runny gooey stuff, no redness, nothing. We've also been able to have the windows open, which, in the past meant an upper respiratory issue for Fred, not so this week. I'm thinking he was allergic to grain which comprimised his immune system making him susceptible to URI's and contributed to his runny eyes. I feel horrible that he suffered for so many years being fed what was essentially poison to his system.

So, right now we are happy with the progress. I'm interested in hearing everyone's thoughts on the weight loss.

Regarding moving to raw, right now, I'm still not happy with the consistency of the feeding schedule so we will continue with EVO right now.

 

[feralvr]

Great update!!!!! I think you might need to increase calories a bit IF you don't want anymore weight loss. It sounds the kitties are much more active now and have better energy on this better diet. I know it is really tricky to try to keep the fat ones away from eating all of the food from the skinny kitties. I think if you need to get more food into one cat over another, then see if you can feed that one cat a single extra meal during the day in a private room. I had to do this with Perla awhile back. I fed her an extra meal in the bathroom, which she usually ate and enjoyed the special time. I just think the weight loss if from the cats being so much more active. They are getting in shape and that is good news !!!!! :bigthumb:

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

great news in that they are so much more active and how even your DH is noticing their new coats

.  As to the quick weight loss...mine did the same thing when we switched to free feeding.  I felt horrible because they lost way too much in just one week, but then the next week they had put some back on, so I think a lot might depend on whether they have just eaten, just pooped or peed, etc.  I DO still weigh mine once a week because I'm paranoid about it

(just doesn't seem like they eat enough anymore) , but I'm actually using a Wii to weigh them on, so it's probably not exactly accurate.  What are you using?  Have you got a nice baby scale? 

Anyway, great job so far.  So cute about Riley "gently" asking for more food

 

[rafm]

Lauren-I do want Claire and Fred to lose more weight, Claire needs to get to between 10-12 pounds, she is SERIOUSLY overweight. And Fred should also be in that range but he doesn't have as much to lose as she does. They seem happy and satisfied so I guess we'll keep going and see where we are next week. I think they are fine, I really do.

Sally, I got an FAO Shwartz baby scale off Amazon. It was only about $36. I'm way too self-conscious to weigh myself and then the kitty like suggested earlier. I can't bear to weigh myself that often. :lol3: thanks for the thoughts on the weight loss, I think we are OK but still want to make sure.