Switching to mostly wet

[Elvisrocks]

So my cat has had two episodes of cystitis in two.months. I'm trying to switch her mostly to.wet food but it's been a struggle. Before this all happened she was free fed dry food and I gave her one small.meal of wet food(about 1oz) that she would eat but not all.in one sitting. I would also.give her tiki cat broths as a treat and she would drink the broth and leave the chicken. I would eventually like to get her to two or three feedings of wet during the day and a small amount of dry overnight. My question is how long does it take to transition a cat to mostly wet? Also I feel like she doesn't finish the first meal before it's time to do another and I feel.like it's taking up alot of.my day trying to get her to eat. I'm worried she's not getting enough calories by trying to get her to eat the wet and giving her a small amount of dry at night. How do you get them to eat more wet at one sitting? She just seems luke warm about it. I hear others talk about how crazy their cats go.for their wet meals and she's just not like that. She's on prescription hills cd urine food and I have been mixing it with clean protein wet which is what she was eating for her one meal prior. I also am trying tiki cat mousse mousse to mix with the prescription food as well. I've also tried several toppers (her dry which she likes, freeze dried chicken which she sniffed and walked away and some ground freeze dried topper from.nulo(lukewarm response) and some freeze dried mussels which haven't arrived yet. I've read multiple articles on how to transition but I feel.like.im.doing something wrong. Any input would be nice.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

If she was free fed dry before, first you need to get her used to timed meals, then transition her to the new food. Here are a couple of articles that may be useful:

Transitioning Free-fed Kibble Kitties To Timed Meals – TheCatSite Articles

Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food – TheCatSite Articles

Also, you need to figure out what type of wet food she likes best. THAT is the tricky part. She may like pate over shreds, or mince over pate, OR she may like fish, but not lamb, or rabbit, but not chicken. You get the idea? For for most cats, it can be done. I transitions four free fed kibble addicts to scheduled wet food meals and then to raw food And two of those cats were seniors! It took some time to figure out their likes and dislikes but we did it. I used Soulistic wet foods since they have so many choices. They are sold at Petco.

 

[Elvisrocks]

If she was free fed dry before, first you need to get her used to timed meals, then transition her to the new food. Here are a couple of articles that may be useful:

Transitioning Free-fed Kibble Kitties To Timed Meals – TheCatSite Articles

Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food – TheCatSite Articles

Also, you need to figure out what type of wet food she likes best. THAT is the tricky part. She may like pate over shreds, or mince over pate, OR she may like fish, but not lamb, or rabbit, but not chicken. You get the idea? For for most cats, it can be done. I transitions four free fed kibble addicts to scheduled wet food meals and then to raw food And two of those cats were seniors! It took some time to figure out their likes and dislikes but we did it. I used Soulistic wet foods since they have so many choices. They are sold at Petco.

So if her current weight is 13 but she should weigh 10 then I just need to make sure she is getting 150 calories a day minimum right? I think according to the article then I should be giving her smaller portions so she eats all at once at meal time. Right now I give her 1 oz but she won't eat it all. So maybe do 1/2 ounce each feeding? I also have to give her some meds twice daily but don't want to put her off the food so I went and got those lickable treats and give her those for the meds. It might be ruining her appetite for the meals but I don't know what else to do.

 

[Elvisrocks]

If she was free fed dry before, first you need to get her used to timed meals, then transition her to the new food. Here are a couple of articles that may be useful:

Transitioning Free-fed Kibble Kitties To Timed Meals – TheCatSite Articles

Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food – TheCatSite Articles

Also, you need to figure out what type of wet food she likes best. THAT is the tricky part. She may like pate over shreds, or mince over pate, OR she may like fish, but not lamb, or rabbit, but not chicken. You get the idea? For for most cats, it can be done. I transitions four free fed kibble addicts to scheduled wet food meals and then to raw food And two of those cats were seniors! It took some time to figure out their likes and dislikes but we did it. I used Soulistic wet foods since they have so many choices. They are sold at Petco.

I know she will only eat pate and the vet wants her on the prescription hills cd wet urine food so that is what I have been giving her mixed with the wet food I was giving her before. I also have the dry hills cd urine food that he just started as well.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

150 calories isn't really enough for a cat who should weigh 10 pounds. The rule of thumb is between 20 and 25 calories per pound of what the cat should weigh. That comes to between 200 and 250 calories. Of course, you should count the calories in the lickable treats as part of that.

If she should be eating C/D, does she like it in dry form? You may need to start with that as you are transitioning her to scheduled meals, than work on switching to wet once she's on scheduled meals.

Can you give her her meds with the lickables but not give her the entire tube? That way maybe it won't ruin her appetite.

 

[TardisDance]

It’s a super slow process, believe me I know. I’ve gotten my own cat to about 2 oz. of wet food - She only eats the Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers. I’ve tried healthier options, but she likes what she likes.

Are you offering her any dry food during the day? She might be holding out for it to eat at night. I would at least offer some dry food during the day. It sounds counterintuitive, but some cats want to know that they have options, especially if they are used to being free fed. My cat will refuse to eat any wet food unless there is some dry food offered.

Also, do you have a fountain? It could help with the hydration issues.

 

[slowblink]

I'm working with a picky wet food eater now too. Tricks I am trying include:

- mixing a little water with pates (this is hit or miss - she also likes to lick the broth before eating anything else, so the slightly more moist pates are sometimes more appealing).

- putting some (like 3-6 pieces) of her dry food on top of the wet food to get her started (seems to work so far?)

my picky cat will usually always eat minced wet food - not sure if you've tried that?

 

[ladytimedramon]

Occasionally Delilah will eat a mousse type pate, but otherwise she decides she'd rather have a salad

If I put down something and she snubs it in favor of her cat grass then I know it's a no-go. So far she seems to like the Wellness minced, shreds, and gravies.