Wet to Raw Transition

[nycats]

Hi everyone!

I have been trying (seriously) for few weeks to transition my cats from wet to raw. I have been feeding high quality canned food only, twice a day for years, but after doing some research, I've decided to take the plunge and switch to raw. I am doing Primal Frozen Raw, as it is the most accessible raw food for me at the moment. One they are all on raw, I may switch to other brands such as Darwin's Naturals or Hare Today. Primal works for me while I transition because they come in small patties.

I'm taking the transition nice and slow, and some have taken to it quite quickly. However, my Billi has puked more than a few times on raw, and Purrsy also has puked a few times in a row, which lead him to avoid the raw now. Is this normal when transitioning? It could also be because of stress, as we are fighting ringworm = frequent vacuuming = petrified cats.

I wanted to see if you noticed any stomach issues while transitioning to raw. Thanks for reading!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

It's been years since I transitioned mine, but I did use probiotics AND digestive enzymes during the process. Are you adding those? AND, there were just certain proteins that upset some of my furry ones tummys. Have you used more than one protein or are you just using one specific one? If you are feeding more than one protein, you might try to figure out if the vomiting only happens with a spedific one, say chicken. It could be that protein simply cannot be tolerated by them.

 

[nycats]

Ahh all those are good points! No, I have not been adding any supplements. I will look into ordering some. Also, I have bought two bags, one is pork, which they have never had before. But it doesn't seem like they are puking that one in particular. The other bag is salmon and beef, which they haven't had problems with before. And I have always rotated proteins with wet food, so they're used to eating different proteins. I'll try the supplements and see if that helps. Thank you so much for the good idea!

 

[Silver Crazy]

I transitioned Blue from dry food to raw by feeding small amounts 4-5 times a day, any large amounts and he would throw up..it was summer holiday time and had time to do it.
But to do that with multiple cats it would be really difficult.
Supplements sound good.

 

[nycats]

I transitioned Blue from dry food to raw by feeding small amounts 4-5 times a day, any large amounts and he would throw up..it was summer holiday time and had time to do it.
But to do that with multiple cats it would be really difficult.
Supplements sound good.

Oh wow! Dry to raw. That's quite a transition. Kudos to getting that done! I was actually considering feeding 3 times a day...it's hard so I don't know. But it's definitely an idea. I do wonder if they're eating too much too fast...

 

[daftcat75]

Primal has bones and some cats do better with bones than others. You might want to look for either Stella and Chewy’s Selects or Darwin’s Lamb. These are the only two commercial boneless options I know.

Commercial raw can be just as frustrating as canned food with its variety of formulations, inappropriate ingredients, and too much bone. Even Hare Today can be frustrating because their ground meat may not appeal to your cat.

It wasn’t until I got a manual grinder (wasn’t ready to invest in an electric yet) and tried different cuts of meat with my Krista that I realized if I cut up and grind turkey thigh meat and balance it with giblets and supplements, she adores this food like literally nothing else I can buy. But if I try to pick up a ground turkey chub even from Hare Today or the “local” raw feeders co-op, it is not just thigh meat or leg meat and she doesn’t like the mix they give me.

So if your cats aren’t transitioning to one brand of raw food, that only means that they aren’t transitioning to one brand of raw food. There are many more and then there’s always the DIY as long as you do it responsibly. Meat alone is not complete. There are also supplement pre-mixes like EZ Complete and Alnutrin that are somewhere between completely commercial and completely DIY.

 

[Silver Crazy]

. I do wonder if they're eating too much too fast...

Possibly to much and to fast..one thing I learned a long time ago that cats brought up on dry food and wet mush is that they forget how to chew..even dry food they crack the kibble once and swallow.
With raw the food has to be broken up a bit more to allow the stomach to process it if the raw is chunky (I keep it chunky to stop dental problems, encourage chewing and keep teeth clean) and not minced, and that can compound the throwing up problem.
I had one older female cat that had lived on wet mush all her life and had to mince her raw as she had no jaw muscles and would get tired trying to eat...Just another factor to consider.

Forgot to add...With a good raw diet you are suddenly blasting the cats body with nutreints and other things the cat hasnt had or been starving for and the cats system has to adjust, so slowly slowly and less food is the key.

 

[nycats]

Good points from both. I didn't even think about bones in food. And now that more companies are coming up with raw food, it gets so confusing as to which food would be best. My cats are also picky and get bored of food easily. I have to do some trial and error to come up with a brand/formula that they enjoy and not puke. I do think about possibly going the DYI route down the road, but I want to try commercial food first to get a little experience dealing with raw food. There's also a possibility of cooked DYI. Honestly, there's too many options, too many opinions on internet, and cats are so fussy. Why does everything have to be so complicated! Hahaha

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Primal has bones and some cats do better with bones than others. You might want to look for either Stella and Chewy’s Selects or Darwin’s Lamb. These are the only two commercial boneless options I know.

Wow! I hadn't heard of the S & C Selects. Good to know since Radcat is now out of business. I just wish the Selects came in their freeze dried line Too much bone in the freeze dried for sure.

 

[daftcat75]

Wow! I hadn't heard of the S & C Selects. Good to know since Radcat is now out of business. I just wish the Selects came in their freeze dried line Too much bone in the freeze dried for sure.

The S&C doesn’t say what type of turkey meat they use. They also include a small amount of greens and probiotics. Krista will eat it. But she’s not excited about it. And she won’t eat enough of it.

I spent a couple weeks going through different cuts of turkey from the butcher with Krista. She definitely prefers thigh meat which is what Rad Cat mostly was. Krista’s eating has slowed weigh down this past week. So I broke into the very last Rad Cat tub I had in the back of my freezer. And that familiar RC smell. I can buy whole frozen turkey legs from the butcher. And when I got to the thigh, there’s that same smell. My latest batch of homemade with primarily turkey thigh meat and some leg meat to fill out the remaining weight needed—this batch fully balanced was as popular with Krista as Rad Cat. She joins me on the counter while I weigh out her portion. She gives me the hurry up nips while I thaw it to room temp. And she climbs all over me while I’m plating it. This makes DIY worth it!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

She joins me on the counter while I weigh out her portion. She gives me the hurry up nips while I thaw it to room temp. And she climbs all over me while I’m plating it. This makes DIY worth it!

I can only DREAM of something like this . Sometimes my guys will rub around my legs, or try to nibble my feet while I'm getting meals prepped, but honestly they never get too excited about their meals. But they are so darned picky. I'm sure I've mentioned before that Darko actually runs screaming from the room if I dare to dish up duck or chicken hearts, which everyone else's cats supposedly love them better than anything else. But years ago I used to source my boneless turkey thighs chunks from Hare Today. I don't use them anymore becaue in the summer even with expedited shipping sometimes things were starting to thaw, and now with summers getting even hotter...well, you can see that's a problem. And the local BARF resources just don't have the same items, as you mentioned.

 

[daftcat75]

I can only DREAM of something like this . Sometimes my guys will rub around my legs, or try to nibble my feet while I'm getting meals prepped, but honestly they never get too excited about their meals. But they are so darned picky. I'm sure I've mentioned before that Darko actually runs screaming from the room if I dare to dish up duck or chicken hearts, which everyone else's cats supposedly love them better than anything else. But years ago I used to source my boneless turkey thighs chunks from Hare Today. I don't use them anymore becaue in the summer even with expedited shipping sometimes things were starting to thaw, and now with summers getting even hotter...well, you can see that's a problem. And the local BARF resources just don't have the same items, as you mentioned.

I just use a local supermarket. They get the same turkeys the “local” raw feeders co-op sells. (Local in this case means a 3 hour errand. ) They sell frozen whole legs which I can cut up myself. Or if I call ahead, I’m told I can request specific cuts. They also keep bags of the giblets in the freezer. So there’s an easy heart and liver source. And gizzard. I have no idea what Krista thinks of gizzard yet. Right now I’m just making one lbs batches. I may end up back at the local co-op if I want to make larger batches. It’s taken many many rounds of Krista Test Kitchen with many different cuts (and mistakes!) to get here. And she’s still not eating enough. But she eats more of my homemade than any other food I offer.

 

[nycats]

Ok so I started everyone separately lol. And they're puking less. I think the competition makes them gobble up too fast, resulting in puking. Trying out different proteins from primal. So far so good! Also started to add digestive enzymes + probiotic powder once a day. One cat is on raw completely. Well, if you count the foster kitten, two. (Kittens eat everything) I have to very sloooooowly increase the raw for the rest of the cats.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Glad things are going better. I always hate cleaning up vomit, but raw vomit seems worse

 

[nycats]

Update on my raw transition: so I got almost everyone eating all raw all the time. (Except for the feral foster cat, who is very uptight about everything, including her food) I've gotten them eating Primal frozen raw in select flavors (turkey and duck). They all puke when fed red meat. I also tried rabbit and pork, but they said "meh".

I've now ordered a trial of Darwin's, and so far so good. They liked the turkey. I'm yet to try the chicken and lamb. I have a feeling they won't like the lamb, based on their reaction to beef. I think I'll do a combo with Darwin's and primal, so that I can give them at least 3 proteins (chicken, turkey, and duck). Maybe I can get them accustomed to pork or rabbit too, we shall see. Those picky ass cats!

 

[daftcat75]

Update on my raw transition: so I got almost everyone eating all raw all the time. (Except for the feral foster cat, who is very uptight about everything, including her food) I've gotten them eating Primal frozen raw in select flavors (turkey and duck). They all puke when fed red meat. I also tried rabbit and pork, but they said "meh".

I've now ordered a trial of Darwin's, and so far so good. They liked the turkey. I'm yet to try the chicken and lamb. I have a feeling they won't like the lamb, based on their reaction to beef. I think I'll do a combo with Darwin's and primal, so that I can give them at least 3 proteins (chicken, turkey, and duck). Maybe I can get them accustomed to pork or rabbit too, we shall see. Those picky ass cats!

If you are going to feed raw, if you can get them on one canned or keep them on one canned, I suggest keeping at least one meal in their rotation in case there is ever supply or quality issues.

 

[nycats]

This is a great tip. I'll definitely keep canned a few times a week, so they can eat canned when I'm away on vacation etc. Thank you!