Why does my cat like the taste of Carnivore Care more than U-Stew, and other questions re: syringe feedings

[cheeser]

We're back in another cycle where I'm having to syringe feed Buddy at least once a day, and have noticed that he eagerly laps the Oxbow Carnivore Care from a syringe, but can be a little fussy with baby food when I add the appropriate amount of U-Stew for Cats.

Does anyone know why Buddy might find the Carnivore Care more palatable than the U-Stew/baby food? Is it possibly the beef liver powder in the U-Stew that might taste too strong to him? Buddy likes the taste of plain baby food just fine, and is okay with me adding a bit of Nutri-Cal (or CatSure or KMR Kitten Milk Replacer Powder) to it. It's just the U-Stew that he doesn't seem to like.

Oxbow Carnivore Care
Dried Whole Egg, Dried Chicken, Fish Oil, Tricalcium Phosphate, Silicone Dioxide, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Biotin, Taurine, Hydrolyzed Yeast, Sodium Benzoate (preservative), L-Ascorbyl-2- Monophosphate (Vitamin C), L-carnitine, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Zinc Sulfate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Manganese Sulfate, Pyroxine Hydrochloride, Copper Sulfate, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Potassium Iodide

U-Stew for Cats
Egg yolk, calcium lactate, beef liver powder, gelatin, whey protein, psyllium husks, EFA from fish oil, digestive enzymes, taurine, kelp, barley grass, Vitamin E succinate, Vitamin B complex​

Also, how long will foods prepared for syringe feedings keep in the freezer? I usually have to toss at least two or three cans of wet food into the blender and blend the heck out of it to get the right consistency, and just wondered how long I can safely keep any leftovers than won't get used up within 24 hours or so.

And are there some brands of pate that are better suited for syringe feedings? I'm afraid I haven't had much luck with foods that have a grainier texture, from either the budget friendly or more expensive ends of the spectrum. I've found that a 3 ml. syringe works best for syringe feedings, and foods with grainer textures clog something fierce and/or don't strain worth a darn. For what it's worth, Buddy is willing to eat some of the Weruva Slide 'N Serve and Tiki Cat Velvet flavors on his own, as well as a little dab of Royal Canin Mother & Babycat every now and then. So I don't use those for syringe feedings because I don't want him to develop an aversion to those few foods that might tickle his fancy.

The Carnivore Care is going to be too pricey for long term syringe feedings, and I'm not comfortable trying to keep making jars of baby food more nutritionally complete unless I have a better idea what in the heck I'm doing.

On the bright side, Buddy is willing to eat about 100 calories a day on his own. It's just the rest of the day that I need to make up for the foreseeable future.

 

[Tobermory]

And are there some brands of pate that are better suited for syringe feedings?

I can’t help with your other questions, but it seems to me that I used Sheba pâtés when I had to syringe-feed Max. Super smooth and not grainy at all. And although I’m very anti prescription canned foods and anything from Hill’s or Royal Canin, I also got some Hill’s Prescription Diet a/d Urgent Care from the vet for emergency situations when Max wouldn’t eat anything else. You give them what they’ll eat, right? Poor Buddy.

 

[cheeser]

I can’t help with your other questions, but it seems to me that I used Sheba pâtés when I had to syringe-feed Max. Super smooth and not grainy at all. And although I’m very anti prescription canned foods and anything from Hill’s or Royal Canin, I also got some Hill’s Prescription Diet a/d Urgent Care from the vet for emergency situations when Max wouldn’t eat anything else. You give them what they’ll eat, right? Poor Buddy.

Awesome! I've give the Sheba pates a try. If they don't work out, at least I haven't wasted a ton of money like I usually do when I'm grasping at straws to find something I can get down Buddy, one way or another.

Yeah, I'm normally not too keen about prescription foods either, but the a/d has truly been a lifesaver for many of our sick kitties over the years, so you just gotta do what you gotta do. I don't know why Buddy hates it so much that he spits it back at me. He's the only one of our cats who has ever done that. *scratches head*

Thanks much!

 

[lisahe]

Awesome! I've give the Sheba pates a try. If they don't work out, at least I haven't wasted a ton of money like I usually do when I'm grasping at straws to find something I can get down Buddy, one way or another.

Yeah, I'm normally not too keen about prescription foods either, but the a/d has truly been a lifesaver for many of our sick kitties over the years, so you just gotta do what you gotta do. I don't know why Buddy hates it so much that he spits it back at me. He's the only one of our cats who has ever done that. *scratches head*

Thanks much!

I haven't used Sheba pate in a syringe but can attest to the fact that it is very, very soft and smooth. Our cats especially like the roast turkey. Another really soft pate is BFF's (relatively new) Play pate line: the cats like any of the chicken-plus-other-protein flavors. (Just plain chicken isn't good enough. ) The BFF food isn't quite as smooth as the Sheba but it's close.

Good luck, cheeser !

 

[Tobermory]

I don't know why Buddy hates it so much that he spits it back at me.

Oh, Buddy.

Sheba is actually decent food. Max ate that and Fancy Feast pâtés the last two years of his life. That was all he would eat, but that was great because they were higher in protein and lower in carbs...and they were reasonably priced. Hope Buddy will eat one or more of the Shebas!

 

[lisahe]

Oh, Buddy.

Sheba is actually decent food. Max ate that and Fancy Feast pâtés the last two years of his life. That was all he would eat, but that was great because they were higher in protein and lower in carbs...and they were reasonably priced. Hope Buddy will eat one or more of the Shebas!

Yes, Sheba pates are very decent food: I think of them as being a treat for all because the cats love them and I know they'll finish them! Sheba has recently added tapioca to the recipe but it's pretty low on the list so I'm not sure what I'll do when I run out of the stockpile I managed to buy before the new version of the food hit the stores!

 

[cheeser]

I haven't used Sheba pate in a syringe but can attest to the fact that it is very, very soft and smooth. Our cats especially like the roast turkey. Another really soft pate is BFF's (relatively new) Play pate line: the cats like any of the chicken-plus-other-protein flavors. (Just plain chicken isn't good enough. ) The BFF food isn't quite as smooth as the Sheba but it's close.

Good luck, cheeser !

Cool! I had forgotten about the BFF Play options. Thanks!

Buddy ate the Laugh Out Loud, Checkmate, Cherish, and Destiny flavors with some enthusiasm when I just bought a can or pouch or two of each a while back to see if he liked them. Of course, I'm sure you know what happened when I went back to the store and bought more.

But as a syringe feeding, it doesn't matter whether he's enthusiastic or not.

I wish I didn't have to resort to foods that contain proteins that can wreak havoc re: Buddy's allergies/sensitivities, but right now, I just need to get enough calories and nutrition into him to help him live to see another day, and God willing, we'll deal with the rest later.

 

[cheeser]

Oh, Buddy.

Sheba is actually decent food. Max ate that and Fancy Feast pâtés the last two years of his life. That was all he would eat, but that was great because they were higher in protein and lower in carbs...and they were reasonably priced. Hope Buddy will eat one or more of the Shebas!

Our other cat used to love Sheba when we first transitioned him from a dry food only diet to one that's mostly wet food. Then he got hooked on some of the non-fish based Fancy Feast Classic pates, and now Oscar acts like I'm trying to kill him if I offer him anything else. Cats and their weird ideas!

I'll keep my fingers crossed re: Buddy...and my toes, and my eyes, and everything else I can cross.

 

[cheeser]

Yes, Sheba pates are very decent food: I think of them as being a treat for all because the cats love them and I know they'll finish them! Sheba has recently added tapioca to the recipe but it's pretty low on the list so I'm not sure what I'll do when I run out of the stockpile I managed to buy before the new version of the food hit the stores!

Thanks for the heads up. I didn't realize that they had recently changed the formula for Sheba. But I've learned the hard way that sometimes cat food manufacturers change things up a bit around the first of the year, and it can just take a while to trickle down to the consumer level, especially when you live in a little town like we do. Thankfully, tapioca doesn't seem to bother Buddy, and probably isn't going to affect the carb content significantly if it's further down the list of ingredients.

I'm still holding a grudge against Tiki Cat for discontinuing their Gourmet Carnivore product line a while back, and at Weruva for changing their CITK Chicken Frick 'A Zee and Fowl Ball formulas. Doggone it, it seems the more we come to depend on a particular product, the more likely it is to be discontinued or "improved" upon. I guess it's like the corollary to Murphy's Law that states that things happen in inverse ratio to their desirability.

 

[lisahe]

Thanks for the heads up. I didn't realize that they had recently changed the formula for Sheba. But I've learned the hard way that sometimes cat food manufacturers change things up a bit around the first of the year, and it can just take a while to trickle down to the consumer level, especially when you live in a little town like we do. Thankfully, tapioca doesn't seem to bother Buddy, and probably isn't going to affect the carb content significantly if it's further down the list of ingredients.

I'm still holding a grudge against Tiki Cat for discontinuing their Gourmet Carnivore product line a while back, and at Weruva for changing their CITK Chicken Frick 'A Zee and Fowl Ball formulas. Doggone it, it seems the more we come to depend on a particular product, the more likely it is to be discontinued or "improved" upon. I guess it's like the corollary to Murphy's Law that states that things happen in inverse ratio to their desirability.

You're welcome! It doesn't seem like there could be much tapioca in it, given that it's a pate, not a gunky shreds-in-gravy food. (Some Soulistic foods are pretty gloppy with tapioca but they did get our previous cat to eat!)

RIP Gourmet Carnivore, our cats loved that stuff! I did buy them one of the new After Dark foods, which they liked but they are a bit pricey. I guess I'm lucky that our cats never noticed any difference in the CITK recipes you mention... although hm, if anything, I think they're happier about them now than they used to be! It generally goes the other way, as it did with Merrick's LID foods, which they loved until Merrick added peas, a change I hadn't noticed (and wouldn't have approved of if I had) until the cats stopped eating it!

 

[cheeser]

Okay, I gave the Sheba a try for supper, and we had some success.

Buddy only ate one or two bites straight from one of the trays, and wouldn't eat any more. Then I added some warmish water to make a slushie, and that was a no go. So I added some more water and tried to draw it up with a 3 ml. syringe, but it wasn't quite fine enough to keep the tip from getting clogged. Then I strained it with a small steel strainer, and that did the trick.

I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry when I went back and found Buddy on his towel where I usually feed him. Part of me felt bad that he's come to expect being fed with a syringe for his evening meal, and part of me was glad that he seemed so agreeable about it after he had had a few bites of the Sheba.

Thankfully, Buddy lapped up his Sheba Shake as enthusiastically as he does the Oxbow Carnivore Care, so feeding time went much more smoothly than usual. So all in all, the results were very encouraging, and I feel much better knowing it was nutritionally complete from the get-go, instead of me adding premix or other stuff to a jar of baby food.

 

[lisahe]

Sheba to the rescue! I'm glad it helped, cheeser , and either Sheba or the BFF would most definitely be easier than premix and more complete than baby food. And it sounds like Buddy even liked it. If only a little! Here's hoping for another successful feeding tomorrow.

 

[cheeser]

Sheba to the rescue! I'm glad it helped, cheeser , and either Sheba or the BFF would most definitely be easier than premix and more complete than baby food. And it sounds like Buddy even liked it. If only a little! Here's hoping for another successful feeding tomorrow.

Wait...you mean I have to feed Buddy again tomorrow?!

Seriously though, I do feel a lot better about long term syringe feedings if he's getting food that meets AAFCO guidelines as prepared by the manufacturer. Baby food mixed with a little bit of Nutri-Cal, U-Stew, etc. may be fine for a couple of days or so to help him bounce back from a short term setback, but I've been a nervous wreck about doing it for longer periods of time.

To be honest, the only reasons we started using "baby food plus" for syringe feedings is that Buddy's allergies were giving him fits at the time, and ham baby food was one of the few things he could tolerate well. Most of the foods that I had tried that didn't contain any allergy/sensitivity triggers were too gritty for syringe feedings, even when I liquified the heck out of them in the blender. Fortunately, up until this past year or so, eventually Buddy would get his appetite back, and eat normally again. Well, what passes for normal for him anyway. But after all these years, I guess his already compromised sense of smell finally bit the dust, and it's been a daily slog ever since.

*takes a deep breath*

Alrighty, we'll see how it goes tomorrow. To quote that great philosopher Scarlett O'Hara, "After all, tomorrow is another day."

 

[Tobermory]

I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry when I went back and found Buddy on his towel where I usually feed him. Part of me felt bad that he's come to expect being fed with a syringe for his evening meal, and part of me was glad that he seemed so agreeable about it after he had had a few bites of the Sheba.

Awww. Little guy. Reminds me of Max when he had to get his insulin shots. He just automatically stopped and crouched down when he saw me coming with the syringe. Bless their hearts. We love them so.

So glad the Sheba worked out.

 

[cheeser]

Awww. Little guy. Reminds me of Max when he had to get his insulin shots. He just automatically stopped and crouched down when he saw me coming with the syringe. Bless their hearts. We love them so.

So glad the Sheba worked out.

Poor Max. I hope that deep down in their kitty hearts, they understand that we're really trying to help them because we love them so darned much. My heart always breaks into a million little pieces every time I have to give them medicine or do anything that they don't like or makes them afraid.

Many years ago, we had a cat with diabetes, and she'd run and hide when it was almost time for her insulin shots. Thank goodness the vet told us we could give her her shot while she was eating. She was so "in the zone" while she was chowing down, I don't think she even noticed when we gave her her shots anymore.