For Cat Lovers Only XI - Post Pics, Ask Questions, Comments, Etc.

[elevated_u2_fan]

Originally Posted by Liesje .OK so maybe she's not AS fat as this pose makes her look, but they both still could stand to lose a pound or two!

She looks like Shmerm:

[zuropa_fit]

Question/Problem: When I got my new kitty from the Humane Society, there was a post-it on her cage that said 'Please only feed me wet food'. But the people working there that afternoon couldn't find any reason for that - no GI problems, no dental problems, nothing in her 'medical records'. So they suggested I mix dry and wet to introduce it. So I've tried that but she will NOT eat the dry stuff. So I guess I have two questions.
1) Any suggestions for introducing/teaching her to eat dry food? They said the wet stuff will rot her teeth.
2) If not, how much wet food should I give a fully grown cat each day? I've only ever fed cats dry so I have no experience with this. It seems expensive.

[Lila64]

River! So Hi wenda, long time!


OK, just a couple of Otto I found...

[Liesje]

Wet food should really be fine as long as it's a good food (just like kibble), but what you want to feed will depend on what YOU want in the food. The only reason I don't feed wet (dogs and cats) is that I can't afford it. I'd sooner switch to raw homecooked. I'm not really sure how much to feed though since I've never used it. If you stop feeding the wet she will eat the dry. I just changed dry formulas and one cat is not eating it. I don't believe an otherwise healthy animal will actually starve itself to sickness or death only because it doesn't *like* the food offered. It may take a few days for the animal to come around but in my experience, they always have (dogs and cats).

[sue4u2]

Originally Posted by wenda Here's one of the most recent pictures of my kitty, River. Look at that face!

What a sweetheart

[Sicy]

Originally Posted by zuropa_fit Question/Problem: When I got my new kitty from the Humane Society, there was a post-it on her cage that said 'Please only feed me wet food'. But the people working there that afternoon couldn't find any reason for that - no GI problems, no dental problems, nothing in her 'medical records'. So they suggested I mix dry and wet to introduce it. So I've tried that but she will NOT eat the dry stuff. So I guess I have two questions. 1) Any suggestions for introducing/teaching her to eat dry food? They said the wet stuff will rot her teeth. 2) If not, how much wet food should I give a fully grown cat each day? I've only ever fed cats dry so I have no experience with this. It seems expensive.

There must have been a reason that it said to only feed her wet food.. that's strange. Hopefully she doesn't have any UTI issues or anything like that (they usually recommend feeding wet food in that case). However, you knew that when you adopted her so if she wont eat dry food, well you'll need to accommodate her. I would try just leaving a bowl of dry food out for a day and see if she eats any. I don't think a lot of cats like it mixed together. Make sure there is plenty of water available in case she doesn't eat. Any longer than that and you'll have to give in back to the wet food. I would feed maybe 1/2 a can per day. There are lots of arguments about wet/dry but overall I personally believe wet food to be healthier for them as dry food contains a lot of grains and carbs.

Have you taken her to the vet yet? Might not be a bad idea just to do an overall checkup.

[swandiver]

And, unlike dogs, cats will *not* eat anything. When my old Max was about 12 he decided he was never ever going to eat hard food again. I had the vet check his teeth, etc., and they were fine. He just decided he wasn't going to eat it.

And I had to hunt to find a wet food he'd eat. At least once I found a brand, he'd eat various flavors (but not all). I remember being at a grocery store and a man was staring anxiously at the Fancy Feast cans. He said his cat would only eat *one* flavor and that was that. When he found it, he'd buy the store out.

Right now, my little guys aren't interested in wet food at all. My daughter feeds her big guys a quarter of a can of Science Diet wet in the morning and a quarter at night, then has dry food out as well. The little guys haven't made the first step towards that wet food!

[MsPurrl]

Fergus and Callie have both eaten Purina cat chow every since we got them (1-1/2 years apart)--not the crunchy kind. Fergus's is the "indoor cat" formula, and Callie's is the "hairball/weight control" one, in a measured daily amount. We've never given the wet food.

[zuropa_fit]

Thanks for the input, folks. I've got a vet appt for next week.

[dazzledbylight]

good luck, zu!

[Guguza]

Hey chicks! I wanna invite all you to visit the website of my cat's breeder.

I'm so proud that the pics of my cat are there in the gallery part. Her name is Capriccio Break Point but we just call her Breaky.

The link is... Capriccio Ragdolls

[bonosloveslave]

Originally Posted by Liesje I don't believe an otherwise healthy animal will actually starve itself to sickness or death only because it doesn't *like* the food offered. It may take a few days for the animal to come around but in my experience, they always have (dogs and cats).

It's not terribly common but I have seen it happen - cats can be fussy to the point of 'starving' themselves, that is to say they can go into liver failure if they go several days without eating. They are actually at higher risk of liver complications if they refuse to eat when they are already chubby/obese - their liver can get very quickly overwhelmed as the body breaks down the fat stores for energy. They won't look like skin and bones necessarily but they can die from the liver complications that can develop from not eating. I always warn people if I recommend a new diet, that we can't tell the cat it is good for them and they should eat it so we may need to address the problem differently if they won't eat a new food. If they don't like it, we have to be very careful about playing the game of, "That's all you're getting to eat so if you don't want it you can go hungry, aka, 'When she gets hungry enough she'll eat it...'"

[bonosloveslave]

I feed my cats a combo of wet and dry food, wet is more expensive but it is most similar to what they would be eating in the wild - high moisture content along with higher levels of protein and fat (think of what a chubby chipmunk is made of!), and a very low level of carbohydrates. Tidbits I tell my clients:

-The more wet food cats will eat, generally the better for their kidneys and urinary tract - also they are LESS likely to become obese (wet food works better with their natural metabolism, they feel fuller on the same number of calories etc). 90+% of the cats I diagnose urinary stones/crystals in are eating solely dry food.

-Wet food does NOT rot their teeth - I have seen WAAAAY too many cats with *awful* mouths at young ages that have only ever eaten dry food. Veterinary dentists have done studies that show there is no significant difference in the tartar build-up of cats eating just wet vs. just dry vs. a combo. Cat dental problems have different causes than the dental problems we get. Dental kibbles can help reduce tartar build-up but for whatever they eat, all cats should have regular dental cleanings and exams, ideally every 1-2 years.

-I recommend switching kittens to adult food around 6 months - they are still growing at that age but their stomachs are big enough that they don't NEED the high fat/high calorie kitten food. Most bags will recommend feeding it until they are 1 year old; most cats are fat at their 1st year check up if they stay on kitten food that long.
BTW, I have seen a few females going into heat around 4 months, but the overall average is between 5 and 6 months.

-Food companies are VERY generous in their recommendations for amounts of food to eat (ummmmm maybe to sell more food?!?) - there was a blurb in one of the veterinary journals awhile back that figured if an average cat is eating 10 more kibbles per day than their body needs, they will gain an average of a pound per year.

-Free-choice feeding dry food is one of the biggest causes of obesity in cats - they don't get the normal feelings of fullness with the higher carb dry food. Also, when it is a 24-hour buffet, they may not seem like they are eating large meals at any one time but the snacking through the day adds up. Many cats eat because they're bored and it's there and it tastes good.

-The AVERAGE cat eating the AVERAGE cat food rarely needs more than 1/2 cup per day (less than that if getting canned food). Premium brands are generally higher in calories so generally need to feed even less.

-If eating ONLY wet food, an average cat usually will not overdo it - they can generally eat what they want and not get heavy - but an average 11 pound cat just eating wet food will need approx 7-8oz of wet food per day to maintain their weight (about 1 and 1/3 of one of the tuna sized cans of cat food).

[swandiver]

Thanks, BLS -- very interesting!

Jack, indeed, had a very bad case of gingivitis at his annual check up (he was about 16 months old), bad teeth, etc., and he only eats dry food. We had them cleaned with a follow-up round of antibiotics. (After going through 2 years of chemo with my old cat, Max, I bought pet insurance this time around!)

We do tend to allow the cats to free graze, so I'm thinking that's going to stop. Feed them when I got to work and later in the evening. I'll have to see if I can get my DD on board with this as she free grazes her older boys (they also eat wet food as well).

[cinnaminson]

the cat food we use says to give a cup per cat per day. We give our kittehs a cup between the two of them and they seem very happy and well fed