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Food aversion and vitamin supplementation

post #1 of 7
9/7/10 at 3:31pm
Thread Starter 
Due to a bad case of food aversion developed when my cat was nauseous from being ill, he now will only eat a very limited range of food. None of what he will eat is very nutritious, and they can all be classified more as treats than food. His diet consists of mainly Gerber's baby food, Fancy feast appetizer, and NOW! grain-free treats. He is not getting enough calcium from the baby food, and not enough vitamins that would go into regular cat food.

I am looking into supplementing his diet with vitamins and calcium. Do you have any recommendations on the brand/product, and amount to use? There are so many brands of products, and it is not clear which ones are reputable and save. Other than vitamins and calcium, what else should be supplemented? Thanks!
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post #2 of 7
9/7/10 at 4:04pm
Please consult a vet ...

1. No online advice can replace direct veterinary intervention. If you suspect that your cat may be ill, please contact your vet immediately. You are welcome to look for advice in the health forum while waiting for that appointment, but never delay proper veterinary care waiting for Internet advice. Remember that cats, and especially kittens, are very adept in keeping pain to themselves and delaying treatment may cause irreversible damage.
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post #3 of 7
9/7/10 at 9:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by asntp View Post
Due to a bad case of food aversion developed when my cat was nauseous from being ill, he now will only eat a very limited range of food. None of what he will eat is very nutritious, and they can all be classified more as treats than food. His diet consists of mainly Gerber's baby food, Fancy feast appetizer, and NOW! grain-free treats. He is not getting enough calcium from the baby food, and not enough vitamins that would go into regular cat food.

I am looking into supplementing his diet with vitamins and calcium. Do you have any recommendations on the brand/product, and amount to use? There are so many brands of products, and it is not clear which ones are reputable and save. Other than vitamins and calcium, what else should be supplemented? Thanks!
That's not a diet I would make any recommendations against. What commercial foods have you tried? Perhaps, with that list to compare against, we could suggest some commercial cat food brands and/or flavors that your kitty would find acceptable.

AC
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post #4 of 7
9/26/10 at 8:09pm
Thread Starter 
"That's not a diet I would make any recommendations against."

Is this because the diet is OK or is it because you cannot make any suggestion on how to supplement it? I am now adding "Balance IT" to his baby food.

One of the reasons for the bad aversion is because I made the mistake of presenting him with many different types of dry and canned foods when he was sick and nauseous. Consequently, he developed aversion to a broad range of common commerical dry and canned foods. I have tried most brands (a long list) that are available on in pet stores. I probably need to find something that is rather different from most. Since many commerical dry and canned foods smell a bit alike, once he is adverse to one he will not accept the others that are similar in smell or taste.
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post #5 of 7
9/26/10 at 8:24pm
Have you thought about making your own canned food?
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post #6 of 7
9/26/10 at 9:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by asntp View Post
"That's not a diet I would make any recommendations against."

Is this because the diet is OK or is it because you cannot make any suggestion on how to supplement it? I am now adding "Balance IT" to his baby food.

One of the reasons for the bad aversion is because I made the mistake of presenting him with many different types of dry and canned foods when he was sick and nauseous. Consequently, he developed aversion to a broad range of common commerical dry and canned foods. I have tried most brands (a long list) that are available on in pet stores. I probably need to find something that is rather different from most. Since many commerical dry and canned foods smell a bit alike, once he is adverse to one he will not accept the others that are similar in smell or taste.
It's because what you're feeding is so far outside what a "normal" diet would look like that - while I understand the reasons you've given for feeding it - I'm not comfortable validating it by offering suggestions for supplementation (if I even had any ideas for supplementation!).

Have you tried a commercial raw? That might be different enough from what you've tried previously that he'll give it a try.

Also, there are many ways of tempting cats to eat something... perhaps some of them will help him get over some of his aversions? Here's a quick list: Freeze-dried 100% meat treats sprinkled over the foods (Whole Life makes several flavors that never fail to entice my cats to eat), Parmesan cheese, the juice from cans of water-packed, no-salt-added tuna and sardines, catnip, and strangely enough, flaked fish food.

Good luck!
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post #7 of 7
9/26/10 at 9:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy View Post
It's because what you're feeding is so far outside what a "normal" diet would look like that - while I understand the reasons you've given for feeding it - I'm not comfortable validating it by offering suggestions for supplementation (if I even had any ideas for supplementation!).

Have you tried a commercial raw? That might be different enough from what you've tried previously that he'll give it a try.

Also, there are many ways of tempting cats to eat something... perhaps some of them will help him get over some of his aversions? Here's a quick list: Freeze-dried 100% meat treats sprinkled over the foods (Whole Life makes several flavors that never fail to entice my cats to eat), Parmesan cheese, the juice from cans of water-packed, no-salt-added tuna and sardines, catnip, and strangely enough, flaked fish food.

Good luck!
Off topic.. Flaked fish food is usually made up of fish meal, krill meal , shrimp meal, soy , wheat and chemical preservatives( to date only 2 brands are naturally preserved)
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