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Kitty won't eat wet food....

post #1 of 7
3/26/11 at 8:03am
Thread Starter 
I posted a thread a few days ago about switching my cats over to wet food, I really appreciate all the responses! My girl cat, Rosie, will eat pretty much anything I put in front of her and she doesn't care about the temperature either. She's so easy. Now my boy kitty, Jimmy, is refusing to eat the canned food. I've tried several different brands and textures (all premium) and he either won't eat it at all or he'll only eat a tiny bit. Last night I took their kibble up so know they were hungry this morning and he still refused it! I figured he would eat it if he were hungry enough. I finally just put his dry food down a few minutes ago and he is happily eating it. My poor baby was so hungry.

So I'm wondering if anyone has any tips on how to get a cat to eat canned food? What if he NEVER eats it, is it really so bad for him to just eat dry??

ETA: I don't see him drinking a ton of water either, which makes me doubly concerned. I do have one of those water fountains.

Thanks!
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post #2 of 7
3/26/11 at 8:20am
Premium food doesn't taste better than cheap food, in fact the opposite is usually the case. Friskies wet is like crack, but avoid the chunk+gravy, as otherwise he's likely just to lick off the gravy. And you tried fishy flavors too?

You can try sprinkling something yummy on the wet food. Purina makes Fortiflora probiotics that my cats love the flavor of. You can also put on a light sprinkling of parmesan cheese. For whatever reason, all cats I know also love fingerfood... not sure what the deal is, but even if they won't eat it off a plate, if you scoop it onto your finger it somehow enhances the deliciousness.

As a baby, my sister refused to drink from the bottle. Finally the doc just said, let her get hungry enough and she will. Apparently her willpower was strong, but everyone has a breaking point... and from then on it was smooth sailing.

So IMO, don't give up so soon on your baby, and if the other tricks don't work, call his bluff a little longer say 12-16hrs.

He just has to get used to eating other stuff.
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post #3 of 7
3/26/11 at 8:27am
Oh, never mind he is eating a tiny bit. Hmm, he must just not like the flavors then. What were you feeding?

A "junk food" wet added to his diet is better then no wet IMO. Also last thing I forgot to mention, I had purchased a bulkbox of 12oz Wellness Chicken wet for my kitties. First couple weeks they loved it, then less, then started taking a while to finish the plate. Since then I switch to a different flavor every meal, and they attack it, heh.
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post #4 of 7
3/26/11 at 8:38am
Thread Starter 
Thank you! Yes, I will keep trying. I've tried Felidae (both the grain-free and the chicken & rice one), Blue Buffalo, Fancy Feast (the flaked fish & shrimp one, which he actually ate a decent amount of), Natural Balance, and a couple of other premium ones. They're all chicken-based. I have some Merrick Grammy's Pot Pie sitting in the cupboard I'll try soon. I'm definitely not going to give up. I think I'm going to switch my routine and take the kibble up in the evening so they are both good and hungry in the morning when I get up. Call his bluff like you said.
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post #5 of 7
3/26/11 at 10:28am
Dribbling just a little bit of tuna juice over the food gets cats interested, too. As does sprinkling freeze-dried meat treats on it.... Whole Life makes several flavors, as does Stella & Chewy's. I keep some of Whole Life's freeze-dried chicken treats in the house at all times - it never fails to entice a recalcitrant cat to eat.

Also, it's kinda weird and I don't know why it works, but petting or brushing the kitty next to his food dish, or right before placing him in front of the food stimulates, often cats to eat.

Wet food is so much healthier than kibble, Sarathan - I'm glad to see you're not giving up on making the transition!

Good luck!

AC
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post #6 of 7
3/26/11 at 11:01am
Speaking of sprinkling dried, they've got bonito flakes at most asian grocery stores cheap-cheap.
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post #7 of 7
3/26/11 at 12:09pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the suggestions, I will try them!

Yeah, I might try some more junkier food. I can live with by-products, but I am putting my foot down on wheat, soy, and corn, lol.
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