Bugsy has gone finicky - frustrating and scary

SO frustrating.... I knew, I knew this was going to happen one day........ It happened before a couple of times... Bugsy and Hope just get sick and tired of eating the same food day in and day out, and got finicky... Bugsy more so than Hope. Hope still eats her wet food, but Bugsy is on a complete hunger strike. Neither like their kibble anymore.
THIS SUCKS.
Sucks because they are both on hypoallergenic food...... and Bugsy just came out of that world record breaking diarrhea..... AAAAHHHHRRRRRR!!!!
Making changes to his diet was SO not in my plans!
I guess it could be a problem with the new bag... So that is my first hope... Calling the vet and see if they will take it back/replace it. It is a big bag, and I paid a LOT of $$$ for it too... I mean - he is spitting off the food!
I am having to spoon feed him and chase him around the house so he gates a proper amount of food... Because he is eating less than a can, I am mixing Nutrical in it.
The thing is, I have to fix this situation before I leave to my next trip, because I KNOW he can't be like this... I, his momma, will feed him... but really.... who else will? My next trip is a week long
Last time this happened they were just plain sick and tired of the food Z/D dry -so I changed to HP and immediately they ate it normally.
I think I will go back to Z/D for a change of taste tomorrow....
Otherwise, all is good with both of them - I just HATE having to feed one food only
Sorry for the vent.... I am just scary for my boy right now....

Thanks Auntie....
I will tell you that in trying to get them out of the single Hypoallergenic diet, I tried giving them little pieces of raw - as it was the purest meat I could think of. I have 3 bags of it in my freezer - Lamb, beef and Turkey... Hope couldn't take it, she threw up badly, and Bugsy with his tummy the way it is, it would take me a while to get him settled on it not risking his health.
At these times......... I wish I was home for longer periods of times where I could give it a try - at least they would have more choices, I think. (BTW, I did give to him, cooked - did not dare to give raw, he had no problems, but did not eat enough either....)
But oh well..... Such is life!
Who knows one day my vet and I will be able to work on that? I am getting tired of being on the edge with his diet - that's for sure.... Freaks me out being out of town for longer periods of time, you know? In the end of August I am going to be gone for 2wks straight (out of the country) and I am already in a fear that is beyond words.
Thanks Auntie

I do understand this, however, it is balanced, and with my lack of knowledge, my babies issues, my travel schedule and the fact that they are often on the hands of a petsitter, that is the only alternative if I ever want to consider raw. The brand is Stella & Chewy's BTW. In life, we need compromises.... Nothing is perfect.... My life isn't... I do my best

Not sure if all well just yet, but I went to the vet and they replaced the large bag for two medium bags - one of HP and one of Z/D. I mixed 1/4 of Z/D into it and offered to all of them - Bugsy ate and ate and ate So did Hope and Gracie
Let's Hope transitioning them for a while will satisfy their needs for a new taste!
Meanwhile, he has a vet visit on the 23rd for his liver panel follow up, so I will make sure to discuss diets with him, including adding some raw.

RarePuss, I am not sure if you are aware, but Bugsy has been on one food only for years. Day in and day out. Morning and night. For dry HP, for wet, ZD. He has allergies, and I am dealing with a diarrhea since October.
Thing is, during a hunger strike because he has gone finicky- I HAVE to do something- he has to eat to avoid fatty liver. I do not agree that a hypoallergenic food for life might be the best solution for him either- his body is getting no protein- none. His dry food has no meat- yep, vegetarian. So, I have to find a solution for him. I can not have him going on hunger strikes as I am out of town; he can die if I am out too long, and that is a very scary thought. The reason why I need to find a solution now, is that I am going on a week long trip in a couple of weeks, and for two weeks in the end of August. Those are the long trips- besides that, I am always on the road.

Thank you Tammy! Please know Lucas is always on my thoughts... Sorry if I don't respond to the threads as often as I should, but know that I am following him close and I am SO SO happy with how well he is doing - he looks AMAZING Your Lucas is to you like my Bugsy is to me, our kitties.... We just love them so much, don't we?
I had been spoon feeding Bugsy for the last several days - he will eat his whole wet meal from a spoon It is really the cutest thing But then a I thought... Gosh, who really would be here, on their knees, spoon-feeding their cats to make sure they eat everything? All it was missing was to play the little airplane game.... Bugsy.... Open your mouth.... here comes the plane zooooommmm

Hi RarePuss... yes... no pun intended, but Bugsy is MY RarePuss!
Believe me, I do not get frustrated easily... I would not vent about him... You have no idea what we have been through... But my thing is not the frustration - is the fear. I would be fine spoon-feeding him as he eats the whole thing... But then what happens when I am not here? Living with Bugsy is a balancing act. Everything I do has consequences. Every single medicine he has ever taken, from flea meds to antibiotics, to vaccines, to steroids, gave him bad reactions. Vaccines almost killed him. This never ending diarrhea started with a dose of antibiotics - never stopped. Sometimes I have to choose the lesser of two evils, as there is no other way around....... Such as now.
I know that by changing the food, his poop that just got formed will go back to soft. But I know that if I don't I risk fatty liver - I choose soft poop - anytime.

So.... with that stated:
He continues to eat a little more of the dry every time - now he is actually seeking it - I don't need to put it in front of him. The plates are all empty in the morning which is a great sign.

For the wet:
IMHO the best chicken-free wet food is Ziwi-Peak; hands down. He has done well on it in the past and it is very nutritionally packed. There are 3 flavors: Venison, Venison and Fish, and Lamb. They are grain free, additive free, and contain pretty much meat and organs. VERY expensive at $2.60-$2.79 a can, well worth it since he, Hope and Gracie all love it!
With Ziwi-Peak there is no need for spoon-feeding - he licks the plate clean
Because Ziwi is not really processed (just cooked inside of the can on low temps), the texture is kind of nasty - Bugsy HATES texture; I blend it on their (yep, not mine) smoothie maker into a puree so it is puuurrfect for him.
I have decided that Ziwi is the way I am going to add meat into his diet for now - as far as canned go, there is no more natural than that.

His poop is soft, as I expected, but he is going only once a day. It is also brown, not yellow yucky like when he has problems; not water-like either.

I think he is going to be just fine once he is used to these changes - for now I just want him to eat eat eat!

For the curious and those who don't know, here is the info on Ziwi-Peak: Highly recommend it!
Lamb:

Wait wait! you can see it! he is very cute... and spoiled! He has the cutest little tongue
Click on the image to watch the video

Attachment 15588

Hi Laurie I am watching him Like a hawk Believe me, he will never go without eating
He is eating much better now - It is also great that Ziwi is so nutritiously dense - for example: One can is good for a 9lb cat for 2 days. He is eating on his own again, although I need to follow him a bit, he is licking his plate clean. He is also eating dry much better. I think he will be just fine.
Of course Hope is in heaven! I am glad she is able to eat meat again - frankly, I am glad both are back on meat! Regardless, Bugsy is going to the vet on the 23rd for a full checkup, CBC and liver enzymes. I am sure he is going to be fine, but I will consider getting some appetite stimulants just in case - 2 weeks out of town kind of scare me.

Really, REALLY awesome food Laurie! He might not like the texture though - you will see what I mean, it is really natural stuff, so you won't see the creamy texture you usually see on canned food. You notice that they actually put the real meat and organs in there - yummy for the kitties, kinda nasty for us. I have a little smoothie maker, so I add a bit of water and whip it into a cream - they go ga-ga.
Lamb is not popular - Venison and venison and fish are a huge success.
IMHO you can't get better food than Ziwi as far as canned goes...

By the way, Bugsy is going to the vet tomorrow.... He is doing really well, but I decided to take him earlier so if there is something wrong there is time to take care of it before I go out of town on the 28th. I am also considering shaving him duet to hairballs - we will see if I comeback with a chubby sphynx instead of a ragdoll tomorrow

.....................................

It's official - Bugsy will be a naked boy today
We went to the vet and I decided to get him a lion cut He is there right now the poor thing
Anyways, Doc said he is doing really well, no gas, no inflammation on his bowels that he can feel, and he did not lose weight either - could lose some, but not too fast...... slowwwwwwwwly.
He is 17.4lbs (can you imagine that on a Lion cut? that will be either sad or funny )
He approved the food, and blood test results will be back on Monday - I will post pictures once he gets back
Oh, I forgot - the reason for the shave is hairballs - doc said it can be a huge problem (including with his diarrhea) and since he can't take hairball meds all the time, shaving helps a LOT. Bugsy overgrooms which is a problem.
He told me to give him only 1.5cc of vaseline once a week so he keeps absorbing his meds and probiotics, but at the same time has some maintenance on the hairball side of it

Here he is!