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Wet Food Frustration!!!!

post #1 of 24
11/1/11 at 9:29pm
Thread Starter 

So for the last 3+ weeks I've been slowly switching Loki over to wet food. It was going great and he was always ready to scarf down his meals. For the last 2 days this has stopped!!! He's still eating it but I think he wants dry food. He currently gets 1/8 cup blue buffalo dry in one of those dispenser balls once or twice a day. It seems that the advent of the ball correlates with his new distaste for wet food. This is a really annoying step backwards and I'm not really sure how to go about dealing with it.

 

Current meal plan: 2.75 oz wet cat food in the morning- today was nature's variety rabbit, which he liked last time (a week ago-ish)

1.3oz wet food (1/4 can) around 4 or 5pm and usually the 1/8 cup dry before bed

 

I was mixing wet and dry in the morning (less wet) but he seemed to be eating around the dry at the time so I cut it out.

 

I've been switching his food regularly and up until a couple days ago he didn't snub anything except weruva.

 

Today's eating pattern: Sometime between 7am and 4pm he ate 2/3 of his breakfast (he won't eat it when it gets dry, but I had to go to work and he had barely eaten) 4pm 1/4 can...licked it...drank up the gravy. 90% left. I took it away after an hour and went curling. Got back and offered it to him again...he opted for dry food crumbs hidden beside his bowl instead. Before he didn't care if it was warm or cold as long as it was that gross pate stuff.

 

Need some guidance :(

 

In other news he has been more spunky since Sunday. Very crazy kitty.

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post #2 of 24
11/1/11 at 11:22pm

Sounds like you are at the point I was at when I stopped feeding dry food. :nod:

I was doing the same, feeding part dry, part wet and sometimes he would love the wet, other times he would look right past it and search for any dry pieces he may have missed.. I kept trying to get down to 1/16 cup a day, but he just wouldn't let me. Wouldn't leave me alone, wouldn't stop begging. I finally said Forget it!!, scooped up the whole bag of dry and threw it on the top shelf of the closet and never looked back. :) Once it was out of the way and not even an option and he could no longer smell it, he never begged for it again.

If your goal is 100% wet, I think you are close enough like I was to cut it out entirely and start Loki in his brand new life of wet. :)

(Also, don't worry too much about him not eating the wet the past couple days, my cat did that too until I got rid of the dry.)

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post #3 of 24
11/4/11 at 7:06am

I understand your frustrations argh2.gif , so I am looking to see what kind of tips you get back too!

 

Esme is the dry food addict and we have tried for the longest time to just mix her wet food just a little bit with her dry food, but then she won't touch it, PERIOD. We won't feed her anything else and try it for a day or two. But then, I am not going to starve her for up to 48 hours, but she is so dang stubborn she WILL NOT touch the dry/wet mix.

 

The only time she will touch wet is if it is all fish (which I know is not good). So I figured, I would use the fish to mix to attract her (whether I mix the fish cat ood with dry or other kinds of wet). Nope, nothing. And again, we don't resort to putting anything else back down unless she is pushing a super long time without eating. (Her dry food is Before Grain, so at least it isn't some icky food, which I am thankful for).

 

Oh -- also, I keep her dry food in a separate room that she doesn't go into, so it's not like she is seeing it and smelling it.

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post #4 of 24
11/4/11 at 7:25am
Thread Starter 

The saga continues....the day after I wrote this I went back to wet dry in the morning. He went nuts for it. Yay win. Did that for 2 days no problems. Now today fail...one lick and he decided he wasn't doing it. I'm starting to think he'll only eat it if it's a fresh can. Today is fish friday (for the cat not me) Decided to give him fish flavours on Fridays, just to keep up the variety. So I guess I'll try again when I get home from work.

 

These cat's just don't know what's good for them frusty.gif

 

BTW love the name Esme

 

Might have to try what Minka said and just go all wet for better or worse. I just hate that I have 4lbs of dry cat food just sitting there. I need a feral or two

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post #5 of 24
11/4/11 at 7:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post

The saga continues....the day after I wrote this I went back to wet dry in the morning. He went nuts for it. Yay win. Did that for 2 days no problems. Now today fail...one lick and he decided he wasn't doing it. I'm starting to think he'll only eat it if it's a fresh can. Today is fish friday (for the cat not me) Decided to give him fish flavours on Fridays, just to keep up the variety. So I guess I'll try again when I get home from work.

 

These cat's just don't know what's good for them frusty.gif

 

BTW love the name Esme

 

Might have to try what Minka said and just go all wet for better or worse. I just hate that I have 4lbs of dry cat food just sitting there. I need a feral or two


Oh dear.. lol! Well GOOD LUCK!!! I know people in other posts and articles have said to try sprinkling some Forti Flora, parmesan cheese, or even fish flakes to attract them to it. I've tried the parmesan cheese and she was even more turned off. As with the Forti Flora, it looked like it could be pretty expensive and I hate to buy so much of it if it doens't work. I'm a little confused about the fish flakes one... lol

 

Keep us updated on his progress!

 

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post #6 of 24
11/4/11 at 7:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post


BTW love the name Esme


Thanks! highfive.gif

 

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post #7 of 24
11/4/11 at 9:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post

The saga continues....the day after I wrote this I went back to wet dry in the morning. He went nuts for it. Yay win. Did that for 2 days no problems. Now today fail...one lick and he decided he wasn't doing it. I'm starting to think he'll only eat it if it's a fresh can. Today is fish friday (for the cat not me) Decided to give him fish flavours on Fridays, just to keep up the variety. So I guess I'll try again when I get home from work.

These cat's just don't know what's good for them frusty.gif

BTW love the name Esme

Might have to try what Minka said and just go all wet for better or worse. I just hate that I have 4lbs of dry cat food just sitting there. I need a feral or two

What are you doing with the leftover cans? Do you leave them out? Do you put a lid on them?
Leftovers really need to go in the fridge, but then when they are cold they aren't very tasty to cats, so you have to heat it up one of several ways: Put it in the microwave for a few seconds (checking to make sure it isn't too hot), heating up the bowl itself (running it under hot water or boiling hot water in it), or adding hot water onto the food itself. agree.gif

When I ditched the dry, I didn't throw out the bag. I kept it in the closet until I gave it away to a man feeding ferals. My other bag I kept actually until just the other week when I gave it to my friend to give to his poor Aunt. Cans my cat can't eat I keep as well, I've given them away to several people in dire need.
On the flip side, you can just drop them off at your local shelter, they would appreciate it very much. smile.gif
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post #8 of 24
11/4/11 at 1:22pm
Thread Starter 

I keep the unfinished cans covered up in the fridge. Sometimes he likes it cold but usually I mix in warm water and he's ok with eating slop. Actually he prefers it over more solid wet food. I might be overreacting; he seems to be eating but with less vigor. Maybe he is turning into a grazer. This will probably change when Isis moves back in. He has only truly snubbed beef flavour and weruva.

 

Princessesme...maybe since your kitty likes fish flavours the fish flakes would work. Might be worth a try. I'm thinking they mean like goldfish food...but I'm not positive!!

 

I have eliminated some foods that he won't eat and I'll be taking those to the shelter for the kitties if Isis doesn't want them.

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post #9 of 24
11/4/11 at 3:05pm
You do need a feral or two rolleyes.gif for the leftover's. On some days, my feral's get a really good mixture of food laughing02.gif. I also used to feed my cats Instinct Rabbit wet, on a rotation. They always scarffed it down until a few weeks ago. Now they turn their noses up (four of my six) at any of the Instinct flavor's. Odd, because they always loved that brand and I wonder if something was off with those lot of can's dontknow.gif. So I stopped buying it. Too expensive to be feeding that to the feral's bluelaugh.gif.

I also mix a teeny bit of dry in my cat's wet meals. They love it served up that way. They also get one meal a day of the Stella/Chewey's raw freeze-dried cubes, soaked in water. I am starting to introduce raw to their diet. They LOVE LOVE the raw, except for Pipsqueak rolleyes.gif I know it is hard not to offer the dry when they refuse to eat the wet. I have resorted to that with Pipsqueak. Somedays he just flat out refuses wet food. It is so frustrating frusty.gif and he won't leave me alone until I break down and give him some dry. He can be very, very persistant. I am trying to get him used to the freeze-dried raw cat food and offer that when he refuses wet instead of the dry he so craves. But he just won't eat the raw, yet. But I can be persistant too flail.gif
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post #10 of 24
11/4/11 at 4:19pm
Thread Starter 

Hehe if only we could reason with them. Loki is so hot and cold about his food. Yesterday he wanted dry mixed in...today no dry. I think I need to just let it go and as long as he eats a bit he's not gonna starve. I guess I just feel like I'm throwing too much away and this is primo stuff! Gonna start feeding less more often.

 

I really like the cat feeding stories. Sure don't get that sort of behaviour with most dogs eh

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post #11 of 24
11/4/11 at 5:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post

I keep the unfinished cans covered up in the fridge. Sometimes he likes it cold but usually I mix in warm water and he's ok with eating slop. Actually he prefers it over more solid wet food. I might be overreacting; he seems to be eating but with less vigor. Maybe he is turning into a grazer. This will probably change when Isis moves back in. He has only truly snubbed beef flavour and weruva.

 

Princessesme...maybe since your kitty likes fish flavours the fish flakes would work. Might be worth a try. I'm thinking they mean like goldfish food...but I'm not positive!!

 

I have eliminated some foods that he won't eat and I'll be taking those to the shelter for the kitties if Isis doesn't want them.

Thanks. I was thinking the same thing about the fish flakes, but then of course I don't know what fish flakes taste like. Lol She is so stinkin picky. The only brand she will touch, for the most part is Fussie Cat.

I tried the water thing too to warm it up, but I've noticed that she is even more picky with leftovers (sadly, like me, lol).

Have you tried parmesan cheese? I've read that people said it really works. I'm on the hunt for something like a sample pack of Forti Flora.
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post #12 of 24
11/5/11 at 5:18pm
People use the word 'grazer' around here a lot, but well, cats arent cows or goats. They are carnivores. And carnivores don't need to graze.

Anyhow, Lokilove I've found it's better to get the bowl nice and hot, and instead of mixing in the water, just pour it on top. You can also put the whole can beforehand in a shallow dish full of hot water as well. The food still warms up nicely without the cat having to eat soup. (My cat actually likes to take bites out of his food. tongue.gif )
Also, I think a lot of the problems you are having will disappear if you switch him to all wet at this point. Like I said, my cat did the same, flip-flopping between what he did and didn't want because he always knew the dry would appear if he begged long and hard enough.

And for anyone wondering, yes, when fish flakes are referred to, we are talking about these:
279
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post #13 of 24
11/5/11 at 10:53pm

Thanks Minka! I am having similar frustrations as Lokilove! I have never thought about sticking the can in warm water to warm it up. I've tried the hot bowl idea and the hot water idea and neither of them really worked out well. sigh.gif I think I am going to combine the warm can with fish flakes and see what happens.

 

Good luck Lokilove!!

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post #14 of 24
11/6/11 at 11:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by PrincessEsme View Post

Thanks Minka! I am having similar frustrations as Lokilove! I have never thought about sticking the can in warm water to warm it up. I've tried the hot bowl idea and the hot water idea and neither of them really worked out well. sigh.gif I think I am going to combine the warm can with fish flakes and see what happens.

Good luck Lokilove!!

You're welcome princessesme :-)
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post #15 of 24
11/7/11 at 10:54am
Thread Starter 

So I went all wet with Loki...today was day 2. I kindly warmed up his breakfast to a nice mousy temp...he didn't even lick it!!! So out of annoyance I put down the remaining food still cold in the can...he nomed it up. No more warm kitty food for you! frusty.gif

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post #16 of 24
11/7/11 at 11:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post

The saga continues....the day after I wrote this I went back to wet dry in the morning. He went nuts for it. Yay win. Did that for 2 days no problems. Now today fail...one lick and he decided he wasn't doing it. I'm starting to think he'll only eat it if it's a fresh can. Today is fish friday (for the cat not me) Decided to give him fish flavours on Fridays, just to keep up the variety. So I guess I'll try again when I get home from work.

 

These cat's just don't know what's good for them frusty.gif

 

BTW love the name Esme

 

Might have to try what Minka said and just go all wet for better or worse. I just hate that I have 4lbs of dry cat food just sitting there. I need a feral or two

Storage:  yep - they can smell the stuff - so get it as far away from them as possible

 

Dry Food Supply:   if you have room in the refrigerator or freezer - put it in there, then if a stray happens by, you can (maybe :)) share the food with it??? or - donate the food to your local shelter?   :)  

 

Encouraging to eat "what's good for them":  sometimes I need to "prime the pump" with just a few pieces of kibble by the wet food - once they get the appetite wetted with the kibble mine will then go on and eat the canned food.

 

BTW, I let the canned food stay out for hours, too - and we don't seem to have a problem with that.  Sometimes my last feeding is at 11 pm before I go to bed, and I just leave the food there - sometimes they are still munching on it at 7 a.m. with no issues because the food has been left out for around 8 or 9 hours.

 

The only food - that seems to be considered healthy by some - that our FeLV will eat is Weruva Cats In The Kitchen Love Me Tender pouches - http://www.petflow.com/product/weruva/weruva-cats-kitchen-love-me-tender-pouches

 

This flavor does contain tuna (which I don't like) but I need him to eat, so ... ?

I hope you find success without getting too many gray hairs. :)

 


 

 

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post #17 of 24
11/7/11 at 3:31pm

IMO cats will always want the food they think tastes the best.   A cat that may turn its nose up at Blue Wilderness wet would likely inhale Friskies Fish Feast wet.

 

If you have a cat that doesn't want its wet but does want its dry, just switch the wet to a more palatable one and the dry to a less palatable one.  Voila.  biggrin.gif

 

Blue Wilderness is apparently not that tasty, as it is eaten when its all that is available (sometimes they come back to it for nibbles from the autofeeder till its all gone), but they always prefer their more tasty wet foods that are rotated to a new flavor at every meal.    The Blue Wilderness is always right out where they eat in two autofeeders that aren't airtight, they never bug me for dry as I don't feed the dry the machine does, and they gobble their wet down really fast so I don't have to concern myself over spoilage.  Easy peasy. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7NlAk2KjLQ

 

I believe that routines are important though.   I usually wear my alarm watch which goes off at their two daily feedings, that way they know not to bother begging as it has never worked.   Wesley does scream the whole time I'm actually preparing the meal though most of the time... *facepalm*   "HURRY UP! HURRY UP!"  LOL!

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post #18 of 24
11/7/11 at 4:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ducman69 View Post

I believe that routines are important though.   I usually wear my alarm watch which goes off at their two daily feedings, that way they know not to bother begging as it has never worked.   Wesley does scream the whole time I'm actually preparing the meal though most of the time... *facepalm*   "HURRY UP! HURRY UP!"  LOL!

See, Grim is the opposite. He begs and begs for food until I get up, either purring and being nice, or knocking things over and making lots of noise; but once I start making his food, he sits down and waits patiently. XD
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post #19 of 24
11/8/11 at 6:07pm
Thread Starter 

Update on Loki: He seems to really be enjoying the wet food now. I do have to mix in a tablespoon of water to soften up some of the types like Wellness. He has a hard time noming it properly and gets it EVERYWHERE if it's not mushy enough.

 

I sprinkle a few kibbles on top. I think he's drawn to both the sound and the smell of the dry cause he goes crazy for it on there (like 10 BB kibbles) and strangely enough he leaves some of those behind. Thanks for the help! I think we've got it figured out...until he decides to change his mind anyway.

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post #20 of 24
11/8/11 at 7:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lokilove View Post

Update on Loki: He seems to really be enjoying the wet food now. I do have to mix in a tablespoon of water to soften up some of the types like Wellness. He has a hard time noming it properly and gets it EVERYWHERE if it's not mushy enough.

I sprinkle a few kibbles on top. I think he's drawn to both the sound and the smell of the dry cause he goes crazy for it on there (like 10 BB kibbles) and strangely enough he leaves some of those behind. Thanks for the help! I think we've got it figured out...until he decides to change his mind anyway.

Oh cats, ever fickle. wink.gif
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post #21 of 24
11/15/11 at 5:42pm
Thread Starter 

Gave the kitties their first try of raw today. Just a couple little pieces of chicken breast in with their wet. I LOVE watching them chew it. Although they were just little pieces they really got into chewing them. So primal. Might be a bit addicting hehe. Also seemed to encourage Loki to eat all his food. Next challenge...Isis.

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post #22 of 24
11/16/11 at 8:54am
Thread Starter 

Rawr my kitties are driving me up the wall at feeding time. I think I need to take a huge step back. Both cats are on different levels of wet food. Loki is pretty much all wet while Isis is pretty much all dry (i was switching her too fast and she got an upset tummy).

 

Loki is intimidated by Isis and uncomfortable eating if she's in the same room. Understandable and I will change this. He has only been sniffing his food and then leaving to come back later once she has left.

(Isis is fed on the table, Loki on the floor)

Loki is also really into stealing Isis' food. He knows he's not supposed to so he sneaks into her room..scarfs down as much as he can until he hears me then runs away. He's getting fat again. He even goes up on the table to eat her wet (the exact same as his)

 

Isis likes to eat slowly. She doesn't finish her meal and will just keep coming back. How can i change this. Ideally I'd like to feed them and remove the food within 30 mins or sooner so they don't eat each others'. How do you train kitties to eat their food?????

 

I'm just not sure where to start with these guys. Loki got fat in the past from eating Isis' food and Isis lost weight because Loki was eating her food...HELP!!!

 

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post #23 of 24
11/16/11 at 8:56pm
Loki, I swear we have the same cats just in different bodies! I was actually coming onto the boards to ask the same question. Esme is a dry eater, who likes to nibble, walk away, nibble, walk away and if it even has a teenie tiny piece of wet, she won't touch it (even if she hasn't eaten in 24 hrs). Naku, he is a food machine and we have to keep him in his own room for 30min and then grab her food, or else he will eat it all.

Good luck!
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post #24 of 24
11/30/11 at 8:16am
Thread Starter 

Loki is eating pretty well. I put him in front of his bowl if he has been away from it too long and then he eats a bit more.

 

Isis is really starting to worry me. She isn't eating enough for her size. It all started when I gave her some dry food when Loki got sick and I just didn't have time to do anything about it. She didn't eat it and hasn't eaten much since. She's eating but nowhere near 200+ calories per day that she needs.

 

Tonight and from now on she's getting only wet. She's stressed with poor Loki smelling like the vet and has been attacking him...so I think there are a lot of contributing factors.

 

How many calories/day does a cat need to survive?

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