So they hate the good stuff. And question on how much to give...

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My kitties won't eat the good cat food.  I've tried Wellness, Weruva, and a plethora of other brands.  Nope.  They won't touch it.  They'll only eat Friskies shreds and cuts, the kind in the can.  Would I be a bad owner to let them be and continue to eat this food?  I mean, I had a cat as a kid (20ish years ago) who lived to be 18, and ate only 9lives super supper.  Zero health problems.

They do eat a healthier dry food- taste of the wild.  They are ok with that.

And how much wet food should they be eating if they have free access to dry food all day?

Artemis is a male, he's 16lbs and 1y7m old.

Milo is a male, he's 13lbs, and 10mos old.

Frida is a female, she's 12lbs and 1y8m old.

I know the question of "how much"and "how often" is arguable- but what do you think?

My cats will only eat Friskies canned, too. I figure that as long as they get a higher-quality dry food, it's fine. As long as the wet food is wet, I'm OK with it. Probably if I had 3 cats, I'd give them each 1/3 of a can :lol3:. Which is nearly 2 ounces (1.83 oz each if you split a regular 5.5 oz can 3 ways), so that seems like a good amount for a meal. I give my cats 2 meals of wet food a day, and one meal of dry food.

Thanks I've been thinking of only filling up the dry food mid-day and overnight.. I usually keep it full and top it off during the day.  Not sure though.

I've been splitting 2 cans 3 ways once/day, and previously had been splitting 1 can 3 ways twice/day.  They're happy (and obviously quite plump) either way, so I guess I'll keep it up and probably cut out some of the dry food.

Sometimes my Frida gets picky (cough*tortietude*cough*) and won't eat wet food at all- she was raised on dry for a year by her previous owner.  I worked SO hard to get her to eat wet food, she has come far.

There is no way to know how much wet if you are free feeding dry, as you have no idea how many calories are consumed.   That is one of the reasons (along with some cheap recipes) that dry has gotten a bad rep with some, as they think dry is the issue when the real issue is simply overeating since dry food makes that easy.

The kcal/kg and Calories per can should be listed on the label, and a cat should eat around 200 calories a day (adjusting for activity level; Wesley is a spaz and runs and climbs all the time, heh).  

Although it will vary with frame size, the kitties seem to be on the heavy side as it is, so I would use this as an excuse to go to timed portion feeding for each cat.    If you can't really portion feed/calorie control each cat, you can do two gorge meals a day where they are allowed to eat as much as they want in a sitting and the rest of the food is put away within say 15 mins, and calories will be limited by the size of their tummies assuming you don't have any scarf and barf kitties.  

For comparison, my male cat is around 1.5yrs old and 9.9lbs (assuming my scale is accurate), and gets half a can of wet food (around 90 kcal) and about a 1/4 cup of dry (100kcal) and some greenies or other treats.    Any pics of Artemis from the side and above?  Chances are he could lose a couple pounds unless he's a very large breed.

I agree Artemis could lose a couple of pounds!  I'll try and get pics up.  He seems to be the one who eats the dry the most, so it could benefit him a lot.  He has a moderate activity level, Milo is a spaz and Frida is lazy (but she doesn't have a ravenous appetite either so it matches up, though she is a little tubby and was when we got her).

Try Soulistic (in Petco only) and Trader Joe's wet. I had the same issue, and my cat finally ate those brands.

I free feed dry, but between the two cats, they only get 1 cup of dry a day (though my youngest eats most of it!), in the morning. I don't refill till next day. this helps keep their weight regulated

The best food for a cat is one they will eat!!! If Friskies it is, then let it be and dont feel guilty. 

Okay, I'm back with pictures of my crew

First up, Artemis. I've always thought he had an odd shape to him- he has a really small head and a larger body- always has been this way.  Ever see a kitten with a small head? Lol, he was unique looking!

http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Artemis1.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Artemis2.jpg

Next, Frida.

http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Frida1.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Frida2.jpg

And Milo:

He wouldn't let me get a great picture, but he's cute, so I'll share anyways!

http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Milo5.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Milo3.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Milo2.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Milo1.jpg
And he's generally a bigger guy- he's got hugeee paws!

http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Milo4.jpg

And pictures of the 3 of them together, for comparison's sake. Milo has long hair, and Artemis has short hair, in case you can't tell them apart!

http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Cats3.jpg
http://s348.photobucket.com/albums/q345/NayelisMomma/?action=view&current=Cats1.jpg

My post is being held for moderation, but I just posted a pics post to this thread- they should be up shortly.

ETA: ok, they're up!

Oh wow what cuties!   Love that fluffy Milo, especially with those big paws and tail!    Looks like Artemis just has a big frame after all, so 2lbs lost is probably too much then, maybe 1lb?   I wonder if my scale is reading low or yours high, either that or Wesley would feel like a shrimp standing next to your big boy heh.  

So yeah if they'll only do friskies, then friskies it is.   Mine like everything, but their favorite seems to be the higher end Nutro stuff (complete care recipe), if you hadn't tried that.   I try to aim for half wet.

Thanks for sharing!  

Thanks!  I've actually weighed him on three scales, so it's right on!  (One is an infant scale, and the other two were me holding him and subtracting my weight from our compound weight).

Frida does feel pudgy to me, compared to Artemis.  I'm going to cut back on the dry food!

If Friskies is all they will eat, then I would keep feeding it. If you read the ingredients IIRC some of the Friskies is not that bad... If you can try other things too I'd keep trying just in case you may find something else they might eat. I have some cats who refuse to eat any canned food at all myself!

Here is a chart showing cat body condition:



Here is another chart to tell your cat's body condition:

http://media.marketwire.com/attachments/200802/MOD-402887_weight-chart1.jpg

A video on how to tell if they are overweight:


(yeah it's from Whiskas but the info is ok)

I have two cats who have small head and large body. They aren't the deep thinkers. But they sure do feel deeply.

I was wondering if mixing the good stuff in with the Friskies would help them get use to the new and better can food. Somebody else will have a better salution, I am sure.