Cat Adjusted to New Home But Not Eating

tumbleweed01

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I just got a 6 month old female yesterday and have spent the last 24 hours introducing her to her new home. For about the 1st 10-12 hours she either just hid in a corner or gingerly explored the apartment. Since I was new to her as well, it took her about that long until she started to feel safe with me and show affection. Now, over a day later she seems to have settled well into her new surroundings, having explored the apartment in earnest and with considerable energy. She also seems very comfortable with me by now so that part of the introduction seems to have gone well.

We took another big step a few hours ago when she found the litter box and used it for the first time. The only concern I have left is that she hasn't shown any interest in eating or drinking water yet. I've placed her food dish and water in front of her several times so it's not a matter of her not knowing where to find it. She just seems totally disinterested in that part of her adjustment so far and hasn't even shown any interest in cat treats. As near as I can tell, it's been about a day and a half since she last ate or had any water but it doesn't seem to be bothering her one bit. She is now relaxing happily and contentedly on a comfortable spot on a window sill I have fixed up for her, after having spent what was almost certainly a very stressful night getting used to her new digs.

It's possible that she has been sneaking some food/water that I'm not aware of it but it her dish seems undisturbed as near as I can tell. Also, have been very near her most of the day and would have probably noticed if she had been eating anything. Another problem may be that I was unable to get her the same food that she had been eating prior to now so the food she has available to her now (Meow Mix) is different than the food she has been accustomed to eating. I do know that she has eaten Meow Mix in the past however. The Meow Mix will not be her permanent food. I just picked it up so that she would have something decent to eat until I could decide on the best permanent diet for her and obtain that food as soon as possible.

Can anyone give me any advice on what to do in this situation? How long should I give a cat to adjust to her new surroundings and new family before I become concerned about her not eating? This seems to be the only part of her introduction to a new home that she hasn't gotten over the hump on yet. Thanks for any advice.
 
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tumbleweed01

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Update:

I have just opened a can of tuna and cooked some baked chicken breast for her (each of which my previous cat would have killed for) but she hasn't shown any interest in either. On the other hand, she is bouncing around the apartment happily exploring her new home and doesn't seem to be in any distress (other than some slight bouts of wariness or nervousness that still occur on occasion). I would think that she would have figured out that she was hungry by now.
 

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I'd pick up some Fancy Feast classic style wet food and a few jars of baby food (Gerber's only meat) from the supermarket and see if she'll try those. FF seems to be almost irresistible to most cats!

And if you're going to feed a supermarket dry food, the Cat Chow Naturals is a much better choice than Meow Mix. Meow Mix really isn't a "decent" food.
 
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tumbleweed01

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Thanks for the suggestions. She did finally wolf down a huge portion of baked chicken breast later last night so I feel better knowing she has some food in her again. Baked chicken breast was always the "go to" food for my previous cat who had occasional GI problems. Whenever she was having problems with her regular food, she ALWAYS went nuts for the chicken breast (which my vet had recommended for these situations) and I always kept some frozen and on hand for such times (or as a special "treat" on occasion). It seemed particularly easy on her GI tract as well which is why my vet recommended it.

Clementine now seems to love the chicken breast as well but I don't want her to get accustomed to it or think it's going to be her regular diet. I'm not necessarily going to feed her supermarket cat food if there are better choices out there (such as IAMs maybe?) I always fed my previous cat a combination of both dry and canned food ("Hill's Science Diet for Sensitive Stomachs" and canned "Feline I/D" at my vet's recommendation). That way, she always had the dry food available to her round the clock (even if I was out of the house for the day) but she would also get some servings of the canned food several times most days to give her some additional variety.

I would like to provide my new Clementine the same kind of alternatives or "mix" of dry and canned food but I've been hearing lately on this forum that Hill's may not be the best choice. I am open to suggestions as to what would be the best permanent or "long term" diet for her and will be researching the best options over the next few days (including reading in detail the threads on nutrition here). I will try the Fancy Feast and Gerber's that you suggested but I would also like to get her on her "permanent" diet as soon as possible.
 

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Aw that's GREAT news! :clap: :clap: :clap: I'm sure she'll start eating more on her own now. :cross:

You'll find reading the threads that a good starting point for both canned foods and dry foods is no grains, and no soy. Some "grain free" foods still have a rather high carbohydrate content, which in a feline diet is what you want to minimize. Cats are obligate carnivores, and derive no real benefit from veggies and non-animal-based ingredients. They have zero nutritional requirement for carbohydrates, and over time, carbs take a toll on their systems as they're just not designed to digest them. Sadly, most vets are not well-trained in feline nutrition, and what many know is based mostly on sales pitches from the prescription diet companies, like Hill's and Royal Canin.

But what cats need are a diet high in protein, with as few carbohydrates as possible. Some people like to avoid fish, as it can both trigger allergies and/or contribute to the formation of crystals in urine above a healthy amount.

In dry foods, as almost all of them use some kind of "meal," what you want to look for are named-meat based meals (chicken meal, turkey meal - not just generic "meat meal" ). And meat, or meat-based meals should be tops on the list of ingredients, with pea meal or something further down the list.

In wet foods, the simpler the ingredient list the better. Before I started making home made food for my cats (I feed them raw), I fed them canned food only. The brands I fed were Nature's Variety, Evo 95%, Merrick's Before Grain, Ziwipeak, and some flavors of Weruva and the grain-free Wellness. All are low-carb, good quality, with simple ingredient lists. If I were still feeding them canned, I'd probably add the By Nature 95% to the mix. (I liked to rotate not just the protein-sources (flavors), but the manufacturers as well. If there's a recall, it really helps if you're already feeding more than one brand. :nod: ).

If I were feeding dry food, I'd try to limit it to 20% of their energy intake, I'd feed measured amounts, not just let them free feed, and I'd probably use EVO (grain free) or Nature's Variety (also grain free). If I could afford it, I'd feed the Wysong Epigen90 carb-free and starch-free dry food, but it's expensive. But it's nearly impossible to find a dry food that's under 10% carbohydrates. Those are the only three I know of that are lower than 10% carbs (in dry food).

If you want more options, Solid Gold Indigo Moon grain-free is 15% carbs, Earthborn Holistic Primitive Feline Natural grain-free dry is 18% carbs; Wellness Core is also 18% carbs, and Innova Prime chicken & turkey grain-free is 20% carbs. Orijen (very fishy food) is also just over 20% carbs. Those are the only dry foods I know of that are 20% carbs or less.

Hope this helps you in your search!

And I hope she starts eating normally now!
 
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tumbleweed01

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Thanks for all of the helpful information. I went and got her some Fancy Feast yesterday which she ate last night. She has gobbled it down again tonight so I think we may be in business here. That's at least two different foods (including the chicken) that I know she will eat and I will just keep her on the Fancy Feast for the time being while I explore the other options you mentioned. I have several questions in addition since as I mentioned, my only other experience with canned foods has been with the Feline I/D used to supplement her dry food. Since I would only feed my previous cat the canned food when she pestered for it (about 3 times a day) and she would always eat it immediately, I'm not sure quite what kind of schedule to use while feeding Clementine only the canned food for the time being.

- Using canned food only, how many times per day should I expect to have to feed her and if it is only once, what is the best time of day to do it? Right now, I am just doing it once per day at about 6-7 pm and she doesn't seem interested in having it any more frequently than that.

- If I put out canned food for her (either from a fresh can or from a can which has been kept in the refrigerator), how long can I expect it to remain safe for her to eat if she doesn't eat it right away?
 

- How much canned food per day should I expect her to need, say for a 6 month old kitten which she is now and also for a grown cat (once she reaches that stage)?

- If I were to decide to keep her on canned food only, how long can I expect her to be able to safely go without eating?. For example, I am thinking of situations where I might be gone for as long as say from 8 am to 10 pm. That's could be up to about 14 hours without food.  I wouldn't expect that to happen often but it COULD happen.

- Are the foods you mentioned above available locally in pet stores (say for example Petsmart, Petco, or perhaps a non chain pet store) or can they be obtaining only via online?

Thanks again!
 

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Well, it's odd that she only wants to eat once a day. :lol3:

Here are the feeding guidelines by Fancy Feast: "Feed an average size adult cat 1 can per 3-1/2 pounds of body weight daily. Feed up to twice this amount to kittens." Now - manufacturers typically recommend too much food. :nod: A typical adult cat needs between 4 and 6 ounces of food. A growing kitty should want to eat more. I'd think she'd need 2 of those 3 oz cans of food a day at a minimum, maybe three. My issue when feeding canned was getting them to eat enough at the number of meals I wanted to feed them. :rolleyes: Seems like this might be an issue for your kitty too.

It is good for them to have "hunger pangs" from time-to-time, as that triggers gastric emptying which is healthy for their systems.

What many of us feeding timed meals do is feed three times a day: before work, after work, and before bed (as late as possible). If you want to slip a fourth meal in there, if you're a morning person, you can feed her when you wake up, and then before work (assuming you're on a work DAY kind of schedule).

For days you'll be gone a long time, you can buy an ice cube tray to use to freeze the food for her. When it's frozen, bag it up. Feed her before you leave, and put out a couple of cubes of the frozen stuff, and she can eat it when it dethaws. :nod: That should tide her over until you come home, if you want to give her an all canned food diet.

And FYI, the Fancy Feast "classic" formulas have no grains and are low carb. :D

As to the other foods, the Petco here carries all of the wet foods and most of the dry ones, but all of them can be ordered online. :nod:
 
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tumbleweed01

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>> A growing kitty should want to eat more. I'd think she'd need 2 of those 3 oz cans of food a day at a minimum, maybe three. My issue when feeding canned was getting them to eat enough at the number of meals I wanted to feed them. Seems like this might be an issue for your kitty too.<<

Well, that's not an issue any more. She's discovered that she LOVES the "Fancy Feast" and practically inhales it whenever I serve it. She's up to 3 feedings a day now and I believe she would eat 2-3 of those 3 oz cans per sitting if I would let her, let alone 2-3 cans per day. She has eaten 2 1/2 of those small cans in the last half day already. That could get pretty expensive pretty fast though. Cat food bills of $70.00 to $75.00 per month for one cat don't exactly excite me but if that's what it takes, that's what I will do!

On the other hand, both kitty and I are still figuring this thing out and we're still only a few days into this thing. After we've gone more time at this and she has settled into a regular feeding routine, I'm sure I will have a better idea of what her food needs really are.
 

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:D :clap: Aw, that's great! And yes, when things settle down a bit, you'll be able to figure out what will work for your budge. Fancy Feast IS pretty expensive, and there will be less expensive alternatives to that. :D (That said, keep an eye out for sales on Fancy Feast. They are pretty frequent, and you can usually pick them up for $0.50 per can). If it adds up too quickly, the Friskies Pate varieties also aren't too bad. They come in 5.5 oz cans, and definitely cost less than Fancy Feast. :nod:
 
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