Oh My Mia!

I knew Mia had lost some weight but I never realized  how much. The beginning of summer she weighed 12.1lb and as of tonight she is 9.8lbs. Shes lost a total of 2.3lbs in5 months.Before I got Mac (June 30th) she was eating Max Cat and did well on it. Then when Mac came I didnt have much money for kitten food too as he was totally unplanned. So I just bought Purina Kitten Chow for him (I know....but it was all I could afford as Im on permanant disability. Mia wouldnt eat her food anymore just Mac's so I went ahead and let her share his. This went on for a while then it suddenly didnt seem to set well on their tummies so I got Purina One Sensytive systems for them. They loved it and the upset tummies were gone. Mac is still eating it but I've noticed lately Mia is not at the bowl as often and where as they ate a total of 2 cups daily before only about 1 1/2 was being eaten now. I panicked when I saw her weight and ran to Dollar General and got some Friskies wet food (its the only thing around this little town. I split a 5.5 ounce can between the 2 but Mac ran back and forth between both plates. I couldnt stop him. I'm not sure how much she ate but she was at the plates as long as himand there is still about 1/4 of a can left and I KNOW  Mac was being a piggy.

 Obviously I need to find something different to get her to eat better sence she is loosing weight. I just dont know what is as inexpensive as possible but still a good quality. No grain free. When Mia was younger I tried a few different grain free foods and she had diareah. Then I put her on a food that had some grain and it cleared up right away. It needs to be kibble as its easier to afford. She does drink a good amount of water daily so I'm not worried about that.

Any suggestions would be great! 

Do you leave the kibble down and let them eat as they want? Supposedly cats won't overeat. Perhaps you could put Mia's wet food in an isolated place and let her eat in peace. It is amazing how some of them go nuts over the wet food.

The weight loss is a concern. It could be because a new kitten is in the house; a change of food; or some underlying illness. What age is Mia?

Mia is 1 1/2 years. I thought the weight lose was because of Mac at first but its alot in such little time especially since the last lb. has happened in just about 4-5 weeks. Kibble is down for them always. Both have been free fed all their lives. I checked her gums and they are a good pink. So thats  a good sign. She is a bigcat (tall and long ). Twelve pounds was not overweight. I dont feed wet food, I just got it tonight to try out her appetite. I just cant afford it living on ssdi. I only have $735 monthly to cover all expences. Mia just saw the vet for a booster 3 days ago but he only took her out of her crate far enough to give her the shot as she was so stressed out.   

Does she look too skinny? How are you weighing her?

Can you g back to Max Cat? If I remember correctly, it costs about the same as Purina ONE, and if she did well on it before maybe that'll fix things.

Willowy said:

Can you g back to Max Cat? If I remember correctly, it costs about the same as Purina ONE, and if she did well on it before maybe that'll fix things.

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Good idea. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! Kittens and young cats can survive quite well on 'adult' food. As long as it is not a special food (overweight, etc), the kitten should be just fine. Especially if you can throw a can or two in of wet food as a weekly treat.

gooned said:

Good idea. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! Kittens and young cats can survive quite well on 'adult' food. As long as it is not a special food (overweight, etc), the kitten should be just fine. Especially if you can throw a can or two in of wet food as a weekly treat.

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Willowy said:

Does she look too skinny? How are you weighing her?
Can you g back to Max Cat? If I remember correctly, it costs about the same as Purina ONE, and if she did well on it before maybe that'll fix things.

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She does look thin to me but not really skinny.

I'm weighing her (and have been all along) on a very great and synsetive digital scale. I weigh her and I together and then me seperately and subtract the two.

I'm going to the city Tuesday ( 70 miles away, have to get a biopsey done) and will go by Petsmart before coming home. I'll try Max Cat again. Mac has never eaten it but I think he will inhale anything. lol  Maybe this is what Mia needs again. I will get the Adult formula for the two. 

ilovemia said:

She does look thin to me but not really skinny.

I'm weighing her (and have been all along) on a very great and synsetive digital scale. I weigh her and I together and then me seperately and subtract the two.

I'm going to the city Tuesday ( 70 miles away, have to get a biopsey done) and will go by Petsmart before coming home. I'll try Max Cat again. Mac has never eaten it but I think he will inhale anything. lol  Maybe this is what Mia needs again. I will get the Adult formula for the two. 

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instead of buying EXAMPLE 1 weeks worth of dry buy at least 2 or 3 months worth of dry and purina one and friskies SUCKS all my cats lost weight on it now i'm trying to get there weight up and I know ssi is hard to live on i'm on it my whole family is on it and have you tried ordering from online? i know a great petfood site we just ordared from it and they have max cat an allot more brands the site is petfooddirect.com i hoped i helped and dont just switch them on max cat and quit Purina one like cold turkey this is what i do to switch my pets to a different brand

take a empty big bag of cat or dog dry food bag and take your old 8lbs<EXAMPlE lbs and mix it with the same weight of the new food and when half of the food is eaten mix 8 more lbs of the new in it again and let it go half way again and mix 8lbs more until its gone and you can start feeding the new food only

Hi
Good idea getting her back on Max Cat..... I also suggest before then you separating them during the wet meal feedings so she can have her entire meal and you can monitor her eating. Sudden weight loss can have underlying causes, but even if it doesn't have an specific health issue, the weight drop in itself can impose a danger.
Do you have parmesan cheese at home? Try sprinkling some on the top of her wet food and see if she likes it. Cats usually love it. You can also try to warm her food for 8-10 seconds in the microwave - it helps to release the scent, making it more appetizing. When my cats ate wet food they liked when I mixed it with water and made it creamier - you can try that too. If you have tuna, try putting a bit of tuna juice over the food - she should like that as well.

You can feed her some cooked chicken breast if you have it at home, or even raw. Just put it inside of a ziplock baggie and inside of a container with warm water to defrost/warm, and give it to her. See if she likes it.
Some amounts for deli meat is ok too, as long as it is not too much.
If you feed her meats, just make sure it is unseasoned - no garlic/no onions. All meat baby foods are great to compliment a kitty's diet as well.....

Just watch her like a hawk and make sure she is having her fare share of food. I would advise you to rely more on the nutrition of the wet since you can monitor her intake that way; by free-feeding both of them you don't really know who is eating how much.

Mewlittle said:

instead of buying EXAMPLE 1 weeks worth of dry buy at least 2 or 3 months worth of dry and purina one and friskies SUCKS all my cats lost weight on it now i'm trying to get there weight up and I know ssi is hard to live on i'm on it my whole family is on it and have you tried ordering from online? i know a great petfood site we just ordared from it and they have max cat an allot more brands the site is petfooddirect.com i hoped i helped and dont just switch them on max cat and quit Purina one like cold turkey this is what i do to switch my pets to a different brand

take a empty big bag of cat or dog dry food bag and take your old 8lbs<EXAMPlE lbs and mix it with the same weight of the new food and when half of the food is eaten mix 8 more lbs of the new in it again and let it go half way again and mix 8lbs more until its gone and you can start feeding the new food only

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I realize Puria one and Friskies is definetly not the best but when money is tight (I'm on ssDi By the way , not ssi) you do what you gotta do. They are better off being fed that and loved than in a shelter or put to sleep.

Thanks Carolina for all the tips. I am going to use some. Appreciate it!

Carolina said:

All meat baby foods are great to compliment a kitty's diet as well.....

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The all meat foods usually have '2nd food' on the bottle. These do not have any spices such as onions and garlic, which are bad for cats. Gerber Chicken in Gravy is a favorite of my cats.

ilovemia said:

I realize Puria one and Friskies is definetly not the best but when money is tight (I'm on ssDi By the way , not ssi) you do what you gotta do. They are better off being fed that and loved than in a shelter or put to sleep.

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I get less money then you and so does mu family and we don't buy that stuff we get >http://www.petfooddirect.com/Product/7417/by-Nature-Organics-Chicken-And-Mackerel-Canned-Cat-Food < and the cheapest no grain dry food on that site

Mewlittle said:

I get less money then you and so does mu family and we don't buy that stuff we get >http://www.petfooddirect.com/Product/7417/by-Nature-Organics-Chicken-And-Mackerel-Canned-Cat-Food < and the cheapest no grain dry food on that site

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Good for you but you also dont know the bills I pay so dont judge me.

ilovemia said:

Good for you but you also dont know the bills I pay so dont judge me.

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i wasn't judging