I'm moving so there's alot of upheaval for poor kitty, and normally I wouldn't try to start making food changes at such a stressful/sensitive time. But she's being tested for crystals/cystitis/uti (just had urinalysis today, not sure yet!) and aside from my own personal opinion, the vet wants her on wet food too, and asap. I've been slowly trying to feed her wet for the last 2 months, mostly leaving out a quarter of a Fancy Feast tin (she wont eat more than a quarter tin at a time) with some kibble on top. She usually won't touch it for like 2-3 hours, then decides she's hungry enough and eats it. I don't like leaving the wet food out that long though just cause of bacteria and all that! And it's getting wasteful cause if she doesn't eat it, I have to throw it out after 2-3 hours, clean out the dish, and replace it with fresh food that she'll (eventually) eat another 2-3 hours later. Is there an easier way? I tried a different brand but she wouldn't touch it at all (but then again she was protesting our move with a hunger strike that night).
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Switching kibble addict to wet food?
- Thread starter sparklexo
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Cats usually don't eat a lot in one sitting. Atleast mine don't and I have 3 cats. If you put food out and she doesn't eat it, take it away and put it in the fridge or back in the can until next feeding time.
If she's used to free feeding, it will take her a while to get adjusted to eating bigger meals. If you can get her on a timed feeding schedule (start with 4-6 meals if you can and work to get to 3-4), it will help. Switching her to wet food will just take time and patience. You are doing it right by crushing kibble on top. Are there any other treats she likes that you can also use as a topper?
Although mine (I have 3 also) already eat wet, I go through the same thing when I'm introducing a new variety of food. Put the food down, give her about 20 min to eat, if she doesn't finish in that time, pick it up and store it in fridge till her next feeding. Giving her smaller more frequent meals should help as well, as vball91 stated. Other things you might try is adding a little tuna WATER, or topping with a little parmesan cheese. Your doing great and she will eventually switch, just takes time, patience, and a few tricks.
Here's an article on how to switch up kibble addict to canned food. Maybe this will help. It worked for me!
http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf
http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf
