any ideas for fussy cat?

My cat had been eating the Wellness grain-free canned food for a couple of years and liked it.  Now, she'll no longer eat it, so over the last several months  I've been trying different brands that seem healthy.  We've tried Weruva, Tiki Cat, Dave's, Wellness Core.  She's also tried Nature's Variety Instinct... she won't go near it if it's mixed in with her standard Wellness or alone. 

One thing though... she loves, loves, loves Fancy Feast.  I have tried FF Classics because I read here that they are healthier than the other types.  But I also get the impression that it's not the healthiest food out there. 

What do you think?  Should I keep trying other brands?  Or should I just switch her to Fancy Feast because I know she likes it?  I'd try to keep it to the healthier versions. 

She has a vet appointment on May 13 for her regular wellness exam, so I'll mention it to him too, unless I feel she needs to go sooner. 

Thanks!

Actually, I just had a thought.  Her "hunger strike" really started when I took away my microwave to make room for a dish drained, since my dishwasher broke.  I used to microwave her food for seven seconds before serving it.  I just read that cats prefer warmed-up food, so maybe that's the problem.  I'll give it a try.

cranberry said:

 
Actually, I just had a thought.  Her "hunger strike" really started when I took away my microwave to make room for a dish drained, since my dishwasher broke.  I used to microwave her food for seven seconds before serving it.  I just read that cats prefer warmed-up food, so maybe that's the problem.  I'll give it a try.

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that might be the reason. please let us know if warming her food does the trick!

Thanks. I warmed up her dinner, but got the same response. She wasn't interested.

I just started her on Nature's Variety Instinct dry good with part kibble and part freeze dried raw food and she likes that. So at least she does have some appetite and is eating something. I just wish I could figure out the canned food. She gets mostly wet food, so I'm thinking it's the brand or flavor. She doesn't seem to be sick. She's as lively as ever. Such a mystery.

maybe you could get some forti flora. i sprinkle it on the foods the cats dont care much for. It helps to get them eat more of the better foods.

I was able to buy 9 packets on Amazon to try it.

Thanks! I haven't heard of forti flora before. I'll check it out. In the meantime, she's still snubbing her canned food. She doesn't seem to be sick though and she does act hungry at mealtimes. I'm not sure what to do.

If a cat won't eat the healthiest wet canned food then that's a set back because I've found with my cat, I can't force him to eat anything he doesn't like no matter if the the food is the best for him ingredient wise. My 16 year old male cat eats 4 brands of wet canned cat food as long as it isn't in a pate texture and they are:

Fancy Feast

Soulistic

Nutro Natural Choice

Sheba

Lately, he's basically refusing Sheba. Maybe something in it has changed. But, this is why I've been trying out different brands of wet canned cat food on him. Just in case he stopped eating one brand and now it seems he has.

Right now, his preferred favorite wet canned cat food is Fancy Feast Grilled.

http://www.fancyfeast.com/gourmet-cat-products/wet-cat-food/grilled

I know it isn't as good as Soulistic or Nutro Natural Choice ingredient wise since Fancy Feast contains wheat gluten, corn starch and soy protein in it, but he really enjoys his Fancy Feast over Soulistic and Nutro Natural Choice. In the Fancy Feast Grilled style, he likes 6 different flavors and they are:

Chicken Feast in Gravy

Chicken & Beef Feast in Gravy

Liver & Chicken Feast in Gravy

Turkey & Giblets in Gravy

Tuna Feast in Gravy

Beef Feast in Gravy

The food looks good too and it looks just like what is pictured on the Fancy Feast website. The percentages for protein, fat, fiber, moisture, ash and taurine are the same for all flavors:

• Crude Protein (Min)   11.0%
• Crude Fat (Min)           2.0%
• Crude Fiber (Max)       1.5%
• Moisture (Max)          80.0%
• Ash (Max)                   2.7%
• Taurine (Min)               0.05%

Fancy Feast is sold in 3 ounce cans. He weighs 9 1/2 pounds. He eats 6 ounces (two cans) a day. But, when I give him the Tuna Feast, he eats 9 ounces (3 cans) a day. Obviously, the Tuna Feast is his favorite and the same is true with Soulistic and Nutro Natural Choice.

I look at it this way. If my old senior cat likes his food, doesn't give him any health problems and he's happy, then I'm happy.

Thanks so much everyone!

I'm happy to report some progress this morning. She tried NV venison (canned) for her bedtime snack and she loved it! About an hour later, she has this burst of playfulness I haven't seen in a couple or weeks, chasing a toy mousie up and down the hall. So relieved!

Maybe she just doesn't like old food and new food mixed together. I know that's how you're supposed to transition to avoid tummy upset, but maybe she's just different.