Just Adopted - And Switched Cat Foods

I adopted a sweet male Lynx Point two weeks ago today from an acquaintance who couldn't take her kitties with her when she moved. She described him as a homebody and a cuddler, and when we brought him home he was truly the most mellow cat on earth.

She had gave me the Trader Joe's dry kibble that he had been eating (his whole life, I assume), and I haven't been able to find much information about the ingredients in it. Knowing that he might eat less for the first few days while he transitioned to my home, I just kept an eye on how much he was eating over the first week. He transitioned REALLY well and hasn't had any issues. However, I noticed that he was *maybe* eating 1/4 cup of his dry food over the course of the entire day. I suspect that he has probably always under-eaten on this food, and perhaps it wasn't noticed because he lived with his brother (a very active cat) and another cat as well.

I have since switched him to Merrick Before Grain, and he LOVES it. In fact, on the first day when I did a 25/75 ratio with his TJ food, he only ate the BG kibbles and left the TJs in the bowl. I leave a 1/2 cup of the BG down during the day for him to eat small meals while I'm at work. Being concerned about water intake as well, I am giving him a can of Fancy Feast Classic (1/2 in the morning, 1/2 in the evening) a day. Within just a couple of days of this food change I noticed he gained a some HEALTHY weight (he wasn't unhealthily thin before, but he was quite trim), and his coat is MUCH shinier and softer. He is also much more energetic, has more hydrated looking solid waste, and is even bathing himself more often.

It makes me sad thinking that he may have been hungry and under-nourished before I got him, but I am so happy to have my healthy boy here now (even if he does bite my feet occasionally while I sleep)!

Your cat is beautiful, kittenbritches! We adopted a lynx point and a snowshoe mix in December and they are wonderful cats. Our lynx is a foot-nipper, too, hmm.

As for the food, our vet told us Siamese mixes are prone to digestive issues and developing IBD: she's a big proponent of canned low-carb, high-protein, and no-grain so was glad that was how I planned to feed them anyway, after weaning them off the shelter's dry food. Our cats, who were also under-fed before we adopted them, responded well to the dietary changes, too, and gained weight nicely. There have been little blips: I discovered the snowshoe is sensitive to potato and needs to be fed a high-calorie meal at bedtime to keep her from vomiting in the early morning. Those were easy problems to fix, though, and they've settled in nicely with a healthy diet. 

Enjoy your lynx! We love ours, too. She's a great little lap cat.

Thank you, @LisaHE! Your lynx point and snowshoe are gorgeous, as well!

That's good to know about Siamese mixes and their tummies -- thanks for the info. I'm glad I'm going this food route, too. Harper is even more energetic now than he was when I posted a week ago. He had one vomiting blip, which I think was due to him over-indulging because he loves his new food so much.

I wish Harper was a lap cat -- he likes to lay right next to me, but never on me!

I'm glad to hear Harper is getting even more energetic, @kittenbritches! And if Harper wasn't eating well before you adopted him, yes, he might well have occasional gluttonous episodes... our (previously underfed) cats were extremely fixated on food for their first two or three months with us. I'm glad they've gotten over that!

As for lap cats, don't give up -- he may change his mind once he's settled in more with you. Ireland, our lynx point, didn't lie on our laps much at all until fairly recently: like Harper, she used to lie right next to us but not on our laps.

I don't have anything food related to add, but I have a nearly 5 year old lynx point, and since kittenhood he was never a lap cat until over the last year or so. 

xcourtney3 said:

 
I don't have anything food related to add, but I have a nearly 5 year old lynx point, and since kittenhood he was never a lap cat until over the last year or so. 

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Likewise on the food front, and as for the lap cat - Mouse was a hyper active boucing off the walls bit you if you ignore me kind of kitty for his first 2 years and the only time he snuggled in was if In was in bed or to curl round my feet or next to me on the sofa occasionally.  Last year he suddenly started to crawl up on to my chest for brief strokes and head butts and the time he comes up for has slowly increased to about 10 minutes at a time now.  I reckon that as your cat burns up all his energy and plays with you he will build up his trusting bond with you, and as he starts to mellow you will find he becomes more relaxed and happy to curl up beside you or on your lap.