Cat Only Eats Treats

As mentioned before, my cat has never been a big eater, ever. She's gone through brief periods of "fasting" before, and I took her to the vet once when she was a kitten where they just re-hydrated her, and she eventually started eating again. Lately I discovered a "trick" to serving the food in a way where she now typically eats more than ever, but it's never more than 6oz a day.

2 days ago she started ignoring her food. But she always, always eats treats enthusiastically. Unfortunately yesterday I left town for Thanksgiving, but I have a friend staying at my place to watch her, as I always do when I leave town. My friend keeps me very updated, and she still hasn't eaten any of her normal food. I even switched to a different flavor and she won't touch that either. I want to know if her just eating her treats (single ingredient freeze-dried chicken) will be able to stave off any real damage until I get home on Saturday.

I also want to add that I am hyper-paranoid about my cat's well-being. I am never someone that you need to talk into going to the vet. The only issue is that now I'm a plane ride away from her. Of course my friend could take her to the vet, but only if it's really necessarily. My friend says that she is playing and running around and purring and acting totally normal. She is using the litter box.

Earlier this evening, my friend served her a can of Fancy Feast (normally she's raw only) and she MAY have picked at it a VERY little. Then a little while later, she was given a different flavor of Fancy Feast, and it seems that she ate the "gravy" but not really a noticeable portion of the food itself. She did, however, eat her Vet's Best Hairball pill which she always loves.

The rule of thumb for a safe level of calories is 15 calories per day per pound of kitties ideal weight.  

Ok what about the minimum acceptable amount in more extreme cases BEFORE the risk of any kind of damage?

The 15 calories is a general rule of thumb.  I tend to be very conservative because I had a kitty go into fatty liver, he survived but probably has permanent liver damage.  Some people say at least half of what they normally eat but if you have a finicky light eater that may not be enough.  It really differs between kitties.  Overweight cats are more prone and will go into it quicker.  Any kitty can get it though.  My kitty was actually underweight from undiagnosed IBD when he got it.

If the cat will eat enough treats to get a decent amount of calories for each day, I'd say that will probably prevent damage, or at least make it less serious. It's certainly much better than eating nothing, or only little bits of gravy.

When I've had cats not wanting to eat, I gave them whatever I could persuade them to take - baby food, canned tuna, yogurt, and yes, treats. My Crumbs, when she was sick this summer, would sometimes eat ONLY Temptations treats, and only if I gave them to her one by one. I've never had a cat develop hepatic lipidosis yet, even though there have been times when it was probably a real risk. There are no guarantees, but I think if your friend can give her several treats, maybe a few times a day until you get back, that will probably help prevent more serious complications. If she likes gravy, let her lick it off the food as much as she wants. Anything is better than eating nothing.

Hi,
I have an 11 yo ragdoll that has always been very finicky about what he eats. He might love it for a few days than refuse to eat it.

I first brought him to the vet last year when he was vomiting more than he should. Had all the tests done, and their best guess is that he has IBD and now he is on prednisone (I apply it topically inside his ear) and at one time antibiotics because of an abcess in one of his back teeth.

With IBD, he has his good periods of time where he won't vomit for weeks, and then he will for maybe a few days in a row. His blood tests are normal but every since I introduced him to Purina Treats, he won't eat anything BUT treats. Believe me, I've tried everything; all of his wet food favorites in the past, mixing ground treats in his wet food and every single brand you can think of including cooking his food.

I talked to the vet about this, and she said if that's all he wants to eat, it's better than him eating nothing. But that bothers me because I know that the treats don't have all the nutrients that the cat needs for optimum help. I give him just a handful of treats throughout the day (I don't want to give him too much at at time as he may eat too fast and throw it up shortly after eating them). He hasn't lost any weight (he did before treatment) but it bothers me that I can't get him to eat something healthy.

One vet is more worried about that than the other. One says that eventually there will be atrophy of the muscles and some other things you would not want for your cat; the other one actually has a cat of 18 yo who doesn't eat anything but treats - she doesn't like it either but her philosophy is it's better than nothing.

Any thoughts about this?

Thank you.
Trudi

Have you tried Purina Cat Chow Complete in the blue bag? Since he likes Purina treats, he might like that. I think you're only supposed to give like 10 of those treats per day, plus they don't have the vitamins and taurine that he needs. Maybe try Friskies and Fancy Feast wet food too, those are made by Purina.

I just had to comment on your post Trudilu, I have a very similar issue. I have a 5 year old ragdoll, who is obsessed with treats. the temptations ones. She'll lick wet food, but she never "eats" it. I worry about her. She's somewhat overweight, so picky, and she struggles with constipation. I've tried so many different wet foods, different textures, flavors, and can't get her to eat well.Dry is a hit or miss, she'll nibble here and there but really only will eat her treats.

Hi just read your post. Did you ever find a solution? I have a 15 year old rag doll with same issue!

Emelia1213 said:

Hi just read your post. Did you ever find a solution? I have a 15 year old rag doll with same issue!

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This is a very old thread E Emelia1213 You might get better answers if you start a new thread of your own.