Is Feline Fortiflora Addictive?

My cat has been getting the fortiflora for quite some time because she has irritable bowel syndrome and it helps with her diarrhea.  Her stools are getting better and we are trying to wean her off of the fortiflora, but she cries for it like she is craving it.  Does it have addictive qualities?

I don't know about "addictive" but I do know cats love it. My cat won't eat his wet food without a topping on it now and I think we've actually trained him to eat that way. He doesn't recognize it as dinner without the topping.
I suspect your cat is so used to her food with the Fortiflora and it probably doesn't smell good enough without it.
Is there harm to a cat eating Fortiflora always? Personally, my concern with using it was the expense - we just couldn't keep that up three times a day with Wiggies.

pushylady said:

I don't know about "addictive" but I do know cats love it. My cat won't eat his wet food without a topping on it now and I think we've actually trained him to eat that way. He doesn't recognize it as dinner without the topping.
I suspect your cat is so used to her food with the Fortiflora and it probably doesn't smell good enough without it.
Is there harm to a cat eating Fortiflora always? Personally, my concern with using it was the expense - we just couldn't keep that up three times a day with Wiggies.

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I agree.  It is on the expensive side so if that is the concern then it would be an issue but I see no harm in continuing to use it.  There are other probiotics that are better in the sense of having more different strains of good bacteria in them but the fortiflora does often work.

Fortiflora doesn't have anything in it that it is physically addictive it just tastes and smells good to the kitties.

I believe one of the primary ingredients (other than the probiotic itself) is animal digest -

"Digest is a controversial ingredient mostly due to the way it is produced. The process of chemical/enzymatic hydrolysis is far from what most people would regard as 'natural' and it is therefore widely criticised by natural feeding advocates. It is also usually unclear what products of what animals the digest is derived from. Where digest is present, we would recommend looking for both the animal and the part of the animal to be specified (e.g. 'chicken liver digest' instead of just 'digest')"

(taken from allaboutdogfood.co.uk)

Digest is a strong flavour enhancer and is very often used in kibble to increase the palatability of the product - particularly true in cheaper kibbles that have a higher carb/lower meat content. Basically, it makes things extra yummy! The high digest content could well be the reason you're having difficulty getting your girl off FortiFlora.

Edit : I'm not saying it's a bad thing to feed in itself - it is made from meat after all. It's just that that's the clearest explanation of what digest actually is that I've found. Please don't panic :anon:

FortiFlora is basically animal digest which many cats find irresistible. Many dry foods are coated in animal digest which is why it's hard to transition many dry food addicts to canned food.

Thanks cat-lovers. I just wondered about addiction because Poci will follow us into the kitchen and meow like she is in heat until we mix her a packet of it ina few reasons of water for her to drink.