HE WILL EAT ME OUT OF HOUSE AND HOME

So been awhile since ive been on, but Punkin is doing awesome, besides the bitting of everything and everyone lol, hes getting big and going through his shots, next is the manhood taken away lol, but my question and concern is...HE IS A BOTTOMLESS PIT, everytime im in kitchen he wants food and all he eats is the small can of kitten wet food, ive even ran out and had to give him big can of regular 9 lives which he ate in under a minute, he wont touch dryfood unless its temptations which are not good for him in more than one sitting, i dont know whats going on, hes healthy, not gaining to much weight, and just wants to eat if he's not sleeping or playing, hes eating! So is this normal?? And why after and during he eats which is out of Styrofoam bowls, he constantly bits rim and if left alone he will bite bowl to shredz trying to get every morsel. Please help

How much do you feed punkin in a day?

Probably 3 to 4 small cans plus some treats

That doesn't sound like too much food for a kitten to me.  He should be fed out of a different kind of bowl - one that he can't destroy like glass or stainless steel.  Your cat should definitely not be at risk of eating styrofoam.

Kittens eat a lot!  Read the can, he should be getting twice what an adult would eat.  when he goes through a growth spurt you just keep opening cans until he is full.  He'll slow down around eight months, maybe.

Ok well just want to make sure and as for the bowl...he doesnt eat it just bites it, and it doesn't matter what kind it is he will do same thing, and those teeth on porcelain and glass is like nails om a chalkboard lol, but thank you for insight

You can buy bigger cans to save money, if he isn't picky. The biggest cans are 12.5 oz. you can refrigerate the leftovers, if there are any!

Walmart sells 13 and 22 ounce cans of food under the Special Kitty label, for 70 cents and a dollar. Ingredients are very similiar to 9lives (I suspect 9lives makes it).

Hi @Punkinlove!

Has Punkin ever been to the vet? The vet for a kitten, is like its 1st midwife. They give all the instructions needed 

Kittens are bottomless pits! They invented them! They are all food and play when they are at that age. That's why they don't put on a lot of weight, in spite of the fact that they eat like crazy. Also, you should start him on dry food at some point, cause it's good for his dental hygiene. By chewing dry food which is "crunchy", it will help him avoid tartat building up etc..

Since he is a kitten, you want to feed him something nutritious and not only something that will make his hunger go away. These foods for kittens might be a bit more costly, BUT it will prevent you from wasting a whole lotta money on future vet visits, due to potential health problems. Do some research on the internet and I believe you will find something suitable for the little guy (and your pocket).

Also, if you have any leftovers from a homemade meal (suitable for cats, of course!), you can feed or treat him with it.. For example, some chicken, some turkey, salmon (not the smoked kind!), tuna etc (go easy on the tuna, though). A small amount of potatos/carrots/peas won't be bad, as long as they are at a smaller amount than the protein (meat).

If he continues to eat wet food, he MIGHT demonstrate some vomiting after a while. Poached chicken and some boiled rice will do the trick.

I am just saying all these, cause I had the same problems with my Grizzly - he couldn't eat dry food when he was a baby. But after tons of wetfood, he started vomitting and VOILA! He gave the dryfood a try.. Now he eats both equally (dry+wet). But, I never gave him a catfood that wasn't nutritious. Especially when he was a baby.

There are some canned catfoods, here in Greece, that cost about 0.54 cents to 0.80 cents (give or take). I prefer to stay away from those cause they contain too much fat and sugar..

Quote:

GrizzlySapien said:

 
Hi @Punkinlove!

Has Punkin ever been to the vet? The vet for a kitten, is like its 1st midwife. They give all the instructions needed 

Kittens are bottomless pits! They invented them! They are all food and play when they are at that age. That's why they don't put on a lot of weight, in spite of the fact that they eat like crazy. Also, you should start him on dry food at some point, cause it's good for his dental hygiene. By chewing dry food which is "crunchy", it will help him avoid tartat building up etc..

Since he is a kitten, you want to feed him something nutritious and not only something that will make his hunger go away. These foods for kittens might be a bit more costly, BUT it will prevent you from wasting a whole lotta money on future vet visits, due to potential health problems. Do some research on the internet and I believe you will find something suitable for the little guy (and your pocket).

Also, if you have any leftovers from a homemade meal (suitable for cats, of course!), you can feed or treat him with it.. For example, some chicken, some turkey, salmon (not the smoked kind!), tuna etc (go easy on the tuna, though). A small amount of potatos/carrots/peas won't be bad, as long as they are at a smaller amount than the protein (meat).

If he continues to eat wet food, he MIGHT demonstrate some vomiting after a while. Poached chicken and some boiled rice will do the trick.

I am just saying all these, cause I had the same problems with my Grizzly - he couldn't eat dry food when he was a baby. But after tons of wetfood, he started vomitting and VOILA! He gave the dryfood a try.. Now he eats both equally (dry+wet). But, I never gave him a catfood that wasn't nutritious. Especially when he was a baby.

There are some canned catfoods, here in Greece, that cost about 0.54 cents to 0.80 cents (give or take). I prefer to stay away from those cause they contain too much fat and sugar..

Click to expand...

While it's fine to feed both together (not the best but still ok) dry food does not nor has it ever cleaned a cats teeth. http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/does-dry-food-clean-the-teeth/

Well I only said it because the vet said it to me. I wouldn't provide info without obtaining it from a professional, first.

I once read somewhere that ground raw meat with bones included, is the best "preservation method". I don't trust myself enough to raw feed him, though. The vet had told me that if I only fed him wet food, it would speed up the tartar building process on his teeth. But, if I fed him dry food as well, his teeth would keep a better shape. 1.5 year later his teeth are in the best possible shape (after being examined from 2 separate vets). But, he is still young, so it might be too soon to tell.

Do I blindly trust vets? Not always. I once read in an article that giving dry food to dogs/cats to keep their teeth clean, is like giving a human a handfull of peanuts to clean their teeth.. Which made some sense, but not entirely accurate.. Because friends of mine who feed their cats only wet food, have visited the vet a lot sooner and more often for cleaning their cats' teeth. That's my experience anyway 

 

On the other hand, I have no friends or acquaintances that raw feed their cats or dogs.. So, I have no opinion on that one (just noticed that the article you're referencing comes from a site that promotes raw feeding).

Tsukiyomi said:

 
Quote:

GrizzlySapien said:

 
Hi @Punkinlove!

Has Punkin ever been to the vet? The vet for a kitten, is like its 1st midwife. They give all the instructions needed 

Kittens are bottomless pits! They invented them! They are all food and play when they are at that age. That's why they don't put on a lot of weight, in spite of the fact that they eat like crazy. Also, you should start him on dry food at some point, cause it's good for his dental hygiene. By chewing dry food which is "crunchy", it will help him avoid tartat building up etc..

Since he is a kitten, you want to feed him something nutritious and not only something that will make his hunger go away. These foods for kittens might be a bit more costly, BUT it will prevent you from wasting a whole lotta money on future vet visits, due to potential health problems. Do some research on the internet and I believe you will find something suitable for the little guy (and your pocket).

Also, if you have any leftovers from a homemade meal (suitable for cats, of course!), you can feed or treat him with it.. For example, some chicken, some turkey, salmon (not the smoked kind!), tuna etc (go easy on the tuna, though). A small amount of potatos/carrots/peas won't be bad, as long as they are at a smaller amount than the protein (meat).

If he continues to eat wet food, he MIGHT demonstrate some vomiting after a while. Poached chicken and some boiled rice will do the trick.

I am just saying all these, cause I had the same problems with my Grizzly - he couldn't eat dry food when he was a baby. But after tons of wetfood, he started vomitting and VOILA! He gave the dryfood a try.. Now he eats both equally (dry+wet). But, I never gave him a catfood that wasn't nutritious. Especially when he was a baby.

There are some canned catfoods, here in Greece, that cost about 0.54 cents to 0.80 cents (give or take). I prefer to stay away from those cause they contain too much fat and sugar..

Click to expand...

While it's fine to feed both together (not the best but still ok) dry food does not nor has it ever cleaned a cats teeth. http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/does-dry-food-clean-the-teeth/

Click to expand...

Just wanted to add that we have our own article on this very topic - 

 [article="30205"]Does Dry Food Actually Clean Your Cats Teeth​[/article]  

Hello @Anne! 

This article, along with countless other articles that I've read, is very detailed and informative. They all have a common phrase: "there is no scientific proof that dry food cleans our cats' teeth"

Which is absolutely logical to happen. I think that dental diseases are a combination of about a gazillion factors (genetics, age, environment, background etc). Also, there is no scientific proof about the opposite thesis.

Up untill several years ago, we all knew about basic commercial cat foods.. But they've evolved so much the last few years.. So, all we know so far is data derived by older cats that have been fed mainly with foods that contained a larger percentage of grains, fats etc. There were no holistic, or biologically appropriate foods.. At least not that many widely known..

If you ask me, it makes sense that a cat's general health can be maintained more effectively with safe homemade raw/cooked food. By those who know what they're doing, of course.

On the other hand, there is such a variety of examples around us..

My ex had a Siamese who ate ONLY dry food. A well known commercial one, actually.. That cat lived for 23 years.. Never had dental issues. She took 2 vet exams, every year throughout her whole life. Never presented a health problem. The only 2 problems were 1: when she fell off their balcony at 4 months of age and broke her upper jaw (recovered completely) and 2: the last year of her life when she started taking the "down road", cause she was an old lady 

.. She was spayed at 6 months old and had never given birth.

Other friends of mine, that have cats, they feed them dry food mainly and some remains of their meals. No dental problems there also.. 

The majority of people that write on this site (and others), who feed their cats raw or cooked homemade food, also don't experience dental problems (or health problems in general) with their cats as well. 

Stray/Feral cats present a multitude of health conditions.. I've had strays that were healthy as an ox and others that called for immediate treatment (in terms of dental problems).

So, how can we be sure to determine which factors are responsible for dental and/or other health problems?

Maybe it has to do with whether a cat lives indoors or outdoors? Have they given birth? Their genetics? Their food quality? Or all of the above and more?

I don't think there's a way to scientifically prove neither one or the other.. I think it has to do with whatever suits each cat individually and one can only reach to a conclusion by trial and error.

I totally agree. There is no scientific proof, or even significant evidence, either way. The thing is, for many years manufacturers of dry cat food used to make the claim that it does clean the cat's teeth. The claim was there and many people repeat it today as well, including some veterinarians. The article simply says that this claim is unsubstantiated and therefore should not be a consideration when deciding on the type of food.

The title can be confusing unless you consider that the purpose of the article is to debunk a myth. I hope that clarifies things a little. 

@Anne  yes, of course 

 I made sure I read the article, before I replied.

I just wrote according to my experience as well. I feed Grizzly dry+wet, along with anything we cook for ourselves (which can be suitable to his diet, of course - chicken, turkey, salmon etc) and up until now, his teeth have been great. 

I had done an extensive research on homemade cat food, when he was a baby, cause I didn't trust commercial foods. My conclusion was that I don't know if I can be effective enough to do that. Hats off to the people who do it, of course! I am too afraid. So, my next best solution is grain free commercial food (Canagan, Simpsons Premium etc). When I cook poultry for us, I make sure I steam or poach some for Grizzly. He also eats one poached egg every 2 days, which has great effects on his fur..