Cat will not touch food

thecatdude

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Hello....i bought what  thought was a higher quality food (Purina Beyond salmon & brown rice) after she let me know her displeasure of the previous stuff I bought by vomiting on my carpet (do not buy cat food from Plaid Pantry....Dumb I know) I am watching her right now eating stuff around her dish from the previous brand....This was Iams cat food....So I have a feeling I will be heading to the store tomorrow to buy the Iams brand....What is the correct way to get your cat to eat new food? I guess just leaving it there until she is hungry enough is not the answer....
 

jcat

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You could try mixing increasing quantities of the new food, i.e., a teaspoonful at a time, in with the old. Some people use toppers like bits of treats or Fortiflora to make the new food more palatable.
 

missmimz

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You don't say whether this is wet or dry food, but I'm going to assume it's kibble. With dry food it's incredibly important to mix a small amount of new food with the old food, and slowly increase the new food and decrease the old food. If you're looking to feed her higher quality food I'd encourage you to look at some non-grocery store brand foods. Kibble, especially grocery store kibble, is incredibly low quality and full of fillers. If you're going to feed kibble you should feed the highest quality you can afford. This is a good list of good quality kibbles. 

http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/2011/08/best-dry-cat-foods-so-far/
 

tobilei

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It can be tough with a fussy cat. I contacted a number of companies in Australia and got samples sent to me because my boy buries most of his food. And when I mix kibble together he does the same, picks around the new stuff and only eats the old. And he will absolutely starve himself for days if I refuse to give him what he wants.

The samples helped because I could get an idea of what he liked. A lot of companies also offer palability guarantees and if you return the bag to the store they will refund you the cost price (as long as the bag isn't nearly empty of course).

In the end I discovered Applaws grain free and the Hills Ideal Balance (kitten only, the adult formula is garbage) and my cat and I have compromised with these. He absolutely will not eat any of the high end brands so these are mid range, not terrible, not great but I can live with them. Try her on a few different brands though and yes, do the slow introduction thing (although I've found that if he doesn't eat it the minute I put it down he never will).
 

samk1

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Do you give your cat fruits and other types of foods that are rich in fiber?
 
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thecatdude

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It is dry cat food, and I mentioned the brand/flavor. I'm on a tight budget also because I am in college. It's kind of frustrating but.....Off to the store I go. She literally will not eat anything else, including canned food and stuff like tuna. 
 

jolie0216

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If it's dry food, you have to do a gradual changeover -  start like this:  make a mix that is 75% of the old brand and 25% of the new brand.   And gradually increase every few days until you reach 100% of the new brand.   It just takes a little time  


If you've been feeding one particular brand of dry food, chances are very good that if you plop down a bowl that is full of a new brand, kitty won't eat it.   So you have to mix it in with the old food and just keep upping the percentage over several days until they're eating just the new food.    I've done this before when switching kibble brands - it will work!

Also, I don't know if you're free-feeding or not (leaving the kibble out all day) but you can try switching your kitty to timed, scheduled meals.   That way you will have hunger working in your favor too!
 
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thecatdude

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If it's dry food, you have to do a gradual changeover -  start like this:  make a mix that is 75% of the old brand and 25% of the new brand.   And gradually increase every few days until you reach 100% of the new brand.   It just takes a little time  


If you've been feeding one particular brand of dry food, chances are very good that if you plop down a bowl that is full of a new brand, kitty won't eat it.   So you have to mix it in with the old food and just keep upping the percentage over several days until they're eating just the new food.    I've done this before when switching kibble brands - it will work!

Also, I don't know if you're free-feeding or not (leaving the kibble out all day) but you can try switching your kitty to timed, scheduled meals.   That way you will have hunger working in your favor too!
I give her about a half of a cup per day in the morning and she eats it during the day....I just bought a second bag of Purina One: Smart Blend and she started eating it immediately....Now though she's gone back to not touching it...
 

missmimz

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I get that you're on a budget, but if you're going to feed a dry food only diet you should consider trying to switch her onto higher quality food. If you feed higher quality dry food, she'll eat less of it so overall it wont necessarily cost you that much more. She should really have some wet in her diet, but if you aren't willing to try and add that (sometimes it takes some work to get them to transition) at least think about trying better food. 
 
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thecatdude

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I get that you're on a budget, but if you're going to feed a dry food only diet you should consider trying to switch her onto higher quality food. If you feed higher quality dry food, she'll eat less of it so overall it wont necessarily cost you that much more. She should really have some wet in her diet, but if you aren't willing to try and add that (sometimes it takes some work to get them to transition) at least think about trying better food. 
She's back to eating it. So I am going to follow your advice about switching. I read the ingrediants and it seems better quaity wise....We'll see
 
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