What can I do to help my kitten gain weight?

rainia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 25, 2016
Messages
9
Purraise
1
ok so I know this has been asked many times before, but my case is different than everyone's since the number one advice of switching to a quality kibble or canned food or even raw cant be done :( I'm a cat mom with 3 kittens living in Egypt, which is terrible since we have ABSOLUTELY no good brands of cat food here. seriously all I can find everywhere is absolute rubbish which is very saddening. I've done good research on the brands we have and the highest quality kibble I could find was Brit dry cat food, along with two times of the only canned food I can find here Miglior gatto or Sabor and vida (both very suspicious quality). I occasionally feed them canned mackerel and boiled chicken for an extra protein kick. thing is, the 7 months old boy has been eating less for the last couple of months after the death of his beloved companion kitty (due to a terrible vaccine reaction) and now he's getting thinner, even though he was quite a fatty before :D I tried to look for vendors that can sell me ground whole chickens but couldnt find any, and feeding them raw isnt an option because sanitation here is absolutely terrible and you just cant find reputable places. I dont know if you guys can help with any tips to help keep the kids in better shape and help with the growth of my twoo other kittens (3 and 5 months old). I just wish I lived in a better place so that I had the option of giving them the highest quality diet I can get :(
 

di and bob

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 12, 2012
Messages
16,643
Purraise
23,064
Location
Nebraska, USA
When my cats are noticeably thinner, I give them Purina Kitten Chow. I know the ingredients are not the best, but getting the extra calories and nutrition in to the cat is the priority now. I give kibble (no certain brand) to my ferals and strays, along with a little canned Friskies, and they have thrived on it for many years. I  think you are a caring, big hearted person, and I admire you for trying to do the best you can with what you have. You have to go with what is available, find the best you can and then go with it, cats have thrived on those for a long, long time. You have researched what brands you have on the Internet, pick what you can afford and what the cats will eat. The only other thing I can think of is to see if you can find anything like turkey or beef in the infant dept. for humans, it's a little pricey, but cats love it, just make sure it is all meat, no onions or salt. Can you get canned whole chickens? Cats love those too, although I buy frozen thighs and drums and put them in the pressure cooker, it's much cheaper.

You wouldn't believe how much "quality' food I've had to give to my strays because my cats won't eat it. Cats are meat eaters, and basically that is all they get in the wild, with the occasional bite of grass, so give the best kibble you can with some meat as often as you can and you will be fine. I hope someone from that part of the world will come on and assist you, bless you for loving so  much. All the luck.
 

mrsgreenjeens

Every Life Should Have Nine Cats
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
16,441
Purraise
7,221
Location
Arizona
You can also try giving them scrambled eggs, ok to scramble them in butter (unsalted preferably), OR just an egg yolk, if they'll eat it.  They may take a raw egg yolk mixed into some canned food.  Most of the calories are in the yolk, AND it provides great protein for them as well.  Don't feed them the entire raw egg though, just the egg yolk should be given if raw. 
 

ghiblithecat

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Messages
233
Purraise
81
Location
Oregon
Unsalted sardines packed in fresh water are really fatty (but good fats) and decently cheap. Duck is also a fatty meat if you can get ahold of that. I may have missed this in your post, but is there no way to ship food from an internet website like amazon? There are a bunch of options on there. 

Another thing you could do it feed chicken thighs and the skin on the thighs. 

One thing you MUST remember though, is that  if you feed things that are non-commercial cat food, you must ensure they are getting a balanced diet somehow. Meaning you should still be giving them a lot of kitten food.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

rainia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 25, 2016
Messages
9
Purraise
1
Thank you so much for the answer and help. I know i'm doing the best i can with what i have here but i'm still neurotic ever since my beloved cat died of that vaccine reaction. I keep telling myself that maybe if she had a better diet she would have fought off what she got. Funny thing is my cats are such brats, everyone has a preference and they make me know it. The boy cat doesnt go near chicken no matter what i do :D he only likes mackerel or sardines which my other cats dont like, so it's very complicated around here trying to juggle both med school and three spoiled kittens :D
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

rainia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 25, 2016
Messages
9
Purraise
1
Oh eggs do sound like a great idea, but is it safe to mix raw yolks into the wet food? Shouldnt i cook them first?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #7

rainia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 25, 2016
Messages
9
Purraise
1
Yeah I always have their wet and dry food on the side, i just want to add a bit of extra nutrition until they reach that purffect weight :3 I did consider the shipping option but it would be wayyyy too expensive and i'd have to pay triple the price to get the food delivered that distance so it's not a practical solution for me :/
 

sidneykitty

Foster mama
Alpha Cat
Joined
Dec 25, 2015
Messages
695
Purraise
711
I don't know the likelihood of this but would kitten milk replacer be available at all? Its available at pet stores and is really good for helping them gain weight.

You could also try boiled egg. I gave this to my cat when she was sick and had a low appetite and she just gobbled up the yolk and left the white.

Also when she was sick I boiled a chicken and then blended it in a blender, added the water the chicken was boiled in or the broth, and she loved that. But yes you do have to make sure the vitamins and minerals are all there, too.

Best of luck and thanks for taking good care of your kitties! :)
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #9

rainia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Jan 25, 2016
Messages
9
Purraise
1
Yes i do feed them all chicken or chicken liver about two times per week :D but one of them is a bit spoiled and doesnt like chicken hahahah i'll try to get hold of milk replacer and see if it will help, thanks a bunch! :)
 

mrsgreenjeens

Every Life Should Have Nine Cats
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
16,441
Purraise
7,221
Location
Arizona
Oh eggs do sound like a great idea, but is it safe to mix raw yolks into the wet food? Shouldnt i cook them first?
You can feed the egg yolk cooked or raw...doesn't matter.  Some cats will eat a raw egg yolk plain, some like them mixed with a little water, some like them mixed into canned food, some don't like them at all.  Some like them cooked (boiled, scrambled).  Some don't like them raw OR cooked
 
Top