How should I feed my emaciated stray cat

boobear27 · May 16, 2016

@Hellokitty..I bought her some cat toys and she doesn't seem interested in them right now maybe she will in the future when she gets her health back..I made her a cat tent out of an old t-shirt and a card board box and she loves it! She used it the first day

hellomisskitty · May 16, 2016

Cats are funny about toys (well, really about a lot of things): some cats prefer toys that mimic things like birds (Da Bird is a great example of this) others, like my cat, really like things that are "ground dwelling" like mice, bugs and worms. My cat even likes to play fetch with balls. It takes expirementing with all different types (flying vs. ground dwelling) to figure out what type of toy really excites Bowie. She is also getting used to her new environment which may be impacting her playfulness.
Since Bowie is deaf, I would suggest you try toys that ultize flashing lights (a laser pointer toy?) to catch her sight and scent (maybe catnip toys?) so she can smell her toys.

hellomisskitty · May 16, 2016

This might be a good toy to get:

https://www.chewy.com/bergan-star-c...an&utm_term=&gclid=CKXR7OPo38wCFYqPfgodlBYHFA

It has flashing LED lights in the balls and as a bonus the middle is a scratching pad! My cat loves hers.

And boxes are a cats best friend [emoji]10084[/emoji]️ You are well on your way to being a "cat person"!

boobear27 · May 16, 2016

Thanks for all your help today hello kitty..I will try to experiment with different toys flash light toy sounds like an awesome idea!

hellomisskitty · May 16, 2016

boobear27 said:
Thanks for all your help today hello kitty..I will try to experiment with different toys flash light toy sounds like an awesome idea!

You and your husband are the ones to be thanked: plenty of people would have turned to other way at an animal in need instead of taking her into their home the way you two did for Bowie. I know that she will bring you much joy [emoji]10084[/emoji]️

mazie · May 17, 2016

Bowie is a beautiful girl!!! When she fills out a little, she will be stunning!!! You have been given a lot of great advice on foods and feeding. I just thought I would throw this out. My Katy is a picky eater and on the slender side. I used to feed feral cats and therefore am used to cats scarfing down everything in site!! Katy, on the other hand is a picky eater, so I give her kitten chow and "Sheba" pate cat food, rotating with Friskies pate for variety. And of course, welcome to TCS!!!!

Mamanyt1953 · May 17, 2016

boobear27 said:
@Hellokitty..I bought her some cat toys and she doesn't seem interested in them right now maybe she will in the future when she gets her health back..I made her a cat tent out of an old t-shirt and a card board box and she loves it! She used it the first day

I think you are right. Just now, she needs to hold on to every calorie that comes her way. Once she begins to fill out more, you'll see parts of her personality that you have no clue of right now, including playfulness.

Even as thin as she is, she is a beautiful girl. I'm so looking forward to seeing her gain weight and become a healthy, gorgeous cat!

boobear27 · May 17, 2016

Thank you everyone for welcoming Bowie and I with open arms and for all the great advice. I will continue to keep everyone up to date on Bowie's journey back to health and will post up more pics of her.

boobear27 · May 17, 2016

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boobear27
May 17, 2016

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boobear27
May 17, 2016

Bowie's dinner time!

zed xyzed · May 17, 2016

She already looks so much better. What a cute girl. You are so kind to take her in and give her a loving home.

janem · May 18, 2016

What a beautiful kitty! She is so lucky to have you. When her tummy is up to it you might consider leaving her a bowl of about half a cup of dry food to snack on between meals. She may still be learning to trust that meals are going to be there.
My cats favorite toy is the

suzannef · May 18, 2016

I agree with those who have suggested a high quality dry food, free-fed, for the short term. I think it might help her put on some much-needed weight as well as just help her feel more "food-secure" in her new home. Obviously you could discontinue/limit if she eats too quickly and throws it back up. In the long run, dry food is not the healthiest option (and it can be addicting). But in the short term, I wouldn't hesitate to feed dry, especially if cost is an issue. I would if I were in your shoes. Thank you so much for taking her in and taking care of her.

red top rescue · May 18, 2016

One of the high quality dry foods left down as a snack between meals would be fine, but you should still keep feeding a generous quantity of wet food. It is much healthier for her to get water as part of her food, as she would in the wild.

suzannef · May 18, 2016

Red Top Rescue said:
One of the high quality dry foods left down as a snack between meals would be fine, but you should still keep feeding a generous quantity of wet food. It is much healthier for her to get water as part of her food, as she would in the wild.

Yes! I meant dry *in addition* to regular meals of canned. Sorry I didn't make that clear.

rubysmama · May 18, 2016

Welcome to TCS @boobear27 Bowie is beautiful. What a lucky day for her when she wandered into your backyard. Food. Toys. Even a cat tree on order.

Was the vet able to give an estimated age for her?

sidneykitty · May 18, 2016

You could also try some high calorie wet foods, such as Royal Canin Recovery RS (link to it on their site: https://www.royalcanin.com/products...-food-5.8-oz-loaf-in-gel-24-cans-case-/260205) which is high calorie, really stinky so most cats should eat it. i don't normally like Royal Canin food, but this one is a special case for short-term cats needing to gain weight.

Another thing to try is to feed her canned/wet kitten food specifically. It has more calories as well, so will help her put on some weight.

Lastly, you can try feeding her some Kitten Milk Replacer (KMR), such as this one from PetSmart (http://www.petsmart.com/cat/milk-re...r-for-kittens-zid36-12355/cat-36-catid-200031) to help her gain weight. This is for short-term use only, but it will help if she likes it. Make sure you follow the feeding instructions on the can if you do this.

Edited to say: The KMR should be in addition to her normal food she would eat to provide her some extra calories.

My cat, Sidney, needed to gain weight when she had cancer and I did all of these things and it helped her gain weight in the short-term. If you go to a local pet store, you might be able to ask them for some help as well if they are well-informed. They may even have some sample sizes of different foods you can try. Mine did this for me, which was very helpful.

Wishing you all the best! She's beautiful

boobear27 · May 18, 2016

rubysmama said:
Welcome to TCS @boobear27 Bowie is beautiful. What a lucky day for her when she wandered into your backyard. Food. Toys. Even a cat tree on order.

Was the vet able to give an estimated age for her?

Thank you for your kind words

..The vet told us she's the between age of 1 and 3 years old..

boobear27 · May 18, 2016

SuzanneF said:
I agree with those who have suggested a high quality dry food, free-fed, for the short term. I think it might help her put on some much-needed weight as well as just help her feel more "food-secure" in her new home. Obviously you could discontinue/limit if she eats too quickly and throws it back up. In the long run, dry food is not the healthiest option (and it can be addicting). But in the short term, I wouldn't hesitate to feed dry, especially if cost is an issue. I would if I were in your shoes. Thank you so much for taking her in and taking care of her.

I decided that I'm gonna stick to wet food and just offer dry food as a snack in between..I giving her more wet food than I was before and add a few pieces of plain chicken in the wet food..She is getting one 5 oz can and a half of friskies pate a day plus the chicken bits..She seems more satisfied now and starting to develop a little gut

boobear27 · May 18, 2016

sidneykitty said:
You could also try some high calorie wet foods, such as Royal Canin Recovery RS (link to it on their site: https://www.royalcanin.com/products...-food-5.8-oz-loaf-in-gel-24-cans-case-/260205) which is high calorie, really stinky so most cats should eat it. i don't normally like Royal Canin food, but this one is a special case for short-term cats needing to gain weight.

Another thing to try is to feed her canned/wet kitten food specifically. It has more calories as well, so will help her put on some weight.

Lastly, you can try feeding her some Kitten Milk Replacer (KMR), such as this one from PetSmart (http://www.petsmart.com/cat/milk-re...r-for-kittens-zid36-12355/cat-36-catid-200031) to help her gain weight. This is for short-term use only, but it will help if she likes it. Make sure you follow the feeding instructions on the can if you do this.

Edited to say: The KMR should be in addition to her normal food she would eat to provide her some extra calories.

My cat, Sidney, needed to gain weight when she had cancer and I did all of these things and it helped her gain weight in the short-term. If you go to a local pet store, you might be able to ask them for some help as well if they are well-informed. They may even have some sample sizes of different foods you can try. Mine did this for me, which was very helpful.

Wishing you all the best! She's beautiful

I thought about giving her KMR and I asked the vet if I should if I should give Bowie KMR and the vet told me it wasn't necessary that to just continue feeding like I was and give her some TLC

ginny · May 19, 2016

Bowie is a very pretty kitty! And she is so lucky to have you as her mama.

How should I feed my emaciated stray cat

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