Kittens not eating wet food

purity

TCS Member
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
May 20, 2005
Messages
1,723
Purraise
11
Location
South UK
Hoping for a bit of advice here! Neither of my boys (just turned 3 months old) will eat any kind of wet cat food. I have tried them on everything I can find, but they just turn away as if I've offered them baked beans!


They both eat biscuits and love cat milk in the mornings, and will both happily scoff a plate of chicken. Don't like fish or liver (although Alfie did eat a bit of smoked salmon last night!), and will both lap happily at egg yolk.

My question is this - are they getting enough vitamins and minerals? I take it as dry food is supposed to be 'complete' that as long as they eat that I should be ok? Should I be trying to find vitamin tablets (very difficult to find in the UK!)? Is there some other type of meat I can offer them that will help?

Will they change as they get older? It's not the cost, that doesn't bother me, but I want to know that I am giving them the best food I can!

Any help muchly appreciated
 

hell603

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Mar 9, 2001
Messages
4,560
Purraise
3
Location
Central New Jersey
Eating wet is not needed - sounds like you are doing a great job nutrition!!!

You can keep trying and maybe one day they change thoer mind. Just make sure sure they get enough water!!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

purity

TCS Member
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
May 20, 2005
Messages
1,723
Purraise
11
Location
South UK
They drink loads of water, from bowls scattered about the house!
 

arlyn

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
May 9, 2005
Messages
9,306
Purraise
50
Location
Needles, CA
I had to water down pate' type canned food for a couple months for my little one, don't have to anymore.
Her favs seem to be of the turkey, chicken, or beef vaireties, she doesn't do fish.
 

coaster

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
May 28, 2005
Messages
5,174
Purraise
7
Location
Wisconsin
Wet food isn't necessary for full and complete nutrition. It has other benefits, though. If you've tried your best and they just won't eat it, I'd say stop worrying about it.
 

bengalbabe

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Feb 17, 2005
Messages
1,747
Purraise
14
Location
Sacramento CA
Originally Posted by Purity

Hoping for a bit of advice here! Neither of my boys (just turned 3 months old) will eat any kind of wet cat food. I have tried them on everything I can find, but they just turn away as if I've offered them baked beans!


They both eat biscuits and love cat milk in the mornings, and will both happily scoff a plate of chicken. Don't like fish or liver (although Alfie did eat a bit of smoked salmon last night!), and will both lap happily at egg yolk.

My question is this - are they getting enough vitamins and minerals? I take it as dry food is supposed to be 'complete' that as long as they eat that I should be ok? Should I be trying to find vitamin tablets (very difficult to find in the UK!)? Is there some other type of meat I can offer them that will help?

Will they change as they get older? It's not the cost, that doesn't bother me, but I want to know that I am giving them the best food I can!

Any help muchly appreciated
Kittens become fixated on a certin type of food early on in life so they are programmed on what they should eat when they leave mother cat. Most likely these cats were weined on dry food so they only see dry as a food source. Try mixing in some of that cat milk you mentioed. Make it soupy at first then slowly decrease the amount of milk till they only have wet food with no milk. Neither wet nor dry commercial cat food is ideal for a true carnivore like a cat but at least a high quality wet that is made mostly of meat is better then dry as there is just too many carbs in dry food IMO.
 

pat

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 1, 2003
Messages
11,045
Purraise
58
Location
Pacific NW
Honestly, if they won't, they won't. Over the years, I would keep offering - trying to be sure the wet food you offer doesn't contain any fish or liver, since you know they do not like it (and so many foods no matter their name - ie. chicken dinner - will also contain fish and/or liver).

If you are feeding a good quality formulated for kittens (or at least, formulated for all lifestages dry food) then they are getting a fairly balanced diet. I agree that that dry foods leave something to be desired (I think a wet food, or homecooked diet - using an appropriate recipe your vet approves as properly balanced). A good book is out there on homecooked diets - do a google search on Dr. Strombeck.

Hth,
 
Top