Advice on difficult/picky young new cat

[Ladyrosee]

Hi! I posted before this post i believe in october with new shy cat not eating. Well it's been about 7 months now and she has adjusted great. Last month was the month where i introduced her to kissing and now she absolutely loves kisses especially on her head

But i still am having sort of the same problem. She definitely is just VERY picky. She was on friskies shreds and kibble for 9 months in her foster home. I wanted her on a slightly healthier option and few percent less carbs so i got fancy feast gravy lovers and she liked it. Would give her a can in the morning and evening. Thing is..she wants to graze. Habe it down all day. My senior eats her food so i can't. i want to try a microchip feeder but I'm afraid it will scare her away especially since she has 0 food motivation.

She is so picky with when she eats if my husband and i are going to be gone morning to evening she literally will not eat all day because we offer her her bowl when we feed our others and she runs after it and we set it down and she immediately walks out of her room. We have started putting fortiflora on it and it was great for a couple months now she is being picky with that too. I caved this morning and offered friskies shreds and she ate a quarter of a can quickly and walked away which was great. i also worry i think she needs more food than she actually does. Her healthy weight is 7 lbs and isnt it usually 20 calories per lb give or take? It's just so frustrating especially leaving town she will barely eat because she is pretty used to my mom who watches her but my mom would have to stay home most of the day and wait for my cat to chase her up the stairs meaning she wants her bowl set down.

I'm just not sure what other foods i should try to feed her my other cats eat really good quality wet and raw and shes just wanting mcdonalds. My senior eats literally anything so he sneaks her food but my other cat wont even sniff it he's disgusted and wondering where his rabbit is lol

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi
Have you tried a slow transition, using the shreds to help her become accustomed to new foods?

You might have to try a microchip feeder, using the shreds.

Would she be more willing to use something like this, by entering through a catflap installed in the side of a very large tub? This is for a different purpose, but works;

 

[Ladyrosee]

Hi
Have you tried a slow transition, using the shreds to help her become accustomed to new foods?

You might have to try a microchip feeder, using the shreds.

Would she be more willing to use something like this, by entering through a catflap installed in the side of a very large tub? This is for a different purpose, but works;

She is a very very weird cat. Or she might actually be super cat like and normal but my cat experiences i seem to have more child like/human cats. She follows me and i get it she loves me. She sprints off whatever she was doing most of the time even in a deep sleep if she hears me put a foot on my stairs she sprints over, screams and wants me to carry her up the stairs. She will only attempt at eating around noon. She doesn't eat in the morning. Its like she only eats food from noon (if I'm lucky) to 12am but it's more like 4pm to 12am she will want to graze. I thought about maybe a cat door that goes to her room.. like a microchip door for when we will be away and i can leave all her food down. I might have to look into prozac or something for her because it sort of seems like a screw is loose lol. She will constantly run in front of me and sit really fast.. take a few steps.. sit and look up so i assume she's hungry but i offer food and she runs away. Some days several in a row she eats great she will finish all her breakfast by 4 or 5pm and be wanting dinner but the last couple days is like pulling teeth to figure her out. Maybe the door would be a better thing than a feeder and my dad is in town and can install it can't hurt.. i just hope she is smart enough to figure it out


She does like other food like nulo minced and wellness shreds but if i make her up a meal she's like no thanks. But if I'm feeding my other cats and shes downstairs I'll give a small spoonful on a little plate and set it in the hall and she eats it. I make her more and she doesnt want it

 

[Ladyrosee]

Hi
Have you tried a slow transition, using the shreds to help her become accustomed to new foods?

You might have to try a microchip feeder, using the shreds.

Would she be more willing to use something like this, by entering through a catflap installed in the side of a very large tub? This is for a different purpose, but works;

Brought up the idea of the door to my husband and he laughed like it was a dumb idea and said "or we could just find a food she likes" like we havent been trying.. i dont think the door is a bad idea. The feeder is cheaper though but man. some cats just graze and i dont think she will ever change. Shes a tiny 7lb cat and rescued from abuse from birth to 6 months then locked in a bedroom for 9 more months and hid from people

 

[Furballsmom]

Regarding food, what about toppers other than fortiflora, such as Inaba Churu - I put some directly on Captain's food, or some of the pouch foods?

Would your husband be willing to try the big tub that I posted for you above? It is less than cutting a hole in a door, which is maybe what he is reluctant about.

 

[Ladyrosee]

Regarding food, what about toppers other than fortiflora, such as Inaba Churu - I put some directly on Captain's food, or some of the pouch foods?

Would your husband be willing to try the big tub that I posted for you above? It is less than cutting a hole in a door, which is maybe what he is reluctant about.

She likes churu but there has been nothing she's been crazy about. like no food motivation like my previous and current cats she's a very very happy girl that can't get enough attention and loves her sunny windows, heat pads, my other cats she snuggles with. but her and her food is frustrating. They do sell topper like seasoning looking bottles at mud bay lots of flavors.
She did eat freeze dried salmon treats for a few days i went to give her a little cube of it the other day and she ran away from it and hasnt eaten them since

 

[Furballsmom]

freeze dried salmon treats

What about bonito flakes? CatManDoo has them

 

[Ladyrosee]

What about bonito flakes? CatManDoo has them

I'll give those a shot! I forgot they existed. She ate half a can of friskes early in the day which is great. Then she acted hungry this evening and ran upstairs with me carrying her bowl and i set it down and she moved two feet away and sat down and stared so i gave her her kibble bowl (1/8 cup i offer at night and she munches but doesn't finish), she began munching and i walked away to close her in her room for a few and she sprinted out of the room. Sigh

 

[Alldara]

Magnus isa grazer and we did have to find a separate feeding space.

But it also turned out that he has a beef allergy.
Since he was a kitten he also had a preference for either senior food or urinary food. I'm unsure why but he was on a multivitamin type thing before from the vet.

 

[Furballsmom]

walked away to close her in her room for a few and she sprinted out of the room.

This is reminding me of a couple of other cats on this site who literally won't eat unless their human stays with them.

It got me thinking...I'm going to take a shot and what if, rather than staying with her while she eats, you tried getting a purr "toy" (some even have heartbeats too), and set it near to her bowl, -- like a meal buddy?

 

[Ladyrosee]

This is reminding me of a couple of other cats on this site who literally won't eat unless their human stays with them.

It got me thinking...I'm going to take a shot and what if, rather than staying with her while she eats, you tried getting a purr "toy" (some even have heartbeats too), and set it near to her bowl, -- like a meal buddy?

I think she has aversion to a bedroom which i don't blame her being locked in a bedroom for almost 9 months and then closed in my bedroom for 10 days while she got used to my house and my cats could smell she was there. She has shredded my door and frame lol. She might like the company.. i have been trying to place her bowl down and just walk away to show her i won't close her in while my other two cats are distracted at their own mealtime downstairs. She ate great yesterday because i gave her friskies. I feel like a bad pet owner for feeding such crap
My husband gets so frustrated when I'm at work all day and she wants food so he brings het fresh food and she dead stops in the hallway and refuses to go in her room

And i do have a heart beat stuffie! I wonder if she would like it. My middle kitty it was his favorite toy when i fosteted him and his siblings at a week old he would bury under it constantly

 

[Ladyrosee]

Magnus isa grazer and we did have to find a separate feeding space.

But it also turned out that he has a beef allergy.
Since he was a kitten he also had a preference for either senior food or urinary food. I'm unsure why but he was on a multivitamin type thing before from the vet.

Do some cats just graze no matter what? She just seems so difficult i cant imagine having her on a schedule. My other two know exactly what time it is but I've had them since kittens and my senior has food on his mind 24/7 his whole life

 

[Furballsmom]

My husband gets so frustrated when I'm at work all day and she wants food so he brings het fresh food and she dead stops in the hallway and refuses to go in her room

Is she ok eating in the hallway?

 

[Ladyrosee]

Is she ok eating in the hallway?

No.. she is too skittish. Every small thing distracts her and she walks away. She will be eating good then one of my cats comes upstairs and she's like OH HEY MY BFF HELLO. She is always stopping, looking out the bedroom into the hall, then continuing. Or if the window is open she would rather starve and enjoy the window all day in the sun. I give her a churu every morning so she at least eats something and that she will eat downstairs in the kitchen. I gave her 1/8 cup of kibble i allow her to graze on it's like 50 calories for that so it's quite a bit and she will eat maybe half of it throughout the day she prefers to have a couple bites then is done for a while. But she was eating kibble earlier and one of my cats came in and she got distracted and left. maybe i will splurge the feeder and just put the kibble in there

 

[Alldara]

Do some cats just graze no matter what? She just seems so difficult i cant imagine having her on a schedule. My other two know exactly what time it is but I've had them since kittens and my senior has food on his mind 24/7 his whole life

I mean Magnus has always just had a small tummy. He has to be fed in smaller portions more frequently. We had to move to 4 smaller mealtimes for all the cats because the pther two are food focused. We couldn't keep weight on Magnus before.

1.5 to 2 oz of food at 530 am. He's eating 1tbsp dry food around 7 am, then 1 Oz wet food. 1 oz wet at lunch if the cats bug for food. 1/3 of wureva can at 5 and however much of his 2nd tbsp of dry he will eat after we finish eating dinner. Then however much of his 3rd tbsp he will eat before we go to bed and 1oz of wet food. Sometimes some temptations and sometimes a churu or liackable temptations treat.

 

[Ladyrosee]

I mean Magnus has always just had a small tummy. He has to be fed in smaller portions more frequently. We had to move to 4 smaller mealtimes for all the cats because the pther two are food focused. We couldn't keep weight on Magnus before.

1.5 to 2 oz of food at 530 am. He's eating 1tbsp dry food around 7 am, then 1 Oz wet food. 1 oz wet at lunch if the cats bug for food. 1/3 of wureva can at 5 and however much of his 2nd tbsp of dry he will eat after we finish eating dinner. Then however much of his 3rd tbsp he will eat before we go to bed and 1oz of wet food. Sometimes some temptations and sometimes a churu or liackable temptations treat.

My 10lb boy would eat 3oz of wet 4x a day if i let him. Idk how he fits it all without vomiting. He will eat a can then wait for my senior to be done to try to get the remainder