Extremely Picky Eater

[soofeenee]

I have had my cat for about a year and a half now. Her previous owners abandoned her and a neighbor picked her up and took her to the SPCA, which is where I adopted her. I am at the end of my rope when it comes to feeding. In the beginning, I wasn't sure about wet food vs dry food. At my vet's office, one doctor said she had never fed her cats wet food, while another doctor in the office said she had never fed her cats dry food. I opted to go with wet food. I have tried Friskie's, Sheba, Fancy Feast, Rachael Ray's Nutrish, Purina One, Beyond, Newman's Own and even Blue Buffalo. One day she'll eat it, the next she won't. She'll eat it at one meal, but not at the next. I am retired and living on Social Security and a small pension, so I can't continue spending all this money trying to find something my cat enjoys.  I'm sure the problem is probably me, but I just don't know what else to do. Any helpful advice would be appreciated.

 

[bonepicker]

Go to Petco and try some Merrick or whole earth farms (same company) mine love rabbit, duck and beef pate and they are very fussy. When they get fussy I sprinkle crumbled purebite freeze dried treats. I buy the big dog size bag (it's more economical) online at chewy or amazon. Mine don't like any fish, which is good

 

[catpack]

I've had good luck with Nutro Natural Choice canned food. It contains pork broth, which seems to be very palatable to most cats (many of the prescription foods, including the critical care and GI formulas have it and I think this is why many cats eat these foods.)

You can also try putting a "topper" on the canned food. I use PureBites or Whole Life freeze-dried treats, as well as Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried raw food. The Stella & Chewy's is what helped me get my pickiest onto a primarily wet food diet. I was very surprised she like it and will now eat pretty much any canned food I sprinkle a few pieces on.

 

[Dinosnores]

Could it be from boredom? My guy will eat pretty much anything but starts to snub food if he gets it to many times in a row (like more than twice in one day). If you're already planning a rotation, have you tried giving her something different for each meal?

Another thing to try is warming it up in the microwave if it's been in the fridge. Sitting in there can take a lot of the smells away so it's less appetizing, I've found putting it in the microwave for 5-7 seconds can make a huge difference.

 

[bonepicker]

Yes I try to rotate at least 5 different ones

 

[lisahe]

I second the recommendation of Nutro Natural Choice--it seems to be very popular with picky cats.

I also second the thought about feeding multiple kinds of food, rotating them. (If, that is, you haven't already tried that.) Cats can get pretty bored if they're fed the same meal every time!

 

[soofeenee]

Thank you! I will definitely try both rotating the varieties and microwaving the food. Hopefully, that will do the trick. Appreciate your feedback.

 

[bazingak]

I'm new here but thought I would put in my 2 cents....my cat was also a picky eater. I know if you leave food out all of the time they pretty much become so used to the scent that they become uninterested. My cat is hyperthyroid. Even with his meds he ate constantly, threw up a lot and defecated horrible smelly stool. I had read that tuna cat food wasn't good for them. About the only thing he would eat (not happily) was Sheba wet turkey food. He was so thin I thought maybe he wasn't getting the best nutrition. Microwaving and heating the food destroys much of the nutrients. I finally decided to try a raw food diet. I get a powder to mix with raw ground turkey. Since he also has kidney issues I get the Kidney support powder. I get it from the "Feline Instincts" site. They have a lot of good info on raw food diet. The powder isn't cheap but if I add up what I spend in a month on cat food it isn't that much more. He seems to like the food. I have to add pumpkin to the mic to make it easier on his kidneys. His feces don't make me gag anyore. He doesn't vomit nearly as much. I think he is actually gaining back a little weight...not very easy with a hyper active thyroid!

 

[hamhoos]

That's tough! What kind of flavours have you been feeding her? Chicken? Turkey? Fish? You might want to try sticking with the meat she responds to most, and rotate between those. When she is unresponsive, add some treats as a topper.

You could try buying the assorted variety packs that come with different flavours and attempt to give kitty a tasting. See what she naturally will move towards.

 

[hellomisskitty]

I second the recommendation of Nutro Natural Choice--it seems to be very popular with picky cats.

I also second the thought about feeding multiple kinds of food, rotating them. (If, that is, you haven't already tried that.) Cats can get pretty bored if they're fed the same meal every time!

My picky girl loves Nutro!

 

[lisahe]

They seem to be popular with picky cats!

 

[soofeenee]

Just wanted you to know that it's been 2 weeks now and just putting the food in the microwave for 7 seconds has turned my cat around. Now, she eats whatever I give her. Thank you!!!!