Feeding help for granny & granpa's cat!

[white cat lover]

My grandparents took in a cat(possibly Himalayan) when a person they knew was shipped to Iraq. He will not be coming back the same & is no longer capable of caring for another living creature. So, here they have a cat.

Kitty Buddy(KB) is a 4 paw declaw. He is neutered. He is about 6 years old. He darts out the door every chance he gets. He is a decent weight(as far as I know). I have seen fleeting streaks of a cat, never actually seen him holding still. He bites(from the declaw). He is scaredy cat. Grandma is having troubles from all of his shedding. Here's the catch: KB eats Meow Mix & nothing else. He will starve himself rather than eat something else. I sent RC, Felidae, Nutro, Innova Adult, & EVO with them to try. No luck.

Any ideas that I can pass along on how to get him to switch foods? They tried for a month, slowly transitioning him over, but he would never eat more than a bite or two of the "good stuff". He eats Meow Mix, only one kind of it. He will not eat any wet food, tuna, any people meat. They have been trying to feed him everything they can think of, but the only thing they can get him to eat is Meow Mix.

 

[obi]

Wow, that is one stubborn cat. The only thing I can think of is that he is distressed over his transition to a new home still and doesn't want any change in routine. As you obviously know, Meow Mix is cat junk food. That said, my parents (bless them) never did the research when I was growing up and our household cats always free fed Meow Mix. They've all lived a good, long life, so I don't think you need to be in any huge rush to switch him over. Maybe your grandparents should make gaining his trust their first priority for now. Give him his Meow Mix if it keeps him from stressing out, and maybe after he's become more comfortable in his new home he'll be more willing to try a new (better!) food.

 

[sharky]

I agree with Obi... You may know of "better " foods but the best food is the one the cat eats./.. Has he been vetted lately??

natural balence and max cat by nutro are the first "picky" eater food s that come to mind, but dont rush him...
maybe giving him a little salmon oil will help the shedding...


When I transitioned Kandie from friskies to max it was about a three week deal.. I would add two kibbles per day of the new food to the old...

 

[denice]

Even though poor diet is causing a lot of the shedding problem, stress is also probably adding to the problem. Just giving him time to calm down and adjust will probably also help some with the shedding.

 

[white cat lover]

KB has been with my grandparents for two years. He was into the vet for his regular exam a month or so ago. He is in good health.

KB has been making progress for the two years he has been with my grandparents. He used to bite incessantly. He sits in grandpa's lap to get brush three times a day for 15 minutes each time & when you go into their house, there is still hair everywhere. They don't care & I don't care. They worry someday if someone will find them dead in a sea of cat hair, though.

I might have to buy them some max cat or antural balance to try. If their cat won't eat it, we will use it up here.