Hello! I've been transitioning my nearly 11 month old siberian kitten to raw. She's had some digestive issues for several months now, and an ultrasound revealed some thickened intestines so I'm switching her to try to head off what the vet thinks is IBS before it develops into anything more serious.
I've been feeding Darwin's turkey, and we're up to a 25% old food, 75% raw mix right now. She started being picky at about 50/50, taking a long time to eat her food and starting to leave a little behind, but she was still eating so I kept going.
I feed twice a day. Recently now, she'll finish her morning meal with the help of some freeze dried treats as a topper, but she's leaving behind most of her evening meal, even with the toppers -- she'll usually nibble off the crumbled treats and pick at the rest before walking off.
Given that she is eating, I'm not sure how to proceed. All of the advice I've seen is for cats who won't eat at all, so I'm not sure if it's safe or possible to try to outlast her. Should I keep going and hope she gets used to the flavor, or that she'll eventually get hungry enough to eat? Or should I go way back, maybe to 75% old, 25% raw, and try to transition more slowly?
I've been giving her slippery elm bark about half an hour before her meals for the last week, and she hasn't vomited since I've been doing that, but I'm also wondering how much of this could be nausea? I'm not sure how to tell; she's not lethargic or drooling at all. Additionally, in the past her vomiting is proceeded and followed by a couple days of diarrhea but she's had good stools.
Finally, how much might be her appetite waning as she gets close to a year? When do kittens start eating less as they approach adulthood? She's less active than she was a month ago so I do think she's calming down.
Thank you!
I've been feeding Darwin's turkey, and we're up to a 25% old food, 75% raw mix right now. She started being picky at about 50/50, taking a long time to eat her food and starting to leave a little behind, but she was still eating so I kept going.
I feed twice a day. Recently now, she'll finish her morning meal with the help of some freeze dried treats as a topper, but she's leaving behind most of her evening meal, even with the toppers -- she'll usually nibble off the crumbled treats and pick at the rest before walking off.
Given that she is eating, I'm not sure how to proceed. All of the advice I've seen is for cats who won't eat at all, so I'm not sure if it's safe or possible to try to outlast her. Should I keep going and hope she gets used to the flavor, or that she'll eventually get hungry enough to eat? Or should I go way back, maybe to 75% old, 25% raw, and try to transition more slowly?
I've been giving her slippery elm bark about half an hour before her meals for the last week, and she hasn't vomited since I've been doing that, but I'm also wondering how much of this could be nausea? I'm not sure how to tell; she's not lethargic or drooling at all. Additionally, in the past her vomiting is proceeded and followed by a couple days of diarrhea but she's had good stools.
Finally, how much might be her appetite waning as she gets close to a year? When do kittens start eating less as they approach adulthood? She's less active than she was a month ago so I do think she's calming down.
Thank you!