Stopping a dry food diet

[heatherwillard0614]

daftcat75 Thank you so much for the suggestions i appreciate it more than you know. I am doing the meal feeding now I take her food away She only gets her bowl 3 or 4 times a day depending on if she is begging for food... she doesn't like the tube treats (I've tried different brands and flavors) I have tried a bunch of different brands textures and flavors of were food.
For now I'm not even trying to introduce wet food as she is having tummy troubles (trapped gas in intestines) she is on 2 types of medicine which is helping and she is just about back to normal .. the only thing she has really liked to eat besides kibble is chicken..
But once her tummy troubles are over I'm going to take her back for a follow up and another x ray just to make sure everything is back to normal and as it should be. I am going to start the transition.. just have to try to find something rhe little lady likes lol

I've never heard of the mouser brand... I'll look into it

 

[heatherwillard0614]

I later came to learn that she had been eating through dental pain for most of the first year with me. Her diet has been more or less fixed for the last year as we've been working her hairballs (suspected IBD) and teeth.

Poor baby.. I'm so glad her issues were found and addressed. That is amazing that the last year has been going well for her diet wise..

 

[maggie101]

Fancy feast classics turkey&giblets and beef with beef liver are the only 2 foods my cat peaches has never thrown up. And weruva.i use expensive and less expensive

 

[daftcat75]

The FF beef flavor has been the only food Betty has ever thrown up--at least in the eighteen months I've had her. She's tossed plenty of hairballs. She's regurgitated a few times (scarf and barf.) But the only food that hit stomach, and took a U-turn was the FF beef flavor. Not all cats enjoy or can handle red meat. Don't be surprised or discouraged if yours also falls into that camp.

 

[maggie101]

The beef I'm not totally sure about. Fingers crossed. Not many 3 oz cans she can eat. No pate,no shredded,no chicken,doesn't like rabbit or fish. She can eat orijen canned in tiny amounts many servings spread out but I want to make it easy for the people boarding her. If she eats weruva I have to cut it more,too much work

 

[CatLadyofNine]

I don’t know if this is relevant or will help your case, but one thing that I’ve found with my picky boy Graham is that if I sit with him while he eats, he’ll eat more of his wet food. He was an ex barn cat that belonged to my grandparents and he was only ever fed dry food and table scraps. When I got him he was definitely a dry food addict and very picky about wet food until I discovered sitting with him somehow makes him want to eat more. He also used to try to “bury” the wet food he didn’t eat. He doesn’t do that much anymore, though. I’ve also discovered rotating flavors/proteins helps.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

He also used to try to “bury” the wet food he didn’t eat. He doesn’t do that much anymore, though.

Where was he trying to bury it lol

Thank you for the recommendation I really appreciate it.
I'll give it a try once she is completely meal fed down to 3 times a day.. we are getting there... she has 4 meals a day now.. each meal she still only eats some of it but I pick it up when she walks away and don't give her anything til the next meal. She just has to break a bad habit (dry food free fed) she is doing well going from food all day to the 4 times a day tho..

 

[CatLadyofNine]

What he would do is he would take a bite or two of the wet food, then he would act like he is burying it by attempting to grab a nearby rug to cover it up. Or if there is nothing to cover it with he just “pretends”. Lol. He also sometimes grabs the blanket from his and Pip’s bed and “buries” it in the water dish. I am starting to think he does it on purpose!
Have you ever tried hand feeding the wet food to her? After all of my cats are done eating their wet food, they normally all leave bits behind in their bowls, so I just put the food on my finger and they eat it off my finger. I have tried this when they are sick as well. The only one who won’t do this is Graham of course!

 

[heatherwillard0614]

I haven't tried to feed her by hand yet. That's a great idea. I just gotta get her down to 3 feedings a day then start the transition. But for now we're taking a little break Gabby is having some ( trapped gas) stomach problems not due to the getting her acclimated to meal feeding.

 

[cmshap]

Have you ever tried hand feeding the wet food to her? After all of my cats are done eating their wet food, they normally all leave bits behind in their bowls, so I just put the food on my finger and they eat it off my finger.

This is super-interesting, because I recently discovered my cat will do a similar thing.

A little background... my cat doesn't always finish his wet meals. And I feed him mostly wet food, with a little dry food, which I found was the best ratio for him. I have a previous thread on it...

Wet/dry food ratio and pooping issues

My cat Willy ate dry food exclusively in the beginning of his life, but it was prescription food and recommended by my vet. He always had gastrointestinal issues and has vomited a lot throughout his life. I switched him to wet food (over time, gradually) in the last few years, and it almost...

thecatsite.com

He doesn't always finish his wet food, and leaves bits on the plate, like you described.

What I do is pretend to serve him a new meal. I pick up the plate, and use my fingers to pull all the leftover bits into a pile in the center, then put the plate back down. He often seems to think this is a new meal and finishes it.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

This is super-interesting, because I recently discovered my cat will do a similar thing.

A little background... my cat doesn't always finish his wet meals. And I feed him mostly wet food, with a little dry food, which I found was the best ratio for him. I have a previous thread on it...

Wet/dry food ratio and pooping issues

My cat Willy ate dry food exclusively in the beginning of his life, but it was prescription food and recommended by my vet. He always had gastrointestinal issues and has vomited a lot throughout his life. I switched him to wet food (over time, gradually) in the last few years, and it almost...

thecatsite.com

He doesn't always finish his wet food, and leaves bits on the plate, like you described.

What I do is pretend to serve him a new meal. I pick up the plate, and use my fingers to pull all the leftover bits into a pile in the center, then put the plate back down. He often seems to think this is a new meal and finishes it.

What kind of bowls do you use for him?

 

[cmshap]

What kind of bowls do you use for him?

I just use a regular small plate. Like for humans.

I had a raised bowl for a while... you can see it in this thread:

Do any of your cats put their toys in their food dish?

This photo is from a few years ago. Willy isn't doing it now, but he was doing this for 3-4 years of his life... he would constantly bring his toy mice to his food dish and drop them in. It was so funny. Thankfully he stopped because he is on mostly wet food now, and dropping toys into wet food...

thecatsite.com

But I stopped using that, after transitioning him to mostly wet food, because he was pushing a lot of it off the dish (by licking it up towards the edges, and pushing it off with his tongue). He still does that with a plate, but it's easier to clean and recover the spilled food.

Also, unlike what is pictured in the above thread, I currently have a large rubber mat (with a raised lip around the sides) under the plate, to collect the spilled food.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

Has anyone heard of or tried Dave's canned food

Amazon.com

 

[Alldara]

Has anyone heard of or tried Dave's canned food

Amazon.com

It looks like a similar texture to Dr. elseys wet food. I know nothing about Dave's but if I'm correct on the texture front it's an issue for some cats.

Trouble with Amazon you can't get just one to try

 

[heatherwillard0614]

It looks like a similar texture to Dr. elseys wet food. I know nothing about Dave's but if I'm correct on the texture front it's an issue for some cats.

Trouble with Amazon you can't get just one to try

I know that's the worst part hahaha plus I don't know about ordering cat food from amazon... I don't know if I truly trust it.. lol I've seen reviews on a bunch of different brands and some of them are baaaaadd..... ughhh I just want to get something that good nutritionally and that Gabby will like. I just want to get the best for her but some of it is soo expensive... 🫤

 

[Alldara]

I know that's the worst part hahaha plus I don't know about ordering cat food from amazon... I don't know if I truly trust it.. lol I've seen reviews on a bunch of different brands and some of them are baaaaadd..... ughhh I just want to get something that good nutritionally and that Gabby will like. I just want to get the best for her but some of it is soo expensive... 🫤

In terms of wet, even the cheap ones really aren't bad. They have less grain than dry food, less carbs overall.

I'd pick a few inexpensive things to get her going.

Mine only eat expensive brands like Wureva when I can get a sale on a case and even then, only one can of that per day. It got too expensive feeding it to them for lunch every day with no sales.

Beyond is good. My guys really like the duck and sweet potato. I get it at the grocer. Purina urinary is their main diet. We also do Iams perfect Portions as it's really basic ingredients and Calcifer's go-to. We were doing wellness as well but I'm no longer a fan as quality has dropped (my friend fed hers that full time and also moved to something new). We get fancy Feast periodically to sub in or have as backup. If you can get her eating a couple and do some sale shopping, that's best. I'm in Canada and even the PC brand at the grocer is fairly suitable.

Blue Buffalo has some good ones. Authority is also fine but mine won't eat it. Royal Canin got really expensive but I'm a fan...it's just not affordable.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

Thank you so much I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. I just want her to be happy and healthy.. eating good quality food.
Now when I'm starting her transition, I know I need to do it slow but I guess my question would be how do I transition from dry to wet while trying different brands and textures?? Without causing tummy issues??

 

[daftcat75]

Thank you so much I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. I just want her to be happy and healthy.. eating good quality food.
Now when I'm starting her transition, I know I need to do it slow but I guess my question would be how do I transition from dry to wet while trying different brands and textures?? Without causing tummy issues??

Try the wet food in small amounts. Like a tablespoon at first. As you find one she likes, reduce the dry and slowly increase the wet. While you are exploring new foods, I wouldn’t try more than a tablespoon of each with her until you’ve seen the returns.
Let that be a guide of whether you can increase her amount or try a different food. While you are exploring new foods for her, I would designate one meal a day as her experimental meal. Limit the new foods to one meal a day and one new food a day. That’s going to make it easier for you to play detective on whether it’s working for her. Likewise, if you have to abort your experiment, you have only disturbed one of her meals. Makes it that much easier to unwind a bad food that’s just not working for her.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

Try the wet food in small amounts. Like a tablespoon at first. As you find one she likes, reduce the dry and slowly increase the wet. While you are exploring new foods, I wouldn’t try more than a tablespoon of each with her until you’ve seen the returns.
Let that be a guide of whether you can increase her amount or try a different food. While you are exploring new foods for her, I would designate one meal a day as her experimental meal. Limit the new foods to one meal a day and one new food a day. That’s going to make it easier for you to play detective on whether it’s working for her. Likewise, if you have to abort your experiment, you have only disturbed one of her meals. Makes it that much easier to unwind a bad food that’s just not working for her.

Thank you so much for the advice. I am going to be buying some wet food today as I am putting in a grocery order..

I still have to wait to start her transition until after her vet appointment on Friday.

I don't want to cause more of an upset she is already unclmfortable with tummy issues

Ugh kitties once they get sick it feels like it is impossible to figure out what is causing it.

 

[Alldara]

Thank you so much for the advice. I am going to be buying some wet food today as I am putting in a grocery order..

I still have to wait to start her transition until after her vet appointment on Friday.

I don't want to cause more of an upset she is already unclmfortable with tummy issues

Ugh kitties once they get sick it feels like it is impossible to figure out what is causing it.

I also stick to one protein at first even though they're trying different brands. So for example Ghost was on a chicken dry food at the shelter so we did Purina Pro Plan chunks and pate for him to try. Then he tries other types of chicken. That went well, so we let him try lamb one day, never more than 1/3 of a can. Then back to chicken for a few days. Same when he tried the duck.