[Louise]

I guess this is more of a whine than anything else. And, it might get a little long, because I jump through a few hoops at feeding time and may need to explain them all.

I have four cats. I have to separate them when they eat. My two oldest are pickers, and very submissive, while the younger two are Hoovers, and eat their meals in minutes (one in seconds). The younger ones get shut in a bedroom to eat, so that the older ones get their chance to pick for an hour or so.

Of the two oldest, one just isn't that crazy about wet food. She's 15, has some digestive problems and needs more food than she used to, just to stay at weight. Every morning, and every evening, I faithfully put out wet food for her. She may pick at it for a bit, or she may ignore it completely.

I sneak into the bathroom with her a few times a day, to give her what dry food she will eat at a time. It usually takes two or three times to get her to eat what would be a normal amount of food for a cat to consume at a sitting. It's a good thing I'm retired, because if I had to go out of the house to work for hours every day, she'd never get enough to eat.

Her favorite of the wet foods is Evo. I have been trying to get away from that, since they were bought by Proctor and Gamble. I've tried half a dozen other brands, with no success. Oh, it also has to be pate, because my other old cat won't touch anything chunky or stringy (Wereva was a gigantic fail). So, I continue to go back to the Evo because I figure that even the few mouthfuls of that are better for her than nothing.

The dry I feed is also Evo. I tried Instinct for a while but my vet steered me away from that. Gosh, I can't remember why. It was high in something and wasn't good for the liver, or maybe the kidneys.

All I want is for my cats to be happy and healthy. They seem to be, so I can always continue to do what I'm doing. But, if anyone has any suggestions on how to keep them that way and spend less time fussing with food, either wet or dry, I certainly would appreciate it.

[Chall]

Sometimes competition helps. I feed the picky one within sight of the Hoover-er. Sometimes it makes the picky one eat more than she would.

I am losing the battle with picky one, as she is really not eating at all now, kidney disease

[Chall]

Oh yeah, to get a normal cat to eat wet food, portion out the wet food, moosh kind down a bit, take a handful of dry food and place it on top. Embed it enough so it doesn't roll of the top, but makes sure dry food is exposed enough to stay dry and crunchy. Sprinkle top with loose dry food.

Cats will sniff the plate, the dry food tells them "it's okay". Take a bite and they get the sprinkled dry food. Then they eat more and get some of the wet and hopefully keep on going.

[alto]

Oh, it also has to be pate, because my other old cat won't touch anything chunky or stringy (Wereva was a gigantic fail).

a cheap immersion blender is your friend

She's 15, has some digestive problems and needs more food than she used to, just to stay at weight.

health panel?

[Louise]

a cheap immersion blender is your friend

Never thought of that. Heck, I never knew there was such a thing, had to Google it. It is one more thing I have to fuss with, but it might be worth a try.


health panel?

She gets a complete geriatric health panel done every year and goes in next week for her annual checkup. The weight thing has been going on for a couple of years, with nothing wrong on her panels. Vet (a cat specialist) says that it just happens with some older cats and, as long as she is maintaining weight, we'll just continue feeding her more.

Chall, I'm very sorry about your kitty. It does hurt so when you see them declining and can't find anything that works to get them better.

I tried the dry on top approach. Unfortunately, she just wouldn't eat the dry either, then. She's a weird cat. She'll only eat one kind of treat. And, she doesn't seem to ever have learned that she can bite things. She licks things into her mouth. Makes her very messy with her dry food.

I'd be afraid to try leaving one of the younger ones, especially, in the room with the two old girls. He's very food aggressive and has, in fact, just been started yesterday on alprazolam because, while usually a lover, he will attack the two old girls without warning at times. Maybe, if that works, that would be something I could try, however.

[Louise]

Here's a picture of my dear old girl, by the way. She is quirky about food, but the best girl. She never does anything wrong.
http://pic100.picturetrail.com/VOL72.../403633362.jpg

[SquishTheBunny]

Also, remember that its not the end of the world if a cat prefers dry over wet. As long as your cat drinks enough water, it should not cause problems.

[laskiblue]

Aw, she's lovely, Louise.

About a year and a half ago, a vet told my best friend that her elderly cat had only a few weeks to live due to general old age and recommended euthanizing him. She believed he still had quality of life and started feeding him chicken or turkey baby food mixed with carrot or sweet potato baby food. The old man started doing better very quickly, and, in fact, just had his 21st birthday a couple of weeks ago. She found that the meat alone tended to constipate him and adding the vegetables put everything back in balance for him. I hope this might help someone's picky eater older kitty.

[Louise]

That's interesting, and good to know. Thank you laskiblue. And, before I knew that wet food was better for the cats than dry, I fed nothing but a high quality dry, for quite a few years. The cats did very well on it. So, SquishTheBunny, you're quite right, it isn't the end of the world if Gina won't eat wet.

Of course, cats being cats, since I started this thread yesterday, my girl has cleaned up her wet food. I swear, sometimes these cats can read, and, of course, this particular girl would want to do the right thing and make me happy, unlike the other three whose likely attitude would be "thumb, meet nose." It probably won't last, but, it's nice to see her cleaning her plate.

[wendy]

you should never feed cats dry food because it can and will cause long-term (and possibly short-term) health problems.
BUT, as a caveat to that, if you have a sick cat or an old cat, the most important thing for that failing cat at that point in time is TO EAT. Anything. It's much more important the sick/old cat consumes calories than it is to worry about what form the calories come in. So if your sick old cat will only eat baby food, or only eat raw liver, or only eat dry cat food, or hamburgers or well, whatever, let the cat eat it.
Sick cats often die from starvation/malnutrition more than the actual disease that is affecting them.

if you had a healthy young cat who was objecting to what you wanted the cat to eat, I'd say "eat this or die", and most cats will give in and eat what you feed. But don't do that with a less-than-healthy cat!

[HenryisBlaisin']

A caveat on baby food: it's not nutritionally complete for cats, though it IS good for temporary feeding if the cat will not eat anything else. You should feed meat ones only, no need to mix in any vegetable ones because cats are obligate carnivores and do not need potato or any other vegetables in thier diet. If you must add something to avoid constipation, add plain canned pumpkin. Sweet potato and carrots have too much sugar. Usually in cats, though, constipation is due to not enough water consumption. The vast majority of cats do not drink enough on their own to keep everything in balance.

Also, with baby food, you want the stage one foods, because the ones for older babies often contain flavorings like onions or garlic which are harmful to cats. Make sure any baby food does not contain either one!

Finally, there are a couple of things you can do to make the wet more appealing. IME, dry food mixed in or on top rarely works. Parmesan cheese, the kind that comes in the shaker bottle, sprinkled on top often works. So does a product called Fortiflora, which is a probiotic. To many cats, Fortiflora is like kitty crack and they will hoover it down along with the food it's on.

Good luck with your old girl. One thing I would recommend when you take her for her checkup is to ask the vet about her blood glucose levels. Many vets miss early diabetic numbers because stress can also raise BG and so if the number is above normal but not skyrocketed, the vet feels it's due to stress and not diabetes. This happened with my diabetic. His numbers have never been through the roof like most diabetics at diagnosis, but are definitely diabetic numbers nonetheless. My vet overlooked this at first and my guy continued to lose weight. Once he was diagnosed and put on insulin, he's doing much better and acts like a much younger cat!

[SquishTheBunny]

you should never feed cats dry food because it can and will cause long-term (and possibly short-term) health problems.
BUT, as a caveat to that, if you have a sick cat or an old cat, the most important thing for that failing cat at that point in time is TO EAT. Anything. It's much more important the sick/old cat consumes calories than it is to worry about what form the calories come in. So if your sick old cat will only eat baby food, or only eat raw liver, or only eat dry cat food, or hamburgers or well, whatever, let the cat eat it.
Sick cats often die from starvation/malnutrition more than the actual disease that is affecting them.

if you had a healthy young cat who was objecting to what you wanted the cat to eat, I'd say "eat this or die", and most cats will give in and eat what you feed. But don't do that with a less-than-healthy cat!

Hmm.. I dont agree with this. I agree tin food is generally better for cats, especially older ones. However, the comment "can and will cause long term health problems) isnt true. I have known many cats that live well into their 20's that have been on dry only. And I have also known cats who only eat tin, who have cancer, diabetes, renal disease etc. Dont get me wrong, tin is a preferred food for cats, but the statement that dry food will cause long term problems is kind of stretching it a little bit.