Cat Food suggestions for a very finicky kitty

[kittykate]

Hi,

My kitty is so picky that I am running out of wet food options for him! The problem is that he won't eat pate style food...ever. He used to eat the Nutro Max in chunks but I won't feed him any of the recalled brands any more just incase. He used to eat Merrick but has turned his nose up at all of those except the Ocean Breeze. If he doesn't have variety he stops eating so I am worried that any day now he won't even eat the Merrick! The people at Global pets don't seem to know that much about cat food and cannot recommend a brand that is chunky but isn't Fancy Feast so I am hoping some folk here may be able to offer suggestions. I am looking for something that is quality food rather than the 'fast foodness' of brands like Whiskas.

All suggestions welcome!!!!

Thanks!

[kittykate]

Wow thanks to everyone for all your fantastic suggestions...

[SableCollie]

If people haven't replied, it is because they don't have any suggestions for you, or they haven't seen the post yet, or haven't had time to reply. Rude responses are certainly not going to encourage anyone to respond to your post. That said, this has been discussed before, with no satisfactory solution being found. Unfortunately the higher quality foods do not tend to produce the "cuts and gravy" type foods. I believe Fromms was one suggestion, unfortunately it is not available in many areas. I think the only thing you can really do is just continue to try different brands on your cat and see if he likes any of them. If he tends to like the fish-based Merrick's, perhaps he would try other brand's fish-based formulas, even if they aren't of the "chunky" variety.

[Beener]

Hello, Have you tried this new one by Snappy Tom? It comes in small cans, not sure if it is good quality though! lol! My cat really enjoys it. I am sorry that nobody replied earlier, I am new and can understand your frustration in that you are only wanting the best for your furry friend. Your second reply was several days later, I hope that when I post things, people don't take days to post a reply, I would be upset as well! Good luck with your cat and pay no attention to rude replies like the one before mine

[krdahmer]

Wa... I won't be much help, I'm in the same boat. Trying to get my 6 to eat wet more. But 4 outta the 6 turn their noses up at everything I've offered so far. They used to get the whiskas and fancy feast type stuff but lost interest in that too. Tonight I was trying Wellness canned and they are all looking at me like I am so mean. I haven't yet come across one of the high quality wets in a chunky style yet but if I do I'll let ya know.

The merrick cowboy cookout has some chunkier meat in it... but not a cuts and gravy style.

[List]

Like suggested earlier the Snappy Tom is a great option. It's very chunky and has whole pieces of tuna and prawns. Also Evanger's has their whole mackrel, which is pretty gross to look at but the cats love it. Merricks is great too, my cats love it. Other than that most are the pate style, but I would try those as well. You may find a brand that your cat really likes. Good Luck

[sugarcatmom]

I'm not sure about any good 'chunks and gravy' kinds of foods because my cat only likes the pate style, but here's one that's definitely not pate: http://shop.halopets.com/category.cf...Category_ID=14

It's not really chunks, more like . . . well . . . STEW! Maybe your cat will like it more than mine did.

[CyberKitten]

I do not believe in anecdotal experience as being scientifically sound but I can tell you what I do. I am not certain what others do can help anyone else because all of our cats are unique and have divergent needs. That said, I have always used Wellness with the occasional Fancy Feast as what I considered "junk" food- but I think of any food in grocery stores as junk food because it is hard to tell if it comes from rendering places ir not. My problem was a sitter who once fed one of meezers FF and she liked it (of course, lol) so I would give her one maybe once a month!

The rest of the time I feed wet food (dry food is horrible - tho some people here have some good recommendations for it and if it works well for their cats, that's fine for them. dry food does not help a cat's dental care - only good dental care and brushing - like us- will accomplish that! - and an annual dental at the vet of course. It has to be the right dry food - I think Chico occasionally uses some good dry food if I am not mistaken. We are all unique and I do not want to question what others do - if their cats are healthy and they have good vet care, then what ever they are doing must be good. We are all different - as I already noted- and cats are notoriously finicky eaters - always have been - they have vulnerable digestive systems.

Since the scare over the tainted food, I am transition my cats to a home made cat food diet. It is not easy and I am not really doing it in a way that would work for others. I have 4 cats - two Siamese, two Sphynx - all of whom were used to Wellness. I am going very slowly since that is really the only way to change a cat's diet unless sit is an emergency and a kitty is ill. I added taurine supplements initially but now they are getting enough in their diets. I am working with my vet, a consulting vet at a Clinic just for cats and a veterinary nutritionist at the Vet School nearby (well, about 5 hrs away, lol).

We are about 2/3 the way through I would say. I will probably give them the occasional treat - one "vetted" (pun intended) but there are many great recipes for kitty treats as well. I have to admit that even as a scientist who thought I had a more than adequate grasp of nutrition (for humans and cats), this is an exceptional learning experience and I may accept an offer to write about it for a local vet association.

It's time that I need tho which brings me to your needless remark after you posted. Not all of us are here all day. I work long hours at a my office, a hospital, a Medical School where I teach - and while classes are out, the new residents begin in the spring so those of us responsible for teaching and supervising Residents are extremely busy! My patients are my most important priority though and I work in the area of pediatric oncology for three provinces. It is most unfair for you to assume we all can be here to instantly reply to questions. I will happily share my experience and feline and bunny knowledge as well as appreciate the help and support I have received here from others. I just can only do it when I log in. And if you do not mind some advice, one really does obtain more help by being non judgmental and checking the snarky and uncalled for sarcasm at the door or should I say portal. We are a group of people who share in each other's joys and despair along with the ups and downs of regular events - some of which turn out to be extraordinarily or stressful. We try to be considerate and kind in our communications with each other and I would urge you to follow that guideline and you will do just fine. (When I saw your question, I was ready to respond - I do not look at the date, no time - and then I saw the remark and thought "I work 70 hrs a week, I don;t need this- and then I thought, :Neither do I have to be judgmental. Surely I am above pettiness." Please understand where we are all coming from.

I do wish you good luck in finding acceptable food for your kitty.

[kiara]

I have a very finniky female Siamese X. The only food she will eat is dry. It has many different shapes and flavours (vegetables, grains and chicken)together in one bag. I buy it at Mondou, Science Diet (nature's best) with real chicken. If you are worried that this is dry food, you may want to pour water on it to soften it. Whatever works. Good luck with your kitty !!

[sugarcatmom]

Originally Posted by kiara

I have a very finniky female Siamese X. The only food she will eat is dry. It has many different shapes and flavours (vegetables, grains and chicken)together in one bag. I buy it at Mondou, Science Diet (nature's best) with real chicken. If you are worried that this is dry food, you may want to pour water on it to soften it. Whatever works. Good luck with your kitty !!

Careful when you're watering down dry food, you could be creating an ideal environment for bacteria to start multiplying. Read this for an explanation: http://www.catinfo.org/#Transitionin...o_Canned_Food_

Speaking of texture, a common question is "can I just soak the dry food in water?" I hedge more than just a bit at this question. Dry food has a high bacterial content. Mold is also often found in dry food. There have been many deaths of dogs and cats secondary to eating mold mycotoxins, vomitoxins and aflatoxins which often contaminate the grains found in dry food. If you want to try the trick of wetting down the dry food to alter the texture, please leave it out for only 20-30 minutes then discard it. Bacteria and mold thrive in moisture.

And here's another quote from this website: http://www.blakkatz.com/dryfood.html

Before you start moistening your cat's dry food to try to replace the missing moisture, you should know about mycotoxins, another potential side effect of the use of grains in cat food. Mycotoxins are naturally occurring fungal by-products that can cause disease and death in dogs and cats. When grains are improperly stored, mycotoxins can develop. Two common forms, both of which have been found in pet food (more commonly in dog food) are aflatoxin and vomitoxin. Although mycotoxins are found worldwide they only become toxic in temperatures above 82 degrees and over 80 percent humidity at which point they interfere with cellular function, and are extremely carcinogenic and immuno-suppressive.

Aflatoxin B1 is the most toxic of the aflatoxins and is the most potent liver carcinogen known. Substantial evidence exists to indicate that low-level exposure to aflatoxin may cause suppression of the immune system and increase susceptibility to disease. Young and pregnant animals of all species are extremely sensitive to aflatoxins. Aflatoxin is also excreted in milk of dams and may contribute to reproductive failure. Exposure during pregnancy has resulted in transplacental transfer of aflatoxin to and immune dysfunction in offspring.7

The elimination of mycotoxins in food is extremely expensive. Pet food manufacturers are not known for using the highest quality grains available; they would not be able to keep up their high profit margins if they did. The grains most pet food manufacturers use are those that are not fit for human consumption or are by-products from other processes.

[Stacer]

Try PetValu's Performatrin Ultra Chicken Stew.