need practical strategies

I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy. I
figure this, at least, will smell familiar to him. Then I can add
some other foods and segue him into them. That is IF he
cooperates at all. He did just get up and go downstairs, so I
went to give him some of this puree. He ran away from it though.
Of course, one problem is that, unlike with dry food, you can't
just leave the wet food out in the hope that the baby will eat it
sometime. And that brings up another issue. How do you get a cat
who is used to grazing to eat two large meals a day? Mingy never
eats much at a time. I am worried that trying to impose this diet
will just result in a big weight loss (in the near term, anyway),
but I have to get this done somehow, since obviously crystals and
blockages are to be avoided! In the meantime, he has pretty much
segued into the c/d kibbles, so I *guess* that is an improvement
for the short-term. I have also ignored the fact that his bowl is
pretty much empty............
--
Jean B.

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy. I
figure this, at least, will smell familiar to him. Then I can add
some other foods and segue him into them. That is IF he
cooperates at all. He did just get up and go downstairs, so I
went to give him some of this puree. He ran away from it though.
Of course, one problem is that, unlike with dry food, you can't
just leave the wet food out in the hope that the baby will eat it
sometime. And that brings up another issue. How do you get a cat
who is used to grazing to eat two large meals a day? Mingy never
eats much at a time. I am worried that trying to impose this diet
will just result in a big weight loss (in the near term, anyway),
but I have to get this done somehow, since obviously crystals and
blockages are to be avoided! In the meantime, he has pretty much
segued into the c/d kibbles, so I *guess* that is an improvement
for the short-term. I have also ignored the fact that his bowl is
pretty much empty............
--

Jean B.

In a book entitled 'The Natural Cat'... I read a few things about feeding
habbits. If you want your cat to eat a sceduled times, put the food out at
those times, give it 20 min & then put the food away. After a couple of
days the cat will 'get it', there should'nt be any significant weight loss.
As to hard to soft food.... Beat's me! I've had the same issue with one of
mine, Chablis seems to have lost interest in the wet food I suppliment her
kibble with... *sigh*
--
Mathew
Butler to 2 kittens: Chablis & Muscat
En Vino Veritas

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy.

Why not buy his canned food that is already ground and not
chunky?

Mathew Kagis wrote:

In a book entitled 'The Natural Cat'... I read a few things about feeding
habbits. If you want your cat to eat a sceduled times, put the food out at
those times, give it 20 min & then put the food away. After a couple of
days the cat will 'get it', there should'nt be any significant weight loss.
As to hard to soft food.... Beat's me! I've had the same issue with one of
mine, Chablis seems to have lost interest in the wet food I suppliment her
kibble with... *sigh*
--
Mathew
Butler to 2 kittens: Chablis & Muscat
En Vino Veritas

Thanks, Mathew. BTW, I "know" your mom. I had the pleasure of
being one of her Secret Santas this year! g
--
Jean B.

Mary wrote:

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy.

Why not buy his canned food that is already ground and not
chunky?

Because right now I figure he might at least go for the smell of
the foods he normally eats. I am going to discontinue feeding him
that food though, and then I will, indeed, do that! In fact, he
has eaten a bit of the new wet food, but I don't want to add upset
system to his other woes right now, so I am adding that SLOWLY!
The good news is that he seems to like it, but I have to get to
the point where he is getting all or virtually all of his calories
from wet food.
--
Jean B.

You can't force a cat to eat wet food, who doesn't like wet food. Unless
you want to put it into a syringe and force feed the cat. No matter how
much I would like my one cat to eat wet food, he turns his nose up at it
every time. The only stuff he ever did touch was Walthams Venison & Rice
which I don't think they make anymore.

And I should mention, that it is much better for a cat to eat several small
meals a day (i.e. "graze") than to give a cat two big meals a day. Two big
meals a day puts too much of a spike in their insulin levels. Subsequently
what goes up, must come down and the insulin level crashes shortly after.
Not great for kitty's system and this may contribute to the development of
diabetes.

Kelly


Kelly

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy. I
figure this, at least, will smell familiar to him. Then I can add
some other foods and segue him into them. That is IF he
cooperates at all. He did just get up and go downstairs, so I
went to give him some of this puree. He ran away from it though.
Of course, one problem is that, unlike with dry food, you can't
just leave the wet food out in the hope that the baby will eat it
sometime. And that brings up another issue. How do you get a cat
who is used to grazing to eat two large meals a day? Mingy never
eats much at a time. I am worried that trying to impose this diet
will just result in a big weight loss (in the near term, anyway),
but I have to get this done somehow, since obviously crystals and
blockages are to be avoided! In the meantime, he has pretty much
segued into the c/d kibbles, so I *guess* that is an improvement
for the short-term. I have also ignored the fact that his bowl is
pretty much empty............
--
Jean B.

On 2005-02-01, Jean B. penned:
I need to hear how you folks have managed to get a cat who
basically exists on kibbles to switch to wet food. This morning I
decided to puree some of Mingy's normal canned fare in the hopes
that he will eat that instead of just licking off the gravy. I
figure this, at least, will smell familiar to him. Then I can add
some other foods and segue him into them. That is IF he
cooperates at all. He did just get up and go downstairs, so I
went to give him some of this puree. He ran away from it though.
Of course, one problem is that, unlike with dry food, you can't
just leave the wet food out in the hope that the baby will eat it
sometime. And that brings up another issue. How do you get a cat
who is used to grazing to eat two large meals a day? Mingy never
eats much at a time. I am worried that trying to impose this diet
will just result in a big weight loss (in the near term, anyway),
but I have to get this done somehow, since obviously crystals and
blockages are to be avoided! In the meantime, he has pretty much
segued into the c/d kibbles, so I *guess* that is an improvement
for the short-term. I have also ignored the fact that his bowl is
pretty much empty............

Well, Oscar's cat food is all minced up already. I switched her from dry to
canned in December. She much prefers dry, but she'll eat the wet. She seems
less likely to eat it when it's not mushed up (like when it comes out of the
fridge in a big chunk) or if the food is along the edges of the bowl, so I
mash it a bit with a fork and then make a bit of a pile out of it in the
middle of the bowl. Maybe it's just my imagination.

Oscar *does not* eat food when it's first available. So I don't agree that
you "can't just leave the wet food out." I leave the wet food out right up
until the next feeding. I have multiple bowls, so there's no problem with
having a clean bowl right away. I think she actually prefers to wait an hour
or two before eating, and that's fine with me. I trust her not to eat food
that's gone bad enough to make her sick; she's a picky eater.

The whole thing about forcing them to eat within a given time frame makes me
nervous, anyway. Seems to me it might encourage them to eat more than they
need because they know they won't get anything else for a long time. But
maybe I'm anthropomorphizing.

--
monique, roommate of Oscar the (female) grouch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eros was adopted! Eros has a home now! *cheer!*

Kelly wrote:

You can't force a cat to eat wet food, who doesn't like wet food. Unless
you want to put it into a syringe and force feed the cat. No matter how
much I would like my one cat to eat wet food, he turns his nose up at it
every time. The only stuff he ever did touch was Walthams Venison & Rice
which I don't think they make anymore.

And I should mention, that it is much better for a cat to eat several small
meals a day (i.e. "graze") than to give a cat two big meals a day. Two big
meals a day puts too much of a spike in their insulin levels. Subsequently
what goes up, must come down and the insulin level crashes shortly after.
Not great for kitty's system and this may contribute to the development of
diabetes.

Kelly

Sigh. I'll add this to the pros of grazing. Still that will be
hard for a cat who eats wet food, and I hope Mingy will do that.
More possible when I am here, of course, but I can't leave wet
food out for hours.
--
Jean B.

"Monique Y. Mudama" wrote:

Well, Oscar's cat food is all minced up already. I switched her from dry to
canned in December.

How did you do that?

She much prefers dry, but she'll eat the wet. She seems
less likely to eat it when it's not mushed up (like when it comes out of the
fridge in a big chunk) or if the food is along the edges of the bowl, so I
mash it a bit with a fork and then make a bit of a pile out of it in the
middle of the bowl. Maybe it's just my imagination.

Well, now I forget whether Mingy ever ate chunks. He did eat the
mushed up stuff when he was a kitten (Iam's), but then Iam's got
bought and I switched him from that. I am thinking he must have
eaten the chunks at one point, or I would have tried something
else....... Now, though, I definitely have to do something about
those chunks--and switch to another form. Come to think of it, SD
comes in another form. If a cat has eaten the Savory Cuts, is the
formula of the other type similar enough so he/she won't get
stomach upsets? (That question is to anyone who knows.)

Oscar *does not* eat food when it's first available. So I don't agree that
you "can't just leave the wet food out." I leave the wet food out right up
until the next feeding. I have multiple bowls, so there's no problem with
having a clean bowl right away. I think she actually prefers to wait an hour
or two before eating, and that's fine with me. I trust her not to eat food
that's gone bad enough to make her sick; she's a picky eater.

What do folks think of this? What experiences have you (pl) had?
I assume bacteria would grow on the food, esp. if the cat has
eaten some of it? How long CAN it stay out?

The whole thing about forcing them to eat within a given time frame makes me
nervous, anyway. Seems to me it might encourage them to eat more than they
need because they know they won't get anything else for a long time. But
maybe I'm anthropomorphizing.
--
monique, roommate of Oscar the (female) grouch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eros was adopted! Eros has a home now! *cheer!*

Well, I have had a semi-similar thought. Mingy has kept his
weight at exactly ten pounds for all of his adult life. I wonder
what tinkering with his diet and schedule will do to this? The
scheduling thing seems more of an ultimate issue than the diet. I
am sasuming I WILL be able to get him to eat wet food, but it will
take time (and lots of wasted wet food).

--
Jean B.

On 2005-02-01, Kelly penned:

And I should mention, that it is much better for a cat to eat several small
meals a day (i.e. "graze") than to give a cat two big meals a day. Two big
meals a day puts too much of a spike in their insulin levels. Subsequently
what goes up, must come down and the insulin level crashes shortly after.
Not great for kitty's system and this may contribute to the development of
diabetes.

I agree, but not many of us can stay home (or return home) just to feed the
cat in the middle of the day. I spoke with my vet, who said that while 3-4
meals a day is better, 2 is probably just fine and obviously easier on folks
who have to leave the house to work.

Then again, Oscar isn't currently ill, so it's not as much of a concern.

--
monique, roommate of Oscar the (female) grouch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eros was adopted! Eros has a home now! *cheer!*