Nutritional Value of Kitty Treats

Hi,

In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.
However, we aren't sure he is getting enough nutritional
value from them. He particularly likes Meow Mix and
Pounce.

He has lost a lot of weight so we are desperate to get
him to eat anything. The vet agrees with this approach
but still we worry.

Is there perhaps a better choice of treat?

Thanks,
Gary

Gary Brown wrote:
Hi,

In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.
However, we aren't sure he is getting enough nutritional
value from them. He particularly likes Meow Mix and
Pounce.

He has lost a lot of weight so we are desperate to get
him to eat anything. The vet agrees with this approach
but still we worry.

Is there perhaps a better choice of treat?

Thanks,
Gary



Have you tried canned food?

Gary Brown wrote:

: In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
: whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.
: However, we aren't sure he is getting enough nutritional
: value from them.

Treats are not food. Even manufacturers say that on the package.

Consult your vet on what he is ailing from, maybe that's why he is not
eating. If it is just a matter of finicky taste, try changing the
flavor (beef, chicken, tuna, etc) as well as the texture (loaf, pieces
in gravy, etc). Try different canned and dry (canned preffered), and
stick to what he likes.

If you have a Petsmart near you, they sell by single cans which makes
experimenting easier. To speed up the process, serve him a small amount
of 3-4 types of food at a time and see what he likes.

Try different flavors in Fancy Feast, Iams, Science Diet, etc, one
small can a time.

"Gary Brown" wrote in message
news

Is there perhaps a better choice of treat?


No treat is going to provide your kitty with the nutrition necessary to
regain his health- he needs real nutrition.
This website http://www.geocities.com/holisticat/ffeed.html gives you very
good instructions on how to syringe feed your cat.

I am curious as to why any veterinarian would prefer sugar laden treats to a
good old can of Hill's A/D, one of the preferred foods for syringe feeding.
In addition to not providing any real nutrition the sugar is further
challenging an already weak immune system.

Please get some real food into this cat asap. It is easy enough to do, it is
what the cat needs, so why not?


--
Toni
http://www.irish-wolfhounds.com

In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.

To clarify, he now refuses to eat his canned food much of the
time. He will eat the kitty treats almost always so we have
taken a "something is better than nothing" approach when
he won't eat anything else.

He has been eating the same brand of canned food since
before adoption and has refused to eat anything different. We
don't really have the luxury to experiment with new foods now
and based on past experiences are not optimistic about
finding something new he would eat in the best of circumstances.

So, we are sticking to what he has eaten in past while trying
to get him to eat what he should. Anyone who has ever tried
to get a cat to eat when he doesn't want to knows how
problematical this is. All of this leads to the question about
nutritional value.

I hope this wasn't too longwinded.

Thanks for the responses so far,
Gary

Hi Gary,
Since kitty won't eat canned food, at this point anyway, I would
recommend trying Evo for Cats made by Innova. It is a dry food but
much better than a lot of them out there. Kitties really seem to like
it a lot. I happened to get a sample bag of it and my cats who
normally don't eat commercial catfood really liked it. Here's the
website and then it also has a store locator:

http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=home-tab

Lauren

In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.

What was he diagnosed with?

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In order to get our ailing kitty to eat we are giving him
whatever he wants. This includes a lot of kitty treats.

What was he diagnosed with?

So far they haven't found a cause. He has elevated calcium
levels. A barrage of tests has failed to find a cancer, a
common cause. We concluded "idiopathic", meaning we
have no idea what causes it. However, his weight has
dropped precipitously the last month and his ionized calcium
level jumped so we are reconsidering.

Right now our task is to keep him going until we reach
resolution and ensure he can take any treatment needed.

Gary

Right now our task is to keep him going until we reach
resolution and ensure he can take any treatment needed.

Have you tried Fancy Feast canned food? A lot of people swear by that to get
a cat eating again. Also, there is chicken baby food, canned chicken, tuna
or salmon if she doesn't take to the FF right away. You could mix one of
those human foods with the canned to see if that will entice her. I've never
had a cat that didn't like chicken baby food (no onions should be in
ingredients though).

--
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Further to my last post, if he still won't eat any of the suggested foods, I
agree with "Toni"; that a can of Hill's a/d (from your vet) and a syringe may
have to be used. Also ask your vet about hepatic lipidosis (liver disease);
this is something you have to be wary of in a cat who isn't eating.

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