AboutMarie Peppers / Cat Food / NuVet Feline Formula. Expertise Hello, I would be glad to help on kitten and cat feeding. Need help with choosing a new cat food?
CAT food Reviews? I can also explain the good and bad of cat food ingredients.... Does your cat have troubles with digestion? Just ask me. Basic cat medical questions are welcome, too. Need help with supplements, vitamins or special diets, and recipes too - Cat food recipes...
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A year ago I had posted a question, and got very good answers. Now, I am again having some issues with my cat. I'll give a brief about things.
My cat is about 2 years old - a domestic short hair breed. She is around 24 inches from nose to butt, add another 10 inches for a tail. She is 7kg in weight, but not fat. She zooms around a lot. She has been neutered and spayed, and received all her shots 2 years ago.
In the beginning, she had a voracious appetite, and could finish a 185 gram tin in a go. Then she began slowing down. Last year, she would turn up her nose at food, and walk off. The vet suggested she was spoilt, and recommended a anti-allergy food. I had to hold her down and feed her. She got over this phase.
She LOVES her biscuits. She loves water. Since we live in UAE, where temperatures soar to 48 degrees without effort, her drinking so much water is great. She goes outside in the earlier part of the morning, and later in the evening when the sun has gone down, and the winds aren't warm anymore. No hurry to return inside again. During the day she lives in cool corners.
Recently, she discovered the pleasure of eating Tuna in brine. She loves it. The world could end, but she won't stop eating. This is the human consumption tin - John West Tuna in Brine.
She again began to be picky about her food. Doesn’t want to eat the regular cat food – not the fish ones, not the beef, not the chicken, not the lamb. Not raw, not cooked. Only the Tuna in Brine. I didn’t feel it was a good idea for her to have it so much. Especially since I don’t have the mineral supplements available her (except Taurine, which I would sprinkle over her food).
Her poop is normal. She never has furballs. No worms.
Cat food is expensive, and I had to toss out tins of food because she was so snooty. Then I when I gave her food next, I picked her up, held her, and fed her. She made no complaint. No spitting. Ate everything that was given to her. Walked off, licked herself, and settled happily to do whatever else.
I did it for a week. No tuna in this time at all. Biscuits only in the morning and during the day ( one cupful – no more). At night, at a fixed time, she would get food. When she didn’t eat, no biscuits the next day, till she ate food herself. No praise, no patting, no tickling. She was totally ignored. The last 2 days, she has finished all the food she got, and got a petting too.
My questions are:
1. Is tuna in brine good for her or not? What about in spring water?
2. Why does she behave snooty about food she normally is supposed to eat?
3. How much sleep should she have? I think she sleeps at least 16 hours a day!
4. Is it ok for her to have so much sardines and pilchards? These are mostly the combinations available in the brand without by-products. Most of the brands available here have by-products, and if I’m changing the food for sake of variety, I have to really read a lot of labels before I come across one flavour which has no by-products.
Hi - yes, the Tuna is fine- try to mix it with some chicken... YOU may be able to do a 50:50 mix of chicken and tuna...Give it a try.
Don't hold off on offering tuna - just offer less and try to get the chicken mixed into it.
Also, I would go with distilled water and hold off on spring water.
*wish I could be of more help - I don't know the variety of foods you can get in your country.
BEST wishes - Try to find a good supplement like the NuVET - I know you can't get NuVET feline in your country - take a look at the ingredients, see if you can find something like this: http://www.nuvet.com/81098
NuVET Feline powder