Chilli feeding issue...anyone got a suggestion?

I've copied & pasted this from elsewhere looking for as many suggestions as possible so.... If you've aleady seen it... Thanks! if not... I'm listening!

Ok, it's not a huge problem as she could eat as much as my dogs if I let her. She has not once fretted or been anxious since the morn after we took her home. She has fit right in. No probs there as that can always be a reason for food issues.

However, she was just 7 wks when I got her. I know it was prob a few weeks early but she was fully weaned, fairly independant (well not clinging to her mum & siblings, she's abit of a free spirit) & they know I will take the time for the extra "late" feeds & play with her when she wakes at midnight & plays to 2am as I'm up anyway cooking dinner for my OH.

Took her home with some premium kitty dry she was used to for the transition. Day one no prob.. ate what she was used to. By day 3, after I'd also started to feed her kitten wet food, she WILL NOT eat the dry food. Even if she is really hungry. She just takes a sniff & walks away. I have tried kitten milk to soak the dry... she doesnt care....I have soaked it in water .... care factor ZERO! She WILL go eat the dogs dry (don't know if you have it there? It's Black Hawke Premium. Full of emu oil. We got it for Jess's arthritus & it's brilliant!) & she loves it! But I don't think it's good for her. I really want her to eat dry as it also helps reduce tartar.

She turns her nose up a kitten milk 95% of the time & trotts off with the dogs to the water bowl? I've tried 1/2 water & milk, touch of egg in it. NOTHING! Tyson drinks it when she walks away. (What a good boy... he sits & waits till she finishes to see what is left for him. I won't be needing to wash her bowls anytime soon. )

I think I've gotten another dog!

I've had numerous cats before but never one that doesn't want to eat dry cat food & turns it's nose up at milk!

Anyone got any ideas how to get her to eat dry & drink milk?

& for those that haven't met Chilli.... she really has settled in well.

Aww that first picture is too cute   

my cat was a bit like that with dry food after I gave her wet. I tried a few different brands with her and the only one she will eat is iams. If she won't eat any dried at all are there any crunchy treats you could get her for her teeth? Some brands do crunchy toppers for mixing with wet food as well x

Hmmm. Difficult.

If she likes the dog food, which has a lot of emu oil in it, why not try putting a couple of teaspoons of salmon oil over her dry food & see if that helps?

Difficult one!

Have you considered buying some emu oil online to add to her food? It sounds like she's picked up a taste for your dogs' food and prefers it to her own.

Obligate carnivores like cats can sometimes be extremely finicky when it comes to food. I think you might have picked yourself one of those finicky cats! Eat it one day, ignore it the next! Although it's recommended not to make drastic changes to a cat's diet, some controlled variety might help.

Also, something I've heard about - tuna flakes or juice. Adding one of these to the top of Chilli's food might help to tempt her. If it gets her to eat, she can then be weaned back off it!

Thanks guys... crunchy toppers & salmon oil. Both great ideas. Cheers for that.

I've never had finicky eaters. Here you eat what is given or don't eat. Your choice! But she is so little... tuna juice is another good idea. But she would just eat flakes off & leave the biscuits.

I've never met a cat like her. I think...she thinks she is a dog & constantly copies them.

She's young, so you might be able to fix the issue before it becomes a habit!

Ooh, something I would add to it... You might already know about this, but a lot of people say that it's better to just leave the food down and that she'll eat when she's hungry. This is fine, but it shouldn't be for more than one or two days (preferably not longer than one day). When cats go for longer than that without food, they start to metabolise their fat stores instead, which may lead to a build up of fat cells in the liver and the development of liver disease.

Do you know if her & her siblings were fed from the same bowl? If so, maybe she feels more comfortable eating with the dogs?

If that's the case, then she'll probably grow out of it?

Cheers Eleanor, I live by... eat it or go hungry. None of mine have ever been given the chance to be fussy eaters. They all get good quality meals but I don't pander to finicky eaters. I'm asking because she is just so young & tiny. In a few mths it will be either eat your dinner or go without.

Pls don't get me wrong...she eats very well but just isn't interested in dry food & I want her to be. I want to ensure she has good teeth.

IT's always more difficult with youngsters - kittens or puppies - they need so much in the way of nutrients, that you can't afford to 'starve' them into submission!

Hopefully this is a one-off thing and she won't need to face the decision of 'eat or go without'! Fingers crossed!

She was fed from the same bowl as her siblings Caryll. But she is quite happy to eat wet kitten food by herself now. I think its a flavour issue. Wet is tastier than dry.

I think I'm going to try the oil suggestion.

If she was older & weighed more I wouldn't give her an option but she's not quite 8 wks yet & only 755gms.

Fingers crossed!

Well she's eating dry cat (I did try oil but...she just licked it off so I just put her dry down &left it.) Shes also eating steak, sausages,  bbq fish with lemon, dog treat crumbs if she can steal them off the dogs & since Tyson steals her milk when she walks away....shes now drinking it before he can! 

Sneaky girl, licking the oil off!

Glad she's eating again!

Me too Eleanor, you gotta have nice toothy pegs!   

tracyp wrote:Shes also eating steak, sausages,  bbq fish with lemon, dog treat crumbs if she can steal them off the dogs & since Tyson steals her milk when she walks away....shes now drinking it before he can! 

   

 

that's great you got her eating