My avatars are dumpster cats. You would think they will gobble up anything… Nope. They wrinkle their noses at sour cream and eggs, but would happily shred into a plastic bag with bread - only to realize they do not like the contents. The white chubby kitty will eat anything, even bread that the other two would drop on the floor.
Lol, Hannah, about cans. We have a similar issue. Any ziplock bag makes my kitties’ hearts race! Because Mr. trained than that kitty treats called Greenies come from a plastic ziplock bag.
Mine eat dry food, whatever is on sale or I have a coupon for. Usually Friskies; sometimes a fancier brand if there is a good sale AND I have a coupon. I switch up the flavors. They both seem to love whatever I put in the bowls.
My previous kitty (RIP Cosmo) ate the same way, and lived to be 20. He also was a big fan of the tuna can dregs!
My cat was also taken in off the street as a kitten. I would have thought he would eat anything. After much trial and error, the only wet food he’ll eat is Fancy Feast (except sliced he won’t touch). So with the options being premium food that he won’t eat vs. Fancy Feast, Fancy Feast won.
Having said that, I’m hoping my kids are not fussy eaters, because I refuse to be the parent who feeds his kids mac & cheese all the time.
@skieurope Our newest cat (Maisie) is the same way. She was found by the shelter as a stray last winter. Not only do we live in New England (so the weather was terrible), but she was declawed. I have no idea how she survived or what she ate, but somehow she made it. You’d think she’d be used to eating a lot of different foods, but no - she throws up all but one brand and she only really likes fish :-?? She loves people food though, it’s impossible to eat anything without her begging for it.
My cats love dry food but in the last year I have had to take one cat off it - he throws it up within minutes of consuming it. So can’t put it out all for the other either , so they both eat only wet food. I have Birmans and am thinking that as they age they must develop sensitive stomachs. I have had most luck with the Wellness brand - that always stays down.
HarvestMoon, you need a Lusmo. It solves the problem of gorging on too much kibble at once because the feeder an be programmed to dump small portions at a time several times a day. My cats worship their Lusmos. Another benefit is that the cats can be left overnight or even over a weekend in their own. Plus it is a conversation piece and looks so cheerful on the kitchen floor!
Oh boy. I have a feral that adopted us about four years ago. My vet insists on a diet of mainly wet food, supplemented by dry. We lost a Maine Coon to a blockage a year ago and she said it might have had something to do with his diet. She recommended Purina something…doesn’t matter, wouldn’t touch it, either flavor at $15/bag. He is the pickiest eater and drives me crazy. At present he eats only broth-like foods and they are nearly impossible to find locally. I bought a mini food-processor and tried making my own from Friskies plus water but he turned his nose up at that…I then tried various other high-end canned and then tried them in the processor, nope. I ran out of the preferred cat food last week, searched three stores and couldn’t find it and the cat didn’t eat. Our local store finally got 24 pouches in so I’m all set for the next three weeks but man, its $1.10 and he would really like two but I don’t usually give in. I also leave out dry food which he’ll pick at. He is a hunter so he’s not starving this time of year. I’ll take any suggestions I can get !
My 17 year old cat will/does eat anything put in front of her, but after my mom passed away, I took in her formerly feral street cat (a/k/a “Brooklyn”, a/k/a “cat of unknown origin”) who barfs up any kibble that contains grain. So now both cats are eating something called Before Grain by Merrick, which I can get a big bag of via Amazon Prime.
We don’t do cans here, except for the odd drizzle of tuna or sardine oil over their kibble, and they do get empty can rights.
17 year old cat also flips out over yogurt and will practically climb your leg if you’re eating it. So she gets a dollop of that as a peace offering.
I feed my pet cats Iams, I tried to switch to what would be considered a better quality food, but their stomachs couldn’t handle it ( and I did try to mix it in and introduce it slowly ) Both of them vomited it up, making an unpleasant mess for me to clean. The cat box wasn’t any better so I switched back to Iams. My old man is 14 and although he is slowing down and falling apart, he keeps that food down and so does his gigantic partner…
We bought a big bag of Purina for the ferals who live in our neighborhood. We are one of a few houses they are fed at. We have a momma cat that we think had her litter under our neighbor’s shed and where we feed them doesn’t make mom have to wander too far away.
Also, regarding organ meat, I have given the ferals the packaged innards from roaster chickens and they seem to really like them as a treat. To me, it beats trying to hunt in the frigid winter temperatures.
I adopted a 24 pound cat. Yep, he’s a big boy. Paperwork that came with him said he at Friskies. Regular cat food, no matter how much (little) and what kind didn’t do much for him in the weight loss department, so he eats Hills metabolic diet from the vet. Seems to work. He’s down into the teens. However, as soon as he’s down to his ideal weight (15 lbs), he’ll be getting his Fancy Feast back. He loves that stuff! Licks the bowl clean (licks the bowl even when it’s empty, but then again, he obviously really likes food).
I feed our 8 year old male a mix of dry and wet - Applaws for the wet, with an occasional can of human tuna or salmon. I also poach fish for him several times a week and mash it with water. I’m concerned that he doesn’t drink enough, so I’ve been using the dry mostly for breakfast or treats.
When I tried to figure out what to feed him, I went onto several cat sites which were no help at all. Seems that those who love their cats the most feed them RAW FOOD. Raw food is a big thing, apparently, but I could never do it.
Just opened another bag of Friskies Indoor Delights. I never use canned food. Sometimes I’ll try different brands, but always the dry/indoor/“hairball prevention” kind. Our cat is a little overweight at 14lbs. Hard to control his diet because he begs food from each family member who walks through the kitchen, who then assumes that he hasn’t been fed yet/is still hungry/wants a little snack. . .
My two are Fancy Feast snobs. That is the only brand they will deign to eat. And their girth shows how much they love it. I put 1/3 of a cup of dry food in their bowl once to twice a day and split two cans twice a day. Their big downfall is their love of human food, although one is a fiend for most fruits, especially cantaloupe and apples. The other begs for meat as soon as I open the fridge. I often eat vegetarian, so he’s out of luck, but my D is big on bacon, so he’s very happy she’s home for the summer.
Our healthy, indoor 13-year-old cat has always gotten whatever dry food cheapest. Cat “crackers” and water is all we’ve ever given it. He’s never complained.
My boy loved fancy feast soufflé style, but it was discontinued. I’m not ashamed to say I scoured all stores in a 10 mile radius for whatever they had left. He is in renal failure, so he gets prescription dry food at $43/bag, Gerber baby food (beef only) and store cooked deli turkey $9.99/lb. Oh, and he loves Party Mix treats, which is like kitty crack. He isn’t going to be around much longer, so vet says to feed him whatever he likes.
Another benefit is that the cats can be left overnight or even over a weekend in their own. Plus it is a conversation piece and looks so cheerful on the kitchen floor!