Allergic cat and getting weight on

[happygardening]

I have a cat that suffers from an allergic reaction to grain (nasty skin rash) he also has a tendency to be on the thin side. I have tried feeding him grain free dried food but he looses weight so I have to give him two sachets of grain free wet food a day as well. The problem is that I can't stand handling wet cat food, I don't like it in my bin in the summer and as he eats very slowly it attracts flies. He's also a fussy eater and a lazy eater I think he doesn't like to eat dried food because he has to crunch it up (his teeth are fine), and therefore eats the bare minimum and then looses weight. Any suggestions for highly palatable grain free maybe softer dried food? Currently feeding James Wellbeloved which has been the most successful dried food to date.

You could try adding some water or broth to the dry food but you might have to consider his needs for wet food. Your post reads a bit like you aren't amenable to changing his diet if it needs it which I'm sure isnt the case. It's pretty easy to keep on top of wet food - just feed in smaller, more frequent amounts and hopefully you will have less waste. Do you object to just cat food in the food waste bin or is it all food?

I’m a vegan all food waste goes on the compost, I object to wet meat lying around attracting flies and any that’s not eaten going into my wheelie bin and attracting flies/maggots etc obviously when the weather warms up the problem becomes more acute. I’ve been feeding this cat like this for 5 years if necessary I will continue because his health is important to me but I was looking at various dried cat foods on a pet food website (all seem to have positive reviews) so I wondering if I could change him to a dry food completely and then had this brilliant idea that someone on here might give me some friendly non judgemental advise on grain free dried food that their fussy cat really liked and put weight on with.

I always flush any leftover wet food down the toilet.

My vet has told me that dry food is not good due to its high phosphor content which can damage the kidneys. Plus cats don‘t feel thirsty like we do and can become dehydrated when you feed them exclusively dry food.

No need to be aggressive but cats are carnivores and thrive on a mixed diet of wet/raw food and dry. Your post suggests your cat is not getting the nutrients he needs and being allergic to grain you would find less of this in raw or good quality wet food. Your principles about Veganism mean nothing to your cat nor do I care about them. I suggest you broaden your ideas when it comes to his welfare and explore the possibility of trying him with some grain free wet food or raw.

If you read my OP I am feeding him grain free wet food he looks very very well is a good weight and has thick shiny fur. You asked me if I objected to cat food waste in my bin or all food waste I explained as Im a vegan I don’t have food waste in my bin apart from cat food waste because everything else goes on the compost and then on the fruit and veg I grow.
I hadn’t thought of flushing it down the loo that’s a good idea but doesn’t resolve the problem of the food sitting in his bowl attracting flies, we’re rural so there are a lot of flies because we have cattle grazing near by.
I can live with it I had a few spare hours and was just musing that there might be a suitable alternative especially in the summer he does drink well.

I wouldn't recommend feeding a purely dry diet to a male cat. Cats thrive on a mixture of both wet and dry - both have different benefits to their health. While they can of course survive on one or the other, a mixed diet is best.

My cats get fed both - they have dry left down all day, but wet twice a day (half a pouch each) which they wolf down and the bowls get washed straight after. I wouldn't leave any kind of meat laying out for ages - if they don't eat it within ten minutes (it's ALWAYS gone within five) then I'd bin it and feed fresh again at the next meal time.

My cats a lazy eater smooches over to the bowl sniffs it leaves it comes back maybe 10 mins later eats a tiny bit etc that’s why it’s difficult to get weight on him as his appetite isn’t huge . I used to have two cats and it was worse then because the other one are all the food and got bigger and bigger whilst he grazed on what was left over. I used have a cupboard full of unused tins/sachets I thought he liked them bought a box he would eat five or six or even a whole box or maybe two or three and then that’s it wouldn’t touch it.
I’ll just stick with what I’m currently doing he’s been on this food a couple of weeks and seems to like it (said that before).

My cat is like this, I have to serve a tiny portion at a time, little and often. Sometimes when he's only eaten a tiny bit I cover his dish with a plate until he comes back to it.
I empty and wash his dish if it's left for too long.

How much are you trying to feed at a time?

Can you try half (or even quarter) of a pouch 2-4 times a day instead of one or two big meals? Ours get one pouch split between them - the big one would eat several pouches if I let him though!

I feed him 1 sachet morning when I get up and 1 in the evening when I go to bed he knows the routine and I leave unlimited dried food down all the time. Being a cat and not a dog he’s very fickle I can put a sachet down and sometimes he eats the whole lots in 30 mins other times he won’t even look at it or pretends he doesn’t know it’s there despite sitting 12 inches from his bowl whilst I’m putting the food in and then meows and scratches the stairs asking to be fed, other times he devours dried food and ignores his wet food, and then other days vice versa! He’s fundamentally lazy spends most of his days lying on my bed in the sunshine or in the garden dreaming of catching birds but as he can’t jump at all and is not exactly inconspicuous (he’s creamy white) it is only a dream!
There seems to be lots of food for weight loss but little or none for weight gain. Unlike all our other cats he has little interest in other food we’ve had sweet corn loving cats raw meat stealing/loving cats chicken loving cats and salmon loving cats he often sits on the kitchen table but has no interest in any crumbs of food lying around (DH is not a vegan).

OP, is your cat There are food bowls that have a lid and only open when the cat with the fitting microchip is next to it. The bowl is closed at all other times. This would prevent any flies from getting near the food and keeps the food fresher than if it is in the open all the time.

Sorry, some part of my first sentence didn‘t make it.

Is your cat microchipped?

Half a sachet is plenty at a time but I'm assuming you would object to a half sachet sitting in the fridge.... what about a microchip feeding bowl coupled with a broth drink,?

Maybe exercise him yourself get him to work up an appetite

If you fed him tinned tuna (in water) or pieces of cooked chicken, would he eat it more quickly than his usual brand of cat food?

My previous cat had a grain free diet due to allergies.
His favourite brands were Bozita, Catz finefood, Feringa and Wild Freedom that I bought online from zooplus.
He didn't like any of the usual brands I bought from the Vets so I think they're perhaps less good quality?

You can buy trial sizes for most of the brands from zooplus and this was useful in finding out which ones he preferred. Now I stick to the same brands for my two new rescue cats.

I would try feeding him less at each mealtime. Half a sachet of food per mealtime and unlimited dry food.

My cat will only eat dry food I get the good quality ones, (although given the choice my cat would live on go-cat). Vet is fine with her diet as long as she drinks plenty - which she does... as long as the water is in a glass.

cate16 you have a glass drinker too? Mine loves to drink from a glass!