"Dee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:"Penelope Baker" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:
Quoted message said:Cats should be on a BARF style raw-diet even more than dogs. Dogs, in
the wild, are a good bit more omnivorous than cats. Cats shouldn't
have ANY carbs at all, except the smallest amount of greens or seeds
w/ some digestive enzymes added to them (to simulate food in a rodent
or bird gut).
That being said, I can't ge my cats to convert...and I've been worknig
at it for months :\ If there's even 1 teaspoon of raw food in their
normal food, they'll choose to fast rather than eat :\ Suggestions
appreciated.
Suggestions: raw food at room temperature or slightly warm. Zap food in
microwave for 5-8 seconds, stir, then 5-8 more seconds to warm it if it's
cold from the fridge.
Feed organic meat (especially chicken) - organic meat just tastes better.
My two cats do not like the supermarket chicken injected with salt water
(neither do I - it smells bad to me).
i can't afford it. :\
Quoted message said:Try chunked meat and ground meat to determine if they have a preference.
Mine like ground meat only if it's fresh. Once it's frozen and thawed
they
don't like it. Generally I feed chunked meat.
i HAVE noticed that i can get them to eat a bite or two when it's chunky,
you're dead on there. but it's still a losing battle :\
Quoted message said:Try to determine individual preferences. My one cat loves liver; my other
cat doesn't like it and will snub a whole dish of food just because
there's
one small piece of liver in it. I have to find and remove the liver
before
she'll eat her meal.
yes, liver has been an issue :P most definitely. i too had to remove it,
mine are like 'uh, NO. just no.' then i worry they're not getting the organ
meat they need?
Quoted message said:Try different types of meat - lamb, beef, chicken, rabbit.
ground beef is accepted better than anything else. chicken is ok as long as
i don't put bone meal in it...eaten happily in fact..but they need the
calcium/phosphorous. do you have any suggestions on getting the
calcium/phosphorous in without the bone meal?
Quoted message said:Try mixing with a favorite stinky canned food, such as Fancy Feast.
i do that...i can get them to eat a little bit that way, but i really want
them off the ick. :\ i've tried gradually increasing a teaspoon, two
teaspoons, a tablespoon...they generally stop eating at around 2-3
tablespoons of raw food mixed into a full can of other stuff. i sat at that
level for more than a month, and couldn't get them to budge past it.
Quoted message said:I feed twice a day at scheduled times. The food is presented and left
down
for them for approx. 10 minutes.
i free feed. i probably shouldn't, but i do. they always seem happier that
way and they're never overweight, so...
Quoted message said:Finally, sometimes it comes down to a matter of wills. If you really want
the cats to switch over, you may have to let them fast for one to several
days. Attempt this only if your cats are in good health. You will have
to
be strong and not give in, otherwise you reward them for being finicky.
My
experience is by the end of the second day they are ready to eat again.
not in good health. one is, the other isn't. i'd rather see the sick one
eating ANYTHING than nothing. :\ cats are one of the few animals known to
starve themselves to death because of a dislike for food available too.
peace,
pen