Cat won't eat dry food

dori2o

Our cat is now 9 months old and we still cannot get her to eat dry food. The vet was not concerned about this and said she will come around eventually and it is probably just a case of finding something she likes.

We've literally tried everything from the most expensive right through to the cheapest.

She loves wet food but only the stuff with gravy.

I am wondering if she doesn't like the crunchieness of the dry food?

I know that some dry dog food can be quite soft, I am wondering if there is anything like this for Cats so we can try and get her onto dry.

BitterAndTwisted

Dry food is most unnatural for an animal that has eaten raw meat for countless millennia so they need plenty of time to become accustomed to it. They are also creatures of habit so changing the food offered may not entice them to want it. Rest assured that the manufacturers put something into those dried crunchies and it appears to be the feline version of crack-cocaine, so once they get onto it, there will be no looking back. I have a little cat who won't touch anything that's not dried, not even raw meat

Shoshannah

Out of interest, can I just ask why you would like your cat to eat dry food? I personally would recommend feeding your cat a wet diet - we see a lot of bladder problems in cats fed an all-dry diet.

dori2o

Shoshannah wrote: »

Out of interest, can I just ask why you would like your cat to eat dry food? I personally would recommend feeding your cat a wet diet - we see a lot of bladder problems in cats fed an all-dry diet.

I don't want her to have an all dry diet, I would prefer her to have a mixed one.

calamity-j

Dry food mmmmmmmmmmmm I really don't blame your cat for turning it's nose up a that, sling it a juicy mouse instead.

geri1965_2

One of my cats loves dried food and won't touch wet - the other goes mental for wet food and will only eat dry as a last resort!

How about soaking the dry food in gravy to soften it a bit?

Shoshannah

dori2o wrote: »

I don't want her to have an all dry diet, I would prefer her to have a mixed one.

Oks which brand are you feeding? If you haven't already, try feeding a brand with a high meat content ie Orijen, Applaws and see if that tempts her a little more.

You could try pouring a little warm water, tuna water (the springwater, not brine) or low-salt chicken stock over the food. Don't leave it down too long if you moisten the food though, you don't want it to become mouldy.

h.cowell

Here's a pretty comprehensive list of dried food, just in case you haven't seen it:
http://www.petforums.co.uk/cat-health-nutrition/116753-z-dry-food-cats.html

We feed ours a mix of wet and dry - Hills Nature's Best (dry food) is slightly larger and seems less dense and ours love it.

I was going to suggest adding a little water or milk to the dry, to get your cat started? But apparently (after reading around on Google) it would be best not to leave it out if you do this, because of the bacterial content of the dry food. Sometimes I put some dry on top of the wet food, just to bulk it out a bit.

I can understand why you'd like to feed some dry food - I find it more convenient, especially if I'm going out for a few hours and need to leave some food out. Or overnight, when I always leave some food available. But I also want to keep the wet food as part of our cat's diet, because of the moisture content - i think that's important. And the wet food is nearer to their natural food in texture. If you talk to the vet though, they always seem to push the dry food.... as a first time cat owner, it came as a bit of surprise to me when I read around the web that wet food is better.... but it makes complete sense! I think the vet's are possibly persuaded by the cat food manufacturer's. Money talks! (Or maybe I'm just being cynical?!).

Shoshannah

I have always wondered why some vets advocate feeding dry food. I can only assume it is because of some perceived benefit to dental health.

My cat is fed wet only.

pigpen

Mine don't eat dry food either... it is notoriously bad for their urinary tract and kidneys so I'm not too bothered but I did find they liked the tiny biscuits rather than the standard size ones and they would eat that occasionally if they were starving

Cats are not natural drinkers so become very dehydrated on dry food.

Mine hate gravy too.. it makes their whiskers messy and they don't like it.. vegetables however they love.

spike7451

My Daisy get's a mix of dry & wet food,usually a pouch in the morning & at night when I get home with a bowl of dry left down for her to graze on,as she doesn't drink any water,she needs the wet for that.