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does anyone else have cats that will not go on mse diet?
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We have 5 house cats who all eat whiskers or occasionally felix. They hate the oh so fishy/meaty range though. They cost us a fortune in food and cat litter.
I don't know if we can ever persuade all five of them to go to a cheaper brand, it doesn't seem to work for more than one meal. When we have fed cats with different foods in the past, depending on what the food was, one or more cats would be sick although they may have enjoyed the food at the time. However, some of them wouldn't eat the food at all.
One cat is very fussy in that he always wants to eat the fish range, strange as he would only eat the meat range as a kitten. He doesn't like biscuits as much as the others and will only have very few if he bothers at all.
I don't know what to do, we need to save money but they haven't got any choice on what they can eat & to swop them to food that they hate must be awful. Maybe the only solution is to bulk buy when the offers are on.0 -
itsgototstop wrote: »Thanks for that, I will try cheaper food BUT she hardly ever drinks any liquid water, cat milk whatever she won't do it, so I am scared to just leave dry food after her health problems, its got to be )
Just because she isn't drinking at yours doesn't mean she isn't drinking. I regularly see my two drinking out of puddles, rain collected on top of boxes etc. I sometimes think they just don't like the additives in tap water:rolleyes:
chevI want a job that is less than an hour driving away from my house! Are you listening universe?
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carrottopsuk wrote: »We have 5 house cats who all eat whiskers or occasionally felix. They hate the oh so fishy/meaty range though. They cost us a fortune in food and cat litter.Can they start going out side. It is natural for cats to prowl. Save you on cat litter too:D .
I don't know if we can ever persuade all five of them to go to a cheaper brand, it doesn't seem to work for more than one meal. When we have fed cats with different foods in the past, depending on what the food was, one or more cats would be sick although they may have enjoyed the food at the time. However, some of them wouldn't eat the food at all. Cats are often sick when they love the food so much that they gulp it down too fast. One of the reasons I don't feed mine duck or heart!
One cat is very fussy in that he always wants to eat the fish range, strange as he would only eat the meat range as a kitten. He doesn't like biscuits as much as the others and will only have very few if he bothers at all. If you have the money to spoil him then that is fine, but if not then he will adapt I am sure.
I don't know what to do, we need to save money but they haven't got any choice on what they can eat & to swop them to food that they hate must be awful. Maybe the only solution is to bulk buy when the offers are on.
But in the end you have to ask is more important, you getting out of debt, or forcing your cats to be adaptable? I would take adaptation every time
good luck
chevI want a job that is less than an hour driving away from my house! Are you listening universe?
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Chev,
All the cats apart from one were house cats when we got them so they are not really street wise. Before these cats, all our cats used to be normal outdoor cats.
To be honest, we let the 4 housecats wander outside in the back garden and although they sit on the fence or garage roof, they never wander off into other peoples gardens. They prefer using the soil than the cat litter so it does save on cat litter a little. They only use the litter when we are not around to let them out into the garden or its too cold outside.
Unfortunately the one cat we got as a kitten who could have been an outdoor cat turned out to be deaf. So we don't let him out to wander by himself in case he is knocked over. (his sister who was deaf died that way - her owners let her roam) He also is the one who likes jumping over fences and wandering so we have to be careful about him. It's a shame, he would love to be an outdoor cat. In the summer we take him out into the back garden and supervise him. He loves escaping and getting us running around after him. It's almost like a game to himHowever, he will not use soil in the garden as a toilet; even as a kitten when he was too small to jump over fences, we used to let him wander in the back garden unsupervised but he always came back into the house to use his litter tray.
We use litter from costco which is not the cheapest but seems to last longer than normal cat litter so does turn out to be cheaper. Also it doesn't smell which is fantastic.
I think we will have to look again into bulk buying as we have that many cats (daft I know) it would be justified buying in bulk.
Being indoor cats, they don't seem to eat as much as the ones we used to let roam outside. However, it's the deaf one who eats the most meat. He's the fussy one who doesn't eat biscuits- he's also the one that destroys the ornaments and we've had to protect the wallpaper in the kitchen to stop him scratching that. He's an agent of chaos who sticks claws in you affectionately but painfully when he wants feeding every 10 minutes but he's the most loved and we wouldn't swop him for the world.
I'm not sure whether he will adapt to eat more biscuits, he's the most strong willed cat I've ever seen. Most cats don't like looking at you direct, he stares you out. He also sticks claws in you and the furniture when he's not getting his own way. We have tried to stop this but he thinks this is the only way he can communicate with us as it gets us his attention.
You may be right about being sick when changing the cat food. Some food they dismiss altogether but some they seem to enjoy because its a change and maybe that is why some are being sick. I may try to introduce different food at alternative meals.
I've been buying the cat biscuits from home and bargain (sorry it's called Home Bargains now). They are the same ones that are in the supermarkets but are half the price. I just hope they don't run out.0 -
Has anyone tried mixing a bit of the premium food with the mse food and gradually changing that way?.
I had to do something similar when weaning my older cat off kitten food (it was for the younger cat, but she loved it and was turning into a chubber!).
A mixed success, but like someone said earlier, worked best in the mornings when she was peckish:D0 -
Just because she isn't drinking at yours doesn't mean she isn't drinking. I regularly see my two drinking out of puddles, rain collected on top of boxes etc. I sometimes think they just don't like the additives in tap water:rolleyes:
chev
I was pondering buying one of those water fountain things for cats off ebay, but still pondering......0 -
I used to be a premuim feeder until i realsied it was me in charge and not the cats!! :rolleyes:
They eat morrisons/tesco own brand wet and dry...BUT i've recently discovered Home Bargains cat food...19p for a foil and they really like it, they also sell Brekkies and other dry buscuits really cheap so i stock up on these.
Mine love the gourmet mini cans and in HOme Bargains they are 15p compared to 85p in the shops!!!
Quidco to date = £1224 cashback
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Yes bulk offers may be the way to go. Also looking at getting a Makro card or similar to try and get the best price. I found that Tesco and the like ARE NOT the cheapest very often. Have a look in a pet supermaket type of place. They often do very good deals in there, so you can save a lot.
But in the end you have to ask is more important, you getting out of debt, or forcing your cats to be adaptable? I would take adaptation every time
good luck
chev
I have 3 cats....I used to have this problem and spent a fortune on cat litter! I gradually put their litter tray nearer the door and then outside and then into the garden and then got rid of it and ive never had any problems, theyve never messed in the house. I cant belieive i had all that cat litter in the house and the amount i spent on it!!!
Quidco to date = £1224 cashback
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I asked my cat why he couldn't eat cheaper food and all he could say was meehow?0
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My 2 only eat Tesco cat food and they refuse to eat any other sachets although i have been spoiling my girl with tuna lately and for 2 days she wouldn't eat her other sachet at all just keep miaowing for Tuna!
They eat lidl dry biscuits and love them too.
I am lucky my cats are cheap like me! :rotfl:Now a SAHM trying to earn some spare pennies each month0
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