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Each day, I give each cat a can of cat food in cans.........and each day, I am washing perhaps half the remains of the previous day's can down the disposal. The amount of shredded beast, fish, or bird going down the drain is perhaps "heart breaking".
SIGH.
Of course, cats are nit pickers and lickers and truly, once a can is opened for them, it is theirs to do as they please. There are no left overs and even cans picked up that weren't touched to put in the frig, rarely do well on the second sitting.
But, if we could really talk to our cats like children.....................
Sigh, CATS! Much of the time, equal or surpassing us in intelligence but at times, acting like a 2 year old.
[quote=TamaraSavannah;41187189]Each day, I give each cat a can of cat food in cans.........and each day, I am washing perhaps half the remains of the previous day's can down the disposal. The amount of shredded beast, fish, or bird going down the drain is perhaps "heart breaking".
SIGH.
Of course, cats are nit pickers and lickers and truly, once a can is opened for them, it is theirs to do as they please. There are no left overs and even cans picked up that weren't touched to put in the frig, rarely do well on the second sitting.
But, if we could really talk to our cats like children.....................
Sigh, CATS! Much of the time, equal or surpassing us in intelligence but at times, acting like a 2 year old.[/quote]
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That's an accurate description of cats for sure. They go from spoiled 2 year olds during the first few years of their life, to entitled Royalty when they're older.
I feed all mine Fancy Feast pate and sometimes they eat nearly all of it, and sometimes they don't. They aren't a big fan of leftovers (evidently it's beneath them), and I used to dump a lot of it. For the past few months a neighborhood feral orange Tom has been coming around, and cleaning up the leftovers. I think he appreciates the meals, but he won't let me near him. Anyway, he gets food in him, and I don't have to waste it anymore. It's a win-win.
When you say "in cans" do you mean that's how you serve it? I know someone who does that, but I've always put wet food on dishes. I think if I put a can of food in front of them they'd give me the stinkeye and walk away. In fact, mine only like the pate, but if I don't smash it a bit with a fork they seem to eat more slowly as if they aren't quite happy with it, spoiled brats that they are. I vary their food in a pretty big rotation, and I've worked it out so I have little to no leftovers.
Since Steven_h got me to switch to the Sheba brand offered online, I've had no issues getting Goliath to not only drink the syrup, but also (finally!) begin noshing on some of the pate itself.
'Her Boo-ness' (Babiboo) is a bit fussier, but is coming around. She does not like the switch in brands, but after reading up on it, the brand is much healthier and she's just going to have to go with it.
She's a spoiled queen, and needs to lose some weight anyway. (must admit, I do love rubbing her boo-belly )
And our one outdoor cat? Twinkie is the smartest of the three, loves it and no problem whatsoever. He was getting to where he wasn't eating the old brand anyway.
I too hate when it's wasted, and the indoor boy and girl can frustrate me.
While they transition, I keep the food on their table, but covered with aluminum foil if they leave any.
That way it stays at room temp, and if they jump up, I just go and uncover to give them a chance to eat it. After a day, anything left gets thrown out.
Sorry starving Chinese kitties...
I am going to win this battle, not them.
Also notice they are a lot more affectionate. I think they are realizing I am the supplier of their food source? I don't know, but I'll take it.
Tamara, love your choice of words for title thread.
Last edited by TerraDown; 09-13-2015 at 02:59 PM..
Omgosh, that's the story of every cat owner's lives...
I tried canned Blue Buffalo, Wellness, Innova, Royal Canin, Nutro, Sheba, Fancy Feast, and many other brands I can't remember after years of trying to get my grumpy one to eat. Different flavors made from any animal allowed to be made in a can was tried. I even cooked him food mixed with a boiled egg, tilapia and chicken breast. I even served him steak and porkchop. I heat it up, add tuna juices or chicken broth.
What does Aiko do with it? One bite, two bites, lick lips.... "meh, I'll come back later. Maybe, lol..."
And when it goes stale in half an hour, he comes running to me crying for food.
One thing my kitty won't let it sit are treats. They get gobbled down quickly. I mixed the treats in the food and he meticulously pick them out and walk away (again)..
My dog does this. Dam*ed animal has the tongue of a giraffe.
Mix in the treats, dog can pick them out and leave a bowl full of other stuff.
I have limited cat treats to 4 a day, each. I call it kitty crack. Whatever it is, they have had enough.
Hang in there Cheese.
My motto is, if it's an animal, it will survive.(we are animals) My furr babies are going to eat what I want them to eat. That may sound harsh, but I am the one that walks on two legs and has a cerebral cortex.
I love them enough to make these choices in their benefit.
When you say "in cans" do you mean that's how you serve it? I know someone who does that, but I've always put wet food on dishes. I think if I put a can of food in front of them they'd give me the stinkeye and walk away. In fact, mine only like the pate, but if I don't smash it a bit with a fork they seem to eat more slowly as if they aren't quite happy with it, spoiled brats that they are. I vary their food in a pretty big rotation, and I've worked it out so I have little to no leftovers.
Well, yes, but the term "cat food in cans" came from my mother to make it clear "that it wasn't food made from cats in cans". It might have come from an event YEARS ago where my parents were having pate for an appetizer and one of the visiting kids tried a taste and "UGH! It tastes like cat food!" and departed the living room. To which my father said something about, "Good! More for the rest of us!".
Anyhow, I do pop open the can for them, a can for each cat, 3 of them, in three different rooms. I do think at one time I put it down on a salad plate for the now older ones, Melinda and Warren, when they were the only two cats and they ate together......but gave that up for two reasons, I think.
First of all, it got very messy, cat food all over the place. Secondly, when the cans are elevated, such as up on a sink, I often find the cans later in the sink. That's not too bad but they can go the other way as well and a counter top is high enough to break a salad plate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by catsmom21
Try a different formula. Many cats dislike those shredded things, especially friskies brand. Pate is the best for them, usually lowest in carbs.
And if you eliminate the dry food they will be more willing to eat food that is good for them.
Well, their dry food are special Purina diets I get from the vet for them. Melinda and Warren get over weight management; they are 10-11 years old. Melas is an adopted stray, about 4-5, and she gets Gastroenteric diet from her time of being on the street.
Melinda and Warren won't touch pate food, in the can, out of the can, all mushed up. Equally, they won't go after 9 Lives. Melas, I don't recall since they all now get Friskies shreds or the other non pate.
Finally, Melinda loves her canned cat food and isn't too crazy about the kibble.....while Warren takes a bite or two of his canned cat food but then goes for the kibble.
Melas loves her kitten treats but I don't recall if I've given such to Melinda or Warren..........Warren is a cat nip SNOOZER but Melinda is indifferent to it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by catdad7x
..........For the past few months a neighborhood feral orange Tom has been coming around, and cleaning up the leftovers. I think he appreciates the meals, but he won't let me near him. Anyway, he gets food in him, and I don't have to waste it anymore. It's a win-win.
I'm sort of a magnet for strays that really need help. Nimr (Arabic for Tiger) came meowing up to me when I was unloading the car. I took her in and a co worker took her to his ranch where she became a barn cat. When I was out walking my inherited dog from Mom, a medium size dog just appeared out of the blue to play with us. As it was, he had gotten loose from someone moving in but for the moment, there was someone, me, to take care of him. Then, Melas and her sister, Endora (died about a year ago), moved into my apartment complex at the time. I took care of them in the winter and they eventually adopted me.
I occasionally think the Angels tell some of the strays, "Go find Tamara! She's a marine biologist! She'll take care of you!".......I'll probably end up with lots of barn cats once I'm on the ranch.
I am rather careful, though, of how I set out food, if I set it out. Being in rental right now, there are lease limits to how many pets I can have......and that's not a bad thing, for taking care of pets is expensive. While those costs might go down a little when I live on the ranch and can have barn cats, it may not go down that much.....or if at all. Anyhow, for the present, I may put out bowls of water for the strays without much of a thought, but no more than that unless I'm ready to take the cat in to any extent.
Last edited by TamaraSavannah; 09-14-2015 at 12:28 AM..
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