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My kitty currently eats raw chicken in a mushy like form with water added. We have been trying to switch him to a high quality gain free wet. For over a week I have been mixing in some with his raw. Right now it's about half and half. Each day for a few days I've tried giving him a bit straight out of the can. It's not as soupy as his combo food. He looks very confused by it like he doesn't even realize it's food. He will circle it and sniff and lick but not really eat. Then he tries to bury it. I could try and add water but I want to get to a point where he will eat out of the can. Any suggestions or advice?
I'd like to keep this on topic and not a raw vs wet debate. We have our reasons fo switching.
So you want him to eat the wet food directly from the can? Why? Why not put it in a food bowl, mix it with a little water and serve it to him that way?
My cats generally prefer the water added and since kidney disease is so common in cats I want them to have as much water as possible.
I guess I would switch off raw the same way you would switch to raw. Slowly. Mixing mostly the raw with a bit of canned. Keeping in mind that what he is used to is chicken so that flavor is likely to go over the best. Try a few brands if one isn't seeming to be eaten very well. Keep it simple - I do know the Weruva Paw Lickin' Chicken is just shredded Chicken with no veggies or other stuff in it so you could try that flavor. The Wereuva On the Cat Wok is just shredded chicken and beef. I'm not familiar with many brands so someone else may give you some options here.
Just like converting cats to raw I would say give it patience and time. You're asking him to adjust to a whole different type of food. As I am trying to get mine off of kibble and START eating raw currently some people have suggested putting a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on the food as cats really love that You may give that a try. I would just add a bit of the canned at a time to get him used to the new flavor and texture - almost like hiding a few peas in mashed potatoes for little kids
Sorry to hear the raw feeding didn't work out for you though
My kitty currently eats raw chicken in a mushy like form with water added. We have been trying to switch him to a high quality gain free wet. For over a week I have been mixing in some with his raw. Right now it's about half and half. Each day for a few days I've tried giving him a bit straight out of the can. It's not as soupy as his combo food. He looks very confused by it like he doesn't even realize it's food. He will circle it and sniff and lick but not really eat. Then he tries to bury it. I could try and add water but I want to get to a point where he will eat out of the can. Any suggestions or advice?
I'd like to keep this on topic and not a raw vs wet debate. We have our reasons fo switching.
If he's trying to bury the new food, maybe he's trying to tell you something (i.e. that he thinks it's, er, sh*t, LOL ).
I know that you have had difficulty re: preparation of the raw food--completely understandable. However, given his reaction, I would suggest finding a pre-made raw food in your area and feeding him that instead so that you do not have to go through the preps yourself. It sounds like he really likes his raw diet.
You just gotta mix and transition s l o w l y. And you may have to try different cans. There are some different decent grain-free varieties you can try from Weruva and such. It can be a big pain and just a head-scratcher as to what the cat does and doesn't like. For example, my cat loves chicken treats and chicken-based dry food. But I can't get her to eat chicken canned food straight; she'll eat some canned chicken if it's mixed in with tuna and/or salmon. That said, though I give that as an example, I do recommend not resorting to fish if you can help it because then you'll be stuck with fish forever, LOL.
I'm going to assume by "eat out of the can" you mean straight from the can and not mixed with anything. And that you don't mean using the can instead of a bowl (as in pop the top and set the can on the floor). The latter would really not be advisable, nor would it work too well except maybe with extremely hungry cat.
I'm going to assume by "eat out of the can" you mean straight from the can and not mixed with anything. And that you don't mean using the can instead of a bowl (as in pop the top and set the can on the floor). The latter would really not be advisable, nor would it work too well except maybe with extremely hungry cat.
Exactly what I meant. I would never just plop the can down.
As for sticking with raw, it's not an option. It's just to much work with the thawing and our schedules. It's a personal decision that has been made. I've done a lot of research and I've decided my kitty can live a happy and healthy life with wet food.
I'll transition slowly. I've tried Wellness, Wellness core and Merrick Before Grain (chicken for all 3) and she's done better with the Wellness one's. She didn't really want the Merrick BG. I might try some evo 95% chicken. Any other grain free brands that you can recommend?
My kitty currently eats raw chicken in a mushy like form with water added. We have been trying to switch him to a high quality gain free wet. For over a week I have been mixing in some with his raw. Right now it's about half and half. Each day for a few days I've tried giving him a bit straight out of the can. It's not as soupy as his combo food. He looks very confused by it like he doesn't even realize it's food. He will circle it and sniff and lick but not really eat. Then he tries to bury it. I could try and add water but I want to get to a point where he will eat out of the can. Any suggestions or advice?
I'd like to keep this on topic and not a raw vs wet debate. We have our reasons fo switching.
First of all, why on earth are you switching from raw to wet???
when transitioning any type of food the general rule of thumb is the first week to substitute 10 percent of the raw food with the canned food. The second week substitute 25 percent, the third and fourth week 50 percent. the fifth week substitute 75 percent with wet food and the sixth week you should be able to feed them 100 percent wet food.
Someone else chime in here - but I'm not sure if the EVO 95% are meant to be complete diets or supplement toppers to kibble.
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You may give that a try. I would just add a bit of the canned at a time to get him used to the new flavor and texture - almost like hiding a few peas in mashed potatoes for little kids 
).
