Need food advice for new (civie) kittens

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pixiesmom

pixiesmom

Member Since 2013
I guess I technically don't really "belong" to this board anymore since the loss of my diabetic Pixie.
However, I need advice and thought there was no better place to turn.

Since we lost Keegan (8-5-13) and Pixie (10-25-13) our lives have really changed.

We now have 2 adorable black kittens. Emmie (5-28-13) and Ellie (7-13-13)
Emmie is 6 weeks older than Ellie

We rescued then and they came along with ProPlan Chicken and Rice Kitten food.
They have also been on chicken FF.

I plan on switching them both at the same time just to make my life easier.
What to switch to?? Good for them, yet a bit economical as well.

Emmie stools are really soft....not liquid, diarrhea, ....just soft.
She has been de-wormed.
Ellie is fine. Stools are normal.

I am worried that keeping Emmie on just canned food will not firm up her poop.

Any thoughts??
 
I would stick with canned. Dry really does not make the feces more well formed.
You might want to look for a gluten-free food since maybe that is cause the loose feces.
Look for food that says good for all life stages, that includes kittens, adults and pregnant cats. Most foods today are good for all life stages.
 
I too would stick to wet food especially after what we now know about dry food and the high carb load. Almost every kitten I've gotten came with loose stools but they firmed up once things settled down. Sorry about your Pixie, you did a wonderful job getting him OTJ.
 
I would keep to a low carb wet food diet.

If you want to introduce them to a raw food diet, that may be a good idea too. You can purchase raw food or make your own. Dr. Lisa has a recipe on her website if you decide to go that route. You can do a combination of raw and canned food.

I would keep them away from dry food and all the commercial treats like temptations, pounce, etc.
If you feel the need to give a dry food, you could do a freeze dried raw food, which is better than dry kibbles. Stella & Chewy's make one that while a it pricey, might be a good alternative and it comes in several flavors.
 
Lauri,

You will always be a member of this board, current diabetic kitty or not. Once a FDMB family member, always a FDMB family member.

We are here to help you with whatever you need. Please, feel free to keep posting and asking questions and getting suggestions from us on how to help the new kittens in your life.

Even though Pixie has crossed over to the Rainbow Bridge, he is still close to your heart and ours. We followed along during his journey from diagnosis to OTJ and beyond. Hugs.

Have you tried adding some plain canned pumpkin to the food? Maybe only a teaspoon since they are such little kittens. Increase slowly to see if this helps. Pumpkin can help to firm up the stools if needed. It works for Wink when he has a bout of loose stools, usually about 1 tablespoon but he weighs 10 pounds. I usually see an improvement in 12-24 hours with him. Some people have found it also works to lessen constipation in their cats. Never had success with Wink and his constipation using the pumpkin so he still gets daily Miralax.

One of my civies, Libby (GA), had digestive issues with any corn, wheat, soy or rice in her diet. Eliminating these grains helped to firm up her stools. Vegetables and fruits in some of the grain free foods did not affect her digestion at all. Maybe see if no grains will help kitten Emmie.
 
Deb & Wink said:
Lauri,

You will always be a member of this board, current diabetic kitty or not. Once a FDMB family member, always a FDMB family member.
Click to expand...
Thank you!!!

Deb & Wink said:
Have you tried adding some plain canned pumpkin to the food? Maybe only a teaspoon since they are such little kittens.

One of my civies, Libby (GA), had digestive issues with any corn, wheat, soy or rice in her diet. Eliminating these grains helped to firm up her stools. Vegetables and fruits in some of the grain free foods did not affect her digestion at all. Maybe see if no grains will help kitten Emmie.
Click to expand...

Was hoping to not have to add anything just yet.
Get rid of dry completely? Or is it ok to leave out for them to free feed all day and still feed with wet? I know canned is the way to go, but if
they are eating enough canned, will small amounts of dry bother them?
Was also hoping to go the FF route.
They are only on chicken flavored FF right now.
And then I guess I start the roller-coaster food game. Ugh!
Guess I will pull the dry away and see if FF alone helps out her stools.
It's tough when you have 2....because I want them on the same food.
 
Get rid of dry completely? Or is it ok to leave out for them to free feed all day and still feed with wet? I know canned is the way to go, but if they are eating enough canned, will small amounts of dry bother them?
Click to expand...

You might want to try eliminating the dry completely, see if that is the issue with Emmie and her loose stools. Think of it as doing a food trial for a week or so and see if it helps.

Try one change at a time, so you can try to see what the causative factor is. Too many changes at once, and it's much harder to know which change made a difference. So, don't try the pumpkin for now, just the change in diet to all wet.

If the two new kittens share their food well, there is no reason you can't free feed the wet/canned food. Adding a bit of water to the canned food helps to keep it moister and slows down the drying out process. The wet food will not go bad in a day. Raw food is a different matter, but even then, some people leave it out for several hours.

It could be that there is something in the dry food that is causing Emmie's loose stools. A food trial, eliminating the dry for now, is my suggestion.
 
I'm a firm believer in wheat grass (cat grass). Get some fresh grass and have them chew on a little of it, it'll firm their stool up and keep them regular.
 
Michelangelo was diagnosed with diabetes at 6 months old, then I got Henry when he was 4 months old (not diabetic). They have both been fed wet food exclusively. One thing I made sure of is to give them higher protein since everywhere I've read has said kittens need more protein, although I believe this is the case for all cats since Mikey's a year and a half old and still does better on high protein.

I feed them both Friskies Special Diet Pate (Turkey and Giblets) because it's got more protein than most others and because the only possible allergen is brewer's rice (I have to be careful because Mikey has already proven to be allergic to red meats). I supplement their Friskies with Tiki Cat Chicken and/or plain chicken breast (both raw and cooked) to give that extra protein boost. If it's just plain chicken and not a "complete diet," make sure it consists of only up to 20% of their total intake, otherwise there can be nutritional problems.

And a second yes to the cat grass. Mikey loves this stuff and it really helps cats with digestion. It grows like weeds and we've replaced the bald spots in some of our regular grass with it. :lol:
 
My Buster goes crazy for kitty grass. She sits under the windowsill and looks up at the pot and waits for me to pluck the grass to feed her. You can easily grow your own - Petsmart sells the grass seeds, just put in pot with planting dirt, add water, and in about 3-4 days it will grow real long and be ripe for the picking or mowing!
 
Wow...i pulled the dry ProPlan less than 2 days ago and happy to say that it was the culprit.
Emmie had a pretty formed poop this morning and the smell didn't even make me leave the room this time.

Now when you feed FF, how many different varieties do you give??
Right now they are just on chicken....I'd like to give them a bit of
a variety, but don't want to cause stomach upset.
 
It's really up to you. Just keep in mind that anytime you change food - brand or flavor it can cause upset. If you are feeding chicken now, maybe try staying with poultry flavors and trying chicken and liver, then turkey & giblets or chicken and beef then beef, beef & liver, etc.

Personally, Maui has always had tummy issues and for the longest time she only got turkey and giblets flavor and I didn't give other options. Stuck with the one flavor.

Today she won't eat it, so I know only give beef feast and beef & liver feast. I do one case of each and only change the flavor after the case is eaten.
 
Yeah on finding the culprit that was causing Emmie's loose stools!

I feed as many varieties of the Fancy Feast classic pate as Wink will eat. Turkey and Giblet, chicken, Liver & chicken, Beef & chicken, Chopped Grill are a few of the flavors he eats. He doesn't like the fish flavors so we skip all of those.

He gets the same flavor for 2 days in a row, then I switch it. I don't think he really cares, and would eat the same flavor forever. It's me that likes to give him the variety. :o :shock: :o
 
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