Need help with my cats and choosing right cat food!!!

[rbrumbaugh82]

I know some of you know me already with talking about my diabetic cat. Well I must say that I have some very picky and finicky cats. I am trying to feed my cats strictly fancy feast or some healthy low carb wet canned cat food but for some reason now my diabetic cat is having loose stools. The lady at the vet told me that insulin shots won't cause diarrhea. So if the food is causing him to have it then what can I do to get him to have solid bowels again? I'm getting tired of changing foods all the time and actually I just bought a bag of Young Again Zero Carb dry food and even sample cat treats and they aren't touching it. I see my other 2 inside cats nibbling on it but the food isn't going down quickly as compared to other foods like Ideal Balance and 4Health cat foods. Even with that, they aren't even touching those dry foods anymore. Furthermore, I am going through so many different wet foods and then just barely eat some and then don't touch it. Why is it so darn hard to find a low carb healthy cat food for them? People were saying Young Again is an amazing food and their cats eat it but yet my cats don't seem crazy about it? What can I possibly feed a very picky cat like my own that they will eat and that is low in carbs since I have a diabetic cat and I want all my cats to eat it? I have even tried Nutrisca since it claims on the bag that its a low glycemic cat food but my cats don't crave it either. I am at mercy and a no win battle right now! Please help save my nightmare! :cry:

PS... I am on FF now classic varieties and I have tried Friskies pate and they treat the food the same as any other wet canned cat food. They don't crave it like I would have hoped. I have tried Natures Variety, Soulistic, Wellness, pretty much every brand sold at Petco. I try to avoid ones with Carrageenan because I hear bad things about that ingredient. The biggest thing I want is to find a food that contains all the nutrients my cat needs including amino acids and probiotics. So with that said, what can you recommend?

 

[dirtybirdsoaps]

Are you slowly introducing them to the food? If not that would most likely be the cause for the loose stool. It is best to go slow. Slowly mix the new with the old, say 75% old type/25% new. Gradually up it as they get used to it.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Oh boy do I remember that nightmare. I have 16 cats, 3 of which are diabetic. And when we made the switch to all canned it took a lot of trial and error to find something all 16 would eat. What my crew finally settled on was just good old fashioned Friskies Pate style canned food. I went through all the 'better' pricey stuff with either complete refusal on everyone's part or a few would pick at it and others turn their noses up. Until finally as a last resort I went with just plain Friskies. And it was a hit,but only if I add a little warm water to it so that it makes a gravy like concoction. Straight from the can they aren't having it, add warm water and I've just served the kitty version on Prime Rib. :roll:

The loose stools could be coming from switching the food too quickly, as that will sometimes upset the GI tract. Mine had similiar problems at first but eventually as they ate more and more of the new canned food it went away.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[rbrumbaugh82]

I have had them on FF for a while now so it should be used in their system for whichever flavor they eat. They seem to eat the chopped grill classic better than any other. I haven't seen my other cats have diarrhea except for my diabetic cat and they all seem to be pooping once a day or every other day too. The Young Again cat food they aren't chowing down like I would have hoped too just a few pieces and they move on. I haven't seen my diabetic cat touch it except for when I put the bowl in front of him the other day and he finally ate a few pieces... Its very frustrating!

 

[Melanie and Smokey]

Keep in mind that the lower carb food is going to be much higher in calories than the high carb dry foods, your cats shouldn't be chowing down nearly as much as they used to. Most of the lower carb dry foods a normal sized cat is going to need only around 1/2 cup or less a day. They should feel fuller on much less food and they won't be in a carb craze when eating it so they should get to a point of eating what they need and walking away. One of my little bits will eat like 3-5 pieces of food and walk away, it always seems so odd!

 

[rbrumbaugh82]

Yea that make sense Melanie. I know that the more nutrient dense foods they won't eat as much and will stay fuller longer then feeding them something with higher carbs. I guess I'm just worried that they aren't' getting all their nutrients with eating just any Fancy Feast classic food. They don't eat a whole can either when I feed them it 2 times a day. I know that on the Young Again food it said to not mix any other food with it but I can't just take away the wet food and expect them to eat and rely on Young Again because I will fear they won't eat enough to get all their nutrients on a daily basis. Friskies Pate has that Carrageenan ingredient in it and I've seen it causes loose stools and possible IBD problems. I really thought I'd win on YA but so far I'm losing since I haven't seen all 3 of my cats eat it especially my diabetic one like he used to when i would catch him eating dry food.

 

[Melanie and Smokey]

I wouldn't worry about taking away the wet. Its good for cats to have wet food in their diet. I think I have 5-8 different kinds of wet in the cupboard and at least 4 different kinds of dry in the house at any given time :lol: I've got a pretty strange little pride running around this house though. Of course every cat food company wants their food to be fed exclusively. I can't think of a reason that it would really be necessary (unless they want the cat so hungry will eat it because they HAVE to eat it!).