The holy grail of food - a never ending search

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JeanW

JeanW

Member Since 2017
My cats - including my diabetic kitty - have mostly eaten Fancy Feast for several years. They have recently made a joint decision to refuse all Fancy Feast - with one flavor exception and they don't like it very much.

I've tried - and thrown away - many different kinds of foods. It gets old (and expensive!) as so many of you know. I'd prefer to feed a higher quality of food and have tried Nature's Variety Instinct, Nature's Logic and a number of other specialty foods. I've used Dr Lisa's list for years but am looking for personal feedback.

Does anyone have new ideas or suggestions? Anything new you've tried?

Has anyone used NomNom? I searched but didn't find any posts here on it.

All suggestions, ideas and thoughts will be so appreciated!
 
No suggestions but I am having the same problem with FF! One can after the other gets tossed. For a while there I thought it was hariball issues but then I started inspecting and smelling each can.
I've found all the cans (except seafoods) have this clear oily substance they never had before. I drain each can before i put it in the bowl then sop up any "oil" that happens to get in. She then will peck at her food but definitely not attack it with the same gusto.
I've tried just about every other brand of food I can find and she wont even get near it.
I'll be watching this thread to learn more. THANKS for this tread! although sorry for the reason.:(
 
jt and trouble (GA) said:
No suggestions but I am having the same problem with FF! One can after the other gets tossed. For a while there I thought it was hariball issues but then I started inspecting and smelling each can.
I've found all the cans (except seafoods) have this clear oily substance they never had before. I drain each can before i put it in the bowl then sop up any "oil" that happens to get in. She then will peck at her food but definitely not attack it with the same gusto.
I've tried just about every other brand of food I can find and she wont even get near it.
I'll be watching this thread to learn more. THANKS for this tread! although sorry for the reason.:(
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Thanks for your response!

I agree that I've looked at the FF food - and didn't notice the oil :( - but did notice that it seems even more gross than usual. I've thrown away many many cans of food. :( I feel like a bad pet parent that I can't find a food they like better. When they like the food, they all eat with enthusiasm. One of them has gotten quite thin when I wasn't paying close enough attention (preoccupied with job, health and financial concerns due to the pandemic).

I wish I'd kept a list of all the specialty foods I've tried - starting that now. One of my cats will eat a little of the Nature's Variety Instinct Chicken or Rabbit - seems to be one of the higher quality foods - but she doesn't like it all that well and sometimes won't eat any of it. I've tried Fresh Pet that's available in the refrigerated cases in Target and the grocery store. But only one of them will eat a few bites and I throw the rest away.

Hoping others will join in with thoughts, comments and ideas.
 
Here is the NomNom food I mentioned above - https://www.nomnomnow.com/

I love that they say it is all sourced, manufactured and assembled here in the US! It can't be worse than the currently gross looking and smelling FF.

https://www.nomnomnow.com/cat-food-recipes

I think I'm going to try ordering the Variety Pack and see what happens. As we all know, getting them to eat something is better than eating nothing or next to nothing.

Their website mentions that cats are naturally neophobic! I had to look that up - but so true :D.
Neophobic is defined as "having an extreme or irrational dislike of anything new or unfamiliar".

Anyone else please join in with comments about this food or any other ideas.
 
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JeanW said:
Thanks for your response!

I agree that I've looked at the FF food - and didn't notice the oil :( - but did notice that it seems even more gross than usual. I've thrown away many many cans of food. :( I feel like a bad pet parent that I can't find a food they like better. When they like the food, they all eat with enthusiasm. One of them has gotten quite thin when I wasn't paying close enough attention (preoccupied with job, health and financial concerns due to the pandemic).

I wish I'd kept a list of all the specialty foods I've tried - starting that now. One of my cats will eat a little of the Nature's Variety Instinct Chicken or Rabbit - seems to be one of the higher quality foods - but she doesn't like it all that well and sometimes won't eat any of it. I've tried Fresh Pet that's available in the refrigerated cases in Target and the grocery store. But only one of them will eat a few bites and I throw the rest away.

Hoping others will join in with thoughts, comments and ideas.
Click to expand...

I’m on the same boat as y’all. I’m trying to stay under the 10% carb rule and avoid anything that can trigger Minnies GI tract like grains or agar agar and DL-methionine (which we should all stay away from, both no bueno for cats) for instance. I discovered Rawz recently and I like that they’re also all US sourced and human human grade ingredients only. They’re sending me some samples but I did get a few cans at a local pet store and Minnie did seem to like it. Of course transitioning her 100% to it is another story but I like that I can try them out before committing to ordering a case of 24 online. Here is the site:

https://rawznaturalpetfood.com/cat/rendered-free-cat-food/#gum-free-wet

:cat:
 
JeanW said:
My cats - including my diabetic kitty - have mostly eaten Fancy Feast for several years. They have recently made a joint decision to refuse all Fancy Feast - with one flavor exception and they don't like it very much.

I've tried - and thrown away - many different kinds of foods. It gets old (and expensive!) as so many of you know. I'd prefer to feed a higher quality of food and have tried Nature's Variety Instinct, Nature's Logic and a number of other specialty foods. I've used Dr Lisa's list for years but am looking for personal feedback.

Does anyone have new ideas or suggestions? Anything new you've tried?

Has anyone used NomNom? I searched but didn't find any posts here on it.

All suggestions, ideas and thoughts will be so appreciated!
Click to expand...
Hi Jean , Iam New and my Cat was diagnosed diabetic 4/23/2020 needless to say I took away her dry food . She has been turning up her kitty nose at Fancy Feast even certain flavors of the expensive cans she will reject . She does seem to eat some Weruva ( paw lickin chicken, fowl ball chicken & turkey , she will also eat some Tiki Cat can flavors . We are still trying to figure out what she likes . Soon to try Ziwi Peak . I get worried when I see she’s not eating so I will keep trying . My Tips ; I research the company to see if they ever had recalls.
I use Dr Lisa’s list for Carbohydrates even some cans of Weruva are too high .
I mix Dusty’s food with some warm water . Then I sit back and think WOW my Cat NEEDS A JOB here I thought her dry food was expensive Lol laughing Feel free to talk anytime Roe
 
Dusty & Roe said:
Hi Jean , Iam New and my Cat was diagnosed diabetic 4/23/2020 needless to say I took away her dry food . She has been turning up her kitty nose at Fancy Feast even certain flavors of the expensive cans she will reject . She does seem to eat some Weruva ( paw lickin chicken, fowl ball chicken & turkey , she will also eat some Tiki Cat can flavors . We are still trying to figure out what she likes . Soon to try Ziwi Peak . I get worried when I see she’s not eating so I will keep trying . My Tips ; I research the company to see if they ever had recalls.
I use Dr Lisa’s list for Carbohydrates even some cans of Weruva are too high .
I mix Dusty’s food with some warm water . Then I sit back and think WOW my Cat NEEDS A JOB here I thought her dry food was expensive Lol laughing Feel free to talk anytime Roe
Click to expand...
Be aware that Ziwipeak contains DL-methionine :nailbiting:
 
Dusty & Roe said:
Hi Jean , Iam New and my Cat was diagnosed diabetic 4/23/2020 needless to say I took away her dry food . She has been turning up her kitty nose at Fancy Feast even certain flavors of the expensive cans she will reject . She does seem to eat some Weruva ( paw lickin chicken, fowl ball chicken & turkey , she will also eat some Tiki Cat can flavors . We are still trying to figure out what she likes . Soon to try Ziwi Peak . I get worried when I see she’s not eating so I will keep trying . My Tips ; I research the company to see if they ever had recalls.
I use Dr Lisa’s list for Carbohydrates even some cans of Weruva are too high .
I mix Dusty’s food with some warm water . Then I sit back and think WOW my Cat NEEDS A JOB here I thought her dry food was expensive Lol laughing Feel free to talk anytime Roe
Click to expand...
From catcentric:
  • A carb “red flag:” Meat is high in methionine, an amino acid used by many companies as a urine acidifier. If the synthetic version, “DL-methionine” is supplemented, especially if you find it towards the top of the supplement list in commercial food ingredients, alarm bells should go off; this is an indication the food does not contain protein primarily from meat or that the food is otherwise high in carbohydrates. Those carbs make the entire GI system, not just the stomach, too alkaline, and this can lead to various issues, among them urinary tract health problems and the formation of crystals. Natural methionine is found in meat, one of the reasons a meat-based diet naturally targets the proper pH in cats.
 
Aleluia Grugru & Minnie said:
I’m on the same boat as y’all. I’m trying to stay under the 10% carb rule and avoid anything that can trigger Minnies GI tract like grains or agar agar and DL-methionine (which we should all stay away from, both no bueno for cats) for instance. I discovered Rawz recently and I like that they’re also all US sourced and human human grade ingredients only. They’re sending me some samples but I did get a few cans at a local pet store and Minnie did seem to like it. Of course transitioning her 100% to it is another story but I like that I can try them out before committing to ordering a case of 24 online. Here is the site:

https://rawznaturalpetfood.com/cat/rendered-free-cat-food/#gum-free-wet

:cat:
Click to expand...
Ale where did you buy this ?
 
Aleluia Grugru & Minnie said:
From catcentric:
  • A carb “red flag:” Meat is high in methionine, an amino acid used by many companies as a urine acidifier. If the synthetic version, “DL-methionine” is supplemented, especially if you find it towards the top of the supplement list in commercial food ingredients, alarm bells should go off; this is an indication the food does not contain protein primarily from meat or that the food is otherwise high in carbohydrates. Those carbs make the entire GI system, not just the stomach, too alkaline, and this can lead to various issues, among them urinary tract health problems and the formation of crystals. Natural methionine is found in meat, one of the reasons a meat-based diet naturally targets the proper pH in cats.
Click to expand...
Did not know that Ale so look for DL-methionine on the label This is Excellent to know
 
An update - I ordered and paid for variety pack samples of Nom Nom food - made and sourced in the US with human grade ingredients. The food arrived the middle of this week packed so that it was still very cold when I received it. Their customer service by phone was very good.

I put some in front of SweetPea on Thursday evening - she is the one I worry about the most and is the most finicky about eating. She ate the fish flavor with great enthusiasm and turned away from the usual Nature's Variety Instinct canned food I put next to it. I didn't limit how much she ate since she appeared to love it! She ate it the next morning too.

But it must have disagreed with her system or something - if she threw up I didn't find it. But by last night she wasn't eating more than a bite or two of treats and no real food. She looked and acted puny and it scared me to death. I got up at 2 in the morning and tried about 6 or 8 different foods but she wouldn't eat any of them. So scary. I later threw all of those bowls of food away. :(

By 6 in the morning she ate a few bites of tuna and a few bites of Fancy Feast and by 9:30 this morning she ate a decent amount of Fancy Feast - still not a lot but better. It's unlikely she'll ever eat any of the Nom Nom again. Once she refuses a food she seldom ever changes her mind.

So I guess I'm back to square one or worse. Praying she will eat better tonight. So scary.

Thanks for the recommendation of Rawz above. I will try that. And I found a few more US sourced human grade pet foods to try too.
 
JeanW said:
An update - I ordered and paid for variety pack samples of Nom Nom food - made and sourced in the US with human grade ingredients. The food arrived the middle of this week packed so that it was still very cold when I received it. Their customer service by phone was very good.

I put some in front of SweetPea on Thursday evening - she is the one I worry about the most and is the most finicky about eating. She ate the fish flavor with great enthusiasm and turned away from the usual Nature's Variety Instinct canned food I put next to it. I didn't limit how much she ate since she appeared to love it! She ate it the next morning too.

But it must have disagreed with her system or something - if she threw up I didn't find it. But by last night she wasn't eating more than a bite or two of treats and no real food. She looked and acted puny and it scared me to death. I got up at 2 in the morning and tried about 6 or 8 different foods but she wouldn't eat any of them. So scary. I later threw all of those bowls of food away. :(

By 6 in the morning she ate a few bites of tuna and a few bites of Fancy Feast and by 9:30 this morning she ate a decent amount of Fancy Feast - still not a lot but better. It's unlikely she'll ever eat any of the Nom Nom again. Once she refuses a food she seldom ever changes her mind.

So I guess I'm back to square one or worse. Praying she will eat better tonight. So scary.

Thanks for the recommendation of Rawz above. I will try that. And I found a few more US sourced human grade pet foods to try too.
Click to expand...
Hi Jean my Cat has been going through not eating but before that she was a dry food girl during the transition she turned her nose up to Fancy Feast she does not like pate
So I found some flavors of Tiki Cat and Weruva chicken licked paws
Tiki Cat has 0 carbs Weruva which Petco has some flavors are very low carbs and some are not . Just like Fancy Feast with gravy is higher carbs . Honestly it is not easy finding a wet food that they like and is good for them lol Feel free to talk with me anytime Roe
 
What might have happened was that first feeding she devoured. Switching food (even if its a far better product) can upset their systems. Diarrhea can be the result. I *think* if you had stopped at that first feeding (amount) ie pulled it away, her system probably could have over come the switch.
THAT said...I would have probably done the exact same thing that you did. I would have been SO thrilled to see her eat...I would have even given a second can! Its what we do.
One trick that sometimes works for me is When Zoe turns up her nose at one of her regular favorites, I immediately take that off her list for at least 2 weeks. When I reintroduce it she loves it again.

The bottom line is...A sick kitty doesnt like to eat. I KNOW the feeling when my kitty wont eat. I feel like its something I did or missed
Sending prayers and positives for both of you!
j
 
Thanks to you both for your replies and thoughts.

jt and trouble (GA) said:
What might have happened was that first feeding she devoured. Switching food (even if its a far better product) can upset their systems. Diarrhea can be the result. I *think* if you had stopped at that first feeding (amount) ie pulled it away, her system probably could have over come the switch.
THAT said...I would have probably done the exact same thing that you did. I would have been SO thrilled to see her eat...I would have even given a second can! Its what we do.
One trick that sometimes works for me is When Zoe turns up her nose at one of her regular favorites, I immediately take that off her list for at least 2 weeks. When I reintroduce it she loves it again.

The bottom line is...A sick kitty doesnt like to eat. I KNOW the feeling when my kitty wont eat. I feel like its something I did or missed
Sending prayers and positives for both of you!
j
Click to expand...
J- I think you're right that I should have given her less of the new food. Thanks for the idea to put it away for a while. It can be frozen - so I put all of the rest in the freezer and we will see what happens. Right now I'm feeding her organic turkey and high quality tuna with no salt or broth. I know neither of these are the greatest choices and certainly aren't a full time well rounded diet for the long term. But she is eating with enthusiasm and mostly seems to be feeling quite a bit better.

I'm trying to find more foods to try and hopefully soon. This is so stressful!
 
It all comes down to the carb content. I know all the other ingredients have to be fit for our kitties to live on but...For me it was the carb content.

You can mix a little of that new food with some of her old. That way her system has an easier time accepting the new. I'd add a teaspoon of the new to the old, each time I put a bowl down.
I hope others chime in on this. ;)

GOOD LUCK!
j.
 
jt and trouble (GA) said:
It all comes down to the carb content. I know all the other ingredients have to be fit for our kitties to live on but...For me it was the carb content.

You can mix a little of that new food with some of her old. That way her system has an easier time accepting the new. I'd add a teaspoon of the new to the old, each time I put a bowl down.
I hope others chime in on this. ;)

GOOD LUCK!
j.
Click to expand...
Thank you!
 
Argh! The search continues. She's sworn off the turkey and will eat a bit of tuna (no salt or broth!) and a little bit of Nature's Instinct Salmon.

I can't get her to eat the Nom Nom food I mentioned above.

I just started a thread on Raw Food. Any input will be most appreciated!
 
Raised Right sent me their As Fed Analysis for their chicken cat food. It looks hopeful I think. I would appreciate feedback from some of y'all with more experience.
This food is not inexpensive. But then throwing away bowl after bowl after bowl of food is also not inexpensive.

upload_2020-5-27_12-53-21.png



Ingredients:
Chicken Thigh, Chicken Heart, Chicken Liver, Carrots, Peas, Cranberries, Organic Spearmint, Cod
Liver Oil, Egg Shell Powder, Organic Dried Kelp, Taurine, Thiamine Mononitrate

Guaranteed Analysis:
Protein (As Fed): 19% (min)
Fat (As Fed): 8% (min)
Fiber (As Fed): 2% (max)
Moisture (As Fed): 68% (max)
Carbs (As Fed): 2% (max)

Calorie Content (ME Calculated):
1,510 Kcals/kg
344 Kcals/cup
 

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I feed CC Weruva. My other cats generally eat ff, but they seem kind of not as into it either. There's always lots left over. Anyway this is what cc is eating.
Weruva slide and serve pate foods Family Food (.97 phosphorus and 0 carb). Also Jeopurrdy Chicken (0.97 P 6.1 carb)

Weruva Steak Frites (0.57 phosphorus 7.5 carb although I take out any big pieces of potatoes to try to limit the carbs just a bit)

weruva Fowl Ball chicken and turkey (0.89phosphorus 0 carb).

Weruva LA isla Bonita - phosphorus 0.77 carb 4.5
Glam and punk 1% carb, 0.93 phosphorous.

Weruva paw lickin chicken 3.3 carb 0.82 p and
Press your lunch 5.9 carb. 0.82 phosphorous

Bff play Laugh Out Loud chicken and lamb 7.7 carb, 0.82 phosphorous
 
Currently, I am having great luck (knocking wood) with Tiny Tasters Chicken/Turkey. The only other flavor they have is fish, which I am a bit afraid of. Mine has a sensitive tummy and moist food has ALWAYS resulted in vomiting. This is the first thing I've ever tried that she both likes and can keep down! Good luck to you and your sugar baby.
 
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