Since posting about Sam's gums, and exchanging a few messages with missy, I've decided to try and change his diet. I haven't got a definite diagnosis from the vet (but will definitely take him back if his symptoms appear again), so the theory I'm working with is that he has stomatitis, and his diet - currently consisting mainly of his favourite added-sugar foods, like Gourmet Perle - is a likely causal/contributing factor. I've also done some research into inflammation in general, and a high sugar diet, particularly one high in refined sugar, is a known contributor to inflammation in humans, so I think we're onto something here.

The foods I've selected for his new diet are Animonda Carny meat, Grau Gourmet Grain Free, Terra Felis, Applaws and Orijen. (The only one he's tried so far is Applaws, so I don't know if he'll like them yet, but I've bought a small quantity for now.) I've tried to pick the best foods I can, and selected foods that have no added sugar, and are largely grain free. Applaws contains 1% rice, but is a food that's been used successfully in other cats suffering from stomatitis, so my guess is that small amounts of rice will probably be OK, but I want to avoid any refined cereals. I'm hoping the Animonda Carny and Grau Gourmet will provide most of his meals, with Terra Felis and Applaws for extra variety, and Orijen for dry treats (he likes his dry food and has a small amount alongside his wet supper every evening).

I know changing him over to a new diet will be a gradual process because he loves sugar, to the extent that he begs for cake, shortbread, etc if he sees you eating it, so I'll start by offering him occasional meals of the new foods (or adding them with current foods if that doesn't work), and slowly increase the amount of new foods.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get my newest cat to eat some decent food as well, rather than the junk she likes best!

I'll use this thread to post updates on our progress, and I'm sure it will be useful to someone.

Good luck - I'm sure he will thank you in the end!

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please look at my website - www.finesthourcats.webs.com - for gorgeous GCCF registered RagaMuffins and Selkirk Rex

The order from Zooplus arrived today.

It contained:

Animonda Carny meat saucer
Grau Gourmet Grain Free mixed taster pack
Terra Felis Pangasius fish, carrots and dandelion
Applaws fish selection (he's already had chicken selection, and likes them)

They had a 200g tin of Animonda Carny between them for tea, and it seemed to go down pretty well. Milly ate about three quarters of hers very slowly, and I was actually surprised she ate any at all because she's had a upset stomach since stealing Sam's Gourmet Perle marinade yesterday. Eva ate all hers, which was impressive because she's turning out to be a right fuss-pot now she's not starving hungry any more. Freya also ate all hers, which she usually does. And Sam didn't bother to get up for tea, which is completely normal, so OH took it over and offered it to him on his "throne" (back of chair), where he ate a small amount quite enthusiastically. He usually makes each meal last until it's nearly time for the next one.

So, a positive start, I think.

Well, Sam asked for his food to be uncovered later yesterday afternoon (we keep it covered so Milly and Eva don't steal it), and looked at me a bit pathetically when I offered him his Animonda Carny. I've always been a believer in trying the easiest way first when introducing new foods - just offer it and see if they eat it! - and I felt my heart sink. Something made me go to the kitchen and get the Orijen, and sprinkle a few pieces on top of his meal. He gave it a quick sniff and then tucked in quite happily! By supper time, the plate was clean.

I gave him Orijen "on the side" at supper time too, instead of his usual dried food, and he apparently likes it better than Gourmet Perle "fishies". It was the first thing on the plate to disappear. Eva also loves the Orijen, and keeps begging for them every time one of us goes in the kitchen.

For lunch today, they had Grau with turkey and lamb. Milly, Eva and Freya wolfed it down like they hadn't eaten for a week. Sam was more delicate, but that's normal for him, and he chose to eat the Grau in preference to the little bit of Gourmet Gold double delicacies that he still had left from breakfast.

We're just giving them one meal of the new foods a day at the moment, to change them over gradually.

I've now started mixing Sam's new food in with his old food, so one meal's worth now gets divided between 2 meals. He had what seemed like a bit of a "sugar slump" one day, so I'm trying to phase the sugar out very gradually.

Last night for supper, I tried him on one of the Applaws fish selection flavours, mixed 50/50 with Gourmet Perle marinade, with a little bit of water added to help keep it moist. He tucked in enthusiastically as soon as I gave it to him, and the plate was empty by morning. (He has his supper in the bedroom because it's the only way he can have it available all night without Milly stealing it.)

Seeing as we might have a delay with the latest Zooplus order, and we're getting low on Animonda Carny and Grau, I decided to try them all on their first tin of Terra Felis today. They had pangasius fish with carrots and dandelion (yes, the posh flavours come with an equally posh price tag!) and the first thing I noticed was the consistency. I was expecting flakes of fish, but it actually had a more "mushy" consistency - in a good way - with a soft jelly. I thought it might be a bit different and unusual for them, so decided to mix it 50/50 with their usual junk food over 2 meals, but I don't think I should have worried. They all tucked in enthusiastially, including Sam.

Taking into account swapping the cheap dry food for Orijen, I've probably eliminated about 50% of the sugar that Sam was having in his diet, so I feel like I'm making good progress. Getting from where we are now to no sugar at all is probably going to be a lot harder, though.

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Proud Mummy to:

Sam (born June 1999, found August 1999)
Milly (born May 1999, adopted September 1999)
Eva (born 2010, adopted us August 2011)

Sounds like it is all going well!

__________________
please look at my website - www.finesthourcats.webs.com - for gorgeous GCCF registered RagaMuffins and Selkirk Rex

Sam and Milly are both loving the Terra Felis with pangasius fish, so I've ordered some more, and also a couple of other flavours. Typically, it would be the most expensive of the complete foods that they love! They had it on its own for the first time today, and both tucked in very enthusiastically. Eva, on the other hand, doesn't seem to "get it". It has quite a sloppy consistency, and she seems convinced it's a drink rather than food, and spends ages trying to lap it up. I mixed in some dry food today, which helped, but I think she needs more practice.

I placed another order of Terra Felis and Applaws with Zooplus today, and also ordered a tester pack of Bozita pate, and a couple of flavours of chunks in gravy. Sam's loving his Gourmet Perle/Applaws mix he has for supper, so I'm hoping the Bozita in gravy might be a long term replacement for the Gourmet Perle. Switching him to just Applaws for that meal would mean too high a percentage of his food intake coming from a complimentary food - unfortunately, because he does love it.

Just realised I forgot to order more Orijen, and we're on the last (small) bag. Zooplus is getting a lot of money out of me lately!

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Proud Mummy to:

Sam (born June 1999, found August 1999)
Milly (born May 1999, adopted September 1999)
Eva (born 2010, adopted us August 2011)