Hello all

I've got an ongoing issue with my new little Tinker - she STILL is being fussy about her food!!

I've banned her off Whiskas Kitten milk which she'd wolf down, but that gave her the trots - so no more. Then she discovered lamb from a roast I had last week - so she'd gobble that like it was going out of fashion and wouldn't touch any tinned food. I've tried her on all the brands of cat food I can find out there and in different flavours and to no avail.

Yesterday, I was at a great pet store that works in cahoots with a vet clinic and they advised me that being so little and not eating tinned food etc, she'd be missing out on her necessary nutrients, so I purchased a tin of powdered baby animal formula that the vet feeds to young baby animals. I also bought a probiotic powder that was supposed to encourage animals to eat their food, but so far, fussy butt has not taken to any of it. I've tried smearing the formula mixture over her chops and paws and she doesn't want a barr of it. I also made her up some fresh cook lamb and sprinkled the probiotic on top it. All she did was sniff and walk away. She has occasionally snaffled some of the tinned food put out for my other puss, but it's very little that she's consuming.

What's the best way to encourage her to consume any of this food. I don't want her to suffer from not getting the correct nutrients. I want her to grow into a strong, healthy puss.

She's such a cheeky little sod, I'm about out of ideas.

Oh can someone tell what plaice is?? Is that a fish?? I've noticed that mentioned a few times.

Thanks for your help.

Cheers
Rosie

If she likes the kitten milk try soaking some kitten biscuit in the milk and see if she will try that.Are you only trying meat or have you tried dry food too.
You could even try the milk over wet food too.
Try not to offer her to much human food as it can cause stomach upsets.
You can give a little boiled chicken or white fish such as plaice or cod but only small amounts as she really needs a balanced kkitten diet.
Cats can be very cunning and if given the oppurtunity to be fussy they will be.What was she fed on when you got her?

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I think her previous owners spoilt her a bit or were just lazy. She apparently would eat tinned food and they have her cooked steak too. SHe was also still feeding from her mum when I got her - all these things I wasn't aware of when I agreed to take her.

It's just hard to get her interested in the right things!! I tried mashing down some kitten biscuits with hot water and blended that in with tinned food, but she ignored it.

Here's the key to your problem. Clearly your cat knows what's good for her, hence she likes the meat and doesn't want cat food. Most cat food these days is so far removed from what cats naturally eat that it's no wonder so many are getting overweight and sick with diabetes etc. Have you thought about going back to basics and feed her a raw diet? If I were you I'd seriously consider it (I have been feeding my cat a raw diet for a year now, with great success) as it's so much better for the cat than eating the inappropriate ingredients in cat food (since when did cats eat rice and veg in the wild?).

Feeding raw is simple - just start with cutting up some raw meat in kitten size pieces and see what happens! You may want to start with lamb since she already likes that - then try a little piece of liver, from any animal. Then give her some tiny bones to chew on such as quail ribs or baby chicks, or chicken ribs if you can't get quail. The percentage of meat/liver/bone should be approximately 85%/10%/5%. Cats can make all the vitamins and get all the nutrients they need from this diet because they're carnivores and designed to do so.

If your kitten is very young you may also want to give her kitten milk to substitute what she'd get from her mum.

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