# My cat doesn't eat enough!



## Reeni (Jul 28, 2010)

Hello All,

I just found this forum when looking for some advice on my cat not eating enough, and thought someone here might be able to help as I've seen lots of useful advice here.

We adopted our cat about 4 months ago, and he's quite a fussy eater. He prefers dry food; I give him a small bowl of that each day, and a pouch of wet food in the morning (I would give him more than this but he doesn't eat it).

When we got him the vet records given to us said he weighed about 5.3kg. When I took him to the vet for a check up a few weeks ago he weighed around 4.8 kg, which means he lost half a kg in three months.

I think this is mainly due to the fact he is getting more exercise than he used to as he wasn't allowed out before (he lived in a first floor flat and was an indoors cat). However some days he seems to hardly eat anything; he'll leave at least a quarter of the bowl of dry food and up to half the wet food, and he's quite a big boy so I'd expect him to eat more!

He likes the dry food, as I see him eating it quite a lot but he's very fussy with wet food. The only one he really likes is Tesco cheap brand meat in gravy pouches. He'll also eat whiskas oh so fishy if he's in the right mood but he'll hardly touch any other brands and is totally unimpressed by any meat in jelly.

He also seems to prefer eating if someone is watching him! His food bowl is at the bottom of the stairs and if I'm going upstairs he follows along beside me, stops to eat for a second then dashes up the stairs behind me. If I go back down and wait at the bottom of the stairs he'll stay and eat. If there are people standing talking near his food he likes to go and eat then.

I think maybe he just has strange eating habits but if anyone has any tips on how I can get him to eat a bit more I'd like to know!

Thanks in advance


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## lalauri (Jul 24, 2010)

I think he's just a fussy eater, some cats are like that. Our George would only ever eat Hills science plan dried food. Just a word of caution though, keep an eye on him. If he's not eating much but is drinking a lot, that's usually a sign of kidney problems. Just something to be aware of


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

First things first - welcome to the pf!

Do you know whether you are feeding him what he was eating before he came to you? It could simply be the case of him thinking the dry you currently feed him is ok but he liked the stuff he got before he came to you better. 

So if he got something else before, then I would be inclined to switch him back to that.

Do you mind me asking what dry you feed?

How much are you feeding him? You say a bowl but how much in g? How much is left at the end of the day? 

I know it may be a bit of a pain but get your scales out and start measuring. Both what you feed him as well as the cat. Keep a record.

Re the wet - if you are concerned re his weight loss, then I would just give him the wet he likes - if that is Tesco or Whiskas, so be it. 

If you want to encourage him to eat more wet, then you could always try to crush up some of his dry and coat the wet with it.

He seems to be social eater - quite a few cats are. Could you make the time to be with him while he eats?

Was the vet at all concerned about his weight loss? 

If he continues to lose weight (which you will know if you keep weighing him and keeping a record as anal as that sounds), then I would take him back to the vet for some bloods (including thyroid as well as kidney function) as well as a stool sample for worms.

Hope that helps


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## Reeni (Jul 28, 2010)

Thanks for the advice 

I think I will weigh him soon so I can keep an eye on it.

I suppose the bowl is about 40 - 50g of dry food, but that's just a guess. I haven't had a chance to weigh it yet. We feed him Whiskas tuna flavour dry food. I have to stock up on his favourite Tesco wet food when I get a chance, as they don't always have it in stock (and keep the whiskas fishy stuff as a back up!).

The vet wasn't concerned about his weight loss and said he's a healthy weight for his size. He had worm treatment recently when I took him to the vet too so that shouldn't be the problem.

Yesterday I sat with him for a few minutes and he ate quite a bit while I sat there, but then stopped when I left! I think we will have to spare some time to sit with him while he eats when we don't think he's been eating enough. Sometimes he does eat on his own, but his food hardly goes down at all while we're out at work.

What a silly cat, good thing we love him


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## Taylors Petfoods (May 21, 2010)

Hi,
You really do seem to have a very fussy cat. arh bless.
It really is a good idea to keep a watch on his weight.
There isn't a lot of cat food on the market which is designed for fussy eaters.
The only one we know of is 'Meowing Heads - Purr-Nickety' complete dry food. I know of many people with fussy cats who have tried it and their cats love it.
I hope its nothing serious and just a very fussy cat.
Take care.


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## HollyM (Feb 21, 2010)

As he is an outdoor cat could he possibly be hunting while he's out?


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## lorilu (Sep 6, 2009)

I was thinking of the hunting angel too. But I agree that he is a social eater, and just hanging out with him to keep him eating can be good bonding time for both of you. 

By the way, you really ought to get him away from fishy foods. Very dangerous for neutered males, can make them prone to crystals formation in the urine and cause blockages.


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## Reeni (Jul 28, 2010)

Is fishy cat food really dangerous for neutered male cats?? I've never heard of that before, and know of plenty who have eaten it for years with no problems. Shouldn't there be warnings on the packaging if that's the case?

I don't think he hunts... at least he's never brought back any 'presents' for us! I've only ever seen him carrying a stick down the garden path!! However I've seen him catch and eat flies, moths and spiders, but I doubt this is enought to stop him being hungry!

I think I'll look into the 'Meowing Heads - Purr-Nickety' complete dry food, thanks for the tip


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

lorilu said:


> I was thinking of the hunting angel too. But I agree that he is a social eater, and just hanging out with him to keep him eating can be good bonding time for both of you.
> 
> By the way, you really ought to get him away from fishy foods. Very dangerous for neutered males, can make them prone to crystals formation in the urine and cause blockages.


Lorilu, I understand that a lot of raw fish or even human grade tinned fish is not good for cats, regardless of gender, but commercially available pet food that has all the necessary nutrients added and minerals balanced? Really?

Can you send me any info on that because that really interests me. Thank you!


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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

Feline Nutrition

???


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

VERY interesting link (not seen it before and have now bookmarked it) but don't think it says anything about fish and male cats, does it?


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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

Hmm, this was one of the first articles I read when learning about feline nutrition....and I had thought it did contain some info about why fish is not recommended ( for all cats ) Having just browsed it again I cannot see the passage I remember, will have to dig around my other saved articles!


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

There is this, which contains loads of really interesting info on raw fish: PROVET HEALTHCARE INFORMATION - Fish as Cat Food

But I am having no luck finding anything on fishy commercial pet food and male cats that isn't stuff on other forums. 

Maybe i am not using the right search terms.


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## Reeni (Jul 28, 2010)

I bought a pack of Whiskas Crunch and mixed some of it in with a pouch of whiskas turkey in gravy and he ate the whole thing for the first time in ages!

This seems to be a good solution. Also he comes running at the sound of the packet rattling so it's a good way to get him to come in and eat!


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## koekemakranka (Aug 2, 2010)

Reeni said:


> He prefers dry food; I give him a small bowl of that each day, and a pouch of wet food in the morning (I would give him more than this but he doesn't eat it).


I would really not worry too much about it. That actually sounds plenty. My own cat eats less than that per day, and his weight has stayed constant at 5 kg exactly for two years. The vet also says his weight is perfect. I know we would all like our cats to have a hearty appetite, but not all cats are the same. My own cat has very specific preferences and refuses to eat anything other than what he is used to. He also refuses any kind of snack or treat. Regarding him requiring company while he eats, my cat did that too. I would try to stop that if you can, because it may cause complications if you are not there at mealtimes for some reason.


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## Sam96 (May 10, 2013)

Hey everyone,

I have a cat called Amber, 2 and a half years old. She's quite skinny and weighs only 3 pounds. She doesn't seem to be eating the right amount of food that she should be eating. I would give her enough food in her bowl, but she only takes a few bites of it and walks away.. I'm worried she might have worms? I'm not sure.


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## denflo (Apr 29, 2011)

Sam96 said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> I have a cat called Amber, 2 and a half years old. She's quite skinny and weighs only 3 pounds. She doesn't seem to be eating the right amount of food that she should be eating. I would give her enough food in her bowl, but she only takes a few bites of it and walks away.. I'm worried she might have worms? I'm not sure.


When did you last worm her? Does she go outdoors? She should be wormed at least every three months using something like Drontal or Milbemax - but def none of the 'off the shelf' type stuff! Other than that, trip to the vet? Could also be a problem with her teeth.


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## Satori (Apr 7, 2013)

Sam96 said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> I have a cat called Amber, 2 and a half years old. She's quite skinny and weighs only 3 pounds. She doesn't seem to be eating the right amount of food that she should be eating. I would give her enough food in her bowl, but she only takes a few bites of it and walks away.. I'm worried she might have worms? I'm not sure.


Please post a picture.


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## KathinUK (Apr 7, 2013)

denflo said:


> When did you last worm her? Does she go outdoors? She should be wormed at least every three months .....


Hi denflo ... why do you say that? 
... I never give wormers and Sally's recent fecal came back perfectly clear of all the things they test for.

Kath


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