ive got a 2yr old calico female cat who refuses to eat hard food. Any ideas on how to get her to eat hard food

Question

my two yr old female calico cat will only eat canned food. she will not eat food from a bag, solid food. Any ideas from anyone on how to get her more interested in eating solid food? Thanks for your help

Answer 1

First make sure her teeth are ok. If so, stop spoiling her.

It is not healthy at all for her to eat only wet food. Animals will not let themselves starve. Talk to your vet and find out a good dry food and only give that to her. Cats are like little toddlers, if you let them, they will be little butts.

Oh, and don't think I am heartless. I am the one who lets my cat do whatever he wants, scratch, bite, climb. But this is a case of health and you have to do whatever is best for your baby!

Answer 2

This actually is an unusual thing, but there are ways to get the cat to eat hard food. Either mix it with a canned food or add water. DO NOT add milk to the food. A cat's digestive system, at ANY age, does not agree with cow's milk.

Answer 3

it sounds mean but you have to trick her my cats tried the same thing mix the canned food with the dry ( more dry than wet) and slowly wean her from wet to dry that way also it may be painful for her to chew hard dry food check her teeth and take her to the vet if you suspect anything is wrong there it could be something as simple as pickiness or even as serious as a digestive problem if she is picky then try a dry food the same flavor and brand as her favorite wet food and mix it at first like i said above but if it doesnt work a vet visit is a good idea also dont leave dry food and just take the wet food away if it is a digestive problem then forcing the cat to the dry food could have terrible results!

Answer 4

Try mixing the wet with the dry and take a little more wet away every day. It's dangerous for a cat to only eat wet, because the dry helps to clean their teeth and helps with digestion. Your cat could lose her teeth when she gets older.

I would also try different brands of dry food. Cats can be very picky! My cats seem to like Iams Mutli-Cat Formula. Fancy Feast Gourmet Dry Food is also good for finicky cats.

Answer 5

you should have her teeth checked to rule out any dental issues that might be causing her pain when she crunches hard food.
if a vet tells you this is not an issue then try purina kitten chow softened in warm water for awhile.(don't flood the crunchies as you will want to leave the water in the bowl as it will be flavored from the crunches and kitty will like his. when they are soft mix in some soft food. after some time you can add in some harder dry food so she gets some crunch and then just keep adding crunchy with less softened. my cats love it when i add wet food with their dry. if she does have dental issues you may have to keep softening her dry food. my grown kitties LOVE purina kitten chow in the yellow bag i call it kitty candy. i have some cats that only want the juice from the wet food and some that only want wet food and some that want wet mixed with dry and some hat only want dry! makes is very hard to go on vacation!

Answer 6

SHe could have a problem with her teeth, take her to the vet. But, I did have a cat before who would not eat hard food too, and my puppy now does not like it either. Feed her canned food.

Answer 7

You could start by wetting the hard food with warm water and then mixing the hard food in with the soft food, using a larger proportion of wetted hard food each day until it is mostly wetted hard food, then wet it less and less. Hopefully, she won't notice. If this doesn't work, I won't be surprised. Cats are the fussiest animals there are.

Answer 8

Probably she is just being picky. If she is just turning up her nose at it do not feed her for half a day then she will probably be hungry enough to eat it. If your cat does not eat for more than 24 hours give it the wet food, cats may get sick if they do not eat for longer than that.

Answer 9

i have had a female AND male kitten once, i suffered from the same thing. I asked the vet and he said it was normal, b/c the cat begins to find a mate at the age of 8 months. Other things (hormone related) happen as well. I don't think there is another solution except for neutering the cat, otherwise get rid of it. (which is not an option, trust me i couldnt let go of both my cats lol)

Answer 10

Have a Vet check her gums for tenderness- mix a small amount of dry food with her csnned food, gradually increase the amount ubtil she eats all dry food with an occasional treat of a little canned food mixed in.