Moist cat food - what if she likes a specific flavor?

Question

My kitten who is 5 months old eats dry kitten formula science diet throughout the day ( I leave it out all the time ) but I give her moist twice a day... I read alot of stuff about tuna being bad for cats but I'm curious if that means tuna flavored cat food as well - my cat loves any seafood flavored cat food - seafood platter, sardines, tuna supreme - anything seafood - all cat food none are people food but when I try to feed her chicken or turkey or any other red meat (also cat food) she really doesn't want to eat it and won't eat any kitten formula moist food. Is this alright or feeding her only seafood cat food bad??

She's not overeating - she was a very skinny rescued stray and is a Singapura which is a small slender cat - obviously if she gets heavy I will cut it down but she's a healthy 1.75 pounds for her breed.

Answer 1

Hi there again Jonela...all seafood cat food contains levels of mercury which in the long term isn't best for cats health http://www.gorbzilla.com/all_about_tuna.htm

You may be able to try to convert your Singapura to begin to eat meat canned cat food by mixing some of the juice from the seafood to entice her and slowly phase this out gradually over time. I don't know which products you can find there in Singapore, but if you would like to offer her some fresh meat consider boiling chicken (without bones) to offer as an occasional treat. This may help entice her even more to lean towards mammalian meat products. The advantage of this is you can also freeze it to thaw and offer it for months as well.

I'll include a link about consumer cat food and nutritional information which you may find of interest to help read labels on cat food products: http://www.consumersearch.com/www/family/cat-food/fullstory.html

I notice you have many questions regarding the care of your Singapura kitten. You are more than welcome to email me by clicking on my avatar and select "Email ♪♫ Seattle ♫♪". However, I notice you don't have the email feature activated in your Yahoo Answers account so be sure to please include an email address in your message so I will be able to reply to you.

Answer 2

Cats can be very picky eaters. I have two boys who wont eat much other then there dry food. They only eat one kind of can moist food also, its a sea food flavor (they only get can food when then come home from the vet as a treat). If your feeding your kitten a HARD sea food that should be ok and your feeding it a good brand. Just remember though, can soft/moist foods are not that good for cats. Lots of fat and bad on the teeth. You also mentioned that you leave food out at all times. Don't get your kitten used to eating all the time. An adult cat (over a year) should only be feed 1/2 cup of hard food a day. I feed my two cats twice a day (Iam's hard food). They get 1/2 cup to share in the a.m. and 1/2 cup to share in the p.m. I do that so I know they both get to eat at least twice in a day (they are both pigs, I used to leave food out all the time). The vet told me, when you feed your cat it should eat ALMOST everything in its bowl. If it doesnt your over feeding. If your cat lived in the wild it would eat once a day, not eat all day. a cat that eats to much can become over weight, when cats become overweight it makes it hard for them to clean themselfs and they can develop bladder problums (no one wants that), and worst of all, you will have to brake them form wating to eat all the time. I had to do that with mine (they are a year and a half old), they are not over weight, but the vet said if i kept feeding them the way I was they were going to be. Hope some of my rambling can help you. Good luck with your cat.

Answer 3

I, too, have a cat that HAS to have his bowl of dry food always available plus a packet of moist Friskies cat food in the morning and at our dinner time. But we vary the flavors of food from one meal to the next. He has simply gotten used to this and I think that your kitten could to. And, as for the seafood, it probably contains mercury. Health officials strongly advise pregnant women not to consume much tuna, for example, because of the mercury content. So if your kitten were to become pregnant, I'd say no to all tuna, and only a few times per week if not PG. Mercury is toxic and could affect brain development in the kitten(s). Other fish to avoid: Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish.

Answer 4

It would be a good idea for you to go to www.littlebigcat.com and read Dr. Jean Hovfe's article titled "Why Fish is Dangerous for Cats" to know why you should avoid it for the kitten. That article is near the end of about sixty articles on nutrition, health and behavior in cats. Another one there is "What Cats Should Eat".

Science Diet is the most expensive of the poor quality cat foods. It uses by-product meat and too much corn to be good for your kitten. You can get much better quality and nutrition from other foods which are less expensive or only a little more in price. Solid Gold, Natural Balance, Eagle Pack, Blue, Nature's Variety are all better foods with at least two human-grade meat sources as the first two ingredients and a filler such as brown rice, oats, millet, pea etc.

Canned foods with tuna and other fish flavorings, such as Whiskas, Friskies, Fancy Feast (also very expensive), etc. also use by-product meat and are not good for your kitten.

It sounds like you are on your way to have a "finicky" cat and if you give in to this you will compromise her health and make your own life miserable trying to "please" her. She will eat when she is hungry and it is your responsibility to choose a food that is wholesome for her and not give in to her "preferences".

Natural Balance has good canned food. Solid Gold only has the dry as far as I have been able to find out. Nature's Variety has a canned as Eagle Pack and Blue do.

Answer 5

It depends on the cat...most cats prefer dry if that's what they're introduced to first. I have two cats, and they eat both, but when I am not home, they eat mostly the dry. There is also a difference in the taste they prefer. I give them Purina One. The day I brought it home, they ripped into the bag, because they liked the smell of it. It also gives them a healthy and shiny coat. From what I have read, a lot of experts do not like dry food only for cats because it lacks the moisture that wet does. But, if you work, you do need to leave some kind of food for them. Try the brand I used....it's really good.

Answer 6

Well, you're not basing her entire diet on the canned food. So it sounds like it's more of a treat. So yes, it's ok to stick with just the fish flavored foods.

My cats get dry food all day, but they split a can of food each morning. I started with Fancy Feast. When I tried other brands like Whiska's or 9-Lives, my one cat would snub her nose to it and walk away. I continue to buy a variety (they're canned food is only a breakfast treat) and if Maggie doesn't like it, tough. Guess what, she now eats whatever I put in her bowl.

Answer 7

my only concern about your question is that by feeding your cat moist food twice a day will make her overweight and along with that a number of health problems. I would slowly cut out the moist food out of her diet and don't feel guilty about it, in the end you will have a healthier pet. Good luck!

Answer 8

Don't feed tuna, fish, or fish-flavored food to kitty. It contains a lot of magnesium and other chemicals that are not good for cats. Also may cause urinary tract infections.

Answer 9

I hear you are only supose to feed a kitten twice a day and only like 1 cup of food each time.

Answer 10

my cat is the same way..its not bad for her to have only seafood and if shes eating it ..its not going to waste..