My cat has been starving himself! what do i do to make him eat?

Question

We got my cat this food he liked, then mixed it with some food he didnt like so much, but he still ate it for about a week, and he just wont eat dry food, and starves himself, but as soon as i give him wet food he gobbles it all up because hes so hungry, what do i do? how do i make him eat? please help!

Answer 1

Contrary to popular belief, kibble does not clean teeth. Most cats don't chew it well and it's too brittle to really clean teeth anyway - it's like if I started eating potato chips instead of brushing my teeth. However, canned food does have a tendency to build up on teeth causing poor dental health. With whichever diet he ends up eating in the long run it's still important to have the vet perform dental cleanings when necessary.

It's also worth mentioning that cats WILL starve themselves. While dogs and children whine and complain when given food they don't want to eat, as long as they're healthy they'll eventually suck it up and chow down. Cats, however, will starve themselves into a liver disease known as feline hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver disease). Overweight cats develop the disease more quickly if they stop eating but it can happen to any cat so make sure he's eating at least once a day. However, you can definitely use hunger as an incentive for him to eat, just make sure he doesn't starve himself.

Try finding a different brand of dry cat food that he might be more inclined to eat. California Natural, Innova EVO, Wellness, and Natural Balance kibbles have all gone over really well with my 7 cats. Look for them at small or independent pet stores and ask if they have free samples available. If not, they may be willing to exchange the uneaten food for store credit or the pet food company might have a money back guarantee. Although the foods I listed here are more expensive than grocery store cat food, they're high quality. They're made with human grade ingredients and have minimal fillers (so although they cost more initially your cat doesn't need to eat as much of the food...and you won't have quite as much to scoop out of the litter box).

Answer 2

ah a finicky feline! I give my cats Nutri-Cal (it comes in a tube from your vet or pet store). Its usually for sick cats that dont have any appetite to eat. You put some on your finger and hold it under their nose. most cats wont resist it, but if they do, wipe it on the top of their paw and they will lick it off. this makes their appetite return and they will eat.
Your cat sounds like its not sick, just finicky. He got a taste of the GOOD stuff and now refuses the dry food. you may have to mix it for a while, gradually increasing the dry to wet food ratio, adding less and less wet.
The only other thing you could try is changing to a different brand of dry food.

Answer 3

I have a 17yr old cat, she is also very picky about her food. She has lost some teeth and has trouble with dry food, so we give her only wet canned food. If that's all it will eat, then give it to him, but I would take him to a vet to make sure there's nothing wrong with him.

Answer 4

If he enjoys wet food, then let him have it. I've always fed mine wet food and they lived long healthy lives.

I also used to provide them with dry food (which they never ate) because it was alleged to be good for their teeth. However, dry food has a high sugar (carbohydrate) content, which has been shown to cause dental decay. Besides which it's the chewing action that cleans teeth (hence chewing gum) not crunching dry food. Instead, I now regularly give mine chunks of real meat to chew on.

Answer 5

Take him to the vet. He/she will probally get a pill and you have to put it in his mouth. Or he is just bloated! Try not feeding him, he will probably come back to you and "meow" and give him food, he may chow it down. Don't give it wet food. This happened to my dog Sunni when the pet food was recalled.

Answer 6

perhaps he has a sore in his mouth and the dry food hurts him.

we have a cat with gum problems and he does not like dry food

Answer 7

if your cat likes the wet food,then give it to him.if you give him the dry food and he doesnt eat it then you know its the wet food that he likes better.

Answer 8

Your kitty may have worms some cats wont eat much when they have worms . Next time ur kitty takes a poo look for little white worms if it does have worms you can cure it your self ....buy some worm medican at the pet store.

Answer 9

i think you should just feed him the wet food because thats the food he likes right? so if u feed him that then he won't starve to death.

Answer 10

A cat will not starve itself to death. Believe it or not, felines are actually built to live very thriftily food-wise.

Wet food is bad for their teeth, and contains too much sucrose, a sugar cats are not equipped to digest. Buy a good quality dry kibble, and offer fresh kibble twice a day. Your cat will eat more than enough not only to stay alive, but to live quite healthily. Thin cats are at a much lower risk of pancreatitis, and therefore have a lower incidence of acute abdomen causing death, and diabetes.