My 2 year old female cat will only eat temptations treats. I have tried dozens of different healthy foods and she refuses. She won’t eat any kind of human meats. I am withholding treats to make her eat regular food and she still won’t eat. We are on day two.
Is there a better way? Please help
Hi Meg, my guess, given that you have a very young cat, is that she is simply holding out for the high reward treats. If she has been eating them essentially as a primary meal, you could try transitioning very slowly to an actual balanced food, the same way you would between two balanced diets. Transition slow over a good two weeks by mixing a small portion of dry food with the treats and gradually--and slowly--increase the amount of dry food and reduce the amount of treats. If you have trouble with her picking the treats out and leaving the dry food, try mashing up the temptations treats into small pieces/powder and see if she'll still eat that still. If she does, you could try doing the same with a dry food and mixing those together, perhaps with some low sodium chicken broth to almost make it like a wet food. If she likes the low sodium chicken (or beef) broth, that might mask the change in the underlying food too.
Some might adovcate the tough love approach like you've been doing, but while I suggest this approach sometimes with dogs, I am always cautious with this approach in cats since hepatic lipidosis can occur in some cats after only a day or two of anorexia/not eating. Some cats might give up and eventually eat what's offered, but cats have been known to be very stubborn. So if you continue that approach, monitor her health very carefully.
Helo Meg, my 3 cats are addicted to Temptation treats as well. Temptation company has a line of regular cat food. It has the treats mixed in with the food not alot but my cats love it. I think they coat all of the food with what attracts all cats to Temptations. Interesting fact, according to Dr. Marty the secret taste that they use that cat's can't resist is an artificially designed taste of rotting fish. I know sounds gross doesn't it. But if that's what they like who am I to judge, if that's what makes my girls happy it makes me happy. My three girls Ringo, Roswell, and Aurora all calico, used to consume a 14 Oz container a week and now with the Temptation cat food they have cut back to 3/4 of a container a week. I also ( right or wrong ) give them 3 to 4 different dry foods to choose from in bowls on their food tray. This allows them to enjoy what they like when they like. You would think they would all be overweight, but they are all fit and trim. Well that's my 2 cents worth. TTFN STANMAN and the space cats 😎😼😺😸 OUT