This is the difficult part. Cats, like children, often resist what is best for them. The two most common comments we hear from people when trying to convince them to feed their cats healthier are: "My cat doesn't eat canned food" and "But my cat likes its dry food." Children like potato chips and ice cream, but that doesn't mean these foods represent optimal nutrition.
The transition process often involves much more than just throwing in new food. Often time, patience, and tricks are required.
One reason cats like dry food so much is that pet food manufacturers are not fair when producing this suboptimal food. They coat the dry food with extremely enticing digestive sprays that are very pleasant for cats and make inferior food very desirable for the target animal.
Besides the already mentioned coating of dry food with animal digestive products, another problem is the crunchy texture, which differs greatly from canned food. Cats are very resistant to such a drastic change in the texture of their food.
If you are convinced that it is the right way to wean your cat off dry food, you will find some tips below on how to achieve this.
The most important thing is that you proceed slowly and patiently and use various tricks for stubborn cats.
The most important thing is that you actually succeed in the transition, not how quickly you carry it out.
I have to say that my cats tested all my patience during the transition from dry food to canned food over a period of more than 3 months. They had only ever been given dry food their whole lives and did not recognize canned food as nourishment. My cats were between 2 and 10 years old at the time of the transition.
The biggest mistake I repeatedly observe is that the cat doesn't touch the new food and then panics, filling the bowl with dry food. In many cases, it's not so easy to wean cats off dry food.
There are two categories of cats - those who eat canned food and those who extremely refuse to eat anything other than dry food. If your cat falls into the first category, you're lucky. These cats will accept it with the attitude "finally a species-appropriate diet." If your cat has only eaten dry food so far or only gets canned food as an occasional "treat," you should start feeding canned food in increasing amounts. Gradually reduce the amount of dry food and only switch the cat completely to 100% canned food after about a week.
For some cats, stool may become softer during the transition. I don't worry if that happens and tend to "wait it out." If the food change causes diarrhea, you either have to experiment with different canned food varieties or make the transition slower over several weeks.
An average cat should consume about 180 to 220 calories per day, contained in 130-400 grams of canned food. (Depending on the quality of the canned food)
However, note that protein-, fat-, and carbohydrate-rich foods are very low in calories, so you have to feed much more than this amount, which can get quite expensive.
The necessary daily calorie intake should be divided into 3-4 meals per day (or simply free-fed if they are not overweight).
When you figure out how much to feed your cat after switching to canned food, keep it simple. Too fat? Feed less. Too thin? Feed more.
If you're unlucky like me, and your cat doesn't realize that it is a carnivore and would live healthier with canned food (or homemade food), you have a lot to do. Some cats that have been fed dry food their whole lives are quite resistant to dietary change and need several weeks or longer to switch to a healthier diet.
With "stubborn to change" cats, you have to use their normal hunger to ease the transition. For this reason, it is very important to stop free-feeding dry food. This is the first and very important step. You need to establish fixed meal times. They won't try anything new if their bowl of junk food is in front of them around the clock.
Cats don't need to have food available all the time.
It's really okay if they feel hunger pains! Still, it was very hard for me to listen to my cats begging for food, even though I was firmly convinced that I was leading them in the best direction for optimal health. It was truly a challenging time for me and for them. I think it was even more challenging for me!
This is the point where many people fail and simply give in and fill the food bowl with dry food. A few times I had to call my "sponsor" and was instructed to "just leave the house if you can't stand looking into those eyes!" I left the house. Those pitiful little cries "I haven't eaten for two WHOLE hours!" were hard to bear. But lo and behold, when I came back, they were fine. Not a single cat had starved.
On the other hand, you should not try to withhold food from your cat for an extended period (more than 24 hours) hoping it will choose the new food. You need to "convince" her that a high-quality canned food is really good for her, rather than trying to starve her - which doesn't work anyway. If you don't feed a cat for an extended period (more than 48 hours), it can be very dangerous and lead to hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver disease) - especially in overweight cats.
Hepatic lipidosis can also develop if a cat consumes 50% or less of its daily calorie needs over many days. The definition of "many" varies from cat to cat. For this reason, it is important to know how many calories your cat consumes daily from canned and dry food while you are transitioning to canned food.
I have never seen a cat develop hepatic lipidosis if it consumed at least 15 calories per pound per day. This number refers to lean body weight, not fat weight.
If your cat weighs 9 kg but should actually weigh 6 kg, you should ensure she consumes ~180 calories per day. (6 kg lean body mass X 30 calories/kg/day = ~180 calories/day)
In reality, the cat in the above example would probably be completely safe with only 150 calories per day.
If you have a small female cat that should only weigh 4.5 kg, please make sure she consumes at least 135 calories per day.
The calorie content is never listed on canned food, but for many dry food types, this information is on the bag. A rough guideline for the calorie content of most canned foods, which consist of 78% moisture, is about 30 calories per 30 grams, but it can also range between 20 and 40 calories per 30 grams.
Most cats lose some weight during the transition to canned food. Since a very high percentage of cats are overweight from the start, this is a positive result of the dietary change - as long as they don't lose too much weight too quickly. A cat should never lose more than 1-2% of its body weight per week.
I recommend all cat caregivers weigh their cats regularly, especially if they are over 10 years old. This helps ensure a safe transition to a healthier diet, and generally, weight loss is often the first sign of poor health, no matter the reason. I make a point of weighing my cats at least once a month, especially if they are already over 10 years old.
Accept that you will sometimes be very frustrated and that you will waste canned food because they turn their nose up at it. Also, you should immediately switch your cat to a dry food that contains fewer calories from carbohydrates than most dry foods.
The low-carbohydrate dry foods contain a lot of fat and are therefore very calorie-dense. Portion control is necessary with these foods, otherwise your cat will gain weight.
The calorie requirement of an average cat is between 150 and 250 calories per day, depending on its body weight and activity.
The low-carbohydrate dry foods also contain a lot of phosphorus. This is especially harmful to cats with impaired kidney function.
And of course, these low-carbohydrate dry foods - like all dry foods - contain too little water, putting your cat at risk for serious urinary tract problems. Also, they are cooked at very high temperatures to dry them out.
For the reasons mentioned above, I do not recommend this dry food for long-term feeding. Please use it only as transitional food.
Make sure to stay away from all "light" varieties, as these are very high in carbohydrates.
Here are some tricks for the stubborn ones.
Remember that different tricks work for different cats:
If your cat has so far eaten dry food freely, take the food away and set a schedule where it is fed 2 - 3 times a day. I prefer feeding twice a day when trying to transition them. A normal, healthy hunger feeling after 12 hours is very helpful to convince them to try something new. If you want to take the transition very slowly, you can feed the amount your cat usually consumes in a 24-hour period - divided into two feedings to get them used to meals. However, many people are unsure how much their free-roaming cat really eats. Therefore, I would first determine the calorie amount your cat needs to maintain its weight if it does not need to lose weight.
Leave the dry food out for 20 minutes and then remove the uneaten portion. Repeat the process in 8-12 hours, depending on whether you feed 2 or 3 times a day. In the first days of switching to a fixed schedule, you can offer canned food during dry food meals or between meals. However, stubborn cats will not touch it. Don't despair - all cats will eventually eat canned food if their caregiver is determined, methodical, and patient enough. Once your cat has a fixed schedule, you will find that she gets more excited about food at the right meal times and is much more willing to try something new.
The same applies here: Most cats only need 150-250 calories per day. The dry food package should indicate how many calories are in a cup; if not, you can call the manufacturer.
Once the cat has switched to canned food, I prefer to either free-feed her (if she isn't too fat) or give 3-4 meals a day. Small cats in the wild eat 8-10 small meals a day. I don't worry if I leave the canned food out for up to 12 hours at a time. Keep in mind that a lion doesn't immediately eat its entire prey. Once you have set fixed meal times, you will probably need to start feeding a little less at each meal to influence the normal hunger feeling in your favor. Again: We are trying to use the normal hunger feeling to help us. We are not trying to starve the cat to change its diet. Once your cat has eaten a meal, you can try feeding only canned food. If she doesn't want to eat it - and the very stubborn ones won't - try not to get frustrated and don't put out dry food. Try some of the other tips listed below. If he still won't eat the canned food, let him get a little hungrier. Offer the canned food again in a few hours - or just leave it out. Some cats are more willing to try something new if they constantly walk past it and see or smell it. Try a different brand/flavor or another "trick." If the cat hasn't eaten for about 18 hours, give her only a small amount of her dry food - keep an eye on the daily calorie intake. Remember to be patient. If you get your cat moving with a wand toy before feeding, that can also stimulate her appetite.
Cats' noses are much more sensitive than ours. They can smell the dry food in the cabinets. I suggest either putting it in the fridge or in a tightly sealed container. If they can smell it, they will hold out. Some recommend getting it out of the house entirely, but that's not possible if you're dealing with a very stubborn cat who needs a bit of time and patience to make the transition.
The following has worked for my cats: Sprinkle a small amount of tuna - or another favorite treat (some cats don't like fish and prefer cooked chicken) - over the canned food and then, once they eat it, start pressing it into the new food. (The "light" tuna is better than the fancy white tuna because it smells stronger. Or Trader Joe's offers cat tuna that smells very strong.) Be sure to reduce the amount of fish as quickly as possible. A diet mostly consisting of fish can lead to health problems. Also, you don't want your cat to eat only very fishy food. Make sure refrigerated canned food is warmed up a bit. Cats prefer their food at "mouse body temperature."
Try offering some cooked (or raw - whole meat, well rinsed or partially baked) chicken or meat baby food. One of the goals is to get your cat used to eating food that isn't crunchy. She needs to get used to a different texture. Also, chicken is a good source of protein to transition her to a high-protein, low-carb diet. If he eats the chicken, he might switch right to canned food. Then again... maybe not.
Try sprinkling some Parmesan cheese over the canned food. Most cats love Parmesan, and this trick has worked very well for me. Try a product called FortiFlora - the cat version. There are many freeze-dried meat treats on the market that you can also sprinkle over the canned food. Halo's Liv A Littles is a popular choice. Speaking of texture: A common question is, "Can I just soak the dry food in water?" I'm more than a little skeptical about this. Dry food often has a very high bacterial content. Molds are also often found in dry food. Both organisms thrive in a moist environment. There have been many deaths in dogs and cats caused by consuming mold mycotoxins, vomitoxins, and aflatoxins, which often contaminate the grains in dry food. If you want to try the trick of moistening the dry food to change the texture, please only let it sit for 20-30 minutes and then throw it away. Try dipping some dry food pieces into the juice from the can. Some cats refuse to eat if the dry food even touches the canned food. But if she wants to eat it with a little canned food, try the "chip and dip" trick. Scoop a small piece of canned food onto the piece of dry food. Place them on a separate plate next to her small portion of dry food. Some cats eat their small portion of dry food and then go looking for the dry food with a tiny piece of canned food on it. If you go one step further, you can also add a few small pieces of canned food to the small portion of dry food. Your cat may dig around in the canned food, but she will get used to the smell - and the texture - even if she doesn't eat pieces of the new food. Crush some dry food and sprinkle it on top of the canned food. If you don't think it bothers your cat, you can also try rubbing a little canned food or juice on the cat's gums to get her interested in the taste and texture of the new food - but do it carefully. You don't want the situation to become too stressful and for her to develop an aversion to the food. (This trick is often used to get newly weaned kittens used to canned food). If you think it doesn't bother your cat, you can put a small piece of canned food or juice on her paw with your finger so she can lick it off. With the two cats I tried it on, it didn't work, but it's another idea. Make sure you don't stress your cat during this. Again: You don't want to create an aversion to the food. If you have a household with multiple cats, some cats like to eat alone in a less stressful environment. That's why you might need to bring these cats into a separate, quiet room so they can think about their mistake - their addiction to carbohydrates and dry food. Once in a quiet environment, away from the other cats, two of my cats ate canned food/tuna balls by hand. But not from a bowl, only from my hand. I'm not sure who was trained here. After a few hand feedings, they finally started eating from a bowl.
Try different brands and flavors of canned food. The first goal is to get your cat used to eating canned food and not dry food. And remember what I said above.
Feeding with a syringe is also an option, but it must be done with a lot of tact and patience to avoid food aversion. If you choose syringe feeding, your goal is not to give him a whole meal. Sometimes it is enough to syringe your cat 1-2 ml so that it eats the canned food - maybe not the first time, but at least it learns to taste the new food and get to know an unfamiliar texture. The best way to feed with the syringe is to kneel on the floor and place your cat between your legs so that it faces you. Then insert a small syringe (1 ml/cc) sideways into your cat's mouth and give about 1/2 ml at a time. It may spit it out, but you only want to get it used to the taste and texture and not stress it. Few canned foods can pass through the tip of a syringe, but human meat baby food works well for this trick. You can dilute it a little if necessary.
If you want to use canned cat food instead of baby food, you need to cut off the end of the syringe so that the opening is the same size as the cylinder. Make sure the tip is smooth. If you don't want to cut the tip of the syringe, you need to puree some kind of pâté (as opposed to chunks). I puree Wellness for this purpose. I run it through the blender with a small amount of water (about 3-4 tablespoons). Then I strain it to remove anything that could clog the small tip of the syringe. Wellness is also a balanced diet - unlike human baby food.
Even though human baby food is not a balanced diet for long-term use, it is a great tool to get a cat used to a texture it is not accustomed to.