Switch the cat to another food. How to switch a cat to another food and is it worth doing? The most effective translation technique

Changing the diet in a cat's life is always associated with a risk to the pet's health, especially if the animal owner is not aware of the nuances of the change. The situation is not fundamentally different from that of a person, as if he had to take unfamiliar food from exotic countries: this is always fraught with complications in the digestive system.

Often, pets do not want to eat unfamiliar food and even go on hunger strikes. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to approach changing the diet with an understanding of the cause-and-effect relationships of the cat’s relationship with food.

How to properly switch a cat to dry food

Sometimes, due to objective or subjective reasons, the owner can no longer feed the cat homemade food. Switching to industrially produced diets is usually more difficult than switching from dry food to natural products. The reason for this is the food itself, which is so similar to what cats eat in natural conditions. There is nothing better than feeding a predator meat, provided that the daily diet is generally balanced and made up of quality ingredients.

Food reflexes in animals are fixed, their body produces the necessary amino acids to digest one type of food, so when transferring it is very important to be careful and consistent in actions: too sudden a change in diet will inevitably negatively affect health.

The principle of nutrition change

Changing eating habits is carried out as follows:

1. 1. Changes in the feeding system are carried out gradually.
2. 2. The total translation time is usually about two weeks.
3. 3. New food should be introduced in the smallest doses, since cats are suspicious and picky people, and new food in large quantities can make them wary.
4. 4. Every day the amount of new food is increased, cutting back portions of the previous diet until it is completely replaced.
5. 5. Dry food pellets are camouflaged by soaking them in water or broth because of their hard texture: cats are unfamiliar with food that requires chewing unless they have been given bones. Even in this case, dry food has nothing in common with natural diets.
6. 6. It is worth buying several small packs of dry food: the cat may not like one, but it will prefer the other.
7. 7. Industrial diets are selected based on the reasons that prompted the owner to change the cat’s diet: for daily feeding, diet, food for pets with health problems. In addition, there is an age gradation, as well as nutrition for castrated animals. The best advice on choosing a product will be provided by a veterinarian, but this will require an examination of the animal.
8. 8. In the lines of industrial diets there are also wet products: pouches and canned food. They are convenient to combine in a cat’s daily diet, but should be given separately.
9. 9. Upon completion of the transition to factory food, it is necessary to stop feeding the cat natural food. Good industrial diets are balanced in composition and combining them with meat or fish can lead to various complications.

Dry food is a dehydrated product; its consumption is always accompanied by increased fluid intake. When transferring a cat from natural food to a new regime, you must ensure that the pet always has clean water freely available.

Diet

The daily diet that was present when feeding natural products is maintained even after switching to a dry diet. Only the age of the pet matters:

• Kittens under 2 months of age should be fed up to 6 times a day (kids under 2 weeks of age are fed around the clock, with equal breaks between meals).
• Pets from 2 to 4 months old are offered four meals a day.
• At the age of 6 months, kittens eat 3-4 times a day.
• By the age of one year, babies become adults and switch to two feedings a day.

Some owners prefer to feed their pets using the buffet principle: food is left in a bowl for the whole day and the cat eats it whenever it wants.

The daily food intake is indicated on any pack of food; you must carefully consider this information to prevent your pet from undereating or overfeeding.

A kitten appeared in the house - what and how to feed it?

Accustoming kittens to dry diets

Introducing dry food into a kitten's diet is easier than making changes to the feeding of an adult cat, because feeding behavior in babies has not yet been formed and the habit of eating one food has not been fixed over the years. When taking a baby from its mother, it is worth finding out what type of food was offered to the cat. If she has consumed industrially produced food, this greatly simplifies the matter - you need to buy food for the kitten of the same brand. Experienced breeders often feed the nursing mother and kittens the same food (provided the kittens are old enough to do so).

If the baby is still too small, then training should be carried out according to the following scheme:

• You need to purchase any brand of cat milk replacer from a specialized store. This food for kittens is adapted to mother's milk.
• From the age of three weeks, kittens can already be given food from the “first feeding” series or food for pregnant cats.
• The food granules are soaked in water or cat milk: kittens are still unfamiliar with rough food and are more willing to eat semi-soft food.
• Gradually, the food is left dry in order to develop the chewing and gnawing reflex in babies.
• Some brands offer wet food for kittens in their line. Pouches and canned food are given in the morning and evening feedings and are not mixed with dry food. Soft textured foods are a great way to introduce your kitten to commercial diets.

When switching to industrial feeding, any animal must consume a large amount of liquid, but for kittens this principle is especially important. It is impossible to force a baby to drink, so wet food must be present in his diet, or attempts to introduce dry food should be stopped.

Stop trying

Sometimes no tricks or tricks can help switch a cat to dry food: the animal categorically refuses to eat it. With a subtle sense, the pet recognizes unfamiliar food in its usual diet, and then simply moves away from the bowl. Some owners prefer to stand to the end, believing that hunger will overcome stubbornness.

Cats do not tend to show character in the case of satisfying natural needs: they do not starve on purpose!

There are quite strict training methods when, when transferring a pet to dry food, natural food is not initially offered under any pretext. This is fraught with negative consequences:

1. 1. Disruption of the gastrointestinal tract: even if a pet eats unfamiliar food, its body has not yet produced the enzymes necessary for digestion and proper assimilation. The owner risks the cat's health.
2. 2. Hunger strikes: cats refuse food for a long time. Three days of fasting are considered dangerous.

Prolonged fasting contributes to the development of liver lipidosis in cats. This is a disease in which excess fatty tissue is deposited in the liver, resulting in liver failure, leading to the death of the animal. This pathology characteristic of cats and anorexia are special cases of its development.

Practice shows that most often lipidosis occurs when trying to put an obese animal on a diet. People are increasingly faced with the problem of pet obesity, being, in fact, the culprits of this problem. Bringing your pet back to graceful shape and health is not as easy as it seems. The cat is prescribed a diet (often with dry food), but the animal refuses to eat. It is losing weight, but the price of such thinness is a severe pathology. It is possible to save your pet's life, but treatment must begin at an early stage of the disease.

Lethargy, exhaustion, refusal to eat - these symptoms are enough to stop torturing the animal and immediately consult with specialists!

It is necessary to transfer to the previous diet with caution. If the animal has been starving for several days, feeding is done in fractions (up to 10 times a day), giving small portions of low-fat food, trying to get the cat to drink a lot.

There is no point in forcibly weaning a cat onto dry food if the attempts are unsuccessful. You can create a diet for a pet from natural products for any diagnosis: it’s all about the owner’s desire to have a healthy and active animal.

It often happens that the food we buy for our cat is not suitable for her. There can be a lot of reasons: allergies, lack of nutrients and trace elements, or intolerance to any of the ingredients. In the end, it also happens that a loving owner can no longer afford to provide the pet with the usual diet and is forced to look for alternatives, which is especially important during various kinds of crises.

But such changes do not always go smoothly. Any animal gradually gets used to what it eats. Here we can draw an analogy: if a person loves junk food, it is difficult for him to give it up, even when he understands that we are talking about his own health.

If it’s difficult for us to force ourselves to do the right thing, then it’s even harder with our smaller brothers. Try to explain to the noble and proud descendant of ferocious saber-toothed tigers that he will no longer be given his favorite food. This is a mortal insult!

That's why the first thing you need to do is be patient. All members of the cat family have an innate cunning that they will certainly use to sabotage your plans for replacing food. You will most likely be waiting for a trick with “burying”, which clearly compares the new diet with litter for the tray. Let’s not forget the pained expression on his face, sad glances and heart-rending meows - your pet will do everything to elicit pity and create the impression of a poor and starving creature. But you can’t give in to provocations! Reluctantly, we stand our ground.

The procedure for replacing food is incredibly simple. Ideally, about ten days should be enough for the transition, during which you will slowly accustom your domestic predator to the new food. In the first days, we add 25% of the new diet to the old diet. If everything goes smoothly, then we gradually increase the ratio to 50/50. At the last stage, you can give 3 quarters of the new food. And so on until the bitter end. If this period drags on, or worse, the purring bandit completely decides to ignore your efforts, then you should resort to more radical measures.

Here we will immediately make a reservation that all owners love their cats. But love is not only about pampering and stroking, sometimes it means once again making a difficult decision and taking responsibility. And this is exactly the case here. If a smooth replacement does not work out: your cat eats up the granules of the old food and leaves the new one in the bowl, or flatly refuses to approach the food in principle, then you will have to starve it out.

The most effective way is to give your cat preventative fasting. And no, we are not monsters or sadists: this is not done with the goal of torturing the pet, but for the sake of his health. If suddenly seditious thoughts arise in your head, pushing you to surrender into the clutches of a tailed tyrant, then remember - no cat has ever died from exhaustion in front of a bowl full of food. Remind yourself often that cats, especially indoor and sterilized ones, even benefit from fasting fasting days - they will help cope with excess weight.

The essence of the procedure is simple: you remove the bowl for a day and do not give the cat anything to eat (even if he really asks and is offended), and the next day you put a bowl with new food. Many advise not to embarrass the animal and not to stand around the bowl with the whole family waiting for a miracle - a proud tailed dog may not like public admission of defeat in the war for food.

In general, the period depends on the stubbornness of a particular representative of the cat family, but should not exceed three days - then this will definitely be harmful. Remember that during this period the starving person must be provided with water, otherwise it will truly become torture. In the end, the result is the same - your pet will carefree eat the new food, despite the fact that before this he showed fierce hatred and disapproval in every possible way.

The only thing is that when switching to a new diet (especially if this is done for reasons of economy), you should not ignore the issue of quality. Firstly, the diet should contain a lot of meat, because the cat is a predator. Secondly, look for probiotics in the composition, they will help with digestion. Phytocomponents (fennel, Yucca Schidigera) will help eliminate toxins, and the vitamin-mineral complex will provide your animal with the correct ratio of microelements. In this vein, the line of cat food from Blitz shows itself very well, where diets with chicken, dietary turkey and hypoallergenic lamb are presented.

When a small kitten appears in the house, its owner gains not only positive emotions, but also responsibility. If you don’t want to prepare food for him separately and choose the right and balanced diet, it is better to give preference to ready-made foods. However, you need to know the rules on how to switch a kitten to dry food without harming its developing body.

Benefit or harm

Many breeders still have the opinion that “drying” can cause urolithiasis in animals. However, as practice shows, many cats grew up healthy, eating exclusively dry food, and feel great even in old age.

Considering that ready-made food has a number of listed advantages, many breeders choose them for the main diet of their pets. Not surprising. The main thing is, before purchasing a package, find out how to switch the kitten to dry food if it previously received food from the table. Or maybe he just fed on his mother’s milk.

Feed composition

It should be understood that the ready-made menu for cats is made from hydrolyzed meat. In addition to this, the composition must include:

• dried vegetables;
• mixture of cereals;
• medicinal herbs;
• mineral supplements;
• complex of vitamins.

It is clear that it is impossible to provide such variety by feeding a pet from a common table. The kitten may refuse vegetables, turn away from cereals, and he doesn’t like medicinal herbs at all.

Dry food has a pleasant taste and aroma. It will provide your pet with everything necessary for full development and growth. It is important to purchase only premium packaging.

Basic principles

Many people are interested in the question of when can a kitten be switched to dry food. The main indicators are fully formed teeth and a desire to chew on something. This usually occurs at the age of 2-2.5 months.

The convenience of dry food is obvious. It is easy to dose, it does not stain the kitten’s face or the space near the bowl, and it does not deteriorate during the day.

Kittens require special food. The granules are not only smaller in size, but their composition also varies. It is important to immediately choose an extra or premium brand.

You should study the packaging before purchasing. The manufacturer indicates what age the food is intended for and gives recommendations on dosage and feeding regimen.

The main thing is patience

How to properly switch a kitten to dry food depends on its previous diet. In any case, the transition should be gradual and carried out within two weeks. Some pets immediately pounce on the offered treat, while others need time to get used to it.

If the kitten has already appreciated the food from the table, in the first days of transfer you should add a few granules from the pack to the usual food. Slowly, day after day, the amount of ready-made food increases and completely replaces the previous diet.

It happens that the pet simply leaves the “drying” and eats its usual food. In this case, experienced breeders recommend slightly moistening the granules.

How to switch a kitten to dry food?

1. You should wait until the kitten is two months old. Until this time, the pet is simply not ready to chew hard pieces due to underdeveloped jaws and teeth.
2. There is no need to rush and suddenly switch from one diet to another. Veterinarians and experienced breeders have experimentally found that it takes about two weeks to painlessly transfer a kitten to drying.
3. If your pet has already appreciated the taste of food from the table, you should gradually add dry food to his bowl.
4. If the kitten is put on food, you should not spoil it with tidbits. So the pet will quickly pity the owner, and all the work will go down the drain.
5. The animal must have constant access to clean and fresh water. The amount required is slightly greater than when feeding soft food.

It is advisable to immediately decide on the brand of food. You should not purchase the economy option. These foods contain a lot of bone meal, and contain dyes and flavors.

It is recommended to feed the animal one type of food. But it is necessary to change its varieties, depending on the age of the animal and its state of health. If, despite all the efforts and patience of the breeder, the kitten still refuses dry food, or eats it reluctantly, you can try changing the brand.

Change of manufacturer

Next question. When changing brands, the question arises of how to switch the kitten to another dry food. Sometimes breeders choose an economical option, and the animal refuses such a menu. Inexpensive food contains many dyes. The animal acutely senses fraud and may refuse junk food. In this case, it is recommended to purchase high-quality food, which is based on natural meat and does not use flavorings.

But there may be a different situation. The owner initially purchased economical packages, and the kitten consumed them with pleasure. On the recommendation of a veterinarian, the breeder decides to feed the pet with more balanced food and buys an extra-class brand.

In this case, the animal may flatly refuse the proposed replacement. The fact is that more expensive samples are completely devoid of flavorings. And the baby lacks the usual taste and smell.

How to properly transfer a kitten to dry food in this case? It is necessary to act as during the initial training. Gradually add a brand of more suitable ones to the usual granules. Within two weeks, the kitten should completely switch to balanced and healthy dry food.

Important points

When accustoming an animal to drying, you should carefully monitor it. It is important, before transferring a kitten to dry food, to consult with a veterinarian and find out that the pet is healthy and can chew hard food.

During training, it is necessary to observe the behavior of the kitten. The main indicator of good digestibility is the animal's stool. If there is no diarrhea and no difficulties are observed, then everything is in order.

Ready-made dry food is enriched with all necessary vitamins and minerals. Therefore, without the advice of a veterinarian, there is no need to offer your pet various supplements.

The reasons why a specialist may recommend additional nutrition may be related to the health of the pet and its developmental characteristics. In any case, if the kitten is accustomed to dry food, it is necessary to deny him tasty morsels from the table. This can lead not only to the refusal of ready-made diets, but also cause stomach upset and problems with stool.

Any change in a pet’s life, including a change in diet, is stressful for the animal. It is necessary to surround him with care and attention.

Conclusion

The question of how to switch a kitten to dry food is not so difficult if you follow the recommendations given and be patient. The main thing is that the brand is of high quality, and that the animal always has clean water freely available. An indicator of good digestion and a well-chosen diet will be the kitten’s grateful face and its cheerfulness.

High-quality nutrition for a cat is the key to its good health, so a good owner takes seriously the issue of choosing food for his pet. Sometimes circumstances force you to change the animal’s usual diet. At first glance, the question of how to switch a cat to another food is not difficult, but changing food for an animal is stressful. It is difficult for a cat to get used to a new diet; he refuses unfamiliar food. This issue must be approached thoroughly and very responsibly, because it is impossible to explain to an animal that a change in diet is necessary for its health. You need to be patient, because this will take time.

Why change food?

There is no consensus among veterinarians on how to switch a cat to another food and whether it is worth doing. If the food is ideal in composition and taste for your pet, then there is no point in changing it, but there is an opinion that food should be changed 3 times a year. This will diversify the animal's diet, and the risk of food allergies in the cat will decrease. But there are situations when a change of food is necessary. Let's look at some of them.

The kitten has grown up

Since foods are classified according to the age categories of the animal, there are special foods for kittens. They are more nutritious and rich in vitamins for the active growth of the kitten. But when the animal grows up, such fortified food is no longer necessary, it can even harm the health of an adult animal, so the owner needs to take care of how to switch the cat to another food.

The animal has grown old

Like all living organisms on this planet, cats age and there is a risk of developing various diseases, including obesity. To avoid this, you need to choose a diet with a lower calorie content. It is better not to use food with a high protein content for an aging animal. But for very old cats, the opposite is true; due to poor absorption of food, the animal may develop vitamin deficiency, so you need to add more vitamins to the diet; protein is also necessary for such a cat.

Cat pregnancy

In this situation, the animal needs increased nutrition. There are special foods with a higher protein and vitamin content for pregnant cats, and you can also temporarily switch an adult cat to kitten food. You should not increase the serving size, this will create additional stress on her digestive system.

Sterilization of cats

After this operation, the animals are lazier, therefore, the risk of developing obesity in this category of cats increases. To avoid this, veterinarians recommend reducing the amount of food eaten or switching to a low-calorie diet.

Individual intolerance

Over time, the animal may develop intolerance to any component of the food or develop an allergy, so it will need to urgently change its diet.

Animal disease

There are diseases for which the animal needs to adhere to a special diet. There are special medicinal foods, but under no circumstances should you select them yourself. A veterinarian will advise you individually on how to switch a cat to another food and which one to choose in this case.

The food is no longer sold

Sometimes it happens that food is discontinued. There's no escape, you'll have to look for an alternative.

Basic rules for switching a cat to another food

You can, of course, immediately give the animal new food, in 90% of cases the cat will simply refuse the new food, and this can also lead to an upset stomach and vomiting. So how can you correctly switch a cat to another food so as not to injure the animal or cause damage to the pet’s gastrointestinal tract? To prevent the animal from noticing a sudden change in diet, you need to add new food to the cat’s usual food in small portions for 10 days. This way you can check if your cat is allergic to a new food. If the animal has responded well to the new food and eats it with pleasure along with the old one, then you can gradually, by adding new food in small portions, remove the old food from the diet. On average, such a transfer is completed in 3-4 weeks. If the cat tolerates the new product well, the transfer time can be reduced to 2 weeks.

If for some reason your pet refuses new food, leaving it in the bowl, there is another way to switch your cat to another food, but it may seem very inhumane, although it is very effective. The essence of the method is to temporarily put the cat on a starvation diet. Having refused a portion of new food, the cat expects that he will now be fed his usual food, but nothing happens. After walking around looking unhappy, the hungry cat again approaches the bowl. After several such approaches, the cat eats the remains of the new food. The next day, we again dilute the favorite food with new food and do not give anything else until the bowl is empty. This diet is acceptable for 3-4 days. But if the pet continues to refuse new food, you should contact your veterinarian and ask how to switch the cat from one food to another, otherwise the animal may begin to develop a dangerous liver disease, which is fatal.

When switching an animal from natural food to dry food, or vice versa, you can give the cat prebiotics. They will help the gastrointestinal tract adapt to new food faster.

There are times when a sudden change is necessary, for example, when switching an animal to medicinal food, when an intolerance to components of the usual menu appears, or when there is a food allergy. In this case, there is a little trick on how to switch a cat to another dry food, which is to lightly pour fish broth over the dry food. This will attract the animal's attention. Do not forget to constantly monitor the condition of your pet, its behavior, appearance, so that there are no negative reactions. If any symptoms appear, contact your veterinarian immediately. A timely visit to a specialist will help preserve the life and health of your pet.

Experienced veterinarians identify several basic rules when feeding cats:

1. There is no need to mix dry food and canned food in one feeding.
2. 2If the animal is fed on feed, it must be premium. Feeding an animal with expensive food is many times cheaper than spending money on treatment after using cheap analogues.
3. There is no need to get carried away with wet food - if used frequently, they provoke obesity. They go as a dessert, sometimes you can pamper your beloved pet, but nothing more.
4. Dry food lovers should always have a bowl of clean drinking water. Wet food consists of 70% water, but dry food contains much less water. In order for the animal to receive adequate nutrition from dry food, it needs to drink a lot. If a cat doesn't drink enough water, it will affect its well-being. If the condition worsens, you must urgently show the animal to a veterinarian.
5. Without compelling reasons, there is no need to change feed frequently, and if this is a necessary measure, then follow the rules outlined above.
6. Do not feed food strictly according to the norms indicated on the box. The cat will eat as much as she needs, she will leave the excess in the bowl, but starvation leads to a number of diseases.
7. If you feed your cat natural products, then do not forget to add vitamins and minerals to the diet.

A veterinarian will help you perfectly balance your animal’s diet.

Nadezhda Zubkova

Is it possible to switch a cat to another food? Certainly. It happens that this is forced by circumstances (for example, the desired brand is not on sale), the animal’s health, doctor’s recommendations, or you have found a more suitable option for your pet. Where to start, how to switch a cat to another dry food? This is not a person; she cannot be convinced by the useful names of the ingredients on the label.

The procedure for replacing food is simple and should take about ten days, but it happens that a smooth replacement does not work out. Your cat eats the granules of the old food, and leaves the new one in the bowl, or flatly refuses to approach the food in principle - in this case, you should resort to more radical measures.

Patience comes first

The first thing you need to do is be patient. All members of the cat family have an innate cunning that they will certainly use to sabotage your plans for replacing food. First of all, you will find a trick with “burying”, which clearly compares the new diet with litter for the tray.

Let’s not forget the pained expression on his face, sad glances and heart-rending meows - your pet will do everything to evoke pity and create the impression of a creature dying of hunger. But you can’t give in to provocations! Reluctantly, we stand our ground!

Here we will immediately make a reservation that all owners love their cats. But love is not only about pampering and caresses, but also about the need to sometimes make difficult decisions and take responsibility. What food to switch the cat to and when - this is exactly the case.

Switching to another food after a “hunger strike”

The most effective way to still achieve success is to give your cat preventative fasting. Naturally, this is not done for the purpose of “punishment,” because there are no monsters or sadists among us, but only for the benefit of the animal. But if suddenly seditious thoughts arise in your head, pushing you to capitulate into the clutches of a tailed tyrant, then remember: not a single cat has ever died from exhaustion in front of a bowl full of food.

Remind yourself often that cats, especially indoor and sterilized ones, even benefit from fasting fasting days - they help prevent them from gaining excess weight.

So, the essence of the procedure is simple: remove the bowl for a day and do not give the cat any food, even if she really asks for it. The next day, place a bowl with new food. Many advise at this moment not to embarrass the animal and not to stand around it with the whole family waiting for a “miracle” - a proud tailed animal may not like public admission of defeat in the war for food.

In general, the period of transfer to another diet using fasting depends on the stubbornness of a particular representative of the cat family, but should not exceed three days, otherwise there is a risk of harm to the health of the animal. Remember that the cat must have access to water at all times.