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Old December 28th, 2008, 12:13 AM
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macsmum macsmum is offline
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Question Figuring out what to feed!

Ok, I skimmed through some other threads seeing if I could find an answer but to no avail, so here I go!

I adopted a 4-5 year old Himalayan about a month ago. I'd asked what he was being fed at the shelter, and no surprise it was pretty much whatever kind of food they were given/donated. So all sorts I'm certain.

Wanting to give MacIntyre the best, I went to the pet food store and picked up some Wellness wet food and some dry Royal Canin for Persians food, both of which he likes pretty well.
Not knowing any better, after he finished the wet food I thought ok, I'll give him some variety and my Mum had actually recommended Go! since her cats love it. So I gave him some, and yeah he did like it.

Well, long story short he's gotten diarrhea. No blood or anything in it, just the normal icky kind of runs. I'm guessing(after reading info on here) that my jumping around with food types has upset his tummy. Oh no!!!

My question is...what's a good wet food to ease him into since I have really no idea what he was used to eating? Should I just continue with what I have on hand and let him get used to it? I don't want him to be uncomfortable, he's such a good kitty!
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Old December 28th, 2008, 01:41 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by macsmum View Post
Not knowing any better, after he finished the wet food I thought ok, I'll give him some variety and my Mum had actually recommended Go! since her cats love it. So I gave him some, and yeah he did like it.
Which flavours of Go! did you get? And what were the Wellness flavours? Could be he has issues with an ingredient in the Go! food. Can you go back to the Wellness he was on before?

Quote:
Originally Posted by macsmum View Post
I'm guessing(after reading info on here) that my jumping around with food types has upset his tummy.
Could be. Some cats aren't as able to tolerate rapid food changes as others. In the meantime, perhaps MacIntyre would benefit from some probiotics in his diet to help stabilize his intestinal flora. You can get some capsules from the health food store, preferably something non-dairy, high potency, and with mixed organisms. Lots of people give their pets yogurt for this purpose, but it just doesn't have a high enough potency. The caps are better, and can easily be mixed with wet food.

Something else to help with diarrhea is slippery elm bark, which helps to equalize water content in the intestines. It's also soothing to mucus membranes. Can be found in health food stores as either a loose powder or in capsules that you can open and mix with wet food. Here is more info on that: http://www.littlebigcat.com/?action=...em=slipperyelm

As for the Royal Canin dry food, it would probably be a good idea to discontinue feeding it to MacIntyre. Dry has no benefits to cats whatsoever, and can actually do them quite a big of harm. The best feline diet is one high in meat and moisture, and low in carbs, which means either raw or canned. Lots to read about that here: http://www.catinfo.org/

Hope MacIntyre's diarrhea clears up soon!
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Old December 29th, 2008, 07:25 PM
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macsmum macsmum is offline
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Sorry for the late reply!

Quote:
Which flavours of Go! did you get? And what were the Wellness flavours? Could be he has issues with an ingredient in the Go! food. Can you go back to the Wellness he was on before?
He likes the chicken flavour of both Go! and Wellness. I picked up some more Wellness for him. I also got the probiotics and after a bit of searching found the slippery elm. Thankfully with that mixed into his food he still ate it!

Last night before treating him he had the biggest case of gas I had ever heard a cat have, along with some fallout-worthy diarrhea!

I was afraid to come home and have that smack me in the face when I got home today, but lo and behold, there was a pretty normal looking poop in the box. Thank GOD.

So I thank you for your advice, it was greatly appreciated!

Last edited by macsmum; December 29th, 2008 at 07:26 PM. Reason: typo
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