[Bobby dog]

Akari:
Forgot to mention. Remember when I wrote I was making a grocery store list of cat food and I also wanted to have a few grocery store kibbles on the list that Bobby would do well eating in case of an emergency? Mainly because some family members and friends that I might call on don’t have the first clue about pet food and I need to make it simple.

Anyway, started a bag of Purina One Beyond chicken, he likes it, so far so good. Two grocery stores in my area just started carrying RR, but only one carries Zero Grain. I have never tried RR’s grain inclusive and probably never will (don’t like the recipes). So even if someone is shopping at the store without Zero Grain at least they can buy Purina One Beyond. Looks like there will be two kibbles that someone could easily buy if I need help with Bobby. 😉

[Bobby dog]

Kitty and Bentley sound like they are getting along famously!!!

[Bobby dog]

Glad he’s ok. I hate using any nail poloish remover because of my dry and cracked cuticles. lol

Maybe just try out the front nails to see if that cuts out the damage to your furniture…just a thought.

[Bobby dog]

I am very jealous that hearts and gizzards went over so well at your house and Akari had luck with gizzards too. lol

I guess we do need to figure out the kibble ratio next when feeding our pups something raw. I don’t think you can go wrong with at least cutting back on the kibble the day he gets a raw treat.

Livers are definately on my list next!

Now let’s see what C4c has luck with.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Akari:
I didn’t know you had to glue nail caps on. I used to do the artificial nail thing, all kinds, gel, tips etc. Nail polish remover is probably very irritating to his skin regardless if it is acetone (sp) or non acetone.

I never experienced it, but fungus also tends to grow between the glue and nail bed whenever you expose your hands to water such as hand washing and showers. I know cats don’t wash their paws but they can get moisture on their paws when they use the litter box.

Just suggesting you monitor Kitty closely to make sure they don’t hinder the natural movement of his nails or that they cause any irritation or infections to happen. 🙂

[Bobby dog]

C4c:
I just dug up this article, couldn’t find where I saved it earlier. Just a little more info on K3:

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/the-only-approved-vitamin-k-supplement-in-pet-food/

Off the top of my head Rachael Ray includes K3 in alot of her recipes but not Zero Grain, the tubs, or the two chicken wet foods. Purina adds it to most dog & cat food (wet & dry); I have found a few of their canned dog foods w/o it. Nature’s Recipe includes it in most of their recipes for cats & dogs and some of the Soulistic cat food contains it. Basically, pet foods considered lower to mid-tier quality might include K3 in their recipes.

Just another ingredient to add to the list of undesireables and another reason a rotation diet makes sense.

[Bobby dog]

Hey C4c:
K3 can be listed several ways, one way is Menadione sodium bisulfate complex. It is one ingredient that is a pet peeve of mine (among others). A few years ago in one of my anatomy classes my Professor discussed K3 and I guess it just stuck in my head. Here’s some good info about it being included in pet food recipes (they explain it better than I ever could). There are many other sites that have info too, but probably the dogfoodproject IMO explains it a little more in depth and keeps it simple.

/choosing-dog-food/menadione-in-dog-food/
http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=menadione

My cats do eat some food with K3 in their rotation; Purina being one of them. If I could get them to eat better quality canned food all the time I would, but they are stubborn and we all know you can end up with terrible health problems if you starve a cat. One of the reasons I researched the food ingredients for my “grocery store list” of pet food. If they are going to be addicted to Purina, the least I can do is find the best recipes out of all of their lines.

I do feel bad about kibble ingredients, but not near as bad when I first found this site. I feel I am making more informed decisions about the quality of kibble I am feeding and now it is only half of Bobby’s diet and the cats are only getting at most 1/8 C /day of kibble. So as Jakes mom wrote, “when you know better, you do better.”

Come on the raw journey with us!! lol At least I have Bobby the garbage disposal when my raw selections don’t go over well with the cats. Me and him will be finishing up the Kefir. lol

Also, on that Little Big Cat site I found an article about probiotics for cats. My kitty is starting to turn his nose up to Kefir. So I am researching what human probiotics I can supplement him with, nice site. 🙂

[Bobby dog]

C4c:
Enjoyed the article, thanks! I also bookmarked the page and added Dr. Dodds book to my reading list; it keeps growing.

Akari:
Sounds like Kitty is getting a taste for some raw!! Yeahhhhhhh :p

[Bobby dog]

No Publix where I live. 🙁 $3.99 after the coupon, what a great deal that will be!!!

[Bobby dog]

Hi C4c:
I have tried the chicken flavors; the only two recipes without fish and K3. Two of my cats liked them. They smell delicious like they are seasoned for people. I recommend trying them. I will be picking up a few myself to have around for a little variety. I think the cats that did not like them may prefer more of a plain recipe. IDK 🙂

[Bobby dog]

FYI: For anyone interested, Rachael Ray has the $4.00 off Zero Grain coupon posted again along with a free dry cat food sample offer, and various other coupons. If I remember correctly, they are good for a month after you print them. 🙂

http://nutrish.rachaelray.com/switchto

[Bobby dog]

Jackie B:
Thanks for your coupon tips!!! 🙂 I am going to add a bookmark to that website.

[Bobby dog]

Naturella:
I love those bowls! Your hubby is very artistic.

[Bobby dog]

I hate it when Bobby finds bunny nests!!! I have put my fair share back in the nest. Bunnies don’t seem to hide their nests too well from him. If I remember correctly bunnies only come by for feedings a couple times a day. The first time Bobby found a nest I thought it was abandoned until I checked it out on the Internet. The bunnies looked okay so I put them back and kept Bobby away until they were gone; that was quite a task.

That is exactly how Bobby acts with a new type of food, not too thrilled but usually eats it. I hope I can get him into the swing of things with trying and liking raw. If I could even find a few things, hopefully with the bone, I would be a happy camper.

[Bobby dog]

Mom2Cavs:
Congrats on the new edition!! He sounds like a lucky guy to have you looking out for him.

Naturella:
His face is saying so many things to me! I know you said he was scared but I really think that pic is adorable.

[Bobby dog]

That is a good one!!!! 😉

[Bobby dog]

Wow, didn’t know that. At least they are on top of things, that’s good.

[Bobby dog]

Jakes mom:
I was thinking GSP too. His obsession with birds is unreal. Even in the pet store he gets so engrossed looking at the birds in cages a circus could walk by and he wouldn’t even notice. If you didn’t look at his head or tail and just saw his body markings you would definately think GSP. Then, you see his head and think hmmmm what kind of dog are you? From the day both ears stood up the first comment out of everyone’s mouth was “awww, his ears are too big for his head…” lol. His tail is not quite long enough for his body type, but it is not too short either; he’s a riot.

I just did my pet run earlier last week so it will be a while before I have to venture out and get more food. But, I’ll let you guys know how Bobby did when I do try it out or anything else with the cats.

Akari:
So that’s a normal procedure where you live, HW blood test yearly? Not just if you missed a dose? I don’t think Frontline works too well where I live either but it does help a little. I haven’t tried Advantage and hopefully I won’t have to, but you never know.

[Bobby dog]

Wow, I wish my cats hated Whitefish!!! If he never eats it, he won’t like it! lol

I don’t know anything about the flea med you found. My suggestion is to look up the active ingredients and research them to see if they are effective or have any reported side effects you need to be aware of.

I hope your mom listens to you about Bentley’s HW/flea med. She may need to get him a blood test to check for HW since he hasn’t had any protection for three months. Keep putting the bug in her ear. Maybe she/you can pick up the Frontline Plus or PetArmor from Wal-Mart to at least keep the fleas at bay in the mean time. 🙂

[Bobby dog]

Hi sue66b:
I buy used textbooks all the time from many places Amazon being one of them. I have never had a problem. The key is to look at the ratings of the seller. Also, read the most recent comments from buyers to get an idea of their customer service and their return policies. I don’t buy from a seller that is rated below 96% for positive reviews no matter how cheap they have the book listed. I only buy from the experienced sellers that have many ratings meaning they have sold through Amazon for a while and likely provide good customer service.

There are many sites in the U.S. that sell used books I am just not sure if they ship to Australia; some state specifically domestic. I do know that Alibris.com has a U.K. website, I love buying books from them. Alot of times the European versions of the textbooks I need are cheaper than the U.S. versions; both are usually exactly the same. Check out Abesbooks.com as well, they might have a European website.

Try Googling “used textbooks” and see what sites come up for you. The sites that sell textbooks sell most other books as well. Even Googling “used books” should bring up many sites. I have just found that the sites that sell textbooks have a bigger selection of non-textbooks. Ebay and Half.com are good places for used books too! 🙂

[Bobby dog]

I am not sure Akari, I have never used it. Do they have a website for FAQ’s? Or maybe call them or ask your Vet for advice? Maybe someone else on the forum has used it before. Sorry, not much help.

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
I was thinking what Jakes mom just wrote, that Capstar wasn’t a preventative but I am not positive. Maybe the Cedarcide mentioned on the other thread will work for you.

Jakes mom:
That sounds like an adorable dog! I am sure the changes you have made in his food will help keep Jake around for quite some time to come! 🙂 Bobby is 44 lbs and he is a rescue dog from a Tennessee shelter so I am not sure what he is. I (and many other people) have guessed some kind of Cattle Dog, Blue Heeler (he has the coloring of a Blue Heeler), Border Collie, Terrier mix or not, who knows… Maybe even some sort of hunting dog is in him because he points and he is obsessed with birds. I don’t hunt and have never been around any type of hunting dogs so IDK.

I was asking what size Jake is because I thought I would copy from Jakes dinner menu since it seems to be going well for him. Bobby isn’t a gulper and he doesn’t eat his meals fast so although I will monitor him when I try out chicken backs or other things, it sounds like they would probably eat about the same size in raw selections.

Cats are just terrible sometimes! lol Do you think they would appreciate their meals more if they knew the thought we put into it?

[Bobby dog]

Naturella:
You never know how an animal will react to a med. Just keep an eye out for anything unusual and make a note of it to see if there is a pattern that develops. That is one way to determine if Sentinel does not agree with him.

I am sure you can find a map (I haven’t looked) of flea seasons for the area you live in somewhere on the Internet. Maybe someone will be able to direct you in the right direction for a map on this forum. 🙂

I would also check with my Vet about the flea season in your area. For example, I would not have thought about changing how/what I administered for HW & flea protection without the discussion I had with my Vet. I have horses I am aware of the immunities that are being seen in parasites with worm meds for horses, but I thought I had it covered for Bobby. So I am very glad I had the wellness visit with my Vet to keep up to date on the parasite battles for cats and dogs in my area. After discussing your concerns with your Vet and researching further on the Internet, I am sure you will be able to make an informed decision as to the best preventatives for your precious puppy.

I have to write I have found ticks crawling on me after taking a walk through the woods even after the first few frosts in my area; it’s strange. I still feel uncomfortable administering a med that contains flea prevention year round when he does not need it year round. So I will continue looking into other meds. I may not find anything that fits the bill any better, but at least I will know either way.

[Bobby dog]

I agree with taking the puppy immediately to the Vet. Cat scratches can be dangerous to animals as well as for humans let alone to an area as sensitive as the eye.

I don’t care about paying for a farm visit for my horses or an office visit for my cats or dogs regardless if it turns out to be nothing at all or a true emergency. That is the procedure I have any sitter follow when taking care of my animals; my permission for a Vet visit is not necessary. Peace of mind is priceless regardless if you are away on business, vacation, or for emergency reasons.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Naturella:
I recently switched to Sentinel Spectrum at the beginning of the month. I was using Iverhart Max (ivermectin/pyrantel) and Frontline plus during flea season. I also did not give heartworm meds during the winter months. The beginning of this month I took Bobby in for his 3 year Rabies, reg exam, did bloodwork to check for heartworms, and checked his stool for worms. Everything came back negative.

My Vet asked me to consider changing my HW preventative and the routine I follow for dosing it. She said there were allot more cases of tick born illnesses in our area that were previously only seen in the southern states and my HW/flea med choices were not the best anymore due to possible immunities in some parasites.

I tried Trifexis the first year I had Bobby and he still had issues with fleas. I stopped using it after 2 mos. My reasoning being that he was being exposed to a chemical for flea prevention that did not seem to work so I switched to Iverhart and tackled fleas with Front Line Plus and regular baths during flea season. Also, there were allot of reports of adverse reactions in dogs using Trifexis that scared me so the decision to discontinue it was easy.

I only bought one dose of the Sentinel to make sure Bobby was okay using it and he seems fine with it. I will now make that his HW preventative and will be administering it year round. There is a risk of illness using any HW preventative and that does scare me. I will still keep looking for other alternatives, but for now Sentinel seems to fit the bill.

The Vet Tech also gave me info on another topical for fleas Activyl. I think it may be a fairly new product. IDK My Vet did not mention anything about it during our discussion so I am not sure what her clientel has experienced with the product.

[Bobby dog]

Hi C4c:
Among other things that is one of the drawbacks of Purina, not only do they add fish to just about all cat food, they also include the bad K3 in just about every recipe they make for cats and dogs. 🙁 I have found a few canned dog foods without K3.

Jakes mom:
Sounds like he had a good day! What size of dog is he? I lightly boiled the gizzards and hearts and Bobby is happily eating them. I froze most of them.

BCn:
I am going to keep an eye out for pork, lamb, goat and beef necks too.

Akari:
Did the cat get fleas from your dogs? Or is this as you wrote a preventative measure?

[Bobby dog]

I will try and see next time, but I tend not to rock the boat at this store because they really spend their time reading each coupon thoroughly to make sure they can get reimbursed. I have a feeling they must have been lax in the past and their “corporate headquarters” let them know about it! IDK Oh well, it never hurts to ask.

Pet Supplies Plus is by far the easiest for me using coupons. They just check to make sure you have the item, then they scan away!!

[Bobby dog]

Actually, I was at Wal-Mart looking to see if they had beef tongue or turkey necks, which they didn’t, so I saw a large package of gizzards and hearts for $1.33. I haven’t ventured to a butcher shop yet. There is only one in my area and it is a very trendy butcher shop. They have wine tasting and cheese making demonstrations so I am not sure what their prices are like.

I am going to take a walk down to a sheep farm by my house. They sell meat, eggs, honey, wool, and some other things I can’t remember. I’ll see what they have to offer (if anything) that I could try feeding my fur babies.

No big deal, I am going to lightly boil some and make who knows what else I can out of the gizzards and hearts. I am sure Bobby will eat them in a treat form. lol Three things he doesn’t eat raw carrots, gizzards, and hearts; I can’t complain about that!! 🙂

[Bobby dog]

One local pet store chain in my area does the $5.00 off of $30 or $10.00 off of $60 coupons, but they don’t let you use any other coupons with that one due to the “not valid in conjunction with any other offer” printed on it. 🙁 They will ring me up separate if I want to use any other coupons for purchases though. So I save their $5.00 in house coupon for dry cat food purchases if I don’t have any better coupons to use on the cat’s dry food.

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
Did they let you use the Petscoop $4.00 off $20.00 purchase with other coupons?

Couponnetwork & projectpetslimdown are gone 🙁

[Bobby dog]

Are those the magic words, “hey, look what Mom has!”? Because I didn’t say that, maybe that’s my problem! lol

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
I love the coupon thread. I will post anything I find in the future here and I will check back often for other posts!!!! 😉

[Bobby dog]

Hi Jakes mom:
Yes, I agree we are doing better! 🙂

I love the kids pool idea!!! You were a crazier cat person. lol

I don’t mind cheating once in a while. I am always thinking of what to give them for a meal a few times a week, other then cat food, that is good for them for budget reasons of course. Only a few of them will eat boiled chicken.

My hypo cat (11 yrs) is doing well also, has energy, seems happy, always loveable, but I have been battling dry skin. Fish & coco oil has helped a great deal and it is much better now that winter is over. Fingers crossed, Kefir will help also.

Did you give them the livers raw? I am so jealous, my cats walked away from the gizzards and hearts, Bobby just played with his. Maybe livers will be next to try, I am not going to give up. lol Let us know how the chicken back went.

[Bobby dog]

I don’t know anything about nail caps and I don’t know anyone who has ever used them. I have had plenty of experience with nail clipping and you are soooooo lucky he doesn’t mind. I only had to trim my cats nails when they were indoor kitties thank goodness!!

I used to wrap the brother & sister kitties up like a tootsie role in a towel to trim them.

My other female kitty is the worst for nail trimming or taking meds. She only weighs 7 lbs but I would much rather give meds to my uncooperative 17h Thoroughbred any day of the week than that cat; at least I can trim his hooves without any problems! lol

[Bobby dog]

C4c:
Vomit does get a little old to clean up. My female kitty was vomitting here and there until I switched to food without wheat, corn, and soy so I feel for you!

I do feed Nutro here and there, but I keep picking the flavors they don’t seem to like too much. I haven’t tried all of them so I am going to keep experiementing.

I am going to check out Chicken Soup’s website right now.

Every time I shop for Bobby’s canned food I mutter to myself “why can’t I find a good canned cat food for $1.00 in a large can that they absolutely love like Bobby loves these foods” dogs are so much easier!!! lol

[Bobby dog]

C4c:
Purina loves to put fish in everything. But at least there is the Pro Plan Finesse chic, One Turkey & Fancy Feast Turkey varieties to give a whirl with the coupons (every little bit helps). I feed something with fish once or twice a week because the cats go on hunger strikes if I don’t; they are such brats.
Last Sunday I started giving my older kitty with hyperthyroidism kefir daily to see if that will help with his dry skin. He had a round of antibiotics about a month ago when he lost his tooth. He developed a small infection but had no other problems with the loss of his tooth and his bloodwork came back excellent. I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but I swear the dry spots don’t look as irritated. IDK…
If I had to do it all over again my cats would never had eaten any dry food, fish, corn, wheat, or soy. They would also eat pumpkin puree’ and coconut oil without any issues. Oh well, now I know better. I am going to give Chicken Soup a try for my kitties since you and Jakes mom have had success with it. They are getting tired of Wellness and Merrick. I am going to see if I can find out where Natural Balance and TOTW is canned too.

Akari:
I wish Petsmart was closer to me! ugh It just isn’t worth the gas even with the coupon because I just stocked up, oh well. They also irritate me because they don’t sell canned food over the Internet.
I think you will be fine trying some dry food. You know what to look for as far as his litter habits are concerned. I think the dry with the fish ingredient will be fine also. I feed dry too just not as much as they would like to eat. I actually bought three small bags of the Wellness kitten that has fish meal in it for $3.24 each that were on the clearance rack to mix in with their regular food. I couldn’t pass up that bargain! lol
See what happens when you give up on a cat!! Next thing you know they start doing what you wanted them to do; I’ll write it again, they are such brats. 🙂

[Bobby dog]

Hello All:
Happy Easter to all who celebrate!! 🙂 Does anyone know who cans Chicken Soup, Natural Balance, or TOTW? You both (C4c & Jakes mom) mention you feed them and I have not tried those yet.

C4c:
Love the Easter photos, they are precious!
I think the Pro Plan and One are overpriced as well, but if you catch a sale or have coupons the prices are okay. Their ingredients are a little better than Friskies and my cats certainly eat it like it’s Friskies. Gives me a few more choices for their rotation.

There are several lines under Pro Plan, One, Fancy Feast, and Sheba. I chose the recipes below based on having a named meat as the first ingredient, ingredients, and low carbohydrate content; no recipes contain wheat, corn, soy, glutens, or starches. Of course Friskies Poultry Platter is listed! 🙂 I have fed everything listed except the Pro Plan Savor and Focus lines, and my cats loved it all. I listed the undesirable ingredients included in each brand or noted if a recipe did not include them. Most of the Purina lines contain fish; Sheba doesn’t unless it is in the name of the flavor. Here’s my “grocery store” list of cat food:
Pro Plan –
• Finesse – K3, artificial flavors, meat by-products
• Chic & Liver Entree Classic
• Savor – K3, artificial flavors, fish, meat by-products:
• Beef & Carrots Entrée Classic
• Chic & Spinach Entrée Classic
• Salmon & Wild Rice Entrée Classic
• Turkey & Veg Entrée Classic
• Focus – K3, artificial flavor, fish, meat by-products, added color:
• Chic & Beef Entrée Classic
• Kitten Chic & Liver Entrée Classic

One – K3, artificial flavor, fish, meat by-products, poultry by-products, added color, corn oil, sodium nitrate
• Classic Turkey (no fish)
• Classic Beef
• Classic Chic

Fancy Feast – K3, artificial flavors, meat-by products, poultry by-products, added color, and fish
• Turkey and Giblets Feast Classic (no added poultry by-products or color)
• Tender Liver & Chicken Feast Classic (no added color or fish)
• Kitten Tender Turkey Feast (no added poultry by-products or fish)
• Fish & Shrimp Feast Flaked (no added poultry/meat by-products or color and contains sodium nitrate)
• Kitten Tender Ocean Whitefish Feast (no poultry by-products)

Friskies – K3, meat-by products, poultry by-products, artificial flavors, and fish
• Poultry Platter

Sheba – K3, meat by-products, poultry by-products, added color, Sodium Tripolyphosphate
• Beef entrée
• Beef & Chicken entrée
• Chicken entrée
• Chicken & Liver entrée
• Cod & Shrimp entrée
• Salmon entrée
• Salmon & Shrimp entrée
• Turkey entrée

[Bobby dog]

Hey C4c:
I never posted my full list, just bits and pieces. I will post it later today. I have some hay to unload before my horses eat it all! So don’t waste your time weeding through all the posts! lol 🙂
Cheers

[Bobby dog]

Hi C4c:
I don’t know if you read all of this thread, but I made a “grocery store” food list. We discussed it before how our cats can/are addicted to Purina foods for various (mostly unhealthy) reasons, what are we gonna do? So I have a list of the less offensive varieties from Fancy Feast, Sheba, Purina One, and Pro Plan. The difference between Purina’s Friskies and other lines is basically you will find a named meat first in allot of them, some don’t add fish, some may contain artificial colors/flavors and some don’t, all have K3, and maybe some other undesirable ingredients. If you want I can share my list and you can see what I have weeded out solely on ingredients and carb values.

I get frustrated paying almost $2.00/can for good food only for my cats to snub it. So I am now rotating in some Purina foods. After figuring out the carbs for each recipe, then eliminating recipes that don’t have named meats first and are high in carbs you are pretty much left with the pate varieties. I have a few fish recipes in there also because my cats still crave their fish.

Go to the Purina website and at the top of the screen you will find a button for coupons. They have a buy one get one free of the Pro Plan canned cat food. This month there are also Fancy Feast and Purina One coupons along with some others that I don’t use for dry dog and cat food. Sheba offers coupons on their Facebook page.

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
I don’t know about the greasy spot maybe someone else will have some info for you. Do you see him licking the area? I just started giving my cat some Kefir daily on Sunday to see if the probiotics might help with his dry skin. I have been mixing it in his food, he has been eating it with no problem.

Bentley found a new toy and it sounds like he may be training Kitty to drink out of the fountain. 🙂 What a good big brother!!!

Give us an update with your diet trial. I was checking out the stew meat also, but I foolishly decided on the toys I mean gizzards and hearts. lol

BTW, Purina has some new coupons up and has reset the pro plan canned cat food coupons.

[Bobby dog]

Betsy Greer:
Thanks for the Nature’s Logic product name. I am slowly looking into adding some raw food to everyone’s diets and this will be helpful. In the meantime, I have added this to the list of products pertaining to raw diets that have been mentioned on DFA. 🙂

BCn:
Thanks for the info. Although I will not be feeding raw to my kitties for their meals (yet), thanks for the explanation on frozen meat. I started looking around for sites with info for feeding raw to cats. I would like to start introducing them to some raw just not a whole diet at this time. I plan on purchasing Steve Brown’s book in the near future, in the meantime I had downloaded the PDF from his site a few months ago. I wish I could find something written as simplistic for cats.

Akari:
Too funny, was it on or off?
I conquer with BCn and Jakes mom; he seems to be getting enough liquid at this time. I would continue with preparing his food as usual and not add anything else. It may have just been the new litter. Some cats just don’t like change! He’s had allot of change lately so you can’t really blame him. 😉

I bought a huge package of gizzards and hearts today for $1.33. Two of my cats just sniffed it and walked away. lol Bobby snatched a few chunks from me, ran out into the yard, spit them out then began playing with them. I am not discouraged. I am going to chop them up a little finer and see how that goes. If they still are not interested, I am going to cook them lightly and see how they like that. I have a bunch of them to play around with so if nothing else I will be making some kind of dog treat out of them.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Molzy:
I like NV medallions too! Only one of my cats will eat NV. Another one will eat the beef occasionally but not a whole meal of it. I do give my one cat that likes NV a meal or two a week of the medallions as part of his rotation. Darned cats just don’t make it easy on us do they!! 🙂

[Bobby dog]

Would I need to add a taurine supplement if I was just feeding something raw once or twice a week at most?

[Bobby dog]

Hey Akari:
If he drinks the water after you strain the food from it, then just keep making a little meat/food water for him to drink in a separate bowl. And make the food like you normally do to keep those liquids flowing. But keep that fountain around and slowly work on introducing him to it.

Jakes mom:
I never had to get a urine sample from one of my cats, thank goodnes. That’s a clever way to gather a sample. I am going to keep that tip in mind for any possible future issues (hopefully no future issues)! 🙂

[Bobby dog]

Bcn:
BTW, I don’t know anything about chickens and I kept him about two months before I finally found a home for the rooster. I am a little sick in the head, having a bunch of chickens gathering, gobbling, and strutting around my door at dinner time would crack me up, I would love it. lol

I didn’t know the plight of roosters before I foolishly took him in. No one wants a rooster! He was a cool chicken though. He was so lonely and I felt bad for him so I would spend my afternoons outside studying. He would lay at my feet for hours. If I was doing yard work I would feel bad for him running after me and I would pick him up and carry him like a football, he seemed to like it. The horses didn’t bother him and he hung out with my dog. He was a little leary of my one cat that would stalk him but he would just quickly walk away from him. He was too big for my cat to do anything to him anyway.

I finally found a home for him at a winery near my house. They wanted a rooster for their hens. And if he didn’t work out at the winery, their grounds keeper said she would take him home to her house for her hens. Someday when I have more time I would consider getting some chickens just to have around. Maybe get some old hens that stopped laying eggs. lol

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
I have one more suggestion. I would just switch the litter over completely. If you are not sure about the elimination amount and any possble color change due to blood because of the litter, dump it out and put the Tidy Cat in the box.

Okay, two suggestions. If he hasn’t eaten what you put down earlier today make his food like you normally do to keep him hydrated. I am sure Bentley wouldn’t mind a snack of leftover cat food! lol

I have never used clam juice before, but it sounds like a good option.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Bcn:
I have a few questions about raw for my kitties too, if you don’t mind sharing. Honestly, I have not researched feeding raw to cats so please excuse my ignorance on the subject. I want to feed some raw to enhance their commercial food diet and help clean their teeth. I was looking for something I can pick up at the grocery store to experiment with.
Is dicing up beef or lamb a good choice? Or are their better options?
What types of meat on the bone are good for cats?
Would ground meat be okay to feed?
What other cuts/organs are good to feed? For example, are gizzards or hearts good for them?
Does the raw need to be frozen before feeding or can it be fed straight from the store?

[Bobby dog]

C4c:
You’re welcome. It sounds like you had an enjoyable weekend crafting!! lol You one upped me with the jig saw, never thought of it. One time I was cutting stall mats at a place I was boarding my horses at and my father stopped by to say hi. When he saw what I was doing he asked me why I was cutting the mats with a box cutter. I answered “how else do you want me to cut them, tear them apart with my hands?” He laughed and then explained that he thought it would be much easier to cut them with a jigsaw and boy was it!!

My tote is not smooth on the two corners on one end because of the two wheel wells, so I know what you mean by making sure you have a smooth bottom.

Next one I make, I’m using the jigsaw! 🙂

[Bobby dog]

I don’t know Akari, I think Jakes mom might give you a run for your money in the coupon department!!!! 😉

[Bobby dog]

Hi Akari:
I totally understand that you don’t have the best area to feed raw, me neither, but it sounds like Kitty may like raw to me. If you tore off a piece and he ate it, I would say he probably likes it or is at least curious. My cats do not even entertain the idea of eating something they don’t like. lol I would keep giving it a try, tearing the meat off of the bone might be more appealing to him, maybe even try a different meat. Try feeding a little peice of raw maybe once a week to start with and see how it goes. You can always freeze some portions so it doesn’t go to waste. I will be trying some raw for my kitties soon!

I have never used a cat fountain, but I would take the suggestions of Jake’s mom and Bcn and keep introducing him to it by leaving it off most of the time and turning it on little by little. Peaking his interest and getting him used to the fountain could just be a matter of more time and patience. I wouldn’t give up on it, give him time to get used to it.

I don’t know of any type of water additive.

Earlier in this thread you wrote you made his food almost soupy in consistency by adding water. Do you still do that? You can also try mixing the meat water into his wet food. That extra flavor might appeal to him. Did you make bone broth or did you boil the meat? Just wondering what you ended up making.

If he is not drinking enough water I would suggest doing anything to get fluids into him consistently (nothing harmful of course), so if it has to be fish flavored water then let it be fish flavored water! Look over the suggestions from catinfo for getting kitties hydrated. There’s also clam juice and Catsip too.

If you feel his urination habits have changed or seem abnormal I would not hesitate to take him to the Vet. You can’t fool around with UTI’s. I will add that the size of the litter balls you described are on average what I remove from my litter box; sometimes bigger, sometimes smaller. But what is normal for my cats might not be Kitty’s normal litter box habits.

[Author]

Posts