As your cats grow and change, their nutritional needs may as well!
Kittens and older cats, for instance, need different types of food. Senior felines could also have health issues that need to be addressed with a special diet. Your favourite cat companion may also just be a picky eater!
Whatever it is, throughout your companion’s life, you’ll probably have to help them transition between different diets till you hit the sweet spot of taste and nutrition.
Regardless, cats can be creatures of habit - so switching their diets may not always be easy. Abrupt changes in their diet may even cause diarrhea or vomiting!
So how exactly can you help your cat transition into a new diet easily and painlessly? Let’s look at 5 tips for switching your cat’s food.
#1 Gradual Change
Over a span of around 7-10 days, try to add more and more of their new cat food into their diet. You can try a ratio of about a quarter more every 2-3 days.
The ratio can resemble something like this:
Day 1-3: ¼ new food, ¾ old food
Day 4-6: ½ new food, ½ old food
Day 7-10: ¾ new food, ¼ old food
Try using a proper measuring cups to get a more precise control over your cat’s food. Make sure to also read the food labels to confirm how much of the new food your cat should be receiving.
#2 Tasty Toppers
Cats are said to have sensitive tongues, so making their food palatable and tasty could be crucial to a successful transition.
In some cases, you may need to coax your cat with tasty toppers like Stella & Chewy’s Magical Dinner Dust Raw Cat Food Topper. Tasty bits like this not only add additional raw nutrition to your cat’s meal, it also helps make their new diet a lot more exciting!
#3 Get The Right Food
Cat food brands like Wellnessare constantly stepping up their game, to make sure they deliver the best feline diet to your door.
Difficulties in transitioning your cat to a different diet may well come down to the specific diet you’re choosing to transition to. With Wellness’ large range of cat food from dry to wet, or from turkey to tuna, you’re sure to find what you’re looking for!
So if you notice your cat is still struggling to change to another diet, try purchasing a different one - perhaps with different proteins or textures!
#4 Cat Supplements
With a new diet comes changes in your cat's nutritional intake. While commercially available cat foods are typically formulated with the perfect nutrition levels for your feline, you should still help your cat boost their health and especially their digestion.
In some cases, gradual change is hard - whether it’s due to your cat having a specific health issue that needs to be addressed immediately, or if their old diet is no longer available in stores.
If you’re switching from a grain based diet to a grain-free one, you may also need to use this method as grain diets digest at a different rate.
The cold turkey method involves the following steps: 1. Skip at most one meal 2. Feed them less than the recommended amount of new food 3. Add tasty treats like pumpkins to encourage them to eat
After this ordeal, you might want to also reward them with a treat like Ciao’s Tuna Cat Treats!
When you’re changing something in your cat’s lifestyle, especially something as vital as their diet, take it slow. Monitor their reaction and make sure to adjust your approach accordingly! The most important thing in this transition is their comfort level. Thankfully, tools like supplements or food toppers can help boost your feline friend’s gut health and their interest in their new diet.
TAMMI CHNG
Tammi is an avid writer, but especially loves learning and writing about animals! She spends her free time visiting cat cafes, playing video games and having plenty of cuddle time with her pup.