# Flavor enhancer for cat's meals?



## Joel_BC (Aug 6, 2012)

I think this may be a pretty common problem, but I want to describe the situation and see if anyone can recommend a particular sort of solution.

We've got a young male domestic shorthair tabby. He's almost 14 weeks old, energetic and healthy. When we got him (from neighbors who had the mother and her litter of four), he was nine weeks old. The neighbors had put the kittens onto dry (small-kibble) food, and nursing with the mother cat was naturally tapering off. We've continued with the dry food, and made sure he's had continual easy access to both food and water.

Within the last two weeks, we've added a rounded teaspoonful of puréed pumpkin once or twice a day. He likes it _a lot_, as a side dish rather than mixed with the kibbles.

We've always mainly fed our cats in the past on dry food, and they've tended to be quite healthy and alert. We've had two different flavors of dry food during the time we've had him, and initially he's been enthusiastic with each, but then seems to get bored with the food. (By the way, we keep the food in a sealable plastic container in a coolish place, to try to ensure it's as fresh as can be.)

I'd like to find a sort of condiment that we could put on the food - perhaps a liquid or oil - that would smell and taste good to our cat while at the same time being unharmful and even nutritious. Is there such a thing?


----------



## shouldigetacat (May 6, 2012)

The last thing I am is a cat expert, but I would atleast offer wet food once a day. Danny's favourite was the ziwipeak canned food ... so expensive, but he had FIP and was picky and wouldn't eat much ... that got him to eat. 

Also, in my experience cats can be grazers, so just because he's not "chowing down" like it did when you changed the food doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't like it


----------



## Wannabe Catlady (Aug 6, 2012)

I really wouldn't offer him the pumpkin at all, since cats are strict carnivores and shouldn't be eating any vegetable, fruit, or grain products.

I would try switching him over to an all wet-food, high protein, grain-free diet, as it can help a lot with health problems down the road. Dry food doesn't contain enough moisture that cats need, as well as containing high amounts of carbs and fillers which are very unhealthy for cats.

If you don't want to completely switch over, just don't mix dry and wet together. Dry food has a high amount of bacteria already, but when it gets wet the amounts of harmful bacteria increase exponentially.


----------



## Joel_BC (Aug 6, 2012)

Wannabe Catlady said:


> I would try switching him over to an all wet-food, high protein, grain-free diet, as it can help a lot with health problems down the road. Dry food doesn't contain enough moisture that cats need, as well as containing high amounts of carbs and fillers which are very unhealthy for cats.


Not saying you're wrong about this, but...

The local vets are okay with dry food for cats, and in fact sell certain brands themselves.


----------



## Wannabe Catlady (Aug 6, 2012)

> Not saying you're wrong about this, but...
> 
> The local vets are okay with dry food for cats, and in fact sell certain brands themselves.


While I do trust vets on most topics, nutrition is one I just ignore from them. Most vets don't have any training in school on nutrition, and if they do, its sponsored by Iams or Science diet, who push dry food because it is most profitable. 

This article might help. There are many others out there, but this is just the first one I found

Is the food you're feeding your pet killing it? (and making your vet rich) | Mail Online


----------



## Joel_BC (Aug 6, 2012)

Wannabe Catlady, thanks for the info, opinion, and link. I'll discuss the issue with my wife.

In the meantime, anybody reading my original post: if you have a recommendation for a nice odiferous, good-tasting flavor enhancer, please pass it along. I'm interested.


----------



## Jacq (May 17, 2012)

You didn't hear it from me, but Parmesan cheese (not the 'real' stuff in the deli, the powdered cheap stuff from the grocery store) is like kitty crack...


----------



## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

I'm not so much of a purist and don't have a problem with a little pumpkin...but that's a lot of pumpkin for such a little guy. Too much fiber can be just as bad as too little. 

A 14 week old kitten should be an absolute chow hound, if he's less than enthusiastic about his dry food he's either trying to tell you he doesn't like it or he has a medical issue brewing. Honestly, canned food is the best thing you can do for him.


----------



## cinderflower (Apr 22, 2012)

Jacq said:


> You didn't hear it from me, but Parmesan cheese (not the 'real' stuff in the deli, the powdered cheap stuff from the grocery store) is like kitty crack...


exactly lol. :thumb the dreaded kraft cardboard/wood shavings stuff you wouldn't eat yourself (lol i don't anyway) other things i've found that work well: salmon oil, a little bacon fat, chicken fat, and cat-man-doo crushed bonito flakes. or if you eat meat at all (i don't so i have to get this stuff special for the cat menu) you could save any drippings of meat you prepare.

i took my cats off all dry food, and there's a lot of reading you can do about it that will utterly disgust you. i couldn't go back to giving it to mine even if i have to, that's how bad most of it is. so you might have a harder time getting parmesan cheese to stick to the dry, but what you can do with the animal fat is get one of those salad spritzers, for people who are counting calories and don't want to glob on a ton of dressing. you have to watch the fat in your cat's diet just like you would your own because cats get high cholesterol and heart disease, too, but a wee little bit probably won't hurt. the salmon oil is a little bit expensive, and the cat-man-doo is about $8 for an 8 oz. shaker.


----------

