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Feeding issues

Steve

Savannah Super Cat
These kittens are going to be the death of me. But I suppose there are worse ways to die ;-)

We have one boy, Pint, who is a great eater doesn't really over eat and pretty much stays out of his brothers food bowl. He is gaining weight rapidly and we're very happy with his progress.
The other boy, Stout, is either picky or there's something going on with him. He has this weird habit of turning his head to the side and act like he's chewing on something hard. Took him to the vet and his mouth and teeth are all normal.
The concerning thing is how much faster Pint is growing and Stout looks thin. At the vet Pint was a pound heavier than his brother at 13 weeks. They came in close in weight.
Right now we are leaving both wet and kibble out specifically for Stout. Seperating the boys right now is not a great option (see fic and stress thread) I've been changing what we feed to find a combination that will work for both. Stout also had this habit of covering his food.
I need to do something. I need to get Stouts weight up. Stressing me out. :-(
 

Trish Allearz

Moderator
Have you tried raw with Stout? Or even just boiled chicken? I have yet to have an older kitten snub raw-- though you might have to try different versions.
 

Steve

Savannah Super Cat
Using Nature's Variety raw. Barely acceptable to Stout. Cooked chicken is a no brainer but concerned about it being a staple.
 

Charley

Savannah Super Cat
We have similar issues with Jengo being picky. Does Stout seem to prefer kibble? We mixed kibble with his other food and that helped a lot. Jengo seems to like really smelly, stinky food too. Although he turns his nose up at tuna often.

For awhile I would mix in fresh cooked chicken with his food and that for him to eat better. Any chance his metabolism is a little higher than Pints?

Jengo was a smaller boy and he's huge now, maybe Stout will hit a growth spurt later? Is that possible?
 
D

Dantes

Guest
Using Nature's Variety raw. Barely acceptable to Stout. Cooked chicken is a no brainer but concerned about it being a staple.
My boys like/dislike different brands at different times for seemingly no reason. They will not eat Nature's variety at all. They ate RadCat for a while, but after time refused different flavors until I can't feed RadCat anymore. Same with Primal. They're currently eating Feline Natural and Small Batch, but I sense them starting to refuse Feline Natural, and they'll only eat the beef version of Small Batch.

So strange. I tried to go back to some of the earlier flavors/brands they used to eat hoping it was just a rotation issue, but so far no good. And it's getting harder and harder to find stuff they'll eat that I have access to.

What did the breeder feed them?
 

Patti

Admin
Staff member
I am a little concerned about Stout's lack of growth, that doesn't bode well. Are their stools are normal? I think you've mentioned that they've been on antibiotics, if so and you haven't done so already, you might want to give them probiotics.

For the short term, cooked chicken will do in a pinch, or even try human baby food - just make sure it's the stage one that has ONLY meat (chicken, turkey, etc.) and water, no spices such as onion or garlic. You can also purchase freeze dried chicken chunks such as Halo Liv-a-Littles and crumble it over the food you are trying to get them to eat: http://www.amazon.com/Halo--Littles...0&sr=1-3&keywords=freeze+dried+chicken+treats Also, something like Rapid Rehab can give them calories and nutrients, and is pretty palatable. although you will probably need to squirt it in their mouths with a syringe: http://www.completenaturalnutrition.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=20_35&product_id=66

Hopefully they are just going through a stage and their appetites will come around soon. Please keep us posted!
 

Rafiki

Site Supporter
I agree with Patti - I absolutely swear by the freeze dried chicken like Liv-a-littles. I buy it in 10 oz bags (different manufacturer but still only chicken as the ingredient and made in the US). Sprinkling that on food makes almost anything palatable to these two. And yes, if they were on antibiotics, the bacteria in the stomach may be off and it may affect Stout more than Pint.

One other thing to consider is that, particularly with SVs, siblings can differ greatly in size. In this is the case, it is ironic that you named the larger one Pint and the smaller one Stout! o_O Is Stout really thin or does he just look small compared to his brother? How do they compare length and height?

I am always amazed seeing pictures of other SVs as kittens. So many of the ones posted here are nice and plump at 12 - 14 weeks. I am almost glad that I was not a member for the first couple of months as Rafiki was so tall and lanky by comparison that I would have been worried. There was nothing wrong with her at all - she ate whenever she was hungry but didn't start filling out until she was more than 6 months old.
 

Steve

Savannah Super Cat
Thanks for the replys! Stout was never on antibiotics that was Pint that went to the vet for FIC. The breeder was feeding Friskies shreds with science diet kibble and cooked chicken. Wanted to transition from the Friskies ASAP but I've gone back to that as an experiment. He eats no kibble whatsoever and I've tried several brands. His brother eats any kibble you put in front of him. His brother is a pig!

I would say as far as build he is a little thin but long and lanky so while I'm concerned I'm not desperate yet.

He loves his cooked chicken so I was wondering if theres a recipe to add calcium and supplements similar to a raw diet recipe.

And regarding their names, Stout is more a color than a size. As in beer ;)
 

Steve

Savannah Super Cat
So the chicken thing is working of course and I have him eating the supplement but when I try to mix anything at all into the chicken he balks at it. So many different caned foods and nothing.
 
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