How to Transition Your Cat to New Food

Published A Few Days Ago
ADVERTISEMENT
fast facts

DisableScript
viglink
ADVERTISEMENT

Cats are known as being picky eaters. If you want to switch your feline to a new food, we’ve got some tricks to get picky cats to convert.

Upgrading your kitty’s diet is a great way to ensure she’s getting all of the nutrition she needs to both look and feel great. And as more pet parents become informed about the ingredients found in commercial pet foods, they want higher quality wet and dry meals for their beloved furry companions.

If you’re ready to transition your cat to a new diet, just beware that doing so could lead to digestive upset, so taking things slowly is the key. In this way, your kitty’s body can adjust to the new food without symptoms like diarrhea getting in the way.

Here’s what you need to know to make the switch:

Transition over the Course of 7-10 Days

A good tip to follow is to transition your kitty from her old diet to her new diet gradually over the course of about 7 to 10 days. Mixing the two foods gradually will give your cat a taste of the new food without shocking her system.

Begin with a mix of 25% of your cat’s new food and 75% of her old diet. Feed this for about two to three days. Slowly, increase the amount of new food so that you have a 50/50 mix for your cat to enjoy. After two to three days of half and half, you can move on to a mix of 75% of the new food and 25% of the old diet. Keep that up for another 2 or 3 days before you switch over to 100% of the new food.

Digestive problems like constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, or gas could occur at any point during this transition. If that happens, just slow down on the time between mixes to give your kitty more time to adjust to the new food – instead of two to three days per mixes, stretch it out to four to six days. Remember, every pet is different. But if problems persist, it’s a good idea to contact your veterinarian.

Trick a Picky Kitty

Cats are creatures of habit, so dealing with a picky kitty is common. They like what they like and they aren’t big fans of change, especially when it comes to their diet. But there are things that you can do to entice your pet to eat a new food:

    New and Improved Wellness Options

    Are you ready to feed your pet a higher quality canned or dry food? Wellness is renovating and re-launching their existing dry and wet food lines for felines, making them better than ever.

    Here’s what your cat is in for:

    • carrageenan-free, and free of meat byproducts, fillers, and artificial flavors

    With Wellness’s new, healthier cat food, you’ll likely find her begging for more. The key is to get her there gradually, and maybe even being a little clever when it comes to convincing her that a new food will be better than her old one. And once she gets a taste of Wellness’s new and improved line, she’ll definitely become a feline foodie!

    ADVERTISEMENT

    ADVERTISEMENT

    You May Like

    Best Dog Cake Mix

    We’ve handpicked the best dog cake mix options on the market, with recipe variations to suit any dog’s taste preferences – and any pet parent’s cooking skill. All of these are super easy to make, prepared with healthy, natural ingredients, and most importantly, tend to be an instant hit with our four-legged besties.

    Survey Helps Researchers Understand Why People Surrender Their Pets

    New research survey is designed to study the reasons people voluntarily relinquish their pets The numbers are staggering – 7.6 million animals enter sh…

    Pug

    Some people think that the Pug is related to the Bulldog, and given the physical similarities between the two, it''s hard to debate that.

    Canine Couture Hits The Catwalk For LA’s Fashion Week

    LA Fashion Week at the Beverly Hilton Hotel went to the dogs this year, with celebri-pups wearing haute couture from designer Anthony Rubio!

    First Cloned Cat Celebrates Her 15th Birthday

    Copy Cat, the world''s first cloned cat, is now 15 years old, and lives happily at in the ""kitty barn"" at Texas A&M University.

    5 Pet Portaging Tips For Canoeing With Your Dog

    Here’s something I’ve always wanted to do – go on a canoeing trip with Oscar. For outdoor adventure Kevin Roberts, it’s just another…

    How To Treat A Dog With Allergies

    If your dog has an allergy, it can present itself in numerous ways. When this happens, what do you do? We know how to treat a dog with allergies.

    Epic Journey of Refugee Cat Will Have You Cutting Onions [Video]

    What do you mean you haven''t cried today? Let''s fix that right up with this three-tissue video of a refugee family being reunited with their beloved cat.

    Chorkie

    A Chorkie is a mix of Yorkshire Terrier and Chihuahua They are one of the cutest breeds of designer dogs available to the modern dog owner.

    Patagonian Conure

    With a great passion for tricks and toys, the Patagonian Conure has a naturally entertaining personality. Read on to learn more about these parrots!

    10 Best Bowls For Bernedoodles

    Finding the right bowl for your dog can be challenging because they vary so much in size, so we''ve compiled a list of the 10 best bowls for Bernedoodles.

    Kickstarter’s PAWD Is The Prettiest Crate You’ll Ever See

    This re-envisioned dog crate for pampered pooches is stylish, functional and cozy, and its sleek design ensures it fits right into any modern home.

    Adoptable Dog of the Week-Chip

    Out Adoptable Dog of the Week is Chip, a 2 years old Terrier mix from Manhattan, Kansas. He is vaccinated, neutered, housetrained and very friendly.

    Five-Star Road Trip: Meet Dog Bloggers Who Travel Like Rock Stars

    The life of a dog blogger is glamorous – especially if you’re Amy Burkert. Recently, she traded in her Class C motorhome she, her dogs and her hu…

    Aegean Cat

    Tracing its originals to Greece, the Aegean cat is a natural feline breed that developed without human intervention, making it a healthy and hardy breed.