A kitten does not eat dry food - why and what to do?

A person who decides to have a kitten at home must solve several important issues. Where exactly will the pet live? Who will look after him and clean the pot? What will have to feed the little fluffy resident? Many owners are sorely lacking time to prepare something delicious for their cat, and they follow the line of least resistance - they include dry food in the cat's diet. Ready cat breakfasts can greatly facilitate the maintenance of the animal at home.

But, if the kitten stubbornly refuses to approach the bowl with the food offered, what should I do? Change the animal's diet and transfer to feed of other brands? Or feed something else - for example, from the table or canned food? Or maybe it is urgent to run to the veterinarian and show the mewing hungry baby to him - suddenly the cat is seriously ill with something?

About good reasons why a tailed pet does not want to enjoy dry food and refuses to go to the cup with it, and we will discuss below.

Why the kitten refuses to eat dry food

A kitten may refuse dry food for several reasons. Some are related to the health and well-being of cats, others are purely domestic. To begin with, it's worth talking about household cats that happen to every owner.

1. I did not like it. Cats, like humans, have their own taste preferences. She loves some things and eats everything that they give, but she can’t stand something and will not eat, even when she is hungry. It is possible that the reason for refusing feed is simple - she does not like it at all. Maybe the wrong taste or the wrong brand. In this case, simply replacing the product is sufficient. Take a little bit of different types of feed and offer the pet, until it becomes clear what exactly needs to be stopped.
2. Monotony. Another reason the cat stopped eating dry food was because she was fed up with it. This happens when a kitten is offered nothing but pellets of bored feed. In addition, one brand. In this case, you just need to slightly diversify the cat's menu - give canned fish, soup, meat broth or something milk - porridge or sour cream. A furry favorite will not refuse a meat paste or a piece of quality cooked sausage. You can always replace bored dry food with wet. The more often you change the contents of a cat's table, the more it will be a pleasure to eat a kitten.
3. The product has deteriorated. A cat is a creature that relies more on its sense of smell than on other senses. It so happens that the owners pour too much feed into the animal’s cup, and the kitten does not have time to eat everything. Having lain for some time in a bowl, the feed becomes raw, loses its smell and becomes unusable. Of course, the animal that approached the bowl does not want to eat a spoiled product. And it can be spoiled by the owners who love to buy food in large volumes. For a long time, the food absorbs extraneous odors, is saturated with moisture and becomes tasteless for the kitten.
4. Pure bowls. Not every cat-owner monitors the cleanliness of the dishes of his wards. And not every kitten will eat from the foul-smelling unwashed dishes. It is not difficult to wash and wipe the cat's bowl dry. And the cat will be pleased.
5. Lack of water. Dry food causes thirst, so the animal alternates eating food with a little water. For owners who do not care about filling the cat's bowl with fresh drinking water, the cat will always have poor dry food. Dehydration leads to a lack of appetite.
6. Stress. The kitten could something very upset, unsettle, scare.For example, noisy guests came to the owners. Or another animal appeared in the family, inspiring the little purr with fear and making them nervous. And even worse - the owners moved to a new apartment, tearing the kitten out of the familiar world - now you have to re-get acquainted with others and get used to the new realities of life. Of course, the transferred nervous suffering will beat off the hunt for food. The owners should do simply - start giving the pet something tasty, treat it with fragrant canned food or something that the cat will not refuse. In the event that the general condition has not improved, it is necessary to consult a doctor who will prescribe something sedative such as drops. They will help to defeat stress and put the nerves of a small cat in order.
7. Change of diet. The little pupil, having finished eating mother’s milk, ate only the food prepared by the owners, drank milk and ate cottage cheese, and then suddenly they decided to transfer him to dry food. Such a decision will cause a strong protest in the animal, and it will consist in the rejection of the proposed food.
8. Weather. The weather outside and the time of the year in the yard also have an effect on appetite. Suppose, in the summer, when the heat is, the kitten is reluctant and eats little. All energy is spent only on fighting heat, the body does not have much need for an influx of energy and the pet needs very little food. In extreme heat, a good way out of this situation is to change the time when the animal eats. It is better to feed him in the early morning hours, when it is still not hot and late in the evening after the onset of evening coolness.

Health problems

Failure of the kitten from food often happens for reasons related to the health and well-being of the animal. Here are the most common ones.

1. Poisoning. Cats by their nature are very curious creatures, what can we say about little kittens trying to try everything that catches their eye? Some bad product may well get caught and cause poisoning in the little cat. In this case, the cat will refuse any product. Do not force-feed him, it is better to take him to a veterinary clinic and show it to a specialist. He will select treatment methods and prescribe rehabilitation therapy.
2. Gum or tooth disease. The cat may well get stomatitis. Then the feed pellets will cause the animal pain, and it will begin to refuse this food.
3. Helminthiasis. A kitten, especially if he likes to walk on the street, can very easily pick up worms or some parasites. The owner can visually determine their presence, but it is better to contact a specialist who will conduct the study and prescribe treatment.

How to solve this problem

1. With the help of a veterinarian. If there is reason to believe that the kitten has health problems, then you need to go to a specialist veterinarian for a detailed examination and appointment of medical procedures.
2. Accept all kitten requirements. If the kitten is persistent in his unwillingness to eat dry food, then you can go to meet him and feed the animal only with those products that he loves and prefers to eat.
3. The best option is to train a kitten to eat dry food. The previous paragraph is not feasible for those who work - the owner simply does not physically have time to prepare his favorite cat food. For such people, the best option is to accustom the pet, while it is still small, to dry food.

How to convince a kitten that dry food is good?

If it is known that a kitten's dislike for dry food is not related to ill health, then it is quite possible to teach a small animal to eat this product. It requires patience and perseverance.

1. First of all, you need to dilute the usual food in small portions with food. If the kitten has just been fed breast milk, the granules must be soaked in water or milk. If this is already a grown cat, then you can soak the food in some other soft food that he prefers.
2. If you see that the kitten is happy to absorb mixed feed, then you can increase its share in food.
3. After about 5-7 days, it is worth starting to gradually add food in a dry, not soaked, but dry state.
4. Having seen that the pet is eating what is offered, the next day you should try to give him only one dry food. If the kitten refuses, you must still feed him some time with the usual food with the addition of soaked food. After again trying to give it only dry.

To accustom a kitten to dry food is an individual matter, here you need to monitor the pet’s reaction, be patient and attentive. This is best done for someone who loves his cat and wishes him only good.

Video: how to feed a monthly kitten