# Royal Canin Kitten Instinctive 12. advice pls.



## kat (May 11, 2011)

mustard was on urinary wet cat food but she has decided on not wanting to take her regular kibble anymore. if i mix it in with the urinary food she would eat about 5 pieces. i was thinking of putting her permanently (or until she decides she wants kibble again) on royal canin Kitten Instinctive 12 wet cat food mixed in with her kibble. the wet cat food might be her main diet since she eats so little kibble.

is this okay? any advice? the royal canin wet cat food is the best one i can find.

she had her oral exam when she decided on not eating kibbles and her vet did not find anything wrong. the vet thinks that maybe she just preferred softer food.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

My advice is to keep trying to keep her on the kibble. Once you switch them off of dry kibble it is very hard to ever get them to go back. Have you tried softening the kibble or breaking the kibble up into smaller pieces? She could still have teeth that are bothering her, perhaps they haven't gotten to the point that a vet would notice. How does she act when she does eat crunch foods? Any noticeable reactions? 

You may also try RC baby cat. Yes it is higher calorie, but the tiny kibble and higher fat count can sometimes entice those that won't eat kibble to do so again.

However, I have had hedgehogs that had to be on a soft food diet. Cooper lost all his teeth and Bianca came to me only eating canned foods. I had no idea how long she had been only on wet foods, but she never would switch back for me. Both of them did ok on a soft food diet. The biggest draw back was that their stool had a higher moisture content and was often softer than normal... plus Cooper smelled for a while until he adjusted to the change.

Over all, my opinion has always been that if it comes down to them eating or not eating, feed the wet foods. The biggest thing to watch with the kitten food is the calorie content. If she is gaining too much weight from it, you may need to try to switch her to a lower calorie version.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

Often there is nothing visibly wrong with their mouth but their jaws have become weaker either with age or sometimes they just don't have that strong a jaw to begin with. You can still give her kibble, just dampen it so it's softer to eat. 

Giving kitten food is okay if she needs the extra fat, but if not, I'd go with something different. Once they start on kitten food, it can be a struggle to get them off it. Some hedgehogs can eat kitten and not gain, others balloon and Yes, KeiLei, I do mean you. :lol:


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## kat (May 11, 2011)

Kalandra said:


> My advice is to keep trying to keep her on the kibble. Once you switch them off of dry kibble it is very hard to ever get them to go back. Have you tried softening the kibble or breaking the kibble up into smaller pieces? She could still have teeth that are bothering her, perhaps they haven't gotten to the point that a vet would notice. How does she act when she does eat crunch foods? Any noticeable reactions?
> 
> You may also try RC baby cat. Yes it is higher calorie, but the tiny kibble and higher fat count can sometimes entice those that won't eat kibble to do so again.
> 
> ...


yes i have tried softening her kibble but she would barely touch it. she does not seem in pain when she eats though. ill just pick up some new food today just in case she decided she does not like the taste of her old food anymore. is that possible? she used to love her kibble.

and.. ill pick up some wet cat food just in case she goes on a hunger strike. will she really starve herself if she does not like her food??


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## kat (May 11, 2011)

Nancy said:


> Often there is nothing visibly wrong with their mouth but their jaws have become weaker either with age or sometimes they just don't have that strong a jaw to begin with. You can still give her kibble, just dampen it so it's softer to eat.
> 
> Giving kitten food is okay if she needs the extra fat, but if not, I'd go with something different. Once they start on kitten food, it can be a struggle to get them off it. Some hedgehogs can eat kitten and not gain, others balloon and Yes, KeiLei, I do mean you. :lol:


shes about 8 months old so maybe she just has a weak jaw.

i guess ill try something different first since she became fluffier with her urinary food. i have no idea why she loves it so much. its supposed to be meds right? she wakes up just to chow down on them.

oh and i just went to check on her food bowl and she learned a new trick :? all of her urinary food are gone while her kibble, untouched. i guess she learned to pick them out? just when i thought i was winning on getting her to eat kibble :lol:


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