When we adopted Beastie Bear* he was getting wet food and I was afraid with coming into a free feed dry food home he would not get enough water.
So I started buying Whiskas cat food pouches. I am not sure what kind other than there are several different flavors and it comes in a purple box. I feel so old referring to it that way.
Anyway, Beastie is very adamant about his food. He is up and running to the kitchen as soon as my feet hit the floor in the morning. He runs in circles around my feet meowing and rowling the entire time in anticipation for his breakfast. He is so bad I have to open the pouch and scoop some into the side of his dish and then scoop out the rest on the other side so he can start eating before it is all out of the pouch. I use this routine or else I will end up with a fluffy head covering the dish and no way to scoop out more with out plopping the contents on his head. Trust me this has happened.
This morning the same routine happens like every other morning except when I scoop out the first portion he does not dive in. He sniffs and looks at me like I am crazy. I scoop out the entire contents and he still looks at me like I am trying to feed him rat poison. I move the dish to the top of the pantry cupboard were he eats his food every morning. He follows said dish but does not take even a bite.
I of course ask him what is wrong and I get the Beastie glare. No? I say and remove dish and look at the food. It looks the same as it always does, little cat sized bites in a rich gravy. I can see nothing wrong and I can smell nothing wrong but for Beastie to turn his nose up makes me concerned. I dump out the entire dish in the garbage, rinse the bowl and open a new pouch. This he eats with out hesitation.
If I am remembering correctly in my before coffee fog he turned his snout up to the chicken but ate the turkey flavor. Was the food bad or did he not want that flavor?
God help me I hope it was the first and not the latter or I am in big, big trouble.
Beastie Bear was not his given name. He came with the name Smokey but it did not suit his personality. He was a friggin’ beast when he came to us. He actually is more like a Worf now. He has a great heart but no sense of humor. Being a cat is serious business.
A friend of mine had a cat that would only drink water out of a people glass (no plastic) placed on the floor. And then only if there were ice in the glass. It was a complete pain in the ass when she traveled, because we had to go over there at least twice a day to refill the ice.
During the last year or so of my cat’s life, he was losing weight and the vet recommended baby food for him. Mushed up meat looks all the same to me, but he had a marked preference for veal flavor baby food. What made that so amusing to me was that (a) they make veal flavor baby food and (b) he hated beef flavor baby food – would taste it, but then would walk away.
SomeUserName, you are well on your way to being trained. As a matter of fact, you have already lost the first battle. Unless a cat is sick and needs to be tempted to eat, never back down on the food. Present the food; leave. Do not show weakness in the face of a feline glare. Do not offer a different type of food. Present and leave. You are at the top of a very slippery slope that can lead to little tiny cans of cat food which cost $1 an ounce.
My cats only get canned/moist food on special occasions; dry food is always available. Does the Beastie have access to dry food, or is he strictly on a moist food diet? If he eats dry food also you just have to be firm and be able to withstand the scorching glares - just put his moist food down and leave the room. He eats it or not, his choice. You can come back in a bit to remove the smelly stuff before it funks up your house.
Good luck - I have a feeling you’re gonna need it.
He has full access to the dry food and I have seen him eat it many times.
It is not the glare. It is the stupid slave mistake I made by feeding him some free moist cat food that came with him and a back up can I got free in a large bag of dry food.
I opened the back up can, plopped it in a dish and offered it to him as a treat for being a good boy. Dumb ass, I know.
He rowls at any can or what even looks like a pouch of cat food. He has trained me to not only buy the pouches but feed it to him every morning BEFORE I have had my coffee. He does wait until I use the facilities and let the dogs out though. How nice of him huh?
He is loud and annoying. He jumps on the counter and stomps to the pantry cupboard and back and forth and back with vigor waiting for his food. I think declawed cats can increase the preasure on their paws more then cats with claws. There is nothing graceful in the Beastie Boy.
Thank goodness it is only in the morning. He tries to complain in the afternoon but I have stuck to my guns. (ha ha yeah I know)
To be honest it is endearing and I don’t mind so much but damn to hell if I am going to put up with “but I don’t like that flavor” crapola.
I have nine cats. I should know better to put up with one beast being finicky. I have no time or money for it.
Maybe I should have put this in the pit to rant at myself for being a push over.
You are right. I need help. I am a trained slave. How in the hell did one cat out of nine get me to do their bidding?
but he is special and momma’s squishy soft Beastie Bear, right? right?..anyone?
Ya know I used to think I was an experianced cat owner until Beastie.
I have failed on so many levels. Why do the difficult ones have the ability to manipulate so easily?
I tried to give him extra attention because I felt he needed the exta love and understanding because he was so mean. He really was an asshole when he came here. Swatting at everyone, hissing, attacking your feet or ankles and even my daughters head when she went in “his” room to soon.
Feeding him dry food the first few days was a challenge. I took the broom with me in case he got the “glare” and attacked me. He might not have front claws but the sucker has teeth and he knows how to use them.
I have never in my life been lowered to the title of slave other than in jest.
I used to have to buy the entire range of cat food flavors so that our herd would eat in the morning. Serving the same flavor too few days from a recent serving would result in the food laying in the dish all day and the display of a lot of not-veiled hostility the following morning.
That herd gradually died out, leaving us with a momcat (we didn’t get her to the vet quick enough, although she and her brood are all unsexed, now), and her litter who will eat no food that does not contain tuna. They will eat the same meal all month–as long as it contains tuna.
We had Mr. MeanFace when he first mosied into our yard. The minute they cut off his balls, he became The Good Boy With The Nice Face. Asshole to Angel in 24 hours. It was awesome.