topic Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken? in Community Chat

Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

Lorik62 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 02:11:57 GMT

My 18 yr. old female cat has had some issues with her kidneys. My vet gives her fluids which seem to help, but lately she acts like she doesn't like the canned food that she has been eating for 18 years. I give her Nutrical on days when she doesn't eat much. We had chicken for dinner tonight and I offered her some and she ate quite a bit if it. It was good to see her eating again but I wondered if this was healthy for her? Thanks for any advice!

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

Sammycat1 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 02:29:16 GMT

Our vet's rule for an elderly cat with kidney problems who is not starting to get finicky: get them to eat whatever they'll eat! It's incredibly difficult to put weight on a cat.

Be careful of sodium....which can be harmful to her kidneys. Plain baked chicken breast with no broth or salt added and no other spices should be fine.

I'd tell your vet that she's starting to get fussier in the eating dept. too; it's a sign of worsening disease.

Try these tips:

- heat the food slightly to bring out the aroma -- taking care to test it your wrist to make sure it's not too hot

- buy a variety of cat food and experiment. Our geriatric cat with kidney problems went on different 'jags' ... for 6 months he ate Fancy Feast turkey and giblets, and nothing else. Suddenly he hated it and we bought a variety of brands and flavors to keep his interest going. He went through a chicken breast phase too!

- take tuna juice from canned tuna packed in water (not oil!) and dribble it on her soft food or mix it within. Eating too much tuna itself isn't great, but the water is good to jump start the appetite

- try grain-free soft food and kibbles....our cat went berserk over this!

- Fancy feast stinky fish flavors are good from time to time too.

There are several good websites for eating tips for cats with kidney disease that you can find on google, too. Good luck!!

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

GCR18 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 18:00:51 GMT

My boy is 17 and occasionally doesn't eat his food. I buy 1/4lb turkey breast at the deli and give him a slice before I give him his can. That sometimes jump starts him into eatting. At 18, I'd would give the kitty chicken. It's important that she eats.

A trick that my sister uses with my mother's dog is to shred the chicken in a food processor, then sprinkle it on top of the canned food. It tricks the dog into thinking it's all chicken.

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

jaxs mom — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 18:17:43 GMT

Chicken is healthy for cats, my cats eat it raw all the time. Although I've never had a cat with kidney disease so I can't answer that issue.

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

emmysmom — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 22:02:16 GMT

My son only feeds his kitties chicken, and they're doing great! You might want to add a supplement to make sure she gets her vitamins~

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

luvmyteddy4 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 22:27:06 GMT

Mine had kidney disease and toward the end he got anything he wanted. I had good luck with can foods that had gravy in them. I would add hot water to the mix because all he could do was drink and didn't want to eat. All my pets have gotten chicken through the years.

The only thing I worry about now is the contaminated chicken scare that has been going around so I haven't bought any regular chicken lately.

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

MarLoCat — Mon, 21 Jul 2014 07:48:44 GMT

Boil Boneless Chicken Breast in water. You can grind the chicken in a food processor with a little of the cooled boiled water if your cat likes a pate.

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

ID2 — Mon, 21 Jul 2014 10:43:22 GMT

OP why wouldn't you just call your vet and ask a professional?

Re: Can I feed my senior cat chicken?

vermint — Mon, 21 Jul 2014 16:20:09 GMT

Calling the vet is a good idea...however, at the age your kitty is, I'd let her eat whatever she wanted as long as she eats!