Cat lovers help needed - advice on treats

[Henri Gaudier]

Hello fellow cat lovers. As someone who dearly loves his cats, I like to give them as much variety as I can. However, sometimes their new found fancies can be short lived and so that once eagerly anticipated warmed piece of Mozzarella is no longer welcomed as it once was. Are there any unusual or creative things that you've found or done for your cats delectation that you could pass on? I'm in my boy's bad books having deliberately spread laxative on his fur this morning (to help him with a fur ball problem and not for laughs!) and he's not best pleased. Another perspective on desirable foods and treats would be appreciated. In case any of you are concerned I'm not a "feeder" and my cats are very healthy, active tree climbing country cats.:)

[JNB]

The smellier, the better, and never the same thing more than twice in a row. Kidney, liver are generally loved. Mackerel is also a common favorite. My cats have a "thing" for baby food. There's generally a fight involved if I want to have some kippers. I"ll make a tuna or salmon pate (just canned tuna or salmon & mayo) in the food processor every so often, they love that. Basically, one huge rotation.

I have had cats that like: lettuce, beans, potato chips, and sauerkraut. And that's just the normal stuff.

[Big-TDI-Guy]

Ur cat kan haz cheezbrgr? ;)

[Neil321]

Our nextdoor neighbour's cat loves cods heads,we go to our local fish market every month and the bloke at the stool just gives us them ( gotta buy stuff though ) the gf boils them up & he woofs them down ( they stink something cronic though ) :mad:

[Henri Gaudier]

As a vegan I have a hard enough time buying and handling normal cat food and so my head (And gut) are reeling at some of these suggestions! Yuk!

My kids don't like mackerel but they did love tuna but sadly no more. So perhaps a tuna mayo concoction would entice them. Are the bones in kippers safe? I presume they are hence you give them it but do you have to prepare it in any way? Excuse the ignorance but I haven't eaten meat for over 30 years.

As for boiling fish heads ... I don't think I can. Sorry.

PS. I note your cat woofs too!:D

[Neil321]

As for boiling fish heads ... I don't think I can. Sorry.PS. I note your cat woofs too!:D


Yer i know its YUCK,when you boil them up their eyes go white and pop out plus they stink, ( thats why the gf does it )but the neighbour's cat cant get enough of em, oh and he's multi lingual by the way :)

[babyjenniferLB]

For a treat i will get my kittys some random fish from the fish mongers, or a mouse from my friend(snake food) for the old cat as he does not get much mouse hunting in so a wee run about the house is fun for him.


edited fist for fish :P looks the same to me.

[JNB]

My kids don't like mackerel but they did love tuna but sadly no more. So perhaps a tuna mayo concoction would entice them. Are the bones in kippers safe? I presume they are hence you give them it but do you have to prepare it in any way?

The kippers are just the canned ones (generally cooked & smoked as well), filets, really, and perfectly safe as is, though I"d mash 'em up a little bit. Then again, your kitties may prefer ripping them apart, adds to the natural experience for them.

[Henri Gaudier]

Random fist!!??!!! Eeek!!:eek::eek:

[iSaint]

Methinks your cats get enough treats on their own if they are country cats.

There are a number of enrichment activities (http://www.petfinder.com/journal/index.cgi?article=775) you can do with your cat.

[alFR]

Are there any unusual or creative things that you've found or done for your cats delectation that you could pass on

Well, it's not exactly unusual but our cats like some of their normal dry food either put inside a treat ball (knobbly ball with a small hole in it they have to knock around the floor to get food to come out of) or thrown for them, one kibble at a time, across the floor: they seem to love chasing them down!

Ur cat kan haz cheezbrgr? ;)

lol

As a vegan I have a hard enough time buying and handling normal cat food

Tried feeding them a dry complete diet? Just as nutritious as tinned (as long as you buy a reputable brand) and none of that meaty nastiness. :)

Having said that, some cats don't like dry food and some shouldn't have it (e.g. those with a history of certain urinary problems) so check it out with your vet first if you're not sure it would be suitable for your cat.

[bigandy]

Cat milk is much appreciated as a treat by my cat. We don't give her any other treats, because she's always off catching wildlife anyway. :o

Remember it has to be cat milk, and not normal milk, as it can cause big health issues (due to very common lactose intolerance).

[arkitect]

Cat milk is much appreciated as a treat by my cat.

Well I dunno…

Have you ever tried to milk a cat?
:eek:



/jk

:D
Our cats don't like any milk cat, cow, goat etc.
Plain old water is what they go for and lots of it.

[babyjenniferLB]

Random fist!!??!!! Eeek!!:eek::eek:

random fish, words elude me often

[OllyW]

Don't feed cats with tuna. They love it but it's bad for them.

Onions are poisonous to cats (and dogs) so avoid any foods containing them.

[riscy]

My cat loves Pizza Hut Spicy Chicken wings - I have to give him one of them to keep him quiet before I start to eat.

[bigandy]

Well I dunno…

Have you ever tried to milk a cat?

Somehow, I knew that question was coming. :rolleyes:

[northy124]

My Cat (Ginger something or other, I don't care what breed of cat I just fell in love with him when I first saw him) will eat anything you give him (Apart from the foods that will kill him obviously) but if for some reason he won't eat what I prepared for him the Dog (English Springer Spaniel) will eat it.

[Pixellated]

My cat is hooked on catnip filled fish heads atm....

[alFR]

Don't feed cats with tuna. They love it but it's bad for them.

Only if it's fed in large amounts/forms most of their diet. An occasional treat is fine.

[northy124]

Don't feed cats with tuna. They love it but it's bad for them.
Where did you get that BS from??? My Vet recommends Tuna to my Cat not the other way around.

[Rhosfelt]

my cat loves any chicken, any fish, Pop Tarts, pasta, peanuts, green peppers etc.

Basically what I have he'll eat. The crazy thing is he's 16 yet if i get up off the couch while i'm eating he'll jump up and steal my food, then we have to wrestle.

You basically have to rotate food for cats, but my cat loved these meow mix treats whenever i shook the case. (on the range was the most popular).

http://pet.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pPETS-3762866t400.jpg

[Henri Gaudier]

Thanks for contributing everyone. I couldn't get the mix treat things or anything similar at my local supermarket today and so I ended up cooking, for the first time in my life some meat! (I'm 43 btw) I did liver in butter for him and his sister ate it all! Touching real meat was horrendous. We're friends again though. After keeping me out in the cold for a couple of days .. he jumped into bed with us this morning. I'm forgiven.

Take care kitty people.

Oh ... as for Macs ... were just about to find out if the new Macbooks have jumped from 2.1GHz to 2.0GHz as they're rumoured to be. A computer company whose products go down in performance will be a first surely?

[Big-TDI-Guy]

Thanks for contributing everyone. I couldn't get the mix treat things or anything similar at my local supermarket today and so I ended up cooking, for the first time in my life some meat! (I'm 43 btw) I did liver in butter for him and his sister ate it all! Touching real meat was horrendous. We're friends again though. After keeping me out in the cold for a couple of days .. he jumped into bed with us this morning. I'm forgiven.

Take care kitty people.

Oh ... as for Macs ... were just about to find out if the new Macbooks have jumped from 2.1GHz to 2.0GHz as they're rumoured to be. A computer company whose products go down in performance will be a first surely?

No, Dell beat just about everyone to that years ago. :D

Sadly - they actually did. :confused:

Edit: By the way - odds are good your cat would have warmed to you by now - even without your last offering. This sounds sexist - so bear in mind my GIRLFRIEND said it to me one day. "an angry kitty is like a PMSing woman - give them 3 days and you should make it out in one piece"

Holds an awful lot of truth, don't it? ;)

[Rhosfelt]

Edit: By the way - odds are good your cat would have warmed to you by now - even without your last offering. This sounds sexist - so bear in mind my GIRLFRIEND said it to me one day. "an angry kitty is like a PMSing woman - give them 3 days and you should make it out in one piece"

I am going to give up my business major to get a grant and study this, I am sure they are related, because it is so true.

[anjinhamarota]

I let my cat lick my cereal bowl every morning, before putting it in the dishwasher. He loves it.

[mrwizardno2]

My kitty likes canned pumpkin (the stuff you buy to make pumpkin pie from the grocer)

I guess it's also a laxative, so only give in small amounts!

He also eats strawberries, has had kiwi, and a few other fruits. Just be careful and search online, some things are poisonous (I think it was avacado or something... maybe that was for dogs, I don't remember) but you can offer them all kinds of things to see if they like them or not!

[EricNau]

Where did you get that BS from??? My Vet recommends Tuna to my Cat not the other way around.
My vet recommends against feedings cats any fish products. My online research seems to support her opinion. It's ok in great moderation, but should generally be avoided.

[Henri Gaudier]

Pumpkin is a delicious laxative is good to know. Thanks. This post sort of started over problems with fur balls and the difficulty of getting a laxative into my big old fellah.

And ... I know he'd have come back to me .. with or without treats. It's just I love 'em so much and I want to give 'em a great time. We live in the country with no neighbours ... we go for walks with our mini pride down the lanes. They're living a cat's ideal life .. but when their food gets boring to them I don't like it. When Kaspar, who's had the fur ball retention problem, first came to my house one winter a few years ago, beaten, poisoned and starving it was touch and go. The vet was amazed he lived. It creates a very close bond.

My GF is in the room as I'm typing and so I can't comment about the PMT analogy. Ahem .... Anyway, the laptops ,,,, what a fiasco eh? Huge price increases in Europe if not elsewhere, dropped down a processor, lost FW and got some shiny things. Total disaster.

[Buttercookie]

My cats only get feline greenies. My husband was feeding them tablescraps and tuna which caused major stomach problems in the oldest cat. They now get Science Diet and an occasional feline greenie or two. Wet food is only fed on special occasions - holidays and its also Science Diet.
The oldest was having issues with people food and had also gained a lot more weight than she should have. Issues disappeared when the husband stopped feding from the table. What finally got him to stop? Emergency vet bills and feeling rotten he made the cat sick.

[mrwizardno2]

My cats only get feline greenies. My husband was feeding them tablescraps and tuna which caused major stomach problems in the oldest cat. They now get Science Diet and an occasional feline greenie or two. Wet food is only fed on special occasions - holidays and its also Science Diet.
The oldest was having issues with people food and had also gained a lot more weight than she should have. Issues disappeared when the husband stopped feding from the table. What finally got him to stop? Emergency vet bills and feeling rotten he made the cat sick.

I think science diet is total crap. My kitty was on that when I got him from the shelter and we've transitioned to Blue Buffalo. I like foods that aren't made with junk they can't digest - and so does he. When we started him on it, I gave him a choice of one or the other, and without a blink it has been BB ever since. Sure it might be a bit more expensive, but I think my bestest cuddlebuddy deserves it.

http://www.bluebuff.com/

[Buttercookie]

I think science diet is total crap. My kitty was on that when I got him from the shelter and we've transitioned to Blue Buffalo. I like foods that aren't made with junk they can't digest - and so does he. When we started him on it, I gave him a choice of one or the other, and without a blink it has been BB ever since. Sure it might be a bit more expensive, but I think my bestest cuddlebuddy deserves it.

http://www.bluebuff.com/

Never heard of that. We've tried Iams and other foods the vet recommended. Science diet is the only one that helped Angel. I will be checking out that link you provided.

[Henri Gaudier]

Unfortunately, I've never seen the brands Blue Buffalo & Science Diet. My cats rarely eat human food since I've gone vegan. When I was a veggie, they'd eat cheese and mayonnaise but there not keen on soja cream etc. One of my girls, Flicka, rather amazingly loved noodles with a sauce of peanut butter, garlic, ginger, teriyaki and honey.

[iBlue]

Already loads of suggestions and I can't help much there. I just wanted to say that I am most disappointed that there are no photos of said cat in this thread yet. :p

[Henri Gaudier]

Kaspar and his sister, Henna. They're both out terrorising the mouse kingdom as I type. After uploading this, I'm going to get a fire going in the old stove. He'll be in my arms in 5 minutes of sitting down.:) Night everybody.

[iBlue]

^ Lovely photos. :) And I dig Henna's bling.

[MultiM]

When I saw the photos, I thought you had my cats. My Tomas (now deceased) looked exactly like your boy and my Ella is all black but MUCH fatter. I now have a grey named Jasper who doesnt like Ella. Oh well.

My cats get fed MediCal from the vet only. You've never seen such beautiful coats and healthy beasts. Costs a fortune (they eat better than I do) but it's worth it.

[Henri Gaudier]

When I saw the photos, I thought you had my cats. My Tomas (now deceased) looked exactly like your boy and my Ella is all black but MUCH fatter. I now have a grey named Jasper who doesnt like Ella. Oh well.

My cats get fed MediCal from the vet only. You've never seen such beautiful coats and healthy beasts. Costs a fortune (they eat better than I do) but it's worth it.

Sorry about Tomas. I know it's hard.

Kaspar was almost called Jasper! In French "I hope" is "j'espère" which led to Jasper. But he was such a tough looking wild cat when he came, lots of scars, cross-eyed with dehydration and malnutrition that it changed to Kaspar because we thought sounded tougher. Further, the Kaspar Hauser connection fitted too as he just turned up on our window sill crying which almost mirrors the Kaspar Hauser story.

I know about food costs too. I honestly think I'm cheaper to keep.

[Cynicalone]

My cat Zoey loves coffee with cream and sugar. We've been drinking it together for years, separate cups of course. :)

[bobdeveaux]

Given the odd thread (cat lovers tips on a mac forum...) I feel a little strange posting here...

...then again I'm just as odd. I googled for, 'can I give my cat "tuna mayo"' and landed @ MacRumors.

Greetings from a UK PC-user & MS C#.NET developer!! (Please don't hate me)

Anyway, as to why I googled what I did, I'm not too sure - as my 5 month old kitten has just wolfed down the tuna mayo! (I was making my lunch and did too much filling..)

So yeah, my kitty loves Tuna Mayo.

Peace Out. :D

p.s. I refrained from giving him some of my bacon sandwich this morning!

[mrwizardno2]

My cat Zoey loves coffee with cream and sugar. We've been drinking it together for years, separate cups of course. :)

Hopefully Zoey drinks decaf!

It's becoming more widely known that chocolate is very toxic to both cats and dogs. Theobromine is the offending substance there. Caffeine and other stimulants, including theobromine (found in chocolate) can poison cats. Do not feed your cat these "people foods" or leave them out where the cat could reach them.

[themoonisdown09]

You can give your cats rat poison. That's what I give all the neighborhood cats and they seem to love it!

By the way, I'm kidding.

[HSTRIP]

Here's an interesting list of stuff you don't want to feed your cat, believe it or not it actually includes string :eek: that one, I thought, would be obvious!



http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=0+1276&aid=1029

[themoonisdown09]

Here's an interesting list of stuff you don't want to feed your cat, believe it or not it actually includes string :eek: that one, I thought, would be obvious!

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=0+1276&aid=1029

I find it funny that they list tobacco on there. I wonder how many people gave their cat a cig or a bit of tobacco chew to find that one out.

[Neil321]

I find it funny that they list tobacco on there. I wonder how many people gave their cat a cig or a bit of tobacco chew to find that one out.

Mine gets stoned all the time :D

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