Can I gradually switch my 10-year-old cat drinking a lot to wet food?

Congratulations on your new addition! If you haven't previously fed 100% canned food before, you may not be used to how infrequently cats will drink water. My cats are also on a 100% canned food diet, and I rarely see them drink water (maybe once a week). That is because they get almost all the moisture they need from the canned food. It is important to have fresh water available to her at all times, but I would not be worried about not seeing a cat on 100% canned food not drink. If you're concerned, you might consider adding some water to her caned food or adding a running fountain since most cats prefer that to drink from. If Bronte seems stressed otherwise, you could try a couple of things. One option for decreasing stress is to add a Feliway Diffuser ( https://www.feliway.com ) to your house. This is a calming pheromone that will work for a month. I have also had luck with Rescue Remedy ( http://www.bachflower.com/rescue-remedy-pet/ ) which can be added to the food. You could also consider calming music specifically for cats ( http://throughadogsear.com/tace/through-a-cats-ear-1-music-for-calming/ ). Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Some cats are carbohydrate junkies and just prefer dry over canned food. It is fine for them to eat just dry. But if you want to convert them to canned food then you have to do so gradually. There are benefits to canned food, like more moisture content. If you leave dry food down all the time it is best to do scheduled feedings. So start feeding the dry food to 3-4 meals per day and only leave it down for 20 mins. Make sure you make it known to your cats it is mealtime so they know to eat. Once they have all accepted the new mealtime and eat well then start offering canned food instead of dry. Some may gobble it up right away, others may turn their nose up. Try warming it up. Don't leave it out for more than 20 mins because the flavor changes as it drys out and never serve it cold from the fridge. You can sprinkle a little dry on top of the wet or mix it in, if that works then gradually decrease the amount of dry you use over time. Just be aware cats can not go more than 24 hours with out eating or they can develop serious health issues with their liver. I hope this helps!

Drinking a lot more means that she is also urinating a lot more. This is called Polydipsia and polyuria or PU PD. There are various reasons for PU PD and they need to be investigated by a veterinarian, especially in an older cat. Blood work can rule out any of those. 1) diabetes---a urinalysis and blood test will be able to rule it in or out. Diabetes is usually treated with diet and insulin. Weight loss is a cardinal sign. 2) Kidney disease, treated with diet and supportive treatment 3)diabetes insipidus, usually tested with a water deprivation test and treated with a medication called Minirin. You will need to make an appointment with your vet for an exam and blood tests. I am sure your vet will find the cause of the PU PD. Apart from that feeding your kitty pate-style wet food is usually better than the food with gravy as cats tend to lick the gravy off, which they cannot do with pate style wet food.

If Christian is doing well ont he Fancy Feast, I would just continue with this, as it is a safe food and as long as he doesn't have any other health issues should be fine if he is eating it well. I would, however, recommend having him examined by a vet to ensure there isn't a reason he stopped eating hard food such as oral pain, and also as a senior pet it is recommended to have a check up and bloodwork yearly. Canned/wet food is actually ideal for cats due to the fact that they often don't get enough water through drinking so the wet food is better for urinary tract healthy, but any time we have a change in appetite, it should be investigated!

It definitely can be from the environment. Texas has a lot more humidity then Nevada. I would recommend trying to water down her food or giving her wet food. If you feel she really is drinking too much then letting a veterinarian look at her and perform blood work to check her kidneys. With her age and your recent move it sounds more like the environment then something with her organs. Congratulations on the move and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

One of the things we have found is that wet food is actually healthier for cats than dry food. I feed my cats wet food only. It is better for their kidneys long term and seems to help prevent obesity since dry food has to have carbohydrates in it that cats can't utilize well. I have included a link below with a lot more information for you. http://catinfo.org I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Many cats who did not get wet food when they were kittens never will eat wet food. You can continue with a small amount of wet food once daily and cut back on the dry to see if they will eat more when they are hungry. I like giving some wet food as it makes them take in more fluids. Dry is fine just make sure they have access to plenty of fresh water. You can try adding some canned pumpkin also. It will increase their fiber uptake and increase the fluid also. My cat loves it so he gets if with every meal. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your cats.