Millie update...

[andtiggertoo]

Sooooo. After two days at the vets being rehydrated after she refused to eat, Millie came home, still refused to eat for three days. So back to the vet, had a steroid shot and an appetite stimulant tablet (not sure what it was). That was a week ago. She is still eating, but obviously the steroid and the stimulant have worn off, so she's a bit more selective about what she eats.

While she was in the vets, we decided to have bloods taken for allergy testing. Turns out she is allergic to oats, lamb, soya, brewer's yeast, peas and potatoes (with chicken being borderline OK). So we now have to go on the long search for food that doesn't contain any of those. Easier said than done, because most foods just list 'cereals' without telling you which ones.

Because of the previous problems with constipation I want to keep her on wet food. Any ideas for foods without any of the above, or for multi-vitamins/minerals that don't contain yeast?

Since she came back from the vet she has been mostly having a mixture of minced turkey, brown rice and pumpkin with a bit of turmeric mixed in, but I've given her a multi-vit/min tab that I now realise DOES contain yeast.

[Kay]

if you have time to trawl through all the foods on Zooplus, you will find their ingredients are all listed - that is one of the reasons why this firm is such a favourite with most of us

James Wellbeloved is turkey and rice, and comes in wet and dry

many treats do contain yeast, because most cats love it, so you are probably best to avoid all of them

[meriad]

what about a total raw food diet?

http://www.naturalinstinct.com/categories/Cat-Food/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; you can order online and it arrives frozen so you pop it straight into the freezer.

[andtiggertoo]

James Wellbeloved, believe it or not, contains potato flakes, I have discovered by reading the packet.

I also use Zooplus, Kay, but wondered before I trawl through it, if anyone else had done something similar before me.

I've been to a pet shop in Islington today and picked up about half a dozen possibilities for Ms Fussy, so we'll see how it goes. She will, I've found out, also eat Hills prescription i/d, so that's also on the list. I'm trying to keep her off dry food because of the constipation issues.

Will have a look at the raw diet. We have to have something that our cat/housesitters can feed her as well, so I'd prefer a commercial solution if at all possible. I used to think Wilma was fussy, but this one - sheesh!

Update: just checked out that raw diet, but it all contains brewer's yeast, which is one of the things Millie can't have.

[andtiggertoo]

Yay. Success. Nature's Menu. Phew. She has suddenly taken against Lily's Kitchen and HiLife, but Nature's Menu is a hit, plus she quite likes Hills Prescription i/d, so with that and the chicken/rice mixture, I hope we'll be OK. Fingers crossed. I also have a selection coming from Zooplus, so hopefully we can draw up a list of four or five foods she'll eat.

She does seem to have stopped scratching so violently already, and we've had a couple of mega poos (sorry if TMI), so hopefully we're on the right road. Fingers crossed.

[meriad]

definitely fingers crossed - good luck and fusses

[Crewella]

That's great that there seems to be some improvement - I hope it continues. xx

[andtiggertoo]

And I'd just like to say that I have had the most amazing customer service from Zooplus today. I've been using them on and off for about five years, but today they were fab. Nice to give praise where it's due..