I have a 10 year old male Bengal cat who has developed IBS. I'm trying to control it with food rather than medications. We have used medication to get it under control but I don't want him to have to stay on that forever. The vet has given me two kinds of wet food, neither of which the cat will eat. He also will not eat Blue or Iams.
He's been on grain free diets and had terrible reactions. Bad gas and diarrhea.
Do not tell me put him on a raw food diet. I'm not doing that.
What about venison or rabbit?
Thanks.
Answer:
Rae:
Sorry, I'm going to suggest raw. I own a bengal, am in close contact with his breeder, and have talked with many bengal owners who have bengals with IBS who have tried all types of foods, and they all swear by a raw diet because it was the only thing that worked. You aren't doing your cat any favors by ruling out a raw diet.
It really is the best thing you can feed a cat. It is cheaper than high quality canned food too, and you control the ingredients. My bengal is 13+ lbs of solid muscle, and it costs me roughly $6 a month to feed him a raw diet. Before that I was spending $150 a month to feed him a guar gum, carageenan and grain free brand called Instinct.
Ocimom:
You can try the rabbit or venison but the BEST is a raw diet. Bengals often have stomach problems (in some lines) and do a lot better on a raw food diet. If you don't want to give meds and are unwilling to do a raw diet, perhaps you need to talk to the breeder of your cat or rehome the cat to someone willing to do what you don't want to do.
Grumpie:
Keep trying with the vet's recommendations. It's a fact that the fussiest of cats will give in when starving. Ask the staff of any cattery. It boils down to a battle of wills in the end. Just offer a little, so it's not too daunting, and take it away after a couple of hours if it remains untouched. The hungrier your cat gets, the more likely he is to be tempted to take a nibble.
It's important that you don't try the old trick of mixing foods to introduce a new one, as you need to be sure that your vet's recommendation is actually helping with your Bengal's problem. There's absolutely nothing wrong with trying venison or rabbit, but don't be surprised if he turns his nose up at those too. Cats generally prefer to stay on the same eating regime and always act up when changes have to be made.
