I’m going thru this myself… but my kitty is really old — 19! she has had diabetes since 2003, diagnosed with hyperthyroid Oct. 2008, and kidney problems this past March. She has lost so much weight. She lost her surragate kitten/companion of 14 years last July and started losing weight soon after. Then the hyperthyroid diagnosis… so I’ve been investigating what foods will help her gain weight and not bother the other problems.
First I thought bacon, fatty hamburger added to her regular food – figured on adding 100 calories a day… but found out the bacon and fatty burger has too much Phosphurous and that can tax the kidneys. I had another mixture of strawberries and a little stevia blended up with some cream cheese, which she loved and THAT is ok for kitties.
so I found out this week, I can use vegetable oil (just add a teaspoon to their meals), or a little butter or margarine, or cream cheese, sour cream or plain yogurt, mayo, and low fat or skim milk… all these are ok for getting kitty to gain weight. Just add a bit to their meals. And if your kitty has lactose problems (most do) just crush up an extra strength lactaid pill and mix it in to your milky products. Don’t use the vanilla ones, just the plain one. They seems to work better than the flavored ones. My kitty loves a spoonful of cream cheese mixed in her canned kitty food (I’ve been using Paul Newman organic lately).
They also said some vegetables, some fruits (strawberries are excellent choice), white rice, noodles… just look at a low phosphurous foods list, and then I avoid sugar because she’s diabetic, so will use a bit of stevia if I want to give her something sweeter. I can add a any of those to her meals, or add in between snacks/meals …
For the strawberries, I thawed a 16 oz bag of strawberries (unsweetened), 2 packets of stevia and blended it up in a small processor.
for a strawberries and cream mixture, put about 1/4 cup of the strawberry mixture and blend it with 4 oz cream cheese, and a bit of lactose free milk to get it to a gloppy consistency. Then I’d just give her a tablespoon or two after her dinner or sometimes just the regular strawberry mixture alongside her turkey or chicken dinner. You should see the look on her face! Like: how did I get so lucky!
another thing when she was really sick, the only thing I could get her to eat was Earth’s Best Organic Baby Food in the Vegetable Turkey Dinner (turkey, apples, carrots & barley). Organic baby food is great, just don’t get anything with onions in it.
so I can take baby food, or unsweetened applesauce and mix it with the strawberry mixture, plain yogurt and maybe some steamed white rice, and she’s got a great in between meal or “dessert”.
guess she could possibly gain a pound in 16 or so days if I can get her to eat an extra 100 calories a day.