Can I change from wet to dry food ?

[AwimbaweAwimbawe]

I have 3 balls of fur Cats eldest is 7 months & the other 2 are approximately 5/6 months .
I love them all to bits but the cost of feeding them is getting ridiculous .
I never intended on having 3 cats but had to take the youngest two in as they were abandoned , on average atm I'm spending around 20-30 pound a week on food & I just can't afford it anymore , would it harm them if I just switched to dry food so I could just buy a giant bag once a month if would I be really mean in doing so ?
Also is there anyway I can encourage them to go out as they stay in all the time & just sleep , I have never known cats to be so lazy (not playful in the slightest)

[CMOTDibbler]

You can try, but my cats have always firmly believed in dry food as a snack, wet as meals. But we don't spend that much on food - they get 2 pouches a day each, and we buy whichever of Felix or Whiskas is on offer
And some stay in, some go out - its just cats.

[Babyitscoldoutside]

My cats eat dry food all the time - one of them cannot stomach wet food so they all get dry food. They don't seem to mind at all. Convenient too and no more scrubbing dried cat food off the bowls.

[Fluffycloudland77]

I feed mine on aldi pouches, £2.39 for a box of 12 and he gets through two boxes a week.

The vet always comments on his shiny coat and condition.

[issey6cats]

gorden bennett what are you feeding them lol i have four cats all adults and mine get one tin of wet food between them in the morning and a bowl of biscuits in the afternoon, all healthy and right wheight for what they are, and costs are £4 a week for a big bag of harringtons biscuits and £3.50 a week for butchers cat food 6 pack and one tin of felix from asda

[AwimbaweAwimbawe]

They are on whiskers 2 pouches a day each at least & biscuits & are always moaning they are still hungry (i worm them regularly)

[Alonglongway]

Is it maybe getting the right balance between wet and dry? We have 3 just a little older and they get 2 pouches split between them in the morning and half a tin of whiskas in the evening - both meals mixed with good quality dry, and a separate bowl of the dry available all the time.

[VenusRising]

Mix the dry in with half a pouch and add a spoon of water. We feed her royal canin.

We did this with our kitty and she tolerated it very well.

Wouldn't touch the dry two weeks ago, now noshing it down.

What is the Aldi food like nutritionally? Any additives?
Whiskers is terrible according to my vet - full of additives and caffeine.

[gobbin]

I think you must be feeding them too much if you're paying that much. My three are nearly 7 months old and get a tin of Butchers Classic a day between them plus 4 handfulls of Royal Canin Kitten 36, all split into two meals. The Royal Canin is £14 for 2kg and lasts 3 wks (although I've recently bought a 10kg bag online as it works out much cheaper). The big bag of Canin plus the tins work out at around £7 per week and provides a good balance between wet and dry.

[AwimbaweAwimbawe]

I only use whiskers out if habit & they have 2 pouches each a day which I was told is the right amount for them

[issey6cats]

whiskas isnt as good as its made out to be has lots of additives , next time you get food see if the shop has butchers classic, its a high meat content, small chunks so easy to eat and all four of mine scoff it down no fussiness and in asda costs £2.78 for six tins which with two cats even giving them half a tin each a day works out a lot cheaper than whiskas, like a lot of things whiskas is capitilising on being a brand that people know, and the harringtons complete dry is about £4 for a big 5kg bag which lasts my lot 2 weeks once again high meat content and low cereal and my lot scoff that down too

[AwimbaweAwimbawe]

Thanks issy will try them on what you have suggested , Didn't know Butchers did cat food

[thecatneuterer]

I agree with Issy. Butchers Classic tins are what I always use. Most cats seem to like it and it's recommended by vets as it doesn't contain too many additives and is good for cats with gum problems apparently. And they're quite cheap.

I think it's good to give both wet and dry, but the wet can be cheaper tins rather than pouches. If you are going to give dry food then it really needs to be a good quality one (James Wellbeloved/ Iams etc). The cheap ones (Whiskas/Go Cat etc) frequently cause urinary crystals which block the bladder and mean, at the very least, extortinate vet bills and, in the worst case scenario, death. If you are only going to give dry food then it really mustn't be the cheap stuff.

[lljkk]

I feed my 3 Mogs fairly expensively & it costs far less than that. About £11-12/week, I should think.

I am giving them Bozita from Zooplus.co.uk at the moment, with Applaws for dry. I also buy Butchers horse & guinea pig meat no doubt we'll discover?.

Warning: my cats don't much like the rabbit from Bozita or the fish-flavours from Butchers.

[VivaLeBeaver]

I have two cats, they get two pouches a day between them. And the bowl is always full of dry food. They soon learn if they're hungry they'll need to eat the dry stuff.

[lljkk]

ps: I just tallied up precisely. I am an anorak who tries to record every penny: At the moment I have a lot of cat food in the house & it has cost so far less than £10/week to feed all 3 cats (2 active outdoor + one huge sloth). If they all die the day before I would make my next big order the cost will be about £7-8/week for all 3.