Cat treats for fussy cats who reject freeze-dried

A Russian Blue who's written off every freeze-dried treat you've tried — that's a classic case of a cat objecting to the texture rather than the flavour. Cats are notoriously fussy about treats, and they tend to respond best to strongly-scented, meat-based options while rejecting anything sweet, grainy, or — as you've found — too dry and crumbly. The best treats are high-protein and low in additives. Before I point you somewhere useful: is this for training, enrichment, or just rewarding, and does your cat have any dietary restrictions I should know about?

Good to know she's healthy and restriction-free. Four rejections from freeze-dried is pretty conclusive — she's telling you something about texture. What does she normally eat, wet food or dry, or a mix? And when she sniffs and walks away, is she doing that with her regular food too, or is she generally a good eater otherwise?

That tells me everything. She's a wet-food cat — she's used to soft, moist texture and strong aroma, and freeze-dried is the opposite of that. The fix is straightforward: you need a soft, semi-moist treat with a punchy meat smell rather than anything dried or crunchy. My recommendation is Dreamies Creamy Treats — specifically the chicken or tuna variety. They come in small squeezable tubes, they're soft and lickable, and the smell is strong enough that even very indifferent cats tend to respond. They're not the leanest treat nutritionally, so keep them as occasional rewards rather than daily snacks, but for a healthy 7-year-old with no restrictions they're absolutely fine. The format change alone is likely to be the breakthrough here.

Yes — the lickable format tends to have a much higher hit rate with cats who've rejected solid treats, especially wet-food eaters. The act of licking is natural and low-pressure for them; there's no crunch or dry texture to put them off. Dreamies Creamy in particular has a very strong following among owners of notoriously fussy cats. If she doesn't take to the chicken, try tuna next — the fishier the smell, the more it tends to cut through for reluctant cats. You can find them easily on Amazon UK, usually in multi-packs which work out cheaper per tube.