Oh wow! What a pain. Have you tried using one of those Slo bowls which make it hard for the animals to wolf the food down? That's a shame that you had to go through this. the expense is awful but the cat in distress is the worst part. Lucky they were able to get it resolved.

How we induced our Taffy to drink more or at least to get more moisture in her was to add water to the pate. It ends up being more like soup, but she is definitely less dehydrated and doesn't seem to mind the more liquidy food,