Cat Food

[geonuc]

What do y'all feed your cats? My 11 & 12 yo pair have been on an expensive dry food to improve urinary health but I'm reading reviews that say both brands sold by the vet are crap (Hills, Royal Canin). Here's a website that looked at a lot of brands.

http://www.reviews.com/cat-food/

It seems to me there's a lot of disinformation and woo out there concerning pet food and I'm having trouble slogging through it to find reliable, medically-sound advice.

[Rommie]

When we had a cat, it was just Kitten Chow/ Cat Chow until cat got a bad kidney infection, so then he had to have the expensive dry stuff for the rest of his life. Pretty sure it was Royal Canin from what I remember when I had to go pick it up myself. (Plus he had a healthy diet of mice and chipmunks as a supplement until his last few years. )

I confess we never really looked into the quality of said cat food, because you tend to assume the stuff the vet gives you is fine. And he lived to 17, so yeah.

[Swift]

Ours are on Hill's Science diet, though I don't buy it from the vet, I buy it from PetCo. The current two have been on it for their entire 6 years.

Our previous cat was too, and she lived till 16. I don't remember exactly why we picked this, but I think it was because our previous vet, Dr. Ting, recommended it, and I thought very highly of her.

Maki and Ginger have been on the dry (I've always thought it was good for their teeth), but our current vet recommended switching them to the wet. She said that cats have consistent problems with not taking in enough fluids, which lead to kidney problems - something our old cat did have late in life. She said the wet is actually lower in calories (which surprised me) - and they could afford to lose. And she said the dry doesn't do all that much for their teeth and gums, since cats don't really chew the stuff, they just kind of break it up and swallow.

So they have been on half wet / half dry for a few months (I have a huge supply of dry I want use up), and they've each lost a few ounces (which as a percentage of 12 pounds is pretty good).

[Cyborg Girl]

Currently we give them Purina dry food. (Right now the indoor/hairball control version, since they have shown a tendency towards hairballs, especially Lacey.) They love it, perhaps too much.

Also wet food at the end of the day. Usually Friskies.

Current vet does not sell us cat food. He has generally advised us that foods with less carbohydrate filler are better. (Makes sense, cats are carnivores after all.) When looking at new varieties of cat food, we look at the ingredients/nutrition stats to make sure it's acceptable.

They're quite healthy so far, gods willing.

Edit: @Swift, thanks for mentioning that about wet vs. dry food! I hadn't heard that one, though our vet did say that wet food is generally healthier. I will have to ask him about it at some point.

(The cats would probably be very, very pleased if we stuck with wet food.)

[Swift]

What do y'all feed your cats? My 11 & 12 yo pair have been on an expensive dry food to improve urinary health but I'm reading reviews that say both brands sold by the vet are crap (Hills, Royal Canin). Here's a website that looked at a lot of brands.

http://www.reviews.com/cat-food/

It seems to me there's a lot of disinformation and woo out there concerning pet food and I'm having trouble slogging through it to find reliable, medically-sound advice.

I only glanced at the article, but it sounded pretty woo-full to me.

For example, my understanding is "meat-by-products" are the things like bones and gristle; sure humans are picky and don't want such things, but cats eat entire mice (I've watched) and seem quite fine with such things. I don't understand why that is a negative. The review came across as written by the "Cat Food Babe".

[Swift]

(The cats would probably be very, very pleased if we stuck with wet food.)

Yes

We were really uncertain how they would react to the wet food, since they had never eaten it. They think it is the greatest thing ever. We always get the little protest demonstrations as feeding time approaches, but now that they get the wet for dinner, the pre-meal protests have really ramped up. Given all the meeping and meowing, you would think that hadn't eaten in a month.

[Rommie]

It also always kinda amazed me that our cat could eat the same thing, day in day out, without getting bored to death of it.

[SciFiFisher]

I think GJ raised a good point. Go to a local pet store such as Pet Smart or Petco. Read the labels. You want a product that is low or none for corn, rice, etc. If you can avoid brands that are made in or source ingredients from China it would be wise. They have a nasty habit of adding an ingredient that tests well for protein and is toxic to pets. A few years ago there were hundreds of dogs who died from the stuff.

China quarity. China Gooot!

[Swift]

It also always kinda amazed me that our cat could eat the same thing, day in day out, without getting bored to death of it.

One of the things I'm very strict about is I don't give them a choice. They never get people food, and they get treats (and they are cat treats) only once in awhile.

Through three cats I've had no problems with picky eaters.

[geonuc]

The notion that wet (canned) food is better for cats sounds reasonable, but is a real hassle as compared to dry food, especially if you occasionally like to leave the kitties alone for a couple of days. I've also been aware of the idea that grains are not a real good ingredient for the little carnivores.

I wish there were a NIH-quality website for pets.

[Swift]

[Thumper]

Right now with two cats, we split a can of Friskies between them in the morning, and one in the evening. We used to leave dry food out (Meow Mix Original) all of the time, but our younger cat is a binge eater and kept eating it and gaining weight. So I only put some out occasionally such as when they're not going to get some wet for 24 hours.

And I concur that dry doesn't necessarily help the teeth and gums. Neither of our cats have much in the way of teeth. Both can wolf down dry food or dry treats. They do get some dry treats, along with the dog who loves them. Not really much in the way of human food at all. They'll lick a bowl now and then.

Our vet has never advised us to buy special food either from them or elsewhere. However, our older cat (18) is starting to have some dietary issues (mostly loose stool) and he recommended some Fortiflora pro biotics to sprinkle on his food. Currently the cats are 18, and about 10 I think. Our last two each lived to about 20.

[geonuc]

I had been feeding mine Purina One, which both of them like. When I switched to the Hills/Royal Canin (mixed) from the vet, they both turned their noses up. So I've been mixing in Purina One to the vet stuff and everyone's happy. Except the boy cat who occasionally barfs it up.

I guess my issues are 1) I hate paying three times as much for food with supposed health benefits but by all accounts is not much better or even crap, and 2) they're getting on in age and I wanted to see if I could make a determination on my own as to what foods are better. No such luck on the last point.

I may just go back to vet food but maybe mixed with one of the 'no grain' varieties instead of Purina.

[Thumper]

I don't know much about cat breeds but Geonuc, are your cats "purebred"?

[SciFi Chick]

This is fascinating information regarding the wet food. Spaz would totally get on board with this plan. So far, Monet turns her nose up to anything except dry food or tuna.

[geonuc]

I don't know much about cat breeds but Geonuc, are your cats "purebred"?

Nah. The boy cat looks like every other shorthair black cat on the planet. The girl cat has some style, being a torty. She's possessed by a demon, though. I'm not sure if that bears on her dietary requirements.

[Thumper]

I was just wondering. I know with breed dogs, you open the door for all kinds of health concerns. Most of my dogs have been mutts and lived good long complication free lives. The closest thing to a breed dog I had was a half German Shepherd-Dalmatian mix. He had several end of life issues and is the only furry family member we decided to put to sleep because of quality of life issues. I've got friends who have had various breed dogs and many have wrestled with all manner of health issues. I didn't know if a similar trend existed with cats.

[Swift]

I didn't know if a similar trend existed with cats.

I don't know any highly serious genetic problems in pure cat breeds (they may exist, I just don't know of them), but I do know that Siamese tend to be cross-eyed and certain white cats tend to be deaf. Anytime you are breeding among a very limited population, you will tend to get a build up of bad, recessive traits.

[Rommie]

I didn't know if a similar trend existed with cats.

I don't know any highly serious genetic problems in pure cat breeds (they may exist, I just don't know of them), but I do know that Siamese tend to be cross-eyed and certain white cats tend to be deaf. Anytime you are breeding among a very limited population, you will tend to get a build up of bad, recessive traits.

Interestingly, this has to do with the fact that while humans were really active in domesticating dogs, cats weren't- they more started hanging out with us because there were mice in the grain stores, and we let them hang. That's why domesticated cats are all about the same size, and also why the breeds are traditionally all area dependent (Persian, Siamese, American shorthair, etc). This has changed a tad in more modern days, but I always thought that was cool.

Plus it explains why cats are the way they are.

[Thumper]

I didn't know if a similar trend existed with cats.

I don't know any highly serious genetic problems in pure cat breeds (they may exist, I just don't know of them), but I do know that Siamese tend to be cross-eyed and certain white cats tend to be deaf. Anytime you are breeding among a very limited population, you will tend to get a build up of bad, recessive traits.

That's why I like good wholesome mutts.

[geonuc]

My experience and limited knowledge tells me that the chief problem with purebred cats is stupidity. My purebred Persian was hilariously stupid.

[Thumper]

[Swift]

I didn't know if a similar trend existed with cats.

I don't know any highly serious genetic problems in pure cat breeds (they may exist, I just don't know of them), but I do know that Siamese tend to be cross-eyed and certain white cats tend to be deaf. Anytime you are breeding among a very limited population, you will tend to get a build up of bad, recessive traits.

Interestingly, this has to do with the fact that while humans were really active in domesticating dogs, cats weren't- they more started hanging out with us because there were mice in the grain stores, and we let them hang. That's why domesticated cats are all about the same size, and also why the breeds are traditionally all area dependent (Persian, Siamese, American shorthair, etc). This has changed a tad in more modern days, but I always thought that was cool.

Plus it explains why cats are the way they are.

Great point Rommie. Humans have been selectively breeding dogs for certain traits for probably several thousand years, and so there has been much more time (and stronger drivers) for a build-up of recessives. Breeding cats for selective traits has only gone for a few hundred years.

[SciFi Chick]

My experience and limited knowledge tells me that the chief problem with purebred cats is stupidity. My purebred Persian was hilariously stupid.

One of my feral cats that I adopted is the most intelligent cat I've run across in the last 40+ years. She is amazingly smart. I think she might be the smartest cat who ever lived. While I adored my Persian cat and my Siamese cat and Maine Coon cat, they don't come even close to Monet in intelligence. She is truly amazing. And she's going on two years old - definitely no longer a kitten, but she absolutely LOVES playing fetch. She's also the most loving cat I've ever had. I got my worst scar from her, but it was because I freaked her out. In general, when she feels the need to reprimand me, she either does it verbally, or smacks me with no claws out. If you can't tell, I adore this cat. So does vendic. And he's normally a dog person.