I don't understand what to feed my cats :/

[PunkeyPony]

I have been feeding my cat science diet dry food free choice for his whole life and nothing else, and my DH’s cat has been eating free choice dry food his whole life as well (we just got married). Both cats are way over weight, one has asthma problems and lives on prednisone.

I’ve finally done some reading and realized we have been feeding them totally, horribly wrong all this time. I am concerned about diabetes in both cats, particularly the one that lives on the prednisone. My current thought is perhaps I should be feeding wet, grain free only as a helpful preventative to avoiding diabetes.

I’m nervous about it though. Currently I started giving them a teaspoon of BLUE wilderness at night, and dry food during the day. I read something about changing them too quickly causing hypoglycemic type reactions so right now I’m just giving them enough to start getting there systems used to it.

Going to be bringing them to a vet for advice before I do any major change, but thought I’d pick your brains as well! Any advice to help us start feeding our cats the best way and stop killing them with the dry food?

Thanks COTH’ers!

[deltawave]

I have been feeding commercial, bagged dry dog and cat food for THIRTY YEARS and have never had an overweight animal. Other than briefly when my labrador was poaching grain from a broodmare who was a VERY SLOPPY eater–once I figured THAT out the doggie blubber disappeared. :lol:

Food isn’t poison, but can be overdosed. Feed them less. Make sure they get some exercise.

[Larksmom]

I have a nearly 19 year old cat

She has eaten crappy Friskees all her life. About two years ago, I ‘got religion’ about what I was feeding her, and began adding canned. She inhales it. NO more grocery store cat food. I am giving her a small can of Soulista a day, bought at Petco. Plus she gets all the dry she can eat.
She has gone right off dry now. Only eats it cause it is out. they do need the ‘juice’ in canned stuff, there is a lot of water in canned, and when I occasionally open one and it is like pate, I mark that type off my list. She needs the liquid as much as the food itself. She was never fat but her brother was. Please comnsider giving her canned. Even Fancy Feast would be better than SD dry.

[Frivian]

If the cat is extremely overweight, why is it getting free-choice food? It should probably be getting less…

My parents have had many cats over the years, and have always fed dry food. They also have never (to my knowledge) had any health issues with the cats that could be directly attributed to the dry.

However, I have a cat, and I feed her wet (I feed Wellness brand). To me, it just makes more sense that it would be healthier for a cat than your average dry food brand - mostly for the moisture factor. I’ve only had her since last August, so no telling what kind of effect it’s having on her health. She was eating dry science diet when I got her.

I don’t know if changing her to wet food made her healthier, but I did notice it does make her pee smell less bad.

[danceronice]

[QUOTE=deltawave;6182116]
I have been feeding commercial, bagged dry dog and cat food for THIRTY YEARS and have never had an overweight animal. Other than briefly when my labrador was poaching grain from a broodmare who was a VERY SLOPPY eater–once I figured THAT out the doggie blubber disappeared. :lol:

Food isn’t poison, but can be overdosed. Feed them less. Make sure they get some exercise.[/QUOTE]

Yep. Right now, everyone is on the 4Health Tractor Supply discount version of fancy dry foods, but all of mine have done well on 9 Lives, Pedigree, etc. As far as wet food, the cats get Friskies Special Diet (for the one with UTI issues) and 9 Lives. The dogs get a diet called “Whatever’s on sale.” (Usually Pedigree, Alpo, Beneful, Paws, Retriever.) As far as weight goes, activity level and amount matters more than what brand they’re getting. Fat Cat and formerly-obese Pembroke gain weight if they eat a lot and don’t get exercise, meanwhile secondhand farm dog won’t gain weight even with tablespoons of corn oil in his dinner (he’s just a slim dog.) So I limit how much they have and make sure they move.

[Noms]

Science Diet is horrible food. Read the ingredient list, second ingredient is CORN or corn gluten. About half the bag is corn essentially.

Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they need their protein sources from meat products and not plant products.

I would go with canned as first choice, anything that is corn, wheat, grain gluten free where the source of the protein is poultry like chicken/turkey etc. Try to avoid fish based canned foods, as these have been linked to thyroid problems in cats.

If you have to feed dry, choose the types that do not contain corn or wheat etc. There are many brands that you can choose from now.

I second the fancy feast, and actually FF chicken is not too bad. Avoid science diet/purina/iams/ etc. they contain species inappropriate ingredients!

[HenryisBlaisin]

Cats cannot become hypo without insulin injections. They may become a little lethargic, but will not have a life-threatening incident. Any lethargy is most likely because they are getting a species appropriate diet, not one that gives the equivalent of a “sugar high!”

Dry food is terrible for cats for reasons other than weight-good on you for doing the research and finding that out! Even cats in good weight on dry can have serious urinary or kidney problems and develop feline diabetes!

Many vets will try to sell you a dry prescription diet…remember that many vet school nutrition seminars are sponsored by food companies, so many vets really don’t have a lot of real-world nutrition knowledge. Not their fault; they don’t spend a lot of time on it in vet school and lots of what they do get comes from a company with an agenda. You don’t need your vet’s permission to make a diet change that you know is appropriate, and it’s not dangerous to do so unless you are currently giving insulin as a diet change can dramatically lower insulin needs in a diabetic. Do consult your vet on how fast they should lose weight; just like in humans, rapid weight loss can be harmful.

How much food a cat needs depends on size and activitly level. A good rule of thumb is 20-30 calories per pound of cat. So, an average 10-pound cat needs 200-300 calories a day. An active cat needs closer to 300, and a lazy one closer to 200. You can adjust calories for weight loss or gain.

A grain-free canned diet is best for cats. Cats are obligate carnivores and should be fed a meat-based diet with less than 10% of calories from carbohydrates (preferably less than 7%). Most dry cat food is well over 20% carbsand many, including some prescription diets for diabetics, are 30% or more! Would anyone feed a human diabetic a diet consisting of 30% carbs and think that was a GOOD idea? I don’t think so!

Here are a couple of links on feline nutrition that I have found super helpful. This one talks about the importance of a species-appropriate diet, with tips on making the switch. It’s written by a vet who specializes in feline nutrition.
Dr. Lisa’s page

This one has links to charts which list the as fed, or dry weight values of many different foods. You can’t get this info from the guaranteed analysis on the can. It lists % of calories from carbs as well as phosphorus levels (the lower the better on phosphorus, especially for cats with any urinary issues.
Janet & Binky’s page

Here’s another nutrition chart with values for some premium brands not listed on the other charts:
Pet Food Nutritional Values

Good luck with your switch…your kitties will thank you in the long run!

[HenryisBlaisin]

[QUOTE=Larksmom;6182120]
She has eaten crappy Friskees all her life. About two years ago, I ‘got religion’ about what I was feeding her, and began adding canned. She inhales it. NO more grocery store cat food. I am giving her a small can of Soulista a day, bought at Petco. Plus she gets all the dry she can eat.
She has gone right off dry now. Only eats it cause it is out. they do need the ‘juice’ in canned stuff, there is a lot of water in canned, and when I occasionally open one and it is like pate, I mark that type off my list. She needs the liquid as much as the food itself. She was never fat but her brother was. Please comnsider giving her canned. Even Fancy Feast would be better than SD dry.[/QUOTE]

Pate canned is generally better for most cats than most "gravy foods. The gravy is VERY high in carbs and is often made from plant glutens, which have no place in a cat’s diet. If you must have “gravy” it’s much better to add a little water and make the food soupy. Just for example, a gravy-absed Fancy Feast chicken flavor has about 18% carbs…five or six times the level in the pate-style. Gravy canned are still better than dry, but not really great for cats.

[RedMare01]

First, stop free feeding. Also, are you thinking of liver issues? Cats can have liver issues (especially if they’re obese) if they suddenly go on hunger strike and don’t eat for a couple of days.

I personally don’t feel all dry food for cats is evil…as long as you make up additional fluid elsewhere in the diet (ie canned food and a water fountain…most cats drink more from running water than from a bowl).

Have you already switched them over from the SD? If not, first start routine meal times. Decide on whether you want to feed two or three times a day (or whatever fits your schedule). Get them used to eating at a set time, then gradually switch over to a better quality food, whether it be wet or dry or a combo of both.

MEASURE OUT the food. For reference, my three (all at great weights for their sizes at 8, 10, and 11 lbs) eat ~2oz wet food and 1/4-1/3 cup of dry food each PER DAY. Yes, total of less than 1/3 cup of dry total each day for each cat.

Feeding a higher quality food allows you to feed less and they are usually calorie dense compared to cheaper foods.

You may have a boycott on your hands at first, if you switch them off the SD to a grain-free dry, so I would introduce the wet, get them used to that, and then start gradually changing the dry, if you decide to continue feeding it.

FWIW, I use Earthborn Holistics dry and Wellness wet. My three look fantastic and I highly recommend both. :yes:

Good luck!

[Larksmom]

Thanks HB

@HenryisBlaisin';6182172

Pate canned is generally better for most cats than most "gravy foods. The gravy is VERY high in carbs and is often made from plant glutens, which have no place in a cat’s diet. If you must have “gravy” it’s much better to add a little water and make the food soupy. Just for example, a gravy-absed Fancy Feast chicken flavor has about 18% carbs…five or six times the level in the pate-style. Gravy canned are still better than dry, but not really great for cats.

The Dowager Countess has lost weight, but she has always been trim. I would like to give her more food, canned, but the budget is tight. If the FF is really ok, I may switch her back so she can have two cans a day and less dry.

[HenryisBlaisin]

Fancy Feast is FINE! The varieties that I use most of the time are the Classic flavors chicken, tender beef, and turkey & giblets as they contain the most muscle meat. Friskies Pate varieties are also ok, and cheaper than FF. Any pate style canned is better than any dry in the long run. Will every cat on dry develop a serious medical problem?Of course not! But after having two of mine have problems (one complete urinary blockage and one diabetic) that could have been prevented by feeding a better diet, none of mine get any dry ever, and are in better weight, with more energy and with shinier, better coats than ever. Why take a chance when you can go a long way toward prevention?

The links above have tons of info and were super helpful to me when I did my research and decided to improve my cats’ diet!

[Liberty]

I feed exclusively Fancy Feast Classic varieties (NONE of the other styles of FF), along with occasional cans of Wellness Grain-Free for a bit more variety. NO dry food for my cat, but if I had to pick one, it would be Wellness Core.

Good for you for doing your cat food homework. I didn’t do mine until one of my cats developed diabetes (and, no, he was never obese, or even fat, and he was always active). I think it fired up after some steroid injections when trying to treat his case of idiopathic cystitis, which I ended up resolving with an herbal remedy.

Good luck - if your cats are accepting the canned food, their diet makeover should go well!

ETA: you might even find that your one cat’s asthma might be lessened/gone when the diet is switched over to canned food only. I noticed a distinct improvement in my cat’s coat and activity level when I switched over to canned food and ditched the dry. No more mats, and he’s way more silky and smooth, and less hairballs as well. Dry food really is crap.

[Alagirl]

ah, catfood…

I have 3 kitties, each has her own idea of the perfect food.

#1 only eats dry. No can, won’t touch it, never has. Gravy, pate or straight up tuna, no dice. So I sucked it up and bought a variety that actually has animal of some form as first ingredient. And yes, read the labels, because the premium price does not guarantee you are actually getting a better food.
On the other hand though, when we do go out for chicken biscuits for breakfast, we better calculate on for her catness, because she will get her share. If you part with it willingly you decrease blood loss!
#2 Well, he eats canned. But only the shredded and flaked kinds. pate is a no go. and he nibbles on the dry when that’s all there is left. A bit under the paw of #1…he does not get pushy with the ‘fresh’ meat as his sister. Likes canned tuna though

#3, the princess, prefers tuna over everything else, so much so that I have mostly tuna based canned food stocked up. Nibbles on the dry some times. Eats real turkey and chicken when she can…

I also do leave the bowls empty from time to time. I fill the ‘dry’ bowl up in the morning, it might hold up to a cup of kibble. Then we split a can between 2 and 3, the 5 ounce size. That is pretty much it til evening, then we repeat. The cats look good and don’t get too picky about the food. When I get turned around and get suckered into a feeding at noon I might skip the evening meal. Then they eat the pate style, too, but it has to be on a plate and loosened up…

Anyhow, back to the original problem: SD is by pretty much everybody considered to be crap food for lots of $$$ I don’t think I have heard a lot of good things about it.
I’d start switching the cats over to something more animal based gradually (right, like the cats can’t eat around the kibble they don’t like… I have seen it happen, prompting me to switch to a different brand) And since they are chubby, put out the bowls in the AM and PM, and the mean and dreaded emptiness in the mean time. Add canned. if you split up a 5 ounce can 4 ways, that’s a bite morning and evening for 2 cats. Gradually increase the amounts. I am steady at half a can. Any more and they don’t finish it and it stinks up the place. So each day I go through 2 cans. I am feeding Friskies. They like it and it’s affordable and I can get it at the grocery store. The variety is preference.
I am constantly groaning though…my mom lives in Germany, and the varieties there are just so much greater, with duck, rabbit, and what have you, aside from the endless beef, turkey and chicken…and they got that stuff in gelatin…you should have HEARD the cats eat that! You could here them smack on the other side of the yard! :eek::lol::lol:

BUT
don’t fret it. Can’t undo the past, step confidently into the future!

[KateKat]

First, I don’t think giving them dry is killing them. Its the quantity thats bad. There are a lot of high quality dry foods out there that are fine, as long as your cat doesn’t have a problem drinking enough water. I have been feeding Wellness for awhile, which is readily available at Petco, and has a grain free formula (if you’re going to change anything first, that is what I would do if you’re concerned about switching to wet). Have recently started giving the uber picky kitty Before Grain, also available at Petco and very good quality. All my animals get grain free, because they really don’t need them. Like mentioned above, cats are carnivores.

I do regularly feed wet/canned, or at least wetted down dry food because I have one cat who just does NOT drink water. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen him at the water bowl in the past 5 years I’ve owned him. Unfortunately this translated to a lot of bladder issues so I have to make sure he’s getting adequate liquid to avoid the infections.

None of my cats free feed. They get fed in the morning and in the evening. They are all appropriate weights, and very healthy.

Good luck!

[dressagetraks]

My cats are currently doing great on Taste of the Wild. I’ve noticed silkier fur and less in the litter box. I do free feed the indoor cats, and nobody is overweight. But that applied to the old food, too. If I had a fatty, I’d just take the free food away.

That said, my Mom had many cats all her life. She free fed Special Kitty to the inside cats. Wet was a treat, maybe once or twice a month, certainly not regularly. She had all sorts of cats live well into their teens, no overweight cats, no kidney or liver issues, no diabetes. Vets talked about how healthy her teenagers were.

[AllWeatherGal]

Big fan of Blue Buffalo Senior here … my vomit-at-least-once-a-week cat has completely stopped vomiting and the FAT girl is not gorging.