Thread: cat food

Hi there. This is a great thread full of info about cat foods, pros and cons. I hope it will give you some ideas.

Feeding cats for beginners (and more seasoned cat owners alike) - Pet Forums Community

Personally I would not feed dry food at all as it's about as far away from their ideal diet as you can get (lack of moisture, high proportion of grains).

Originally Posted by andyl

am currently using james wellbeloved adult for my 2 maine coons(4 and 5 years old) was thinking about giving them a change. been looking at royal canin 31 and was wondering if anyone else uses this and if their cats liked it or any other cat food suggestions, thanx.

Hi andy. My 4 MC monsters all eat the royal canin MC 31. If I mix it with any other brand they pick out the royal canin and leave the other stuff!! I give them wet food as well, but they are really picky about which ones they will eat. They have about a sachet a day each, spread over two or three meals. It is just to break up their diet, as the dried food must get boring all the time. They only get about a desertspoonful each time, but that seems to be enough. The wet food they like most is Sheba Desire and Gourmet Perle. They sometimes like Whiskas and Sainsburys, but not always! I am not totally convinced that MC 31 is the best food, or the most natural, as it is high in grain and dry food does not resemble what a wild cat would eat. Vets and breeders all seem to say this is the best stuff though. I am not sure! But all my cats love it, and eat lots of it. They have bowls of it available in several places all day. I spend my life refilling the bowls.

I don't feed any kibble or dry food (apart from treats of cheese Dreamies) Buddy has a history of crystal build up in his kidneys and bladder and can't tolerate processed feeds properly so had to look at alternatives. He has a more natural cat diet, although as we are getting our new MC in January I have started to introduce some cooked meats back into his diet - same diet just steaming some of it; so its not a huge shock to his system if he pinches some of LouLou's food. I will be talking to her breeder and may try her on the same diet as Buddy if she thinks its a good idea, but as she's such a special kitty I will be doing as the Breeder tells me.

What ever you decide to feed a regular bit of raw meat will do their teeth and gums the world of good.

I am so confused by the comments here! My vet told me only to feed high quality dry food as it is better than giving them wet for the plaque build up etc., and only to give them wet pouches very occasionally (i.e 2x a week or so). Roxy seems to have other ideas and I am starting to doubt this advice. She goes mental whenever I let her have a bit of raw chicken etc, and eats very little of the dry food on a daily basis, so much so that I am worried she might not be eating enough (although at nearly 5kg she is a good weight apparently). Would love to hear what others are doing.

Originally Posted by RoxyKitten

I am so confused by the comments here! My vet told me only to feed high quality dry food as it is better than giving them wet for the plaque build up etc., and only to give them wet pouches very occasionally (i.e 2x a week or so). Roxy seems to have other ideas and I am starting to doubt this advice. She goes mental whenever I let her have a bit of raw chicken etc, and eats very little of the dry food on a daily basis, so much so that I am worried she might not be eating enough (although at nearly 5kg she is a good weight apparently). Would love to hear what others are doing.

You are so right to doubt the advice of your vet. Our vet used to tell us the same… mainly dry food… better for their teeth… wet only as an occasional treat… blah blah. The result: two cats with almost chronic diarrhoea and getting overweight, and one getting a UTI at the tender age of 10 months. So in late 2010, after doing a lot of research on cat nutrition on the internet, I switched all three of them to a raw diet. Their health issues disappeared almost overnight.

When we reported back to the vet, this is what he said: “Ehmmm… well… the raw diet is the best way of feeding them of course.” He also admitted he doesn’t really believe that dry food cleans teeth. Chomping on a chicken neck or gizzard works way better.

Here’s where I got a lot of information:
Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition :: healthy cat diet, making cat food, litter box, cat food, cat nutrition, cat urinary tract health
Feline Nutrition

You can also check out the raw feeding subforum on here for more info.

I work for a vet who is of the old school & he maintains wet food is the way to go,more natural,he always says dry was invented for convenience & if you are feeding any dry then make sure that the magnesium level is less than 0.08 even if it is only a small amount as a treat. What they would eat in the wild is mostly fur/feathers small bit of meat,bones & a lot of moisture,the main ingredient that is missing in biscuit & it takes an awful lot of water to make up the difference even though we are lucky to have a breed of cat that does pretty well at drinking. Wether you go for raw feeding,in which case read & take advice from those on here who have successfully worked out the way to go or like me good old tins with just a few bickies as a treat for sure your cat will be better off.