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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / March 2007Correct Diet for Senior Cat
I would appreciate advice on what would be the best diet for my 13 year old cat. She has been fed on Hill's Science Plan for several years but I don't think this is enough anymore. Dispite having had her teeth 'cleaned' recently by the vet I think she not able to chew the biscuits easily. Is it OK to supplement with very small helpings of softer food? LG >I would appreciate advice on what would be the best diet for my 13 > year old cat. She has been fed on Hill's Science Plan for several > years but I don't think this is enough anymore. Dispite having had > her teeth 'cleaned' recently by the vet I think she not able to chew > the biscuits easily. Is it OK to supplement with very small helpings > of softer food? -------- I think everyone on this group will agree that a premium brand of canned food is a much better diet for any cat of any age than dry food. I always fed my cats dry food only. In the last year or so, I have been feeding them canned every day (although I still leave out bowls of dry food for self-feeding throughout the day). What a difference!Their fur is nicer, their poops aren't so little and dry, they vomit less, and they just seem healthier overall. Canned food is good for their kidneys too. One of my senior cats (16 years old) has just been diagnosed with chronic renal failure. I read an article which speculated that an all-dry food diet can contribute to the development of this disease. I don't know if that's true or not, but I wish I had fed all of my cats canned food from the beginning. Also, I have seen other people on this newsgroup refer to Hills Science Diet as "garbage." I don't know if it is or isn't, but I do know there are better quality dry foods on the market as well. Best regards, ---Cindy S. > > year old cat. She has been fed on Hill's Science Plan for several > > years but I don't think this is enough anymore. Dispite having had [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > Best regards, > ---Cindy S. Small, firm poops are a sign that there's little waste in your cat's food; larger, softer poops are a result of lower-quality food with more filler that simply passes through your cat. Canned food is to a great degree formulated to appeal to the cats' humans who do the shopping, contains more filler, is higher-calorie, and is not as good for their teeth as chewing kibble. BUT, that doesn't mean that there are never reasons to switch to a canned diet, and in the OP's case, where the cat is having difficulty chewing kibble, and may need more calories, it's certainly something I'd try--at least supplementing with canned food, if not completely switching. Right now, though, I'd probably be paranoid and go with Blue Buffalo Spa Select, or some other really high-end food from a smaller company, rather than anything from any of the big guys. Most cats that live long enough eventually experience some degree of renal failure. That your cat, at SIXTEEN, has done so, is not a sign that you've not been feeding her a good diet--on the contrary, she's obviously been well cared for to reach this age. And Science Diet is hardly "garbage", but yes, there are better premium foods out there, especially if you can afford to pay a bit more. Lis >> appreciate advice on what would be the best diet for my 13 >> > year old cat. She has been fed on Hill's Science Plan for several [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > shopping, contains more filler, is higher-calorie, and is not as good > for their teeth as chewing kibble. All of these years, I was a firm believer in a dry food only diet. My reason was that I thought it would spare the cats' teeth. All I know is that Bullwinkle still ended up with periodontal disease despite my keeping up with his dentals and Amanda (at age 6) also has bad teeth. Alex, at age 16, has never needed a dental until now. Even at that it's questionable, but considering his age and CRF and cardiomyopathy, I'm not going to risk it. My point is that, regarding a cat's teeth, I think there is a certain genetic predisposition that comes into play, and it's not so simple as to say that limiting their diet to dry food will automatically assure good teeth. With respect to the canned food being higher calorie, that may be true, but the calories in the dry food are mostly from carbohydrate. Alex (the same 16-year-old cat with the CRF and cardiomyopathy) was actually *cured* of diabetes with the use of Lantus (glargine) insulin and a switch to a canned food/Purina OM dry food diet. He is no longer on the insulin and his blood glucoses (which I check about once a month) are consistently in the 80 to 90 range and have been for nearly a year. Alex (and Bullwinkle) have both lost weight on the canned food/OM diet. This weight loss may be due in part to aging or illness, but I was previously feeding them Iams Weight Control and no canned food. >BUT, that doesn't mean that there > are never reasons to switch to a canned diet, and in the OP's case, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > that you've not been feeding her a good diet--on the contrary, she's > obviously been well cared for to reach this age. I wasn't saying that I had necessarily been feeding him a bad diet. I was just saying that I had read a CRF website where someone was speculating about the causes of renal disease, and one opinion was that an all-dry food diet might be a contributor. All I know is that last year, after Alex was diagnosed with diabetes, my veterinarian encouraged me to switch to a part canned food diet because it contained a lot of water, which would increase his fluid intake, stating cats generally don't drink an equivalent of that amount. She said the additional moisture content would help with kidney function. I know this is an opinion held by many people, not just my veterinarian. Is it true? Don't know. But it's not as if my vet is employed by a cat food company. I do acknowledge that there are differences of opinion on this point, however. >And Science Diet is > hardly "garbage", but yes, there are better premium foods out there, > especially if you can afford to pay a bit more. As I said, I was reiterating an opinion expressed by other posters on this group. I don't have an opinion about it one way or the other. Best regards, ---Cindy S. > Lis > All of these years, I was a firm believer in a dry food only diet. My reason > was that I thought it would spare the cats' teeth. All I know is that [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > predisposition that comes into play, and it's not so simple as to say that > limiting their diet to dry food will automatically assure good teeth. I can also comment on this. My one cat, Rusty, always preferred dry food. Grady, on the other hand, mostly only ate canned food. Grady lived to be nearly 16 and never once needed his teeth cleaned. Rusty has needed his teeth cleaned regularly since he got older. And, he's lost a number of his teeth due to age (some cats tend to do this, I've been told). Grady died with a full mouth of teeth. So, it appears that the type of food made no difference in the condition of their teeth as they aged. At least not in our case. Rusty is very early stage CRF, his BUN and creatinine numbers are just over the normal line. He's been this way for a year or two now. He just turned 16 and recently had to have some dental work done, he'd broken a tooth and the vet thought it was beginning to abscess so what was left of it needed to be removed and the rest of his teeth needed to be cleaned. He came through the surgery just fine and is doing very well. I agree on the genetic disposition of cats' teeth. At least that appears to be the case for my boys. > With respect to the canned food being higher calorie, that may be true, but > the calories in the dry food are mostly from carbohydrate. Alex (the same [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > aging or illness, but I was previously feeding them Iams Weight Control and > no canned food. When Grady got sick, he was eating ravenously (nearly two 6oz cans of food per day) and still losing weight drastically. I asked the vet where all the food was going, she told me that a large portion of canned food is water, the rest ended up in the litter box since he was no longer digesting his food properly. Patty > >> "lyngiven" <lyngi...@hotmail.com> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 45 lines] > predisposition that comes into play, and it's not so simple as to say that > limiting their diet to dry food will automatically assure good teeth. Good thing I didn't say that, then, isn't it. > With respect to the canned food being higher calorie, that may be true, but > the calories in the dry food are mostly from carbohydrate. Alex (the same [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > aging or illness, but I was previously feeding them Iams Weight Control and > no canned food. Um, yah, it might. Not sure how you think that contradicts what I said, and yet it reads as if it's supposed to be one. > >BUT, that doesn't mean that there > > are never reasons to switch to a canned diet, and in the OP's case, [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > by a cat food company. I do acknowledge that there are differences of > opinion on this point, however. "Someone." "Speculated." Heck, it might even have been a knowledgable person who had solid evidence and arguments for the idea. Who knows? Not me, not from what you've said. "A CRF website" isn't even enough of a reference for me to go take a look for myself. Just because someone puts up a website, or posts something on a website someone else put up, doesn't mean they necessarily know what they're talking about. Doesn't mean they don't, either. That's why references matter. As for what your vet said about your cat--she's talking about a particular cat and that cat's medical condition. Details matter, too, and there ARE certainly circumstances where canned food is better. An older cat, who's having difficulty chewing kibble, or not taking in enough calories, or not taking in enough fluid, are all pretty obvious ones. <snip> Lis >> >> "lyngiven" <lyngi...@hotmail.com> wrote in message >> [quoted text clipped - 42 lines] >> > shopping, contains more filler, is higher-calorie, and is not as good >> > for their teeth as chewing kibble. Small firm poops can also be a sign of constipation. Where are your references regarding the caloric value of canned food? Or for that matter, that dry kibble is better than wet for teeth? >> All of these years, I was a firm believer in a dry food only diet. My >> reason [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > Not sure how you think that contradicts what I said, and yet it reads > as if it's supposed to be one. >> >BUT, that doesn't mean that there >> > are never reasons to switch to a canned diet, and in the OP's case, [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] > they're talking about. Doesn't mean they don't, either. That's why > references matter. And your references are??? You sound pretty sure of yourself and yet you've not given us any references either. From reading Cindy's post, she's just sharing her experience she's had with her cats. > As for what your vet said about your cat--she's talking about a > particular cat and that cat's medical condition. Details matter, too, > and there ARE certainly circumstances where canned food is better. An > older cat, who's having difficulty chewing kibble, or not taking in > enough calories, or not taking in enough fluid, are all pretty obvious > ones. Agreed > <snip> > > Lis I'm sorry you apparently took my post as some sort of a personal attack. It wasn't intended that way. It is normal on Usenet for people to have differences of opinion. Not everyone is going to agree all of the time. Best regards, ---Cindy S. >> >> "lyngiven" <lyngi...@hotmail.com> wrote in message >> [quoted text clipped - 136 lines] > > Lis Canned food is to a > great degree formulated to appeal to the cats' humans Actually, canned food is formulated to resemble the cat's natural diet. Cats have adapted to obtain most of their water from their diet. that's why canned food contains ~75% moisture. Cats fed canned food can meet almost their entire water requirement from their food- as in nature- and need to drink only very little. Cats fed dry food have a lower total water intake and water turnover, Dry food was developed for owner convenience and economy. who do the > shopping, contains more filler, is higher-calorie, Dry food on average has a higher caloric density than canned food, but most of those calories are useless carbohydrates- for which cats have no dietary need. and is not as good > for their teeth as chewing kibble. First of all, cats don't chew food- they can't. Their condyloid process is bar-shaped and only allows their jaw to move vertically. Their condyloid process is shaped like a bar to prevent lateral movement while the cat is holding struggling prey. Without lateral and rotary movement, cats *can't* chew. http://maxshouse.com/anatomy/mandible__right__medial_view.jpg Their teeth and jaws are designed to rip and cut in a shearing manner. Cats don't have first premolars or lower first or second premolars; the molars consist of a *single* upper and lower tooth on each side. So, cats have no teeth to grind food (masticate). When the cat closes her mouth the upper and lower carnassial teeth slide across each other producing a scissor-like cutting action, not a chewing action. So there's no dental benefit of eating dry food. The *only* dry foods that have some dental benefit are special dental diets that have large nuggets into which cats can sink their teeth. The nuggets must also be hard but not brittle so they don't shatter when the cats bites into them. Most dry foods are swallowed whole or shatter when bitten producing little to no dental benefit- which clearly don't offset the risks- especially for male cats. See "Dry Food vs Canned Food. Which is really better?" @ http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutrition.htm > -------- > I think everyone on this group will agree that a premium brand of canned [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > contribute to the development of this disease. I don't know if that's true > or not, but I wish I had fed all of my cats canned food from the beginning. Canned food is a great idea for your senior kitty. I too used dry but have long switched to canned/raw and the difference is amazing. Better fur and fewer hairballs. There are several good brands out there, but if possible, it's best to use a brand that does not contain grains. Cats actually have no dietary requirement for carbohydrates, and the grains are only filler. |
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