Spinoff of cat thread: canned vs. dry food...?

[trista]

I recently had a cat die of kidney disease, and maybe that could have been prevented by feeding him canned food.... I'll never know, but I do wish I'd have fed him canned.

My current cat I got when he was an adult, and I don't know what he was fed before, but I'm sure it was dry food because he is now diabetic. I have to give him insulin injections twice a day.

We now feed him only canned. My only problem with canned is his poop stinks really bad, and I mean seriously, heinous. Would a different food help that? He has to have potassium supplements b/c of the diabetes though, so I don't know if that is what makes his poop stink.

[Biciclista]

My only problem with canned is his poop stinks really bad, and I mean seriously, heinous. Would a different food help that? He has to have potassium supplements b/c of the diabetes though, so I don't know if that is what makes his poop stink.

Cats fed raw meat don't have stinky feces

[indysteel]

Trista,

I've fed my cats both wet and dry food and neither has caused foul smelling poo. The only cat I've had with that problem had a variety of health issues, including IBS and thyroid disease. I would make sure nothing else was going on in your cat's gut or endocrine system before assuming it was just a matter of diet.

[Koronin]

Becky, you could also look at the Royal Canin prescription foods. When Ariel had her stones we looked at both Science Diet (Hills) and Royal Canin and choose to go with Royal Canin because the ingredient are a bit better. Not great, but better than Science Diet. Of course our vet had to special order the food since the office carried Science Diet. However my vet actually uses Royal Canin prescription over Science Diet for her cats as well. Our new vet (after moving across the state) carries Royal Canin prescription and Innova in her office.

[trista]

Cats fed raw meat don't have stinky feces

Yes, I think his food is the problem. There was no stink till we switched to dry from canned. He's been recently tested for everything under the sun when he was super sick from untreated diabetes and he's otherwise healthy. And I admit to getting the cheap cans, only because I didn't know better. I keep the Janet & Binky food charts in my purse to help me decide on low-carb foods, but I don't think the ones I'm choosing are good for his intestines (he seems to have a sensitive gut).

I don't have the time or energy for a raw-meat diet though, so I'm trying some different canned & frozen brands to see if a change will help. Any favorite brands? I am trial-ing Nature's Variety, Evo and ZiwiPeak so far and am open to suggestions.

[indysteel]

Just a thought, Trista. You might try a supplement that Purina makes called FortiFlora. It's basically a probiotic. My cats use it after they' e been treated with antibiotics and it helps get their guts back to normal. Ask your vet for it. They may also sell it at Petsmart.

[trista]

Good idea Indy, I will try that

[Atlas]

Frisbee gets Wellness or Newman's Own Organic canned food and he always has a bowl of Wellness kibble to snack on. I was just looking at the Janet and Binky chart (which I remember reading when we first adopted Fris) and was surprised that Wellness wasn't as high in protein as I thought it was. Still good grain-free food, but I figured it'd be higher. I get Wellness because it's available where I work so I can use my discount.

[bmccasland]

Turns out Chloe kitten has a mild case of pneumonia. But the x-ray also showed that she was gassy and FOS (full of s**t). Vet says she needs more fiber in her diet. Because Calypso seems to be sensitive to chicken, both have been getting Duck & Green Pea. I have a 30-day supply of FortiFlora (pro-biotics) to add to her food which should help in the short term, but I need to find a long term solution.

I really don't intend to "cook" for the kitties, so am looking for a commercially supplied food.