Food for several cat types.

worriedmommy

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You all seem so knowledgeable so I was wondering if anyone could help me with a good food for mixed health problems. After losing our precious Marbles to a dead colon, I am really wanting to help our remaining cats get the best nutrition.
Here are the needs of my three cats:
Tosh is 12 and is diabetic.
Oreo (also lovingly refered to as double-stuffed oreo
) is 4 years old and needs to lose weight. She is FIV positive.
Snickers seems to be in good health. She is going to be two at the end of September.
All three are indoor only.

So going with those specific needs is there a food that I could feed all of them? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.
 

tarasgirl06

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With health issues such as Oreo and Tosh have, I would really want to consult a good, trusted vet on food, though I'm sure there are a lot of members here who are familiar with those particular concerns and may be able to recommend something just right. GOOD LUCK to you all, and may Snickers continue to be the picture of good health (not to mention cuteness!)
btw, Oreo looks a lot like our sweet Rani girl! And as for Tosh, he looks very handsome to me...
 
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worriedmommy

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Originally Posted by Tarasgirl06

With health issues such as Oreo and Tosh have, I would really want to consult a good, trusted vet on food, though I'm sure there are a lot of members here who are familiar with those particular concerns and may be able to recommend something just right. GOOD LUCK to you all, and may Snickers continue to be the picture of good health (not to mention cuteness!)
btw, Oreo looks a lot like our sweet Rani girl! And as for Tosh, he looks very handsome to me...
Well we have them all on a diabetic food now. Just curious if anyone else would have any suggestions.
Looking at your signature I think that Oreo does look like Rani too. My boys do not understand that there can be other cats that look like ours. My middle boy thought for sure we had someone's cat that ran away cause they said it was black and white like Oreo
 

jean44

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I understand how you feel, multiple cats and multiple health problems. Two of my boys, Kolohe and Eric, have a history of crystals. Eric is also potentially diabetic-he has had high blood glucose. Kolohe, Tiggy and Stumper have been overweight.

I finally determined that a high quality, grain free all wet diet was the best option for all the health issues. I'm currently feeding them Wellness and Natural Balance. Kolohe and Eric receive fish free flavors due to their history of crystals. The high protein, low carbohydrate content of this type of food keeps Eric's BG at a normal level and has helped all three overweight kitties lose the needed pounds. Wet food is helpful for urinary tract health because the moisture in the food encourages frequent urination. The less time the urine spends in the bladder the less opportunity for bacteria and crystals to develop.

Here are some web sites you might be interested in.
http://www.yourdiabeticcat.com/protocol.html
http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/catweight.html
http://www.littlebigcat.com/?action=...needcannedfood

Good luck finding an appropriate food that all of your cats will eat and thrive on.
 
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worriedmommy

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Thank you SO much Jean44! I will look into those. Oreo actually is getting over a UTI so that is good to know as well. Thanks again!
 

slgrant642

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Have you or anyone else ever considered feeding your cats a raw diet? I had to hand raise an orphan kitten(my neighbors dog killed her mama and 3 of her litter mates, but she was hidden and three days after her mama was killed she started crying, that is how I found her).

She was only 4 days old and weighed just 4 ounces when mama was killed, survived three days without any milk before she decided to cry out. I strugged with bottle feeding her with KRM for 2 weeks, she constantly had diarrhea and cried from hunger. We feed all our dogs raw diets, cats are pure carnivores even more so than dogs, so naturally at 3 weeks old I offered her some of our fresh ground whole chicken mixed with a little bit of her KMR, she just went crazy over it, she "nursed" it all out of the little bowl, and was satisfied for 3 times longer than she was on just plain KMR, she went from the 7 ounces she weighed when I started feeding her raw, to over one pound in 2 weeks, I havn't weighed her lately because she is growing and thriving now at 15 weeks old, but now she eats the ground chicken, ground beef with kidney, liver and heart, green tripe, chicken necks and whatever else she wants. There are no carbs to worry about, just pure unadulterated raw meat, organ meats and bones. Being a staunch believer in raw diets for carnivores, I do not feel in the least inclined to give my animals any sort of dry kibble or commercial foods. I don't know what is in the mass produced commercial cat foods, no matter what the labels say, with my raw diet, I know exactly what m cat is getting with no fears of her being harmed by hidden, unknown poisons.
 

sharky

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I have feed raw to a cat ... BUT I URGE anyone wanting to do it to find a VET WITH NUTRITION knowledge and a willingness to help..One raw mix was recalled for salmonella .... Untold amounts of HUMAN meats are recalled every yr for salmonella and ecoli SO NOPE IT is NOT recall proof either ..

To The OP
I would suggest talking about the grain free wets with your vet..Jean44 put it together very well
 

tarasgirl06

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Dear slgrant:

Are you positive your cats get all the nutrients they need from a raw diet, or do you use vitamin supplements and if so, which one(s)? How much do you feed a day for an adult? And I have heard that raw meats can contain salmonella and other potentially very dangerous bacteria. What's your feeling on this?
 

sharky

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Salmonella/ ecoli is a serious concern.. One of our old timers on here lost a cat to it ... But My vet has NEVER in four yrs seen a animal sick from raw meat bacteria ... so I would say it is rare as there systems and ours are somewhat designed to handle small amounts

Raw amount ... this site has a great calc ... www.barfdirect.com...

Kandie ate about 5-6 ounces and should have been 13-14 lbs

Basically supplements are an option for a cat if you feed meat bone and organs in the right % .... I do and likely always will supplement , I think of it like me I take a supplement in case I am not getting something with my diet..

the correct proportions are
60-75% muscle meat
10-15% bone
10-15% organ meat( liver not to exceed 100/300 grams a week)
3-10% veggies if desired
 

tarasgirl06

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THANKS, Sharky! I copied that URL and the info to file. That is something I will give serious consideration to! Hope it's helpful to other TCS members, too.
 
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worriedmommy

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Thank you all SO much for all the great info. I did feed a raw diet to our cats about three years ago but had to stop cause my health took a bad turn and I could not keep up with it. My cats would only eat FRESHLY made raw food ...no refrigerated
It was too much for me to do. I have been thinking about trying it again. Thanks for all the info on it. If I can't do that then I am looking into the other suggestions of the all moist and grain-free. Thank you all again. This has been a huge help!
 

kalikat

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I've read some of the info on only feeding canned food to cats. What is done for their dental health if not eating dry food? I know for my dogs I give them raw meaty bones.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by Kalikat

I've read some of the info on only feeding canned food to cats. What is done for their dental health if not eating dry food? I know for my dogs I give them raw meaty bones.
Truth is wet food doesnt stick to teeth ... while dry does thus less plaque build up with all wet diets ....

Some cats will chew necks of chicken or turkey which would help greatly with dental health
 
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