Kibbles and Digestion if cat has lost teeth

I have a 13-year old senior cat that lost the majority of her teeth from a very young age that has eaten dry food her entire life. She doesn't hesitate to eat the kibbles whole, but does on occasion throw up. Could eating kibbles whole cause her stomach to be upset more? I have thought about trying to break up the kibbles into smaller pieces to see if she would tolerate better. I've had her on Science Diet Senior dry but switched to Natural Balance dry a few months ago since a lot of people here say Science Diet is bad due to all the grain fillers. Natural Balance has a somewhat larger kibble so I have become more concerned about how her digestive system can handle it. It seems like shes thrown up more frequently since I switched to Natural balance dry. I guess I've thought about switching totally to wet food but the vet has said before wet food can lead to medical problems.

I also have a 1 year old cat that is eating the same food with no digestion problems. Their coats also feel so much softer after moving from Science Diet to Natural Balance.

I cant talk for experience but I do know a few toothless kittys on here that eat a mix of premium foods of varing sizes and they gum break them

Actually, cats frequently do not chew most of the kibble, regardless of whether they have all of their teeth or not. So I wouldn't think that, in and of itself, this would be the reason that your cat is throwing up.

How often does she vomit, by the way? Once in a while is pretty much normal, but itf it starts to be an everyday or every other day thing, that's really not a good sign.

Switching from Science Diet to Natural Balance was a good decision, for the reason that you mentioned. But I'm curious as to how you handled the changeover. Did you gradually make the switch from SD to NB --- meaning, did you mix the two foods together with an increased proportion of NB over a period of, say, 10 days to 2 weeks? Or was it a case of 1 day SD, the next day NB? If it's the latter, I would point to that as the primary culprit for the more frequent vomiting. Changing from one dry food to another needs to be done slowly, especially when going from a non-premium brand to a premium one as you've done. Otherwise it tends to upset the digestive system of most cats. And since your cat is a senior, her digestive system may be even more susceptible to upset.

And it's very disappointing to hear that your vet has said that wet food can lead to medical problems. Actually, if anything, the DRY food can lead to medical problems --- too many carbs and it does nothing to help a cat maintain an adequate intake of fluids, which over time can lead to a host of internal problems, especially as cats age. Many cats simply don't have a strong enough thirst drive to consume enough water. Don't get me wrong, I'm NOT trying to demonize dry food; I free-feed it to both my cats and one of them prefers it to canned food (I'm hoping to someday change her mind). What I'm saying is, all else being equal, canned is actually better for them than dry.

I mean, I know from reading countless posts on this forum that far too many vets don't seem to have the requisite knowledge when it comes to proper cat nutrition, which is simply shocking to me as they are, after all, in the health business. But your vet's statement is just way off base, as plenty of people here can tell you.

I mixed the Science Diet with Natural Balance until the bag ran out, which I think was around a week and a half. I guess with a senior cat it should be a more gradual process. My 1 year old has never had any throw up issues since the switch. She was actually on a dry food from the shelter I adopted her from called Authority. The ingredients on this food was even scarier to me than Science Diet! I wasn't really that particular on the amount I mixed together.. it was more like half of one and half of the other. I've been feeding Natural Balance for around 3 months now and still very few days there will be a throw up somewhere in the house. Its not as frequent as every day or every other day. I'd say on average 2 times a week I'll have to clean up some spots. My senior has always been a chow hound and is a bit overweight so maybe she's just eating too much now that I have two bowls out instead of one. I'm at work during the day so its kind of hard to say who's eating the most. I really need to be more strict on the amount I dump in the two bowls How do you guys handle putting out food for multiple cats? One or two bowls?

I have been growing more and more disgusted as I've learned more about what is in cat foods and how the grain industry seems to have such control over most of the food. I am pretty disturbed with vets pushing Science Diet and acting like it is the best food out there -- I know mine does. My memory is foggy but I think my vet has said that wet food can make cats prone to urinary tract infections and kidney problems... It was one or the other or maybe both. Something about too much ash or something??? Next time I go in for an annual check on the cats I will proudly say why I chose the food I chose due to my own research.

I really appreciate all the advice and I have definitely learned a lot from this site.

Is what she throws up whole kibbles or are they digested? If it's whole kibble, it's possible she's gulping air while trying to scarf down the kibbles. You might try spreading them out or elevating the bowl some to help her eat more slowly. If they are digested, I think it would be a good time for a vet visit.

Originally Posted by cloud_shade

Is what she throws up whole kibbles or are they digested? If it's whole kibble, it's possible she's gulping air while trying to scarf down the kibbles. You might try spreading them out or elevating the bowl some to help her eat more slowly. If they are digested, I think it would be a good time for a vet visit.

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She throws up kibbles that aren't very digested at all, in fact I can sweep them up off the floor in tact I think elevating the bowl might help. Since she doesn't crunch her food at all maybe she tends to gulp more air too. Also one of the bowls I have is a stainless steel bowl that is kind of deep that sits in sort of a grated plastic container that catches any kibbles that may drop down. The other bowl is flatter but pretty low to the ground. Interesting tips.. Sounds like these suggestions should help overall.

Thanks!

I've now got two "toofless" kitties. Both eat dry food & wet food easily. All shapes & sizes. I found that with Twitch, she would inhale everything. She is now free-fed....but for the longest time I had to feed her 4-8 small meals a day. If not, she'd eat so fast she would vomit.