Are their risk with feeding grain free to a male?

followedbydolls

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He is neutered and almost 4{this Aug} his sister turns 4 next week.

I am still on the hunt for a secondary kibble and may try again a grain free option however are their any issues i should be worried about with this style of food with my boy?

Thanks.
 

motoko9

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I am sure Sharky will be along shortly to give her perspective, but I wanted to chime in and say that this is of interest to me as well. I feed a premium dry food (as well as canned food) to my guys; I've considered a grain-free dry, but like you, I have some concerns.
 

yosemite

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Yes Sharky is our guru but I will tell you my vet told me to keep an eye on Bijou when I changed to Orijen. Sharky knows all the medical reasons so I'll let her chime in with knowledgeable information.
 
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followedbydolls

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

Yes Sharky is our guru but I will tell you my vet told me to keep an eye on Bijou when I changed to Orijen. Sharky knows all the medical reasons so I'll let her chime in with knowledgeable information.
Thank you, may i ask what exactly you were supposed to keep an eye on?
 

sharky

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Grain free and the male cat


I will try to explain this in a simple yet educated way


grain free DRY foods have EXCESSIVELY Higher levels of Calcium ,Phosphorus most have higher than UTI "safe" levels of Magnesium

this is a MADE UP example


grain free calcium min2.5 , phos min 1.9 , mag max .12

UTI friendly calcium max 1.0 , phos max .9 , magnesium max .085
 

dusty's mom

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Originally Posted by sharky

Grain free and the male cat


I will try to explain this in a simple yet educated way


grain free DRY foods have EXCESSIVELY Higher levels of Calcium ,Phosphorus most have higher than UTI "safe" levels of Magnesium

this is a MADE UP example


grain free calcium min2.5 , phos min 1.9 , mag max .12

UTI friendly calcium max 1.0 , phos max .9 , magnesium max .085
So what does this mean Sharkey? I thought it was better to feed healthy cats a more "meaty" food with less grain and fillers, but are you implying that cheap grainy food is better?
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by Dusty's Mom

So what does this mean Sharkey? I thought it was better to feed healthy cats a more "meaty" food with less grain and fillers, but are you implying that cheap grainy food is better?
both have pros and cons... for me I am mixing both( as I have two with PH issues that got worse on NO grain dry ) and increasing wet and homemade/ raw / freeze dried

Meat based food in a moist base ie wet food is better for overall health ... In a dry form it has some IMHO major cons for a male cat or a female with uti issues
 

yosemite

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I have recently started adding some grain food in with Bijou's Orijen. I got some samples at the 2 pet shows I was at recently so I'm trying them out to see if he likes them. I also toss in about 10 pieces of SD T/D to help with any teeth issues since Sharky says it's been proven to be of some help.

I may have to find another wet food as well since I understand Merricks is going up in price to $1.89 a can in Canada and $1.15 in the US. (5 oz can.).
 
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followedbydolls

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

I have recently started adding some grain food in with Bijou's Orijen. I got some samples at the 2 pet shows I was at recently so I'm trying them out to see if he likes them. I also toss in about 10 pieces of SD T/D to help with any teeth issues since Sharky says it's been proven to be of some help.

I may have to find another wet food as well since I understand Merricks is going up in price to $1.89 a can in Canada and $1.15 in the US. (5 oz can.).
so what did you get for samples? and yikes on the merrick, mine won't eat their wet but my dogs do.. it's over $3CAD for a tin of it.
 

sharky

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?? for the Canadians HOW much is go naturals ?? or now ??
 

sweetpea24

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I just bought a small bag of Now! kitten food for $15.49 Cdn. So now I'm scared that my male kitten will have issues. I have been concentrating on preventing the cats' urinary issues and then my dog gets struvite crystals!!

So should I be looking for foods with grain then? Or if we go the all canned route, canthat be grain-free?
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by SweetPea24

I just bought a small bag of Now! kitten food for $15.49 Cdn. So now I'm scared that my male kitten will have issues. I have been concentrating on preventing the cats' urinary issues and then my dog gets struvite crystals!!

So should I be looking for foods with grain then? Or if we go the all canned route, canthat be grain-free?
all canned can be grain free I still use one occasionally with some grain ...

No yelling corn and corn gluten aid in uti health in poultry drys
 
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