Help me save Zee from SD

Long story short, Zee was bloating and very gassy. The breeder suggested SD Hairball formula (yeah crazy, hairball formula for a naked cat ).

She told me these cats just seem to have bloating issues with food that is to rich or high in protien. The hairball formula helps with tummy issues and kept poo firmer. She was feeding Pro PLan chicken/rice hairball formula with Natures Variety Chicken. I was also feeding this food to Zee when he came home.

So I bought a bag and much to my delight the bloating has gone away and the poo is firm again. He seems happier and he looks wonderful.

What can I do? This stuff is expensive and I am not impressed with the formulation. $50.00 for 17.5 pounds of what I feel is "meh" catfood just rubs me and the wallet the wrong way.

Actually I understand the hairball food idea .. see most hairball food s are HIGHER in fatty acids which in the case of a hairless cat would = softer more supple skin...

Is that an issue your having?

if so royal canin, nutro and natural balance ( the original) are grain containing foods that make formulas of either hairball or higher in fatty acids... Grain free foods are usually not as high in fatty acids why I only have hypothesis ..

gas is usually caused by corn , wheat , SOY ( most likely) and chicken

Chicken Soup for the Soul has a hairball/senior formula that looks pretty good, although I haven't tried it yet. Here's the breakdown:
First 5 ingredients: Chicken, salmon, chicken meal, cracked pearled barley, white rice
Crude Protein (Min) 30%
Crude Fat (Min) 13%
Moisture (Max) 10%
Crude Fiber (Max) 8%
Ash (Max) 6.5%
Omega-6 Fatty Acids (Min) 2.2%
Selenium (Min) mg/kg 0.4%
Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Min) 0.4%
Taurine (Min) 0.15%
Magnesium (Max) 0.1%

Definitely looks better than the SD food:
First 5 ingredients: Chicken By-Product Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Powdered Cellulose
Protein (minimum) 29%
Fat (minimum) 18%
Moisture (maximum) 10%
Fiber (maximum) 10%
(Sorry, no other info I could find)

Originally Posted by Willowy

Chicken Soup for the Soul has a hairball/senior formula that looks pretty good, although I haven't tried it yet. Here's the breakdown:
First 5 ingredients: Chicken, salmon, chicken meal, cracked pearled barley, white rice
Crude Protein (Min) 30%
Crude Fat (Min) 13%
Moisture (Max) 10%
Crude Fiber (Max) 8%
Ash (Max) 6.5%
Omega-6 Fatty Acids (Min) 2.2% many grocery brands have this amount ... IMHO 3% plus is a good amount
Selenium (Min) mg/kg 0.4%
Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Min) 0.4%
Taurine (Min) 0.15%
Magnesium (Max) 0.1%

Definitely looks better than the SD food:
First 5 ingredients: Chicken By-Product Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Powdered Cellulose
Protein (minimum) 29%
Fat (minimum) 18%
Moisture (maximum) 10%
Fiber (maximum) 10%
(Sorry, no other info I could find)

Click to expand...

it is decent and very well priced in some areas

I will have to keep an eye on this thread as my sphynx boy is pretty bloated, gassy and has the runs. I have cut him off the wet food I have been feeding and have bought some stuff by Nutro (can't remember the name LOL) to try. I have been feeding him small amounts of pumpkin and his poops aren't watery now, just a softer stool. I am hoping in a few days he'll be better but I want to know what is the best thing for him.

Keep us posted, I am keeping my eye on this thread

I am going to try some of the foods you suggested Sharky. I know Zee wont eat Nutro anything, we did try that already.

As for the Chicken Soup..I have not seen that at any pet food stores around here.

If chicken is an issue and causes gas..Zee is in BIG trouble LOL that is by far hi favorite protien.

Skewch, I know we talked about our bloated boys in another thread. My vet actually had me worried, but like I think I mentioned, he did not cut out wet food. I called and we discused that and he feels that the wet food is more benficial to them and it should be left in the diet if at all possible. I also gave small amounts of pumpkin, it did help quite a bit.

I was at my wits end when I bought the SD Hairball and the fact that it has worked so well annoys me in a way LOL I know it is a less than great food and I feel it is extremely overpriced.

Its just nice to see Zee slimmed out again and looking well. I will let you know how other foods affect him.

Originally Posted by anita1216

As for the Chicken Soup..I have not seen that at any pet food stores around here.

Click to expand...

It's not generally sold in pet stores....usually independent feed stores. Here's the link to the store locator: http://www.chickensoupforthepetlover...ealer_locator/

My Luke was gassy and had loose stools. I switched him to only feeding wet food- wellness grain free and he was all better within like 2 days.

The problem with my Monty is from the wet food. I had cut him off for 2 days with great results and then today, let him have some Innova wet and he's back to watery poos. It is extremely foul smelling as well. He doesn't just do it nicely either, he wears it as well. That boy has had about the same amount of baths as my girls and he's only been here just under 3 weeks! I have decided he has a very sensitive stomach and I need to watch and ensure he doesn't get anymore wet food until I can find something that he's not sensitive to. It's going to be a lot of trial and error, but he's worth it....and my nose will appreciate it LOL

If Cleo eats certain foods the samething happens.
I still have her on what the breeder said to give her.
I did try some can foods and she stnk and had soggy.
She is fine on wet lamb and rice though.

Okay, first I just had a cat digagnosed with IBD. Second, he had horrible load of parasites.

He was gassy, foul poo that was very runny and stinky. For over
8 months I couldn't figure it out. Finally finally I made the connection
with foods.

Cure? First thing we wormed him. His worm load was horrific.
For whatever reason...that helped enormously.

Second the stinky poo indicated a small intestine issue,
with fat digestion - so I put him on a higer protein lower fat diet - dry only.

I used the one that was mid range with okay ingredients -
Wilderness Blue Buffalo - 45 percent protein the balance is
fats and carbs. No corn, soy, wheat. no by products. Turkey meal, Fish meal and sweet potato ... cranberries and a few anti oxidents.

I gave him pro biotics - to recolonize his gut I do that
every few days to help with stinky gases.

AND - I used wet Natural Balance Pea and Duck or Pea and Venison
as elimination diet to cut out whatever bothers him... As SOON
as he went back to wet food not NB, he got gassy again.

He won't eat NB venison, so we are reduced to using duck...

Sucks. I have one other organic we the can eat but seems to not
like much. Fortunately he does eat the dry stuff, and that
seems okay with him....

Petsmart doesn't carry the NB, have to go to Petco for it.
They do have Blue Buffalo however.

Seems to be a highly difficult issue with many cats. Raw
diet supposedly "cures" alot of these problems.

Since i've no time and 4 other cats, I don't do the raw diet.
But - Natural Instincts plus Feline Future supposedly combine
to make an "easy" raw alternative to doing it all your self.

Both are on line. One is ground meats, the other is the
powder that has all the additional nutrients cats need.

Feed like they were living outside! After all they ARE
obligate carnivores...

My 2 cents! Hope it helps someone out....

He still bloats a bit, but his poo is firm, and not stinky any more.