Advice for Sensitive Digestive Systems

My very first cat passed away in February after eating tainted or spoiled dry food (Iams) -- I admittedly hadn't done much research into pet food prior to this, and my cats had been eating Iams their entire lives with zero health problems.

Currently in my household there is a ten year old Himalayan named Sophie and a six month old shorthair named Mose and I am having trouble figuring out what to feed them. They get two 3 oz cans of Wellness per day, one in the morning and one at night. Well, Mose eats most of it. Sophie has had problems dealing with wet food her entire life. She usually vomits it up immediately after eating it, regardless of what brand it is or how much she eats. However, she is doing better on Wellness than anything else I've tried and she does eat some every day.

She also fell ill from the tainted food and was hospitalized for four days, but pulled through. But in the past two months she's had a barrage of bloodwork and has been dewormed twice -- they both have. I think her issue is just having a sensitive stomach rather than a disease. She's never had a litterbox problem.

So unfortunately due to her system I find that I need to supplement their diet with some dry food. I tried Wellness Complete Health (in the blue bag). But they both developed loose stools (the consistency of pancake batter). I shifted them to Pro Plan Chicken and Rice thinking that they couldn't handle the fruits and veggies in the Wellness. And now they are both constipated! They still go every day but their stool is far too hard and I know that's not any better on their systems than loose stools.

Does anyone know of a happy medium? I'm thinking the Wellness is too rich. Mose is nearly ten pounds and the vet said he can eat adult food. He has all of his adult teeth. I do not have a problem spending money on their food. They mean the world to me and I want to do right by them after failing Max, my first cat.

I'm sorry this message is so long. It's the first time I've asked for advice on a forum like this.

First off, welcome to TCS!

Now, I will say that I am NOT a nutrition expert, there are others here that are more knowledgeable than me. However, I had a similar issue as you as my two boys are 8 years old and almost 1 year old. I switched them to California Natural dry food and the young one's soft poops firmed up, however now I think the older one is having some constipation issues.

Anyways, California Natural is a VERY simple food - it has, I think, five ingredients and added vitamins and minerals. It's also very reasonably priced.

I'm sure others will be along at some point to add in their two cents.

Good luck!

Have you looked at California Natural Chicken and Rice ? Simple ingredients.
http://www.californianaturalpet.com/...ault.asp?id=72 All of mine liked it.

Taste of the Wild also worked well. http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com...eline_formula/
One of mine seems to have a sensitive digestive system. Not diagnosed by the vet but by how she responded to different foods. She does well on both of these.

I looked at this one for sensitive systems and have not tried it yet. http://shop.halopets.com/Dry-Cat-Sensitive

The canned food I use are different brands. I try to stay with the Wellness grain frees, Wellness Core canned and Blue Wilderness.

There are some very knowledgeable people on pet nutrition that will better advise. Maybe let your vet know how they react to different foods as he/she can look for health issues causing the reactions to different foods.

Hi, I have one that has a sensitive stomach too, I think he might have food allergies. Because all the food he has ever had contained Chicken, and Chicken can be consider an allergen, I decided to remove this ingredient completely from his diet. I am currently transitioning him to Natural Balance Green Pea and Duck Limited Ingredient Formula. I am also changing his wet food to the same brand, which has 2 limited ingredients flavors. Peas can be an allergen too, but none of his food had peas, so my first priority wasto remove the current allergens from his diet.
My only concern with this food is that it tastes pretty blend to me (but pretty good too ).
Something that has helped him a lot as well is Holistic Solution, a food additive that contains pro and pre biotics, as well as digestive enzymes.
I hope you find a food that helps your kitty - I strongly advise Holistic Solution independently of what you are feeding...

Originally Posted by carolinalima

Hi, I have one that has a sensitive stomach too, I think he might have food allergies. Because all the food he has ever had contained Chicken, and Chicken can be consider an allergen, I decided to remove this ingredient completely from his diet. I am currently transitioning him to Natural Balance Green Pea and Duck Limited Ingredient Formula. I am also changing his wet food to the same brand, which has 2 limited ingredients flavors. Peas can be an allergen too, but none of his food had peas, so my first priority wasto remove the current allergens from his diet.
My only concern with this food is that it tastes pretty blend to me (but pretty good too

).
Something that has helped him a lot as well is Holistic Solution, a food additive that contains pro and pre biotics, as well as digestive enzymes.
I hope you find a food that helps your kitty - I strongly advise Holistic Solution independently of what you are feeding...

Click to expand...

If worried about a chicken allergy duck would be one I would NOT consider

I would compare the fiber content of the previous foods .. on ave 3-5% is what most non hairball foods contain...

california natural is a good option( since it is all stage )

I would also suggest looking at Nutro and Royal canin

Oh, I'm glad to see people mentioning California Natural. I stumbled across it just this morning while doing more research. I think I'm going to try this one. I like the fact that it has very few ingredients.

my kitten had a severe bout of diarrhea and vomiting
the vet put him on hills i/d wet and dry
I have been succesfully transitioning him to natures balance duck and pea can
and to before grain chicken dry
He is doing great his coat looks shinier and hes got firm normal stool and great energy

duck and pea
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Duck, Duck Broth, Duck Liver, Pea Flour, Pea Protein, Salmon Oil, Dicalcium Phosphate, Guar Gum, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Sodium Chloride, Flaxseed, Dried Cranberries, Yucca Schidigera, Carrageenan, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Niacin Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Pantothenate, Calcium Iodate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement.


Before Grain Chicken Cat Ingredients:
Chicken Deboned, Chicken Meal, Potato Dehydrated, Turkey Meal, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols - a source of Natural Vitamin E), Sweet Potato Dehydrated, Dried Egg, Natural Flavor, Yeast Culture, Dicalcium Phosphate, Lysine, Sea Salt, Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Choline Chloride, Acai Berry Dried, Blueberry Dried, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Rosemary Extract, Taurine, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Chondroitin Sulfate, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chicory Root, Marigold Extract, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcus Faecium, Lactobacillus Casei, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin E Supplement, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Copper Amino Acid Complex, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Lecithin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate, Sodium Selenite.

Before Grain Chicken Cat Guaranteed Analysis:
Protein 36.0%; Fat 18.0%; Moisture 11.0%; Fiber 3.0%.

Before Grain Chicken Calorie Content:
3780 kcal/kg - one pound provides 1719 kcal of metabolizable energy. One cup (100 grams) provides 409 calories.