A royal canin type wet cat food? Also, Yogurt?

I recently adopted a kitty from my local animal shelter who has a few special needs due to a sensitive digestive system. He needs to be injected with B12 monthly and the shelter had him on Royal Canin dry food (Green Pea and Venison flavored) because of a suspected protein allergy. However, now that the new kitty (Pip) and the cat I already owned (Jaders) like each other enough to mingle we're running into some problems.

Because of his sensitive tummy I was keeping Pip on a all dry diet (like the shelter had been), and only feeding Jaders wet food. This didn't work out at all. Despite being only 6lbs to Jader's 11, Pip is fully capable of bullying Jade off her wet food... Which gives him the runs. He also prefers Jader's dry food (Science Diet) to his Royal Canin food and will bully her off that too... Which gives him the runs. I had to stop feeding both cats any wet food and had to lock Jaders up at meal times while I transition her to the Royal stuff.

Tuesday I went to the vet for a checkup and microchip and asked him about wet food brands that I could feed both cats without making Pip sick, and the vet suggested I buy Royal Canin wet food... Which, according to the cans I bought, is vet exclusive...Which is over an hour away...

So I'm hoping that you guys have some suggestions on wet food that my kitty can eat. It has to be rarer proteins like venison, rabbit, duck, or lamb (my current cat food flavors) as the more traditional proteins make him ill. I already tried cooking chicken for him (thinking he may be allergic to some byproducts rather then the meats themselves) and got vomited on to prove that theory wrong.

Also, I was wondering what you guys think about feeding him yogurt once and awhile. Today I went downstairs to sign for a package and when I got back to my desk my yogurt cup (vanilla) was on the ground with a Pip happily licking it up. I know that yogurt is supposed to be good for human digestion, but what about cats? I know that, if I gave him some, I would have to give him the natural unflavored yogurt, but would this hurt him?

A vet once recommended plain yogurt with active cultures to help Buster get over a bad case of diarrhea. She said it replaces beneficial bacteria in the intestines that is sometimes killed off by taking antibiotics for other ailments. It seemed to have worked and every once in a while he still gets it as a treat.

RC canned is only gotten thru vets, so I don't blame you. Have you looked into foods that are more lamb based in the canned? Maybe that would work?

Talk to your vet about this... just ask him about the by product ?? ... IMHO not likely as named by product like chicken by product is chicken organs and bones

IMHO yogurt is not a good digestive aid as it Contains VERY VERY little of the probiotics that could help

Pinning down which food ingredient a kitty is sensitive to, can be quite challenging. On top of that, feeding different foods to your multi kitty household adds to the fun.

My Isis is currently eating Royal Canin Venison and Pea and doing quite well.
I am gradually trying to find a less limited food that she can eat.
So far I have found that corn and chicken seem to be OK but I have not found the ingredient that causes her problems.

Regarding your question about using yogurt...
instead of using yogurt, I use FortiFlora (recommended and sold by my vet) for a digestive aid.
Although, rather expensive, my cats love the taste.
Info linked below...
http://www.purinaveterinarydiets.com....aspx?prod=240
I used the FortaFlora site rebate. It helped with the cost.

Some members have success with BeniBac found at most pet supply stores.
Info linked below...
http://www.petag.com/products_items....3&CategoryID=2

I hope this info helped you a little...
Keep us updated please.
The solution you find for your kitty might be of help to other members.
We are in this together.

Hello and welcome! Hurray for you for adopting an adult special needs cat from the shelter!

See if you can get the royal canin canned on line and have it delivered. Once you find a supplier, you just have your vet write a prescription.

Another thought is, I know Hill's Prescription has implemented a home delivery program, Royal Canin probably won't be far behind with that, so something else to look into.

Ootay (rb 5/09) loved yogurt, and had a little every day, since I eat it every day. Not much, just to lick out the cup, so there isn't any harm in him having that as a treat.

As was said, more concentrated probiotics would be fortiflora or probios, or benebac.

Hi, would this be of any help for your situation? http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/cat...s/allergy.html

They have both dry and canned food with limited ingredients. Maybe you could print the ingredients list and ask your vet about these.

If there is not a local pet store that can get these for you, you could order online. Some of the online sites offer a coupon which will usually cover any shipping costs. www.petfooddirect is one of several that I use.

If you can get something that agrees with Pip then maybe you could transition Jade to the same and simplify meal times for you.

As for the yogurt, I'm sure there are many differences of opinions. The question of will it hurt for a TREAT should be fine, but you can check with your vet. I have a conventional vet that is also an alternative vet. She recommends plain, no/low sugar yogurt. We are talking about a teaspoon, not a cup.

Good luck to you.

Originally Posted by Skimble

If you can get something that agrees with Pip then maybe you could transition Jade to the same and simplify meal times for you.

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That is a really good idea.

Thank you everyone for your advice!

I did manage to find the Natural Balance food at the local feed store and a bought a couple cans of each flavor. We'll see how they do. Pip at least loved the venison and green pea flavor. He ate every bite in record time! Jaders only ate about half of it, but that's better then I expected since I had thought she wouldn't even touch it.

xocats, thanks for the advice about FortiFlora. I'm going to try and see how this food change affects him first before I get the vet to prescribe some for me. The less I spend buying expensive supplements from the vet, the more I can spend buying them kitty toys after all!

Originally Posted by Skimble

Hi, would this be of any help for your situation? http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/cat...s/allergy.html

They have both dry and canned food with limited ingredients. Maybe you could print the ingredients list and ask your vet about these.

If there is not a local pet store that can get these for you, you could order online. Some of the online sites offer a coupon which will usually cover any shipping costs. www.petfooddirect is one of several that I use.

If you can get something that agrees with Pip then maybe you could transition Jade to the same and simplify meal times for you.

As for the yogurt, I'm sure there are many differences of opinions. The question of will it hurt for a TREAT should be fine, but you can check with your vet. I have a conventional vet that is also an alternative vet. She recommends plain, no/low sugar yogurt. We are talking about a teaspoon, not a cup.

Good luck to you.

Click to expand...

yes, that's what I meant. I didn't mean I let her eat a whole cup of yogurt. She just licked out the edges after I finished.