Grain food for a male kitty

I have an 11 month old male Himalayan kitty and Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]m currently giving him TOTW and Fromm Surf & Turf for dry food. I mix the two together and he loves it. My concern is both are no-grain and he is a male cat. I would like to switch the Fromm Surf & Turf to a food with some grain, Fromm Gold or Wellness Complete Health. I listed the ingredients below. Does one look better than the other or are they about the same? I know the basic to look for but after that Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]m clueless.

FROMM Adult Gold dry food (gold & green bag)
Duck, Chicken Meal, Pearled Barley, Rice, Salmon Meal, Tomato Pomace, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Chicken, Whole Egg, Chicken Liver, Potato, Salmon Oil (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Oat Fiber, Cheese, Flaxseed, Brewers Dried Yeast, DL-Methionine, Alfalfa Meal, Lecithin, Chicken Cartilage, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Chicory Root Extract, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Taurine, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Bifidobacterium Longum, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcous Faecium, Vitamin A, D3, E, B12 Supplements, Choline Chloride, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Riboflavin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Biotin, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Carbonate, Manganous Oxide, Copper Oxide, Cobalt Carbonate, Calcium Iodate, Sorbic Acid, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Sodium Selenite.

Wellness Complete Health adult dry food (blue bag)
Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Rice, Ground Barley, Ground Rice, Chicken Fat(preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a natural source of Vitamin E), Natural Chicken Flavor, Salmon Meal, Chicken Liver, Cranberries, Tomato Pomace, Olive Oil, Chicory Root Extract, Cranberry Extract Powder, Cranberry Fiber, Flaxseed, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Beta-Carotene, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B-12 Supplement), Choline Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Chondroitin Sulfate, Glucosamine, Hydrochloride, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcus Faecium, Lactobacillus Casei, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Taurine, Rosemary Extract.

May I ask why you're concerned about the lack of grain?

Cats don't actually need grain in their diets, and many cannot digest it properly. I recommend people avoid cat foods with grain if they can afford to do so.

It's only typically added to commercial pet food as a cheap filler and a cheaper way to bump up certain nutritional values as opposed to using more meat.

You guys need come together and make up your mind.
Male cats need grain to avoid urinary issues or they dont.

Originally Posted by madara

You guys need come together and make up your mind.

Male cats need grain to avoid urinary issues or they dont.

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Really? I'd never heard that before. Everything I've read about grain in cat food is that it typically does more harm than good and has little to no nutritional value for them.

I thought it was wet food that helps prevent urinary issues in male cats? Not grain food.

I believe its a strict grain-free DRY diet that can give them urinary issues. (Correct me if I am wrong) I don't think it is a problem as long as wet food is a big part of their food intake. I have Parker on grain-free wet food only and he is doing fine so far. To be sure, I even add extra water to his food.

Originally Posted by LuvMyParker

I believe its a strict grain-free DRY diet that can give them urinary issues. (Correct me if I am wrong) I don't think it is a problem as long as wet food is a big part of their food intake. I have Parker on grain-free wet food only and he is doing fine so far. To be sure, I even add extra water to his food.

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Correct the imbalance in a dry is not present in the wet

That makes sense. I would think if a cat has UTI issues already, or you're worried about them developing, a wet food would be a much better option than any kind of dry.

Originally Posted by saitenyo

That makes sense. I would think if a cat has UTI issues already, or you're worried about them developing, a wet food would be a much better option than any kind of dry.

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True but many cats will starve vs eat wet.. Hense the old adage the best food is one the cat Will Eat.. I have two like that , but it is because both were feral caught and thus associated humans and food with dry ... Six years with one and she will eat a little wet or raw but not enough to sustain

I have done quite a bit of reading on the subject since I have a boy, and its not strictly about wet versus dry or grain versus grain-free in and of itself, its about risk factors for elevated urine PH.

Dehydration, high mercury levels, very high animal protein levels, and free feeding lots of small meals a day can all contribute.

- An exclusive dry food diet is a risk factor for mild but chronic dehydration in some cats that don't have a strong thirst drive.
- Some dry foods, especially those with fish as a big portion of the protein content, can have high mercury levels.
- Grainfree foods often have high animal protein levels (acidic) with no major plant protein sources (alkaline), raising urine PH.
- Dry food is often left out for grazing, not allowing urine PH levels to drop between meals.

At some point depending on the kitties age, stress factor, and genetics, you can get to the tipping point with those risk factors to where crystals form, and boys in particular have a narrow urethra.

Example: A wet grain-free food is not left out for grazing, and its near 80% water so the kitty is pretty guaranteed well hydrated even if they drink little, so risk factor is low. If it had high mercury levels though from lots of fish protein and kitty was known to be senstive, then it might be a concern again, and a wet w/ some brown rice may not be a bad idea.

That is how I understand it at least, and explains why there may be some confusion as to whether grainfree is a good or bad thing, since grains can be an allergen (some more likely than others) and animal protein is more digestible w/ appropriate amino acids. Cliffs notes is that if you are feeding elusively dry food to a male, you'd probably want to avoid grain-free.

Originally Posted by sharky

True but many cats will starve vs eat wet.. Hense the old adage the best food is one the cat Will Eat.. I have two like that , but it is because both were feral caught and thus associated humans and food with dry ... Six years with one and she will eat a little wet or raw but not enough to sustain

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I guess I got lucky. Parker was fed only crappy kibble for 5 years before I got him. He LOVED wet food the first time I gave it to him and no problems at all switching him to an all wet diet. He had crystals on the dry diet anyway.

This grain-free thing was getting me going at first too but what Ducman69 said makes perfect sense, I guess. Water is a kitty's best friend, even though they don't seem to think

I decided to add Wellness to the 2 I already give him. Festus does get wet food but he will only eat an ounce a day.

Originally Posted by Zarra

I decided to add Wellness to the 2 I already give him. Festus does get wet food but he will only eat an ounce a day.

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Good idea

FYI-Actually the Moisture level of grain frees is the same or within the 8-12% for all other dry foods... Mercury is normally NOT a huge issue but check the type and source( "better" companies are happy to tell you or give you copies of the testing so you can make an informed choice... this is a good idea for all foods with fish)

The animal to plant protein is very on tract .... though it is the fact that most use the better named meat meals that causes the issues along with the starchy binders used in grain frees do not lower the ph( this is actually a lesser issue as most of the commercial food s today aim for a ph within the recommend gradient ) and or balance the mineral levels... This is where fish would actually be a BIG issue as it is processed bone and all ( chicken and other "land" meats are only using a % of the bone in the meal ( larger the animal less gets used).... FISH heavy WET can cause this issue also



Meats and grains digestibility is a LONG topic as it is honestly not what most claim it to be... Ie Reg white rice is /can be( some types higher than others) as digestible as beef , lamb, turkey... Brown rice actually is close to whole grain Corn in digestibility


I would love to say NO one left out wet food but a search on here will yeild a different result...