Lanie is wasting away...

Hi y'all, thanks for checking my post.  I'm hoping someone here will have a suggestion for me.

I've been having problems with my 6-year-old tortie, Lanie, for over a year now.  It started with occasional vomiting and in the past few months has progressed to vomiting one to two times a night.  I took my vet's recommendation and tried a number of different foods over the past year, but nothing has solved the problem.

She's gone from 9 to 6 pounds in a year - she looks so skinny, especially now that her sides and stomach are bald (she had to be shaved for an ultrasound).  The vet I've gone to for 20 years referred me to a specialist three hours away from home, and they have been running a number of tests on her, none of which have shown anything definitive.  She's scheduled next week for an endoscopy to get samples of her digestive tract.  I don't know how I'm going to afford a $1000-2000 surgery, but that's another matter.

In the meantime, I have a question about the type of food I'm feeding her.  I like to feed Blue Wilderness as that's the healthiest food I can find in the local stores, and she ate that for years with no problem until recently.  The only good  food that has temporarily helped the vomiting was the Blue Basics; she didn't vomit for two weeks after starting it, but eventually did start up again.  I say "good" food because this past week I've reluctantly started her on the Science Diet prescription food Z/D, which is (by my understanding) a hypoallergenic partially predigested food.  She hasn't thrown up yet - I'm not sure if the improvement will be temporary, like with Blue Basics, or permanent.  If this food fixes the vomiting and weight loss, that's awesome... kind of.  The problem is that it's very expensive - I've spent over $1000 that I don't really have on vet bills already - and that it's Science Diet.  Not a brand I'm very fond of.  So here comes the question.  If this turns out to help the problem permanently, is there a healthy  food with essentially the same primary ingredients, or that's processed in the same way?  Basically, an all-meat food with no fillers that will be just as easily digestible?

Also, I'm wondering if the charity organizations that provide financial aid for vet care would help out in this case.  I know that I could qualify if Lanie needed a life-saving surgery, but I'm unsure about such organizations funding diagnostic tests for an unknown and possibly (hopefully!!!) not fatal condition.  I'd welcome any advice on this situation as well.

Thanks for making it through my book-long post!  I really did try to summarize...  I guess a job at Reader's Digest is not for me.

Thanks,

Lauren and Lanie

Are these the dry or the canned formulas you've been trying? I think dry food in general is harder to digest. . .my cousin has a kitty who used to throw up all the time, and after she switched him to all canned food, he hardly ever throws up now.

If you've already been feeding her canned food, disregard! It was just the first thing I thought of.

There was a kitty here with similar problems..... The poster's name is Southpaw - kitty used to throw up up to 10 times a day
Here is the first post http://www.thecatsite.com/t/241243/possible-food-intolerance-on-rx-diet

It turned the kitty problem, Jynx, was IBD - It was completely solved once she put him on a raw diet - here is the thread: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/242212/just-another-starting-raw-thread

Here is her follow up:

My update is short.... lol transitioning Jinx was like a dream. He is my IBD kitty, we started ground raw in March, took a couple weeks to get him on it 100%. In that 2 months he has only vomited once, where before raw he would sometimes vomit 5-10 times a day, so that's a massive improvement. jumping.gif



He has also gained a much needed 2 pounds! He was very frail and weak looking at the start of this and now he looks great. And I know he's feeling great! clap2.gifhttp://www.thecatsite.com/t/244455/our-kitties-on-raw-the-updates-thread#post_3205878

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It also worked the same way for my IBD cat, although his problem was violent diarrhea...... But like in Southpaw's case, nothing else worked. Today my kitty is 100% healthy, meds free, and the vet bills are gone. He was also on surgery's door - but his was going to be full on exploratory

Anyways, something to think about it.... It is work, but it is not expensive if you do home made, and it can be a great shot on solving your problem with diet alone

There is also a wealth of information available at http://www.ibdkitties.net

I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty. :rub: I'm glad you found something that's helping. You may want to stick with that until she's gained some weight back.

Unfortunately, I'm not aware of any foods that are of any quality that have hydrolyzed proteins in them.

FYI, one of my kitties had allergies, not IBD. He'd mowed his abdomen and forelegs clean of fur. I tried the z/d with him, and it didn't help him. I sought out a holistic vet, and she got him fixed up with Chinese herbal supplements. I switched earlier this year to a raw diet, and he no longer requires those supplements. For some kitties, a species-appropriate diet really does help - but it's not a cure-all, nor is it for every kitty owner. But if you want healthy that is most likely to help your baby, raw is certainly something to at least consider. There are a number of commercial brands available, and that does make it much easier (in fact, almost as easy as opening a can!).

If you want to seek out a holistic vet, you can search to see if there is one you can get to here: http://www.ahvma.org

Well, Royal Canin also has a dry food with Hydrolized protein, Royal Canin HP... I fed this one to Bugsy as well as Z/D..... I would recommend staying away from RC HP because it is 100% plant based - yep, there is no meat in it - the protein in it is soy, and the rest in rice, etc. Being that cats are Obligate carnivores, I really don't see that as being a good food at all.
Z/D wet would be, IMHO the best bet of them all, but it is very $$$ - I think, If I am not mistaken, if your vet gives you a discount, about $2.50/can.

A home made diet would be far supperior and cheaper than that..... If that is an option for the OP, of course.
Are you feeding Dry or wet?

Also, my take on the biopsy/ additional procedures - I went through all you are going through for a very long time with Bugsy.... Here is my take on it....
If diet works, and the blood tests do not indicate the possibility of lymphoma, skip it. Try all you can try before going with the surgery/procedure. Including a raw diet, and even steroids, etc.
If none works.... Then go ahead and do the biopsy.
I would try the diet route and see if it works. Have you treated your baby with prednisolone yet? B12 injections? Your vet can test to see if your kitty is Cobalamin deficient....
You can really do a lot with an elimination process AND diet.... Only after all options are exhausted I would go onto a biopsy..... and that would be if there is a risk of lymphoma.
My honest opinion, FWIW

Also, have you tried the single protein diets? Such as Natural Balance Venison and Pea, Salmon and Pea, Chicken and Pea.... and such? They have both OTC (Natural Balance), or Prescription - Royal Canin and Hills. These diets are used usually in allergy cases, but in some cases, some proteins can be triggers for IBD as well. So, the idea is to remove the proteins, and feed one that hasn't been fed before (called Novel proteins) - a single protein, and a single starch diet for a while - at least for 6 weeks, and see what happens.
From there, you build the diet back, adding one protein at a time - say you start with venison. Then after you add chicken. Then you add something else.... Very slowly. When you get a reaction - in your case the vomit, you found the culprit. That is called an elimination diet.
Have you done that?

Since Venison is one that usually hasn't been fed before, that is typically one that is chosen to begin the diet.
NB has Venison only in canned. The others they have in canned and dry. Fish is a high allergen, so it would be good to stay away from it.... Chicken is in almost every food..... So not very good to start with that either.
It is not very expensive either.
Anyways.... Just wanted to throw this option here, in case that hasn't been mentioned by your vet yet.....

This can very well work for you, since Z/D works.... Z/D is working because of the hydrolyzed protein - on Z/D's case, Chicken. With that process, the protein is broken down, so the body doesn't recognize as protein..... which makes me think the problem might very well be a sensitivity to a protein in her diet......
Anyways, no pun intended, food for thought!

Blue Wilderness

BLUE Wilderness is a high-protein, low carbohydrate food that contains a higher concentration of the delicious duck you know your cat will love. Inspired by the diet of the lynx, a tireless hunter, BLUE Wilderness is specially formulated by animal nutritionists. Made with the finest natural ingredients including deboned duck, chicken meal and turkey meal they supply the protein your cat needs. Sweet potatoes, oatmeal and potatoes provide healthy complex carbohydrates. Cranberries, blueberries and carrots support antioxidant-enrichment.

Blue Wildreness is supposed to be based on the diet of the lynx but what lynx in their right mind would eat this garbage? In the wild the typical lynx survives off snowshoe hares and small mammals and probably some by-products here and there.. Find me one lynx that needs blueberries and sweet potatoes. These companies make these kind of foods REAL attractive to comsumers by putting the beautiful picture of a wild lynx on the front making people believe that if you feed your CAT this food you will be feeding it along the same guidelines as a wild lynx. Not. I really want to see this "natural" trend die before more innocent cats perish or get sick.

I like the first few ingredients but when you start getting into a constant diet of (and I'm talking years) of things like blueberries,sweet potattoes, oatmeal and cranberries what cat wouldn't get sick. This type of food may seem healthy to YOU but in reality these ingredients are making cats sick. This trend in america to offer felines a partial "vegan" diet is rediculous and benefits nobody other than the companies that make it. There is no perfect food out there if there was we'd all feed it to our cats but giving them so many of these "un-needed" foods in their diet for years and years does not help anything.

Here is a bit more information for you to ponder. I'm not saying I am againsta  cat havinga few vegetables once in awhile but keep it limited as it probably isn't really helping your cat as much as you think. A cat needs special nutrients that can ONLY be found in meat and these companies adding so many fruits and vegetables to their dry and even WET these days is not needed. Heck, my cat like a piece of muenster cheese, a green olive and even whip cream once in awhile but I CERTAINLY would not want those ingredients in his food EVERY DAY.

Cats are strict carnivores. All the nutritional requirements – proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins and water can be found from a diet of meat and fish. Cats need a diet of animal based protein to survive and thrive. Cats would gain very little nutritional benefits from a diet of grains and vegetables because these animals do not produce the salivary enzyme amylase which is necessary in processing plant based proteins. Cats cannot efficiently digest and utilize plant materials unlike herbivore animals that have specialized stomachs.

Nature intended cats to be meat eaters. Cats in the wild have survived by hunting and eating prey. Cats’ preys are fast moving small animals like rodents and other herbivores therefore cats have eaten the partially digested plant materials in the prey’s stomach. Cats in the wild would have no other choice but to eat anything they can find if prey is scarce. Cats cannot go on for more than 24 hours without eating as they have a unique metabolism. A hungry cat would eat vegetables and other plant matter. Some cats eat vegetables…others don’t. Cat owners that have shared their veggies with the pet have noted that these feline companions enjoy munching fresh cucumber and carrots. You would think the pet is a short eared rabbit. However, not all cats would eat veggies. WELL FED ones would walk away from a platter of veggies.

Eating vegetable would do the cat no harm. Veggies would even promote the regular bowel movement of a cat that has entered its senior years. As mentioned, cats should have a diet that is high in animal-based protein. Some cat owners though have taken to including fruits and veggies to the pet’s diet. Fresh vegetables would be a beneficial addition to the cat’s diet as long as the veggies should not be more than 25% of the diet. The larger percentage of the diet should still be meat, fish and other sources of animal-based protein. This is very necessary as cats are obligate carnivores. This means that cats have to consume large amounts of animal tissue in order to gain complete amino acid profile. Taurine is an amino acid that cannot be found in plants. Taurine deficiency in cats can cause blindness and heart problems.

So, I say if you are feeding your cat well enough with a meat based protein there is really no need for all these plant based nutrients. But, if you have a very strange feline go ahead and throw him a piece of lettuce once in awhile if it makes him happy. Just be aware that as humans can be allergic to some foods so can a cat and that includes vegetables.

Carolina said:

This can very well work for you, since Z/D works.... Z/D is working because of the hydrolyzed protein - on Z/D's case, Chicken. With that process, the protein is broken down, so the body doesn't recognize as protein..... which makes me think the problem might very well be a sensitivity to a protein in her diet......

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:nod: I hope she enjoys this vomit-free time while you decide how to proceed! It sounds to me like you might want to consider saving your money on the endoscopy (though you'd PERHAPS get a definitive diagnosis of IBD, which can only be done via tissue biopsy). However, if the problem is allergies/protein sensitivities, the endoscopy won't provide any answers either, and you'll be left with the same choices: an elimination diet of single-ingredient protein foods, treating with a holistic vet via Chinese Medicine, or a raw diet.

Whatever happens, for you and your baby as you navigate this. :heart2:

Wow, thanks for all the replies!

I've always fed dry food, as it was easier to let them free feed and I've always had trouble getting Lanie to eat on a schedule.  She's so stubborn!      But I'm currently trying it again, since I don't want Lily to eat the Z/D.  It disgusts me that this high-priced vet prescribed food with the primary ingredient of rice and a small amount of meat to my little carnivore!

I wasn't aware that Blue Wilderness had additional unhealthy ingredients added.  I figured those natural antioxidants were healthier than processed additives.       Shows what I know....  Thankfully they won't be eating it for much longer.

Thanks to your replies and Southpaw's thread I've decided to try feeding a raw diet before having Lanie undergo the biopsy.  I'm not at all confident that I could safely prepare raw food for my babies - it's incredibly daunting to me - so I've looked into commercial raw foods.  I found one site, Aunt Jeni's Home Made (http://www.auntjeni.com) that looks good to me, but I'd like your opinions on it before diving in.  I also looked at a brand called Wysong (http://www.wysong.net) but wasn't as impressed.  Wysong seems to be much more commercialized and adds ingredients that sound unnecessary to me.

The specialty vet I saw for all the tests recommended feeding a venison prescription if Z/D didn't work, but as I didn't find a venison option among the raw food suppliers, and since chicken seems to be their favorite flavor (over turkey and salmon) I thought I'd try weaning them off their dry food with chicken chunks from Aunt Jeni's.  I looked at various raw treats as well that were listed in different threads here at TheCatSite as a tool to get them used to raw food, but Lanie refuses all treats I've ever offered and Lily will happily eat anything (from food to chunks of carpet to pine straw... yummy) so I guess I'll pass on those.  They really love tuna sauce (we let them lick up small amounts when my boyfriend eats his canned tuna) so if I have trouble getting Lanie to transition to raw I may sprinkle some over it and see if that helps.

I'm not sure if I should buy any supplements.  Aunt Jeni's offers fish oil, vitamin E, Enhance allergy aid, and Enhance digestive aid (http://www.auntjeni.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=6_11&products_id=24).  The site recommends adding vitamins C and E and fish oil (not cod liver oil) to the food, as apparently those are delicate ingredients and can expire if mixed in during manufacturing.  Does anyone have recommendations for commercial raw diet and supplements?

Oh!  Last thing, I swear.  I'm considering rescuing another kitten after I get Lanie well.  Does anything need to be added or subtracted for babies to eat raw food?

Thanks again!

Lauren and Lanie

I LOVE the concept of Aunt Jeni's, I really do. It's a small enterprise, very sensitive to quality and the environment. BUT.... their product is much more geared toward dogs, IMO. Cats really don't need any fruits or veggies in their diets. Cats naturally do not eat them. Dogs are carnivores, but benefit from fruits and grains and vegetables. Cats are obligate carnivores, and are so specialized in their nutritional requirements that they actually lack the digestive enzymes necessary to do something like convert beta carotene into Vitamin A.

That said... I think feeding almost any raw food, even if it has 15% veggies, is healthier for our little carnivores than feeding cooked, "dead" food. (And this is coming from someone who argued against raw for months. In fact, it was researching the subject from the anti-raw standpoint that ultimately led me to feeding raw. :lol3: ).

I actually ended up putting together an overview of most of the commercially available raw foods that are considered "complete and balanced" - as Aunt Jeni's is. You don't need supplements with these foods.

Most of us do provide a probiotic, and many people also provide an omega 3 supplement (either krill oil or a high quality salmon oil).

And yes, it seems VERY overwhelming at first, when the whole idea is new, and you first start learning about it. I used commercial raw to make our transition. My cats were initially eating free-fed dry food. I did give them one wet meal a day, and then two. But when a new rescue started getting fat, we had no choice, really, but to pull the food up. And then the FIV+ kitty rescue was a mess - he had chronic diarrhea, allergies - and we went to the holistic vet, who lectured us on how species-inappropriate dry food is for cats. Part of his treatment was no more dry food. It was NOT easy to move to timed meals and all wet food. I did it in a way that was pretty stressful on the kitties - Carolina will be able to post excellent suggestions for how to do it without stressing everyone out. :nod: As I'm sure you know, you simply cannot starve a kitty into eating what and when you want them to. There are ways to do it though.

Anyway, here is the overview of the commercial products, with ingredient lists, etc.

Those without fruits and veggies are the ones I'd recommend first. But availability and cost are usually considerations.

http://catcentric.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Commercial-Raw-Product-Overview-Initial.pdf

NOW - for your kibble addict(s), there ARE freeze dried raw foods. They are MEANT to be rehydrated, and they are VERY expensive to feed exclusively. But they do make helpful transition tools for some people. Many cats new to raw like them as treats just as they are, and it can help to crumble then on top of the food you're trying to introduce if they like it. The best one is typically the Stella and Chewy's freeze dried raw for cats. One of my cats cannot tolerate beef, but they all love the chicken: This freeze dried food is raw food, so handle as you would any raw food. But it is formed into large kibble-like things.

One last thought. (For now. ). Since it seems like allergies or protein sensitivities are the likely culprit, you may want to consider avoiding any fish based proteins. Fish oil - salmon oil, krill oil - are not the same as the proteins. (Just bringing this up, because Stella & Chewy's has a chicken & salmon combo).

OH, sorry. A list of the commercial raw foods that have no veggies or fruits:

CountryPet Cat food (sold at Whole Foods). This is a pasteurized food though, and not exactly "raw."

Fegnion. This can only be ordered online and the shipping is very high. I think Carolina tried it, and it smelled VERY fishy (the sardine oil).

Feline's Pride. Often mentioned as one of the best raw foods, my cats didn't like it, and the shipping was not high, it was outrageous.

Nature's Menu. Some cats love it, others hate it. But the price is VERY reasonable, as is the shipping.

Rad Cat. Expensive, but if ordered through http://www.onlynaturalpet.com, shipping isn't an arm and a leg. Some pet stores carry it, so it's worth seeing if it's available locally. But this is typically universally loved by kitties, in many opinions one of the highest quality commercial raw foods out there, and usually a fabulous transition food (though of course it can be fed long term if you can afford it).

Stella & Chewy's freeze dried foods for cats. Expensive to feed long term. Stella & Chewy's also makes frozen raw for dogs that is appropriate for cats as it's supplemented with taurine, but it does have some fruits and veggies.

Vital Essentials. This was available to me at the local pet store, and for the most part my cats liked it. It comes in "bites" and patties. Mine did not like the little bites, but they did like the patties.

ALL of these foods, including Aunt Jeni's are "AAFCO complete and balanced for all life stages."

In fact, there was a recent study published by the Winn Feline Foundation that found that a balanced raw diet meets a kitten's growth needs.

For transition tips and such, you may want to start a thread in the raw feeding forum. You'll get lots of support and advice!

Thanks, LDG!

I researched all the brands on the Catcentric.org list and decided on Darwin's Natural Pet Products.  I signed up for an introductory offer that gives me chicken and turkey samples - $15 for 10 pounds total, free shipping.  I'll see how they like that, and hopefully it will solve Lanie's vomiting problem!

Once again, thanks so much!

Vibes they like it! I think someone here ordered some - mschauer, maybe? I don't remember how the kitties liked it. :dk: Doesn't really matter, because they all have different taste anyway. I know a LOT of vets recommend it. It looks like a good food to me. Personally, I like the kelp in there. I don't know how much iodine my cats are getting, and that helps ensure they are getting it. :nod:

For MANY kitties, the initial transition can be a bit of an issue, because they don't recognize raw meat as food. :lol3: Carolina's Lucky was a die-hard kibble addict, and it took her 35 days to even lick the raw food. Carolina would just place a pea-sized amount of the raw on the plate with her kibble, and coat the raw with a crushed up freeze dried meat treat that Lucky did love. At first she didn't want to eat her kibble with the raw next to it on the plate! But Carolina didn't give up, and just kept putting it out there.... and eventually Lucky tried it. And it wasn't too long after that she kept going, not just licking it... and then she didn't want her kibble any longer.

I was feeding only canned. The first time I fed raw, I put a little next to their canned. Some people mix it in. Most of my cats actually ate it without too much coaxing. I did use Fortiflora sprinkled on top for a number of them - and frequently - over that first month (it's mostly animal digest, so makes the food smell like kibble).

The trick is to make the transition slow. Introduce it slowly, in small amounts. And if she likes it without much convincing? ( :cross: ) Well, that helps a LOT - but it's still best to increase the amount per meal slowly.

LDG said:

For MANY kitties, the initial transition can be a bit of an issue, because they don't recognize raw meat as food. :lol3: Carolina's Lucky was a die-hard kibble addict, and it took her 35 days to even lick the raw food. Carolina would just place a pea-sized amount of the raw on the plate with her kibble, and coat the raw with a crushed up freeze dried meat treat that Lucky did love. At first she didn't want to eat her kibble with the raw next to it on the plate! But Carolina didn't give up, and just kept putting it out there.... and eventually Lucky tried it. And it wasn't too long after that she kept going, not just licking it... and then she didn't want her kibble any longer.

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Oh Lauren I am SO happy for you and Lanie
I truly believe, from the bottom of my :heart3:, you made the right decision..... Tons, tons of that this is going to work for her, and that's all she is going to need - wouldn't that be wonderful! :cross:

Ok, a few things before you start - do put her ASAP on a probiotic.
You can start immediately, before feeding raw, so she starts building her good bacterial flora. Laurie and I both use this one: Natural Factors Acidophilus & Bifidus Double Strength with Goat Milk

IMHO, the very first thing to do, is to put her into a schedule feeding. I have 3 cats - Hope and Bugsy, who ate canned, were easier to do..... But Lucky, who was my free-fed-die-hard-kibble addict, took more work. I didn't want to stress her out, and starving a cat is out of the question, as you know.
What I did was this:
Lucky LOVES company. So, I established a feeding schedule for everyone. My goal was 3 meals a day - a bit before 9 am, around 6 pm, and late at night. I work at home while I am in town, BUT, I am only in town for a week of the month and weekends - the rest I need to rely on my petsitters, and they work out on a regular office schedule.
Anyways - on those times and during those times ONLY, I would sit with her for 20 minutes or so, while serving fresh, out of the bag kibbles - kitties usually love fresh kibbles out of the bag.
Then I would leave the kibbles out for the rest of the day. Every feeding with me, I would serve fresh kibbles and give her praise and my full attention. The kibbles left for her to graze on were only changed once a day.
What happened was that slowly but surely, she only wanted to eat with me, on schedule. I noticed that she was eating more and more while I was with her, and the food left for grazing was being left intact.
It is very important to measure the total amount you feed, because you will eventually pull the plate you leave out, when you are confident that she is eating enough on schedule. That's what I did. First I removed the plate at night time. Then in between the night feeding and late night feeding. Always making sure she was eating enough. When I saw she was in fact eating all with me, I pulled the "grazing" plate completely.
She got no treats, and nothing else to eat. The only treats I offered were tiny little balls of raw meat, rolled into crumbled freeze dried chicken - pea-size.
Lucky had never eaten wet food, so for her food was kibbles and nothing else - she took a long, long time to transition - but she got there.

There are some things that can help you on your transition - here is a thread on it: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/241623/raw-transition-resources-thread

I have a monster thread on my transition, Laurie has one too, Lauren has another..... Many members here have them. You can open one too, for tips, help, support, etc - Don't be scared - it is just that some cats have a hard time finding out their inner carnivores :lol3:

If she eats wet food..... Then it is easier, much easier!
Then you put her on a schedule - that will be #1
#2, you start slowly adding a little bit of raw into the canned food. The next day you add a little more.
For my IBD Cat Bugsy, it took 8 days - I started with 1tsp on the first day. On the 8th day (his first day eating 100% raw) he was fully transitioned and diarrhea free!

Hope, on the other hand..... Took 35 days to lick raw..... But then..... Once she did.... She threw me for a loop! Because she didn't want kibbles anymore - just like that! And the problem was, she wasn't eating enough in a meal to sustain herself, but did NOT want kibbles :dash:
So in a pinch I had to find a solution - I fed a bunch of meals a day, and worked down within a few days to a regular - 3 meal schedule, by removing one meal at a time, while slowly increasing the meal-sizes.

I started with Natures Variety, then quickly changed them all to Rad Cat..... IMHO, the best commercial raw available in the market.
Another one I like a LOT, and that is very, very affordable, is Hare Today - you do need to mix in a supplement, but it is all you have to do, and it is super easy! You defrost, mix in the supplement, a bit of water, mix in, pack into meal sizes (into freezer-safe ziplock bags) and voila! Beautiful, cheap, yummy meat, tons of variety!!

Oh yeah -DO buy freezer ziplock bags to repack your meals - it will save you a lot of time and prevent spoiling food!!

Anyways, Hope this helps a bit.....
Please, feel free to ask anything that comes to your mind..... We are here to help!!

LDG said:

Vibes they like it! I think someone here ordered some - mschauer, maybe? I don't remember how the kitties liked it.

Doesn't really matter, because they all have different taste anyway. I know a LOT of vets recommend it. It looks like a good food to me. Personally, I like the kelp in there. I don't know how much iodine my cats are getting, and that helps ensure they are getting it.

Click to expand...

Yup, I've tried it. It is a very nice food. It looks and smells fresh and is packaged in very convenient 8 oz portions. The little packages can be placed in a dish of water and placed in the fridge to thaw overnight or on the counter to thaw faster. It is a bit dry so you might want to mix a bit of water with it.

My cats all like it and you can't beat their intro offer! 

http://www.darwinspet.com/our-cat-food/

I've been reading this thread, so here is the link to the Darwin's food. Mainly I am posting so I have a place to find the link quickly, when I am ready to give Darwin's introductory offer a try.

Have you watched her eat? From what I have been seeing it looks like your vet hasn't found a physical reason. Sort of a dumb question but if she is eating too fast it might cause her to throw up. I know mine does the same thing sometimes.

Hi Lauren! Just want to send my support and vibes for Lanie and so sorry that she has not been feeling well. I think going raw will absolutely help your kitty, very much so. Will be keeping tabs on your thread to see how Lanie is coming along. I do hope that she loves the raw diet. I have not tried Darwin's - YET - but am thinking of adding that to my rotation, soon. It just gets real tricky for me to add in something new now. As four of my six are really stuck on only one or two brands and any changes I try to make - throws them completely off!! :lol3: The topper's really do help when adding in new proteins/brands. My Walden and Wendall were SO easy - from day one - true carnies. I surely hope that Lanie will be that way from the start. Hope she feels better very, very soon too. :cross:

Awww, everyone has given such good replies I have nothing left to add. :lol3: I just wanted to say I will keep Lanie in my prayers and good vibes are coming your way!!!

Hi Lauren, has the meat arrived?
How are things? Do you need help, have questions? Let us know, ok?