Getting off Urinary Food?

aqualoon

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I have 3 cats...

Cooper 5-6 year old neutered male

Bailey 5-6 year old neutered male

Lynk 5-6 month old neutered male

Bailey had crystal/UTI issues with his previous owner, since I have had him he hasn't had any. 

Current Food...

Dry: Purina Pro Plan Urinary Tract Health Formula

Wet: Fancy Feast Elegant Medleys

I want to switch the dry over to Fromm Duck A La Veg as I can get it at the same place I get my dog's food that and the ingredients in the Purina have a lot to be desired.

I really do believe that a good diet is preventative maintenance for health problems, granted it doesn't prevent everything but it's a solid foundation.  My concern is that both Cooper and Bailey have been doing well on their current diet, Bailey especially since he has had zero issues with the whole crystals/urinary tract bit.  I don't know what kind of food his previous owner was feeding him but she mentioned that she got it at Walmart.

Also I know when it comes to pet food the sky is the limit in terms of how much you want to spend.  Two years ago I changed my dog's food from Iams to Fromm because I wanted a good healthy food that wouldn't break the bank.  Now I really want to hone down on my cat's food while keeping in mind the main reason why I am feeding what I am is because of Bailey's urinary health issues.
 

goholistic

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A high protein, low carb, grain free diet is best, preferably all wet food. This can help a cat with urinary issues tremendously. A lot of people on here feed raw and swear by it.

My one cat hasn't had any more urinary issues since I've changed his diet, increased the wet food, and installed water fountains to encourage drinking. Years ago he was on a prescription diet, and it did not help at all.
 

vball91

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I agree with GoHolistic that a high animal protein / low carb / grain and starch free wet food is best, not just for urinary issues but also because it's the best species-appropriate diet for a cat. Are you familiar with this site: http://www.catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth? It's written by a vet and has a lot of great info on feline nutrition and related health issues.
 
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aqualoon

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How much protein should I be looking for as a minimum?

I need to find a good middle of the road food that won't break the bank but is better then what I'm currently feeding.  I like Fromm because they're local, never had a recall and their ingredients look good.
 

peaches08

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Fancy Feast classics are high protein and reasonably priced. Do are many of the Friskies pates.

Have you considered raw?
 

vball91

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How much protein should I be looking for as a minimum?

I need to find a good middle of the road food that won't break the bank but is better then what I'm currently feeding.  I like Fromm because they're local, never had a recall and their ingredients look good.
I personally look for food that is over 50% protein and less than 10% carbs.

The Fromm ingredients look good from a people perspective, but all of their formulas are very high in carbs (about 29% on a dry matter basis). 3 of the top 5 ingredients of the Fromm Duck are unnecessary starches (barley, rice and sweet potatoes) that contribute to the excessively  high carb content.
 

maewkaew

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  My cat who used to be on a urinary prescription food due to crystals ,  and had previously  had a blockage,    did fine when I switched him to all wet low carb food.    He never had  urinary trouble  after that.  ( and I was worried  ,because of how he got blocked before and could have died.   But it turned out that a diet that is natural for his species was just what he needed.    A food that is pretty high in protein and fat and low in carbs, will  tend to make the urine naturally mildly acidic as it should be which discourages both struvite crystals and calcium oxalate.   

  You might be able to get some Merrick or Wellness on sale for a decent price.    

or Petsmart's Authority  actually works out to being less than Fancy Feast.  and it is low carb.  it is pretty high fat but so are most of the  "premium" foods.      ( Actually   my cat did fine on a food that was pretty high fat.  ) 

 
I would want to see the protein at least 50% on a dry matter basis.    That is the numbers on the right side of this chart with nutrition info for many canned cat foods.   http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf

and carbs no more than10% but even better if  under 7%. 
 
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aqualoon

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Fancy Feast classics are high protein and reasonably priced. Do are many of the Friskies pates.

Have you considered raw?
I have a cat that won't touch a pate, so need to stick with meat like chunks.  I'll be looking over a few sites this weekend to find a nice reliable source of new food. 

As for raw it's really not an option.  I don't like to cook for myself and often times skip meals because I don't want to make anything - wouldn't want that type of pattern when it comes to my pets.

Thanks everyone for the input, now have at least some guidelines of what to look for in wet food for the great food switch search this weekend :)
 

goholistic

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There are some decent brands of wet foods with chunks. The chunks will either be real meat or a pate that is formed with a gum (such as guar gum) or with wheat gluten. I would avoid the wheat gluten.
 
 

ldg

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I have a cat that won't touch a pate, so need to stick with meat like chunks.  I'll be looking over a few sites this weekend to find a nice reliable source of new food. 

As for raw it's really not an option.  I don't like to cook for myself and often times skip meals because I don't want to make anything - wouldn't want that type of pattern when it comes to my pets.

Thanks everyone for the input, now have at least some guidelines of what to look for in wet food for the great food switch search this weekend :)
Well, depending on where you're located, there are commercial raw options. And many of them, if you don't have to have them shipped, actually cost less to feed than the high protein/grain-free/low carb canned foods: http://catcentric.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Canned-Raw-Table-1.pdf

They're as easy to feed as canned, you just have to remember to put some in the fridge to dethaw. :dk: Raw naturally targets the proper pH, and increases the amount of water moving through them, which is just what a crystal/FLUTD kitty needs.

Of course, I switched my cats off of the urinary prescription food to grain-free low carb canned foods and had no problems. Three of my boys had blocked previously.
 
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