Food Type and Storage

Hello All,

So I have not been very particular about what food I have been giving my cat until I heard that certain food will promote good skin and fur, which can help people with allergies. Since my boyfriend who is really allergic to cats is moving in with me, I have been taking some steps to reduce the shedding and cleaning vigorously. 

I had no idea that food makes a difference and that the stuff I had been providing before was not probably the best. I also read somewhere that you have to be careful with introducing new food to cats?

Well, I changed his food to Authority (I think its called?) which has omega 3 and 6 due to the Salmon. I have seen plenty of reviews of how it is one of the top brands in a reasonably affordable range, as well as Blue Buffalo. Valo never had bad fur or skin before, but I def saw a dramatic difference!

With this said, I'd like to know if there is any other advice or opinions on this food choice with these circumstances. He is an indoor adult cat.

Also, I will be moving out of the country in less than a year and most likely wont find this food option there. So I am curious as to what I need to know about switching foods and if there is anything I should be absolutely aware of.

Additionally, how do some of you store the cat food? I take it out of the bag and put it into a plastic canister. A few years ago I had left some cat food in a plastic container and put it into a storage unit over the summer. It wasn't meant to be stored away it just got into the shuffle of everything moving around. Later, I had found a ton of maggots inside of it. It is obviously due to the fact it has been sitting in a hot moist environment for a few months... but it still makes me paranoid that it may happen again and I always get nervous when I look at my cats food.

I am going to post another post soon regarding cat allergies/cleaning, and moving, I just wanted to separate the messages. 

Thank you for your advice!

The best way to store kibble is  IN the bag it came in.  Now you can put that bag in something else, but for some reason, it keeps best inside the original bag.  If keeping for an extended amount of time, check the expiration date on it...they all have one.  Best bet, if you only have one cat, don't buy a huge bag.  Even better, buy canned food as that's the best thing you can feed your cat.  The lower in carbs, the better for your cat.  And the better for your cat, the healthier it will be, and the healthier it is, the better it's skin and fur will be, etc., etc, etc.  As you already witness, just switching to a better kibble made a difference, just thing what switching to something even more natural for a cat will do (Cats are obligate carnivores, therefore their natural diet is moist MEAT)

You are in luck as this month is Nutrition Month on The Cat Site   Here is an excellent article on choosing the right food for your cat, and there are additional article referenced within this one:  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/choosing-the-right-food-for-your-cat

Good luck with your BF moving in with his allergies.  Lots of folks who live with cats are actually allergic to them.  It seems the more time you spend with them, usually the less the allergies affect you.