Stinky Kitties

I'm not a stranger to the pet food world but I don't have nearly as much knowledge about cat food as I do about their canine counterparts so I'm hoping someone can offer some advice.

I have two spay female cats. One is almost a year and a half and the other is around eight months. The older cat is a DSH and the younger is a DMH (borderline long hair). They're currently eating the Eagle indoor formula but they have awfully stinky poop and farts. Both have beautiful coats, teeth are healthy, etc. but the smell is atrocious.

I've tried a number of other formulas with higher and lower protein but the result seems to be the same. I also have a tough time keeping them lean - neither girl is fat but I'd like to see them a little lighter (I'm the fat pet Nazi). Does anyone have suggestions for a direction to go that will reduce some odor and not cause weight gain? If I can avoid raw I'd prefer to.

Welcome to The Cat Site!

I would suggest feeding your cats -- who are young and need lots of protein -- canned food without fillers like the rice, peas, and oatmeal in the Eagle food. Getting rid of potato and pea fillers in our cats' diet went a long way in eliminating bad smells from our two cats! Our cat specialist vet is a big advocate of grain-free, low-carb canned diets and that (along with commercial raw) has helped keep our two junior cats, who love to eat a lot, within healthy weight ranges, too. I'd especially recommend foods like Weruva's Cats in the Kitchen chicken recipes, that are low-calorie and all meat. Good luck!

Thanks for the reply, Lisa. When feeding canned diets how do you keep your cat's teeth clean?

I second @LisaHE's recommendations. Cats don't readily digest grains and carbs, so the result can be gas. This is similar to what happens when people eat beans.

 I also have a tough time keeping them lean - neither girl is fat but I'd like to see them a little lighter (I'm the fat pet Nazi)

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Dry food is also higher in calories than wet food.   As the others have said, I would feed them grain free wet.  Its so much healthier for our kitties. 

This may be helpful...

Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition
Lisa A. Pierson, DVM

http://www.catinfo.org/docs/Feeding Your Cat - 4 pages 11-13.pdf

 When feeding canned diets how do you keep your cat's teeth clean?

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 You can brush your kitties teeth.  They sell kitty toothpaste and brushes.   Some cats take to it easier than others.  One of mine lets me do it with no problem. He loves the taste of the kitty toothpaste.   But my other who was older when I rescued him as a feral isn't so happy to have me stick my fingers in his mouth.   For him I just let him lick the cat toothpaste off my finger.   You can check out Chewy or Amazon for the different kinds of cat toothpaste. 

Try this 

http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/does-dry-food-clean-the-teeth/

My cat Ramona loves to chew, rip, and tear cardboard boxes. At ten years of age, she's got bright white beautiful teeth. Since she does NOT chew her dry food (rotten animal...) that isn't what's doing it. Some cats will chew dried salmon skin rolls. Our foster kittens love their baked beef tendon which they have been teething away on. There are also chew toys made for cats (Orka Cat) that are made to help clean teeth.

Thank you, @Lokhismom for posting those links -- I am a big fan of Dr. Pierson and Dr. Hofve.

We need to start brushing our cats' teeth soon because they had dental cleaning done the other day: they're young but they're Siamese mixes (more inclined to have tooth problems). They're also being tested for Bartonella, which can also cause various dental issues.

I already have a dental kit and am going to look for various posts on the site about dental care. I can't say I'm looking forward to training these cats for tooth brushing but it sure beats the alternative of paying for lots of dental cleanings! Given what our vet and Drs. Pierson and Hofve say and write about food and teeth, there's no way I'm changing the cats' diet other than, perhaps, adding some meats or organs to help clean their teeth.

Based on what @Chromium Blues says, I wonder if our cat whose teeth are a little better might be benefiting from her chewing and shredding habits! She sure makes a mess!