One food for all cats?

I just moved in with my boyfriend and we each have a cat. He has an older very overweight cat and I have a 10 month old cat. He feeds Mishka Blue Wilderness chicken weight management and I have Maya on Taste of the Wild Venison. He has read TOTW has had recalls and causes urinary issues. I have not seen any problems with the food. Would it be bad to have Maya on the weight management food with Misha as she is so young?

Its best to feed a variety of food.  

I'd also recommend looking into feeding wet food, especially for an overweight cat.   Wet food is healthier and if one is thinking of urinary issues then feeding any kind of dry food is not ideal.   Cats need moisture which they get from canned food and not from dry food. 

This may be helpful

http://www.catinfo.org/

Good luck

Thank you! This is the first cat for me and he has had cats his whole life. I am very new to what they need.

You're welcome.    This site is a wealth of information.

This may be helpful too

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/choosing-the-right-food-for-your-cat-part-2

Good luck

I would also recommend wet food, especially if urinary tract issues are a concern for him in particular. If you free feed, I would suggest switching to timed meals so you can better measure the amount each cat is eating, especially if Mishka is likely to go steal Maya's food if left uneaten or unguarded. Since Maya is still relatively young, she's probably more active than Mishka and would warrant eating a bit more food whereas if Mishka is sedentary, extra food would be detrimental for her in losing weight.

I find a lot of foods that cater to weight management or stages like senior cat food and lots of breed-specific foods are a money grab - while they are a little lower in fat and in calories, you'll probably find the most success with monitoring and measuring Mishka's intake and ensuring she is able to exert herself and work off some calories too. Also, wet foods can be helpful in weight loss because they are inherently lower in carb and higher in moisture. Carbs, just like in people, will add bulk with little to no nutritional value. Since cats are obligate carnivores, everything they need is packed into a little prey animal. Kibbles tend to include more carbs so they have something to help bind those little nuggets together.

I like using this carb calculator to check both wet and dry foods, and it tells you how many calories are in a measurement of food too: http://fnae.org/carbcalorie.html

Very handy, especially if you have a kitchen scale you can use! I don't think it would be the end of the world if they shared food even if it was a specific formula for weight loss or whatnot, if they ate one type over the other, but you'll have to consider what may need to be compensated for each cat (more food for Maya to get more calories, or less food for Mishka to get fewer).

In my experience, when I switched mine and my boyfriend's cats to wet food meals, it was not only easier for me to monitor (I stand over them like a creeper to make sure my cat eats her fill before she gets bullied away from the plate since the other cat will stare her down), but it was easier for them to monitor themselves. With the moisture built in, they seem to have a better idea of when they feel full instead of chomping away at kibble until it's gone. I compare it to eating a bag full of chips and chugging a class of water afterwards and feeling like you're going to explode, vs eating a thick and hearty stew. Very different sensations.

These articles may also help:

Transitioning Free-Fed Kibble Kitties to Timed Meals

Transitioning Your Cat from Kibble to a New Type of Food (Canned, Raw, or Homemade)

What Makes the Best Canned Cat Food?

beccasrl said:

I just moved in with my boyfriend and we each have a cat. He has an older very overweight cat and I have a 10 month old cat. He feeds Mishka Blue Wilderness chicken weight management and I have Maya on Taste of the Wild Venison. He has read TOTW has had recalls and causes urinary issues. I have not seen any problems with the food. Would it be bad to have Maya on the weight management food with Misha as she is so young?

Click to expand...

Ideally, having different flavors of food available minimizes the risk of them being too attached to one particular type of protein. This is especially evident if that brand suddenly has a recall, or is out of production, and you're left scrambling to find a new food that they would like.

The best solution for weight management is lots of exercise, playtime and timed feedings, as opposed to free feeding. If budget is not an issue, consider rotating proteins and even brands. Canned food is good, but if not, good quality dry food (not the ones from grocery stores) is not a bad alternative. Just make sure to have plenty of fresh water available at all times (whether wet or dry). Work with your vet, or better yet, an animal nutritionist, before you put the older cat under any weight management program -- feeding too little too quickly can lead to fatty liver disease, a potentially fatal disorder.

I agree with the previous posters about the advantages of wet food for both cats and second everything @pinkdagger says about the benefits of timed feedings for a kitten and an older, overweight cat. It may take a while to switch the cats over to wet food but they're both cats that could really benefit from a canned diet that gives them lots more protein! I'll also say, anecdotally, that when we fed our previous cat dry diet food she lost no weight: the stuff was too high in grains and low in meat-based protein.

The catinfo.org site that @Lokhismom recommended is great. It's a lot to absorb initially but it's incredibly helpful.

Good luck!