I have a 16 year old tabby named Enzo who has been on Friskies Special Diet for 14 years after being diagnosed with UTI's. When I suddenly couldn't find any in multiple stores, I emailed Purina who has now discontinued this product line. I am on an EXTREMELY tight budget, (in danger of eviction as we speak), and can't afford the Purina recommended alternative of Purina One Pro or whatever it is called. It costs more, and comes in a smaller can which would lead to my spending 3 times as much money daily on his food. I can't seem to figure out what to do. Anyone have any suggestions. I love my cat, but I just don't have the money for more expensive foods when I can't pay for my own meds and rent. HELP!!!!!
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Purina stopped making Friskies Special Diet and 9-Lives Plus Care for Urinary Tract Health
- Thread starter enzosmom
- Start Date
I'm sorry to hear that. I hate when they do that. Can you tell us what ingredients you are trying to avoid so we can help you try to search for an affordable replacement?
If you have a Petsmart near you, maybe you can try their Grreat Choice like. The pates are very similar to a Friskies or Fancy Feast. The one by me has 13 oz cans of mixed grill for .67 and it's been at that price for a while now.
http://www.petsmart.com/cat/food/gr..._id=36-12870&_t=pfm=category&pfmvalue=faceted
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #3
As I understand it, I'm supposed to avoid either magnesium or ash to avoid a repeat of the urinary tract infections he had when he was 2 years old. He had 2 UTIs back to back and the vet bill was over $1500 then. I'm afraid that a UTI at this point would be deadly for him, since he's 16 and I can't afford the vet at all right now. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
I looked at the ingredients list on the Grreat Choice and I didn't see either of them in their pates. The cans are usually .89 for 13 ounces at Petsmart and my picky eaters actually like it every now and then. I stick with the pates though. They also sell it in 5.5 ounce cans and those are usually .50 but I have seen them on sale for as low as .39 - my store has a hard time keeping this stuff on the shelf.
http://www.petsmart.com/cat/food/gr..._id=36-12869&_t=pfm=category&pfmvalue=faceted
Keep him on Friskies for now, but stick with non-fish flavors like Mixed Grill (fish has a lot of ash due to the bones, etc.). And add some extra water. This can be good enough for a lot of cats with urinary problems---the extra water helps keep the bacteria from sticking inside the bladder. Since it's been this long since he had UTI trouble, it could work for him. No dry food! At his age his kidneys are more of a concern so keep him on wet only. Personally I'd think that changing his food at this point could cause more problems, as stress can definitely cause a flare-up of any illness he may be prone to.
You can also contact Friskies to ask them which foods have the lowest ash content and which are most similar to the Special Care foods. Make sure to tell them that you need a recommendation for Friskies, not Purina One or Pro Plan.
You can also contact Friskies to ask them which foods have the lowest ash content and which are most similar to the Special Care foods. Make sure to tell them that you need a recommendation for Friskies, not Purina One or Pro Plan.
Something that has worked well for my crystals cat is a combination of ordinary food with a small amount of specialist food. Would that be an affordable option for you? If you only fed, say, half a can of the food Purina recommended alongside normal friskies wet food that might be enough to help. Given that his uti was so long ago, you're well past the riskiest time for recurrence (the first two years are highest risk, I believe, but don't hold me to it).
The two biggest things that will help him are good hydration and low stress. Those are free
The two biggest things that will help him are good hydration and low stress. Those are free
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I share your frustration!!! Friskier Special Diet was the most affordable option for my cat with interstitial cystitis and really helped control his symptoms without a prescription. More importantly, it was something that he and my other cat LOVED to eat. Pro Plan is about $0.68 per 3 oz can compared to the $0.46 I paid for 5.5 oz cans of Friskies. My cats are picky eaters and can't eat a grain free food without regurgitating. I'll look into the Grreat choice and I would love to hear any other suggestions for other inexpensive brands.
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I'm at petsmart looking into this Pro Plan which seems to now be the only non-rx urinary canned food available on the market. It's 4x more expensive than Friskies but has the same frowned upon ingredients (by-products, wheat gluten, corn) as Friskies!! Is this stuff really worth it? I can't find any magnesium levels listed on any cans so it's hard to tell whether it's worth it to pay premium prices for what appear to be the same ingredients. In the mean time I am also picking up some Blue Buffalo grain free cans without any fish products. It's a battle finding something that controls the crystals AND is palatable by both cats.
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Have you considered Purina Beyond? I think it's grain free. Might not be low carb. It's about $1 a can...not sure on the size can, sorry.
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hi, I'm in the same boat too. my cat squirt is allergic to most things in friskies, Corn,Wheat and soy, chicken ( though there may be a little chicken if that's what's in the poultry giblets and by-products ) and fish.. she does somewhat o.k with the Turkey and giblets ( as that's the most limied ingredient friskies I can find that's affordable.. my only other option would be start buying generic Fancy Feast ( like Luvsome from Kroger , Grreat Choice Goumet from Petsmart) or Paws from Haggen's ( I live in washington state) at least those are other one are grain free but a bit more expensive.. I don't any other cat food that costs less than $1.00 for either 5.5oz or 6oz that's meets those requirements .. any ideas? (she seems to tolerate brewer's rice o.k but can't handle fish or a lot of chicken and authority's cat food has either wheat gluten or fish in it.. I'm not sure of Petsmart's basic Grreat choice regular (which is petsmart's friskies knock-off) and they don't have any special diet version of T and Giblets there..
If you have a Tractor Supply Company near you they have their own brand called 4 Health. They do have a grain free variety and it'd reasonable priced
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actually no, I don't think there is a tractor supply in store remotely near me.. .. and their turkey and giblets recipe has actual chicken and eggs so that wouldn't work.. but that is good deal for a cat food that has no by-products, grains or fish.. comparable to trader joes I think..but all those have fish in them.
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Hi, I have the same problem !!!!! I have a 11 year old little female who was always getting UT infections . One vet visit cost me $ 823.00 !!!! I do not have that kind of $$$ . Someone suggested trying Friskies UT food and she has not had one problem since !!! Now it's gone !!!! I happen to know it is'nt good to suddenly change your cat's diet but I guess they dont care .I have another cat and they both like to eat out of each others bowls so now I have another problem to handle. I think what and how they did this is a terrible reflection on this company !!! I ordered a small amount of Pro Plan UT food to see if my cat will even eat it ???? I am soooo upset and mad. And no you are not being cynical. When I spoke to Friskies they told me they have another line of food for UT problems. I told them yes you do and it is 3x more expensive !!!!!!! And most of the foods require a prescription. Pro Plan does not. Good luck and let me know what you decide, Mary Ann
