What and how to feed my new cat

cassafrass710 · Oct 5, 2015

Hi all,

I adopted an 8-year-old kitty from the local humane society last week and am looking for advice about how to feed him. The shelter had him on Purina Pro Plan Chicken and Rice dry food, and my new vet said that was okay at a half cup a day, but I'm very concerned about the negative reviews I've seen of it online. I'd like to switch to a higher quality dry food without breaking the bank too much. It would also be great if I could get it at a pet store like Pet Supplies Plus, Petsmart, or something similar so I don't have to worry about online ordering. What kind of dry food do you like and recommend?

I have also been reading all over the internet that feeding cats a dry-food-only diet isn't very healthy, especially for overweight cats. At 14.5 pounds, my cat definitely falls into that category. What kind of wet food do you guys prefer? My parents only gave the cats we had when I was a kid dry food, so I'm completely lost when it comes to choosing a wet variety. Also, how do you suggest incorporating both wet and dry food into cats' diets?

Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Skimble is the first pet that I've owned by myself now that I'm out on my own in the grown-up world, and I worry about keeping him healthy a lot. I'd like to spend as much time with him as possible. Thank you!

missmimz · Oct 5, 2015

Thank you for adopting an older cat! Since he is 8, its going to be really important to give him some wet food in his diet. It's up to you whether to feed a mix of wet and dry or all wet food. If you continue feeding dry try buy the highest quality dry you can afford to feed. You'll need to mix in the new dry food with his old dry food to avoid upsetting his tummy. There are tons and tons of threads on here talking about the best wet foods, but the reality is the best food is whatever you can get your cat to eat. Some cats are picky. Some won't eat pate, some wont eat certain flavors, all you can do is go to the pet store, buy some, and see what he likes.

Here's a great list of good wet and dry foods. Good luck!

http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/2010/12/the-7-best-natural-commercial-cat-foods-so-far/

http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/2011/08/best-dry-cat-foods-so-far/

LTS3 · Oct 5, 2015

Cassafrass710 said:
I have also been reading all over the internet that feeding cats a dry-food-only diet isn't very healthy, especially for overweight cats. At 14.5 pounds, my cat definitely falls into that category. What kind of wet food do you guys prefer? My parents only gave the cats we had when I was a kid dry food, so I'm completely lost when it comes to choosing a wet variety. Also, how do you suggest incorporating both wet and dry food into cats' diets?

These TCS articles are a good place to start reading:

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

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

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/grain-free-cat-food-what-does-it-mean

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/what-makes-the-best-canned-cat-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/how-to-compare-cat-foods-calculate-carbs-dry-matter-basis

Catinfo.org is a great place to learn about feline nutrition, why dry food is bad, etc. There's also a section on how to help cats to safely lose weight: http://catinfo.org/?link=felineobesity

Any canned food is better than dry food, IMO. People generally stick to grain-free canned foods. Some people have even more criteria for their cat's food such as gluten free, gum free, low carb, etc but you don't need to get into all that right now.

There are many good brands you can find in stores from th supermarket to chain pet stores to independent pet stores: Fancy Feast Classic / Gourmet, Blue Buffalo Wilderness, Wellness, Tiki Cat, etc. There really isn't a "best" brand to feed. Whatever your cat likes to eat and you can afford is the "best" one. For some peple it's inexpensive easy to find Fancy Feast. For others, it's higher quality and more expsnsive (and harder to find) brands like Nature's Variety or Weruva. Head to your local stores and see what is available.

Ideally a 100% canned food diet is best. There are many ways to afford a canned food diet such as buying fairly inexpensive brands that come in large 12 oz cans and buying in bulk from a store or online. There are people who do have to feed some dry and there is nothing wrong with that. If you have to feed some dry, I suggest leaving only a small amount (less than 1/2 cup) out for the cat to snack on during the day and feed canned food for the meals. A healthier alternative to dry food is freeze dried raw and air dried raw.

cassafrass710 · Oct 5, 2015

Thank you both! I did some research and placed an order for Nature's Variety canned food. It's pricey, but I'm able to fit it in my budget, and I want to give Skimble the best I can. I think I'll transition him over to a 100% wet food diet after I get the food in the mail and make sure he likes it. Again, thank you so much for helping!

cassafrass710 · Oct 5, 2015

missmimz said:
Thank you for adopting an older cat!

I think it's really important to adopt older animals. The shelter close to the home I grew up in has a large room that they keep all their adult cats in. There's hundreds of them. When I was living there and our last cat passed away after we found out my brother was allergic, I spent a lot of time in that room getting my kitty fix. It made me so sad to see so many amazing cats who kept getting passed over for kittens. It still makes me really sad. While there's nothing wrong with getting a kitten, I find adopting older cats to be incredibly rewarding. They really need homes and Skimble seems so appreciative of all the love he's been given over the past week. He's the best cat. I'm so thankful that I was able to save him, and that he saved me as well

ruaryx · Oct 6, 2015

Hi there. I'm originally from Milwaukee so I'm really excited. Lol. My cat is older as well; she just turned 9 in July.

Personally, I like Wellness Core for dry. I've also heard good things about Orijen and Ziwipeak. For wet, wellness and daves are good. Try a few brands, maybe ask for samples from the pet store, and see what your kitty likes. Happy hunting.

2cats4me · Oct 6, 2015

Cassafrass710 said:
Thank you both! I did some research and placed an order for Nature's Variety canned food. It's pricey, but I'm able to fit it in my budget, and I want to give Skimble the best I can. I think I'll transition him over to a 100% wet food diet after I get the food in the mail and make sure he likes it. Again, thank you so much for helping!

That is awesome . I hope he likes the new food ..

2cats4me · Oct 6, 2015

Cassafrass710 said:
I think it's really important to adopt older animals. The shelter close to the home I grew up in has a large room that they keep all their adult cats in. There's hundreds of them. When I was living there and our last cat passed away after we found out my brother was allergic, I spent a lot of time in that room getting my kitty fix. It made me so sad to see so many amazing cats who kept getting passed over for kittens. It still makes me really sad. While there's nothing wrong with getting a kitten, I find adopting older cats to be incredibly rewarding. They really need homes and Skimble seems so appreciative of all the love he's been given over the past week. He's the best cat. I'm so thankful that I was able to save him, and that he saved me as well

Congrats , he sounds like a lovely boy ..

LTS3 · Oct 6, 2015

Nature's Variety is good

Did you get the Instinct one or the Prairie one? Instinct is the grain-free line and the one most people recommend to feed. You can sign up in the NV web site to get coupons via email. Here's a current one for the Pride by Instinct canned food: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/306897/pride-by-instinct-coupons

A lot of people rotate between higher end brands and lesser expensive brands to help out with cost. If your cat isn't too picky about food that is something you can look into doing.

Kat0121 · Oct 6, 2015

Cassafrass710 said:
Thank you both! I did some research and placed an order for Nature's Variety canned food. It's pricey, but I'm able to fit it in my budget, and I want to give Skimble the best I can. I think I'll transition him over to a 100% wet food diet after I get the food in the mail and make sure he likes it. Again, thank you so much for helping!

Thank you for taking an older kitty. They have so much love to give and appreciate being given a chance.

Where did you order the food from? Amazon has NVI canned food available through their subscribe and save program. You get a 5% discount on less than 5 items (can be anything that is S&S eligible and there are SO many things available) and 15% on 5 or more. You also get free standard shipping (3-5 days) unless you are a Prime member and the items are Prime eligible. Then you get free 2 day shipping. Chewy.com has a similar program. I think the free shipping starts at orders over $49.

LTS3 · Oct 6, 2015

Kat0121 said:
Where did you order the food from? Amazon has NVI canned food available through their subscribe and save program. You get a 5% discount on less than 5 items (can be anything that is S&S eligible and there are SO many things available) and 15% on 5 or more. You also get free standard shipping (3-5 days) unless you are a Prime member and the items are Prime eligible. Then you get free 2 day shipping. Chewy.com has a similar program. I think the free shipping starts at orders over $49.

A note about Amazon - use Amazon Smile so that the charity of your choice gets a donation at no cost to you

All features of Amazon.com (Prime, etc) are also on Amazon Smile. See the link in my signature for info and the link. Lots of SPCAs, human societies, etc to choose from as well as many other charities for veterans, kids, cancer research, etc.

Kat0121 · Oct 6, 2015

LTS3 said:
A note about Amazon - use Amazon Smile so that the charity of your choice gets a donation at no cost to you

All features of Amazon.com (Prime, etc) are also on Amazon Smile. See the link in my signature for info and the link. Lots of SPCAs, human societies, etc to choose from as well as many other charities for veterans, kids, cancer research, etc.'ve

I've used Amazon Smile for a couple of years now. Alley Cat Allies is the charity I chose.

cassafrass710 · Oct 6, 2015

Thanks to all of you guys again! I bought the Instinct line from Chewy.com. I saw their auto-ship option, but I thought I'd wait to see if my cat liked it before I chose that option just in case I were to forget to cancel it (which is rather likely). I'm a Prime member though, so I'll have to check out Amazon to see if I get a better deal! Thanks for the tip about Amazon Smile! I do a lot of shopping through Amazon and I'd love to be able to give back while doing that.

bonepicker · Oct 7, 2015

Post his picture and let us know if he likes the food!

cassafrass710 · Oct 7, 2015

Here he is in all his adorable glory. We're still waiting on the food, but I have high hopes! I also found out that I get a better deal with Amazon, so that's the route I'll take from now on.

IMG_2531.JPG

cassafrass710
Oct 7, 2015

ruaryx · Oct 7, 2015

Omg, he's so fluffy!!!!

2cats4me · Oct 8, 2015

Omg , he is so beautiful ...

Kat0121 · Oct 8, 2015

What a handsome little sweetheart

lisahe · Oct 8, 2015

Kat0121 said:
What a handsome little sweetheart

And he clearly already has the "I'm in charge" thing going!

I hope he likes his new food!

lisamarie12 · Oct 8, 2015

A kiss on your cute little pink nose, smooch.

Thanks for giving kitty a second chance.

What and how to feed my new cat

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