Feeding too much seafood too often can result in a cat who gets addicted to eating it and will refuse to eat anything else. Some cats may develop urinary isssues. Some types of fish may contain mercury. It's best to limit seafood to occasional meals or treats.
No, that is a myth. No food keeps teeth clean in any way. Only regular toothbrushing will keep teeth clean, just like it does in Humans.
No, in fact it does the same thing for their teeth as pretzels, crackers and potato chips do for our teeth, leave starchy residue. And a cat's teeth is only one part of the cat.
I'm glad I can help. Again, I think feeding only wet is a very legitimate choice. So is feeding dry. I strongly believe there is no "right-size-fits-all" solution here.
I'm a skeptic and very pro-science and this description raises every red flag in my book, sorry. A specialist does not treat fungus, cancer and renal failure and definitely not in humans AND animals. I'm not even sure it's legal for a veterinarian to be treating humans.
Because most dry foods have a lot more carbohydrates than most canned foods it can't be a separate issue. Rather it is all inter-connected. Low carb dry foods are more concentrated and therefore have a lot more calories which is important to consider when dealing with obesity and obesity related health problems in cats. A water based high protein low carbohydrate cat food isn't so concentrated. I have looked through your links but probably need to read them again with more focus. While it's true that cats have the opportunity to get health problems because they're living longer than they would in the wild I don't think this proves that these health issues aren't diet related. Also all this information coming out abou dry food not being such a healthy choice for cats is not based on belief. Health issues coming up in cats are evidence. I have also mentioned Dr Elizabeth Hodgkins who is devoted to helping diabetic cats and preventing this disease.
Why would dry foods necessarily have more carbs? I don't see the issues as connected, sorry.
I'm a little late to this; but I want to reply to you. My girls are 11 years old and i have tried a few times over the years to get them to eat primarily wet food. As kittens they were weaned to the dry food the shelter used; one of the common kitten foods (I can't remember which now.). That wet attempt resulted in a lot of puking; so I looked for a better quality dry that was in my budget. Other attempts to add wet food have shown me my girls cannot tolerate beef. One cannot tolerate fish. Certain brands make them puke altogether. Through a lot of trial and error we've found some Fancy Feast flavors that work for them.
Actually, there IS a type of food that does clean your cat's teeth pretty well, and you don't have to brush their teeth either (though some people still choose too, if they wish). Raw food keeps cat's teeth AMAZINGLY clean, especially the RMB's that they have to chew on with their back teeth. Honestly, I'd suggest giving your cat a chicken wing or two once/twice a week to help keep their teeth clean, they do wonders!
I too would rather see a cat on dry than starve. If Rosie didn't eat enough I would bring back some dry. Fortunately she does.I'm a little late to this; but I want to reply to you. My girls are 11 years old and i have tried a few times over the years to get them to eat primarily wet food. As kittens they were weaned to the dry food the shelter used; one of the common kitten foods (I can't remember which now.). That wet attempt resulted in a lot of puking; so I looked for a better quality dry that was in my budget. Other attempts to add wet food have shown me my girls cannot tolerate beef. One cannot tolerate fish. Certain brands make them puke altogether. Through a lot of trial and error we've found some Fancy Feast flavors that work for them.
During that last attempt to add wet; both my girls started to display health problems. (They are litter mates.) Noodles has had a murmur from birth and was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure almost 2 years ago. Around the same time Mooch started dropping weight and eating less and less. After testing (blood and ultrasound) we found her liver values were elevated and there was enlargement in the biliary structure. With daily medication; both of my girls have improved. I have come to have a good working relationship with our 2 vets. (In fact the other day I had to take Mooch for an enema. You know you've gotten comfortable with your vet when the first thing they say to you after you answer the phone is "WE HAVE POOPAGE!!!" :lol3: )
So in all that; both girls lost weight to the point you could feel their hip bones and I bought an infant scale to monitor their weight at home. The vet and I discussed food options and I had to come to terms with the fact that feeding a balanced dry was better than having them not eat enough with the wet. Continuing to push the wet was going to kill my cats. So now I offer both. Mooch gets a gravy based one (which means it will have grains) because she needs Mirilax twice daily to counter the effects of her meds. Noodles still gets grain free; but we also have dry available to both. Both enjoy our pet fountain. You could call it a middle-of-the-road approach; but it's working. In my conversations with the vet I remember talking to one about how crazy it seemed that both developed these problems at the same time. Different problems; but at the same time. The vet said there could be a genetic component. I do know they were born on the street and taken in to the shelter with their mother and 2 other litter mates.
It was a hard time; but I've found that you have to do what works for your cat. Even what works for Mooch hasn't worked for Noodles. Just like people do better on different kinds of diets/nutrition programs. I still try to feed grain free with the wet aside from Mooch's mirilax laced stuff). But right now keeping them eating means they are getting Purina Naturals dry food. They ate better quality for basically the first 9 years of their life.But this is working right now. They are back to being active. Their coats are healthy. Mooch's last blood work was the best it's ever been. I've had cats live decent long lives on grocery store dry food. I've had cats that did develop health conditions. Nutrition is only one part of a cat's health. Genetics and environment/stress play a part too.
I hope all my rambling has given you some reassurance that you are not alone in having to feed dry. Do the best you can for your cats and let go of guilt. That's all you can do really.
