Cheap but quality low-cal/high protein dry food for inactive cat that is severely prone to weight ga

Hi:

I rescued King Tubby, an orange Maine Coon, from a one-bedroom house where he was being tormented by five other ginger cats, a Great Dane, and a Schnauzer when he was four years old. Poor guy had horrific PTSD, and worst of all (healthwise), he weighed over 30 lbs. He lived for food: went from his little bed to the litterbox and just ate free range cat chow. He had broken a leg, and was totally unable to exercise or do much of anything to protect himself from the other animals in the house.

So initially I drank the vet kool aid on low cal rx diets, feeding him dry food, but being pretty delinquent by just free feeding him myself. He continued at that weight until I read up on what he really needed. I switched him to a low-carb, high-protein, non-fish Friskies pate, limited his caloric intake, etc. He's down to 16 lbs now, which is probably ideal; he could probably even go up to 18 lbs if needed.

But he's 15 now, and we also got a dog, who I have trained (through a lot of effort: everyone says dogs are smarter than cats but maybe not my Enzo!), to give him his space and not eat his food--he can lick Tub's bowl, but only when he's totally done. The main problem is that Enzo eats a dry vet food (absolutely sine que non, bad UTI problems), but Tubs is eating the wet food. You can probably imagine that the dog wants nothing more than to get his mitts on Tubby's Friskies. 

If possible, I'd like to switch Tubby over to a quality dry food that is 1) low calorie and 2) affordable--our other problem being that I am now on disability and therefore have very limited funds to spend on pet food. Tubs really doesn't care whether his food is wet or dry; he just wants to eat as much as possible . The lower calorie, the better (so long as it has good nutrition and is relatively low carb). 

I thought that, before I reinvent the wheel, I could ask here and see if anyone has any recommendations. I'm not in the "grain-free" tier, but something that would cost in the range of <$20 for a $15 lb bag would be great. I don't know if that is realistic or not. I'm certainly willing to purchase in bulk, too, if that'd make it more affordable. Something low in potassium would be great, too (I've had two cats die of renal failure and just don't want to see him go out like that ). 

I don't have a car so something available online would be ideal. I know there are a few diamonds in the rough by makers like, well, Diamond, and such, that are sold in home goods stores like Fleet Farm, but I'm not sure what's good. Alternatively, I live across the street from a Trader Joe's; they have three brands of food, but none seem designed for "weight control" or "indoor cats" specifically (tho I haven't plugged the GA into a calculator to figure out the caloric values)..

If I can't find something decent, I'll stick with the Friskies; I'm just tired of the cat/dog strife over food, and thought I'd look into switching him to something dry, if I can find something equally affordable.

If you have any guidance, that'd be great. Thank you!

I will let others advise you on dry food reccomendations. I just wanted to add that it is really good for cats to have at least some wet food in their diet. It keeps them hydrated and helps keep healthy kidneys. A cat on dry only that doesn't drink enough water tends to live in a constant minor state of dehydration and it really takes a toll on the kidneys. So if you have to switch to dry food that's understandable but if you could manage to provide the cat with at least one small meal of canned each day, that would be really good for him. A mix of canned and dry works well but if it's going to be one or the other I reccomended choosing canned.

Also does your dog's prescription food come in a canned form? If it does maybe you could add a spoonful of canned to his dry meals so that he doesn't feel left out. A dog on all dry is fine because they drink enough water, but a spoonful of canned (from his proper prescription diet) could help ease the tension between them.

Final note, if you have to switch to all dry for the cat, maybe you could consider investing in a cat water fountain. This would encourage him to drink more water to make up for the dry food.

Best of luck and keep us updated!

Another thought, be very careful introducing dry food because that's what usually packs on the weight. So pay close attention to the calorie and carb content of it and be careful to feed only what he needs.

Thank you! Yes, absolutely mixing a bit of wet in for both of the animals is a great idea. And good point about the renal issues with dry food, I had totally forgotten about that.

My main concern for Tubs is making him happy. I'm feeding him a 1/2 5.5 oz cans of food a day and he's constantly begging for food (behavioral--took him to the vet and other than a congenital heart murmur, he's just fine). 

The other reason I thought dry might be good is because he's chronically constipated, and has begun avoiding the litterbox (not fun, esp. in a household with dogs, too argh... dogs are so gross). I've been giving him a little pumpkin and/or a dash of Miralax to help him out, but more fiber would be better.

Thanks for your help.

KingTubbytheCat said:

 
Thank you! Yes, absolutely mixing a bit of wet in for both of the animals is a great idea. And good point about the renal issues with dry food, I had totally forgotten about that.

My main concern for Tubs is making him happy. I'm feeding him a 1/2 5.5 oz cans of food a day and he's constantly begging for food (behavioral--took him to the vet and other than a congenital heart murmur, he's just fine). 

The other reason I thought dry might be good is because he's chronically constipated, and has begun avoiding the litterbox (not fun, esp. in a household with dogs, too argh... dogs are so gross). I've been giving him a little pumpkin and/or a dash of Miralax to help him out, but more fiber would be better.

Thanks for your help.

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Make that 1 and 1/2 cans of 5.5 oz. 

I think I might've found something! Premium Edge Healthy Weight Reduction & Control Formula Dry Cat Food, $30 for 18# at my local MudBay (btw, if you live in the Pacific NW and have never been to Mud Bay, they're freaking awesome: check them out; most knowledgeable staff ever). 

Does anyone have any feedback on the food? 

I think I might've found something: Premium Edge Healthy Weight Reduction & Control Formula Dry Cat Food. Called my Mud Bay (best pet store ever; if you're in the Pacific NW check it out!). Is $30 for an 18 lb. bag. That's slightly cheaper than Chewy, even.

Does anyone have any feedback on the stuff? 

Glad you updated that one reply. I was just about to say 1/2 a can doesn't seem like much. But 1 and 1/2 sounds ok. I have never seen this food before but it doesn't look too bad. You could definitely give it a try. In the end its all about what works best for your specific cat. Looking at it, it says it has 45% protein. That is a very high level of protein, so if your cat is older or has any urinary or kidney concerns then I would consult with your vet before putting him on this. If he is young and healthy you could start adding it in small amounts and see how it goes. A dry food with more fibre and filler might be helpful to bulk up his stools, but be careful because the low moisture content and the less water consumed, means less moisture in the stool. Which could result in dryer stools. Are you familiar with how to read the calorie content of the food and determine how much he needs based on that? the feeding charts tend to overestimate what they need. I am familiar with what your going through as my cats ideal weight is 14/15 pounds and he crept up to 18 pounds. he is now down to 16 pounds. I know how challenging it is to find the right food combination to help them loose weight and keep it off while at the same time keeping them happy and healthy.