Daily sodium intake?

[Dodahm]

There seem to be endless questions about figuring out what a healthy diet is for my cats.

Right now, I am wondering about the safe level of daily sodium intake. I found a wet food with healthy ingredients (97% meat, no legumes, grains, gums) but it has quite high sodium level. One large can (170g) contains about 500mg of sodium. My cat consumes 4/5 of the can per day, which leads to 400mg of sodium just from her wet food. More sodium will be added to her diet as I feed her some dry food (10g or so) plus a tiny bit of dried fish treats.

Is this too much sodium per day for her? Based on my research, it seems like there is a wide range of sodium levels that are considered healthy/safe for cats. Anybody knowledgeable on this topic? Your help would be much appreciated.

 

[FeebysOwner]

FWIW, I found this online regarding the sodium amount per day for a cat -
"Based on a long-term (24 month) study of aged healthy cats, the recommended SUL (safe upper limit) of sodium in feline diets is 740 mg/mJ (megajoule) of metabolizable energy (ME), or 1.25 g/kg in 4000 kcal ME/kg diets), including diets for aged cats."
Sodium nutritional needs for cats - EveryCat Health Foundation
But you are correct about varying opinions, as another stated 42mg per day for a 9 pound cat eating 250 calories.
Your Cat's Nutritional Needs (nationalacademies.org)

 

[Dodahm]

FWIW, I found this online regarding the sodium amount per day for a cat -
"Based on a long-term (24 month) study of aged healthy cats, the recommended SUL (safe upper limit) of sodium in feline diets is 740 mg/mJ (megajoule) of metabolizable energy (ME), or 1.25 g/kg in 4000 kcal ME/kg diets), including diets for aged cats."
Sodium nutritional needs for cats - EveryCat Health Foundation
But you are correct about varying opinions, as another stated 42mg per day for a 9 pound cat eating 250 calories.
Your Cat's Nutritional Needs (nationalacademies.org)

Thank you so much for sharing this! Yeah, after doing more research on the topic after my initial post, it began to feel like there really isn't a consensus on how much sodium is safe/required for cats, even though a low-sodium diet is recommended for cats with chronic kidney disease and heart issues.

I think my best bet is to feed her a rotation of this can along with other low-sodium foods. Even though it's easier said than done as she is quite a picky eater with a serious allergy to lentils and a moderate allergy to peas... When I thought I had found a perfect wet food for her, she began to show allergic symptoms -- itching her ear/eye/chin areas and shaking her head a lot. I think it was a reaction to chickpeas in the can, which apparently have a high level of cross-reactivity with lentils and peas.

I will continue to experiment though. I am not sure why but I became quite obsessed with finding a healthy diet for my kitty. I've never felt this way before with my dogs in the past -- I was young and they were more like family dogs, rather than my own, and none of them were picky about their food.

I am sorry I ranted a bit. I just never had to deal with feeding my dogs before as they would pretty much devour anything that I would put in front of them. But I am hopeful that I will be able to find a perfect balance between her preferences and healthy foods. I will keep trying anyway Thank you again for your help!