I need a little support - Hans has something wrong.

[passiquepersian]

It sounds like everything is going to be ok, and IAMS is a really good food to be feeding your kitties, that is what I feed my Persians.

Take Care-
Pat

 

[jen]

Actually Nutro or another natural food like that is better then anything else like IAMS or Friskies or any of those chemical filled foods. I found that out the hard way when I fed all my cats IAMS and my persian was reacting badly to the chemicals in the food (it was messing with his kidneys I think) and it actually could have killed him if I continued and didn't do anything about it. He was peeing all over too. I like to tell people about this because I always thought IAMS was the best food cuz its so popular but it actually isn't that great.

 

[sicycat]

Yeah IAMS is not the best food. I say anything you can buy at your local grocery store, is not good quality food. I feed my guys Innova dry and Nutro wet.

http://cats.about.com/cs/nutrition/t...drycatfood.htm

 

[jcat]

How much canned food to feed really depends on the food itself. Jamie gets 1/2 dry (his preference) and 1/2 canned (my preference). He weighs just under 14 lbs., and the "ideal" amount of canned food (half a day's ration, going by brands that consist of 98-99% meat and 1-2% natural rice) ranges from 70 g. to 100 g., with about 30 g. of high-quality dry food for breakfast. There's no "golden rule" to go by. The canned food he gets, with the exception of Innova, Solid Gold, and California Natural, is European, so I can't help you there. Iams is so-so as far as quality is concerned, though much better than Friskies and other supermarket brands. The more meat, and the less grain, the better. One thing about the more expensive brands - since the quality, i.e, nutritional value, is so much higher, the lower amounts consumed generally mean that you don't end up spending (much) more than you would for the necessary amounts of lower-quality food. One big advantage of canned food is that you can add a few teaspoons of warm water to increase fluid intake. Also make several water bowls available throughout your home, at a distance from the food bowls. Unseasoned chicken or beef broth added to water generally increases water intake, and a cat water fountain (Drinkwell, Fresh Flow, or Catit) may do the trick, also. Cat milk or lactose-free cow's milk, if accepted, will increase fluid intake; be aware, however, that some brands of cat milk contain sugar, and should be avoided, and that both types of milk mean added calories.

 

[ghostuser]

All three of my cats drink about one cup of water each per day, usually more. I have two water dishes that I'm constantly refilling, and Merlin drinks right from the tap several times a day. I was surprised myself when my vet told me they're not getting enough fluids, but I have a feeling he's used to owners fibbing to him.

I have to go with Iams, and I wish I could feed something less expensive. Here's the breakdown -
Hans - 17 pounds - 15 oz per day (Adult wieght control)
Mer - 18 pounds - 15 oz per day (Senior formula)
Little One - 8 pounds (6 months) - 8 oz per day (Kitten formula)

Even if I buy the 14 oz. cans of Iams, that's over two and a half cans a day. At about 1.14 dollars a can, not including tax...

It works out to more than 90 dollars a month! That's not even one week's pay for me! I can't afford car insurance as it is - my grandparents have been paying it. (Thanks to having to go to the vet three times a month.) And mom won't even consider feeding canned, so I'd be paying the bills.

I'd probably have a heart attack if I did the calculations for more expensive canned food!

If it were only two cats, it really wouldn't be too much more than what I'm paying now for dry food. I wouldn't even blink at the cost. But add Hans into the equation, and woo-boy, it gets pricey. And it's not even like I could put just Hans on canned (since he's really the only one who needs it now) because playing favorites would equal huge cat fights and hurt feelings.

So I'm going Iams dry weight control for free-feeding (it stops the cat fights if they aren't stressed about there being no food). And then half a can of the appropriate Iams canned per day. (The large cans are actually the same price per oz. as those dinky cans of Friskies and Wiskas.) I wish I could feed them just wet, but at least I can afford to feed them a little per day.

 

[zanniesmom]

Could you soak the dry in water? Becky

 

[ghostuser]

It breaks down the proteins in dry food.

Plus, my boys give me the "You're poisoning me!" look. I have a gut feeling that it would be like soaking dry ramen noodles in warm tap water. Ick.