Question on canned food...

[miispiggie]

I was thinking of adding a veritable diet of wet and dry food. Currently, Pixie is fed solely on dry cat food (Eagle Pack for now but I'll probably be switching to Royal Canin) and she seems to like it well enough. My fiance and I give her kitty treats too. Would it be all right if we add high quality canned food twice a week? I saw several from Iams and Purina that are packed for a single serving. We are thinking of ways to fatten her up a bit

We free-feed her dry food daily but I'm afraid of her getting bored with just one type of food. I was thinking of making plain chicken broth for her too. Any ideas?

 

[angelzoo]

Sure, there is nothing wrong with giving them a little wet food, I personally consider it just a treat for them, as my cats diet is mostly dry food as well.

I personally do not buy IAM's/Eukanuba/P&G products because they do animal testing. (Before any one starts complaining, yes I have varification for this.) That and there are MUCH better wet foods out there, at a lower cost then IAM'S, and I wasn't aware Purina made a wet food.??

Canned foods:
- Authority
- Nature's Recipie
- Nutro Max
- Natural Balance
- Nutro Natural Choice
- Pet Gold
- Wysong

Those are just a few names, some are better than others and anyone can feel free to add some more on here as I know I have missed some.

The best ones start with a real meat ingredient, and not water (water sufficiant for processing). And it's better to pick one that has real meat instead of by-products. Those are just 2 key factors to stear clear of IF you want the most out of a canned food.

 

[miispiggie]

Thanks for your reply. I'm pretty certain Purina makes canned food... think it's under their Pro Plan range. I had a glance through in the cat food section and although the selection was rather overwhelming, I did not see the brands mentioned in your post

The ones I spotted are :

Eagle Pack, Eukanoba, Friskies, Hill's Science Diet, Iams, Purina, Royal Canin, Whiskas and several Japanese brands.

Most of the canned food does not seem to contain meat by-products. I've been reading the ingredient lists and have been doing some research today. I'll still be looking around!

 

[yola]

Aubrey - I feed Whiskas, although it's does have a lot of water in, I find it OK as an occasional supplement to the dry Royal Canin all 3 of my cats eat which is VERY concentrated in terms of nutrition.

I don't know if they animal test - maybe someone can advise. I'm not comfortable with using animal-tested products.

 

[hissy]

They animal test humanely. They send their product out to vet schools and breeders worldwide and ask them to feed the animals under their care the new blends. That is why RC is tops in their field of manufacturing the right blends for the right cat, and why I now feed only their blends to my cats.

miispiggie on the canned foods, just read the labels carefully and steer clear of any food that has sodium nitrate in it.

 

[alicat613]

My cats go wild over the Natural Balance canned food.
They even eat the carrot pieces! They have a couple varieties too.
I only give it to them a few times a week and keep it in the fridge with the plastic lid you can get at pet stores and it keeps fine.

I also give them homemade chicken stock (not made with onions though), small amounts of meats and poultry cooked for pets (no sauces or spices for humans), fruits and veggies if they will eat them. My dog eats regular food (meat, fruits, veggies, grains, etc) so sometimes if something interests them they will still it from him and eat it.

 

[hissy]

Here are some cat treats you can safely give you kitties:

Raw egg yolks only- no egg whites
Steamed squash, spinach or kale with butter (not margarine)
Baked potato with butter
Coconut milk (my cats love this stuff)
Plain yogurt
Cooked turkety, chicken, lamb, roast beef, buffalo or rabbit
Roasted chicken necks
Raw ground beef
baby food with meat (no onion powder on the label)
buttered popcorn
smoked oysters packed in olive oil
avocado
cheese, cottage chees
oatmeal with cream
pancakes with butter

NO SWEETS at all! Sugar especially chocolate compromises the immune sytem as well as chocolate is toxic to cats.


These were taken out of an excellent book called Cat Be Good by Annie Bruce. I highly recommend this book!

 

[angelzoo]

miis: I don't where you live, but just about all of those food can be found at a combination of Petsmart and Petco.

You can also order online to get some from MANY places!!

However, if you are just given your cats maybe a teaspoon of wet food every 2 or 3 days, then you will be fine with just about any wet food you feed them. It's like giving them a couple peices of a POUNCE cat treat (or other similar brands.)

Ahh yes pro plan, that's right that is by purina isn't it? Well just an fyi those DO have by-products in them. About the 5th ingredient down... meat by-products.

 

[miispiggie]

Thanks for the advise. Angelz... I'm located in Malaysia so unfortunately, many other brands are not available here. I'll definitely keep a look out for meat by-products and sodium nitrate. I was just thinking of adding canned/wet foods as treats so that she has a better variety of stuff to eat. Definitely not making them her regular diet.

I think there are other petstores that sell Nutro or Innova. I'll need to look around though. I'm also looking into switching her current kibbles. My regular pet supplier (who's also very happy that I finally got a cat!) has recommended Royal Canin. She has two beautiful resident cats there and she's feeding them a combi of Eagle Pack and RC. Their hair (semi-long) are beautiful and soft to touch. She was telling me that it's partially contributed by their diet. If fed better foods, they'll look and will be healthier.

I'm still learning and researching though. Definately not getting the Whiskas kibbles... I've heard lots of horror stories about that feed. I'm just using a Whiskas container (solid plastic with a flip lid shaped like a cat's head) because it's too cute to resist. Of course, I promptly threw out the contents and replaced with Eagle Pack.

One of the reasons why I'm researching is also due to the fact that I donate cat/dog food, toys and supplies to the local RSPCA. I make rounds there twice a year. The conditions are lacking because they do not receive much funding from the public and it's over run by strays. Lots of the animals there were once pets... only a very small population are ferals. Many have to be put to sleep. I was thinking of adopting a future kitty companion there but am rather terrified of it harbouring some form of disease. The vet facilities are also under-funded

Sorry for going OT again, but I used to donate *egads* Whiskas... Now I know better!

 

[angelzoo]

Oh wow, I didn't know they had an RSPCA there. Cool. Too bad they are underfunded yes. I used to work at a humane society that was exactly that, and it was quiet scarey there, to work and for the animals living there.

If you adopt a cat from them, have you thought about seting up a vet appointment PRIOR to adopting the cat? So as soon as you adopt kitty, your straight off to the vet from the RSPCA. So when you bring the cat home you will know if he/she has anything or not and you can adiquitly place the cat then (aka in quaranteen.)

Or are you saying they don't even have the money to test ahead of time for things like FIP or FLV? That could be a problem if you have kits in the home already.

As far as the foods. I'm taking a quick glance at them. I personally perfer cat foods with NO corn what so ever, but Eagle Pack and Royal Canine have it. Royal Canine does have a leg up, in the order of the ingredients, Corn is #3 and #5 in the list of ingridents. On Eagel Pack it is #3 and #4 followed by Chicken FAT, instead of a better ingredient like Chicken that Royal Canine has. The first 5 ingredients in a bag of dry food are often the most important to look at, if your going for high grade foods and in what quanities (prior to cooking).

You can see what I mean here, and decide for yourself, what to feed next, but I will say that yes Royal Canine would be better then your current diet.

Eagle Pack:
Protein: 32.00 %
Fat: 20.00 %

Ingredients:
Chicken Meal, Ground Brown Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Ground Corn, Chicken Fat, Chicken, Flaxseed, Brewers Dried Yeast, Poultry Liver Dogest, Wheat Germ Meal, Dried Egg Product, Pork Meal, Fish Meal, Alfalfa Meal, Tomato Pomace, Drid Beet Pulp, Salt, Chicory Root, Dried Cranberry Powder, plus essential vitamins and minerals.

Royal Canine:

Crude Protein: 32.00%
Crude Fat: 13.00% <---- This is also a good thing!

Ingredients:
Chicken meal, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, chicken, corn, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), pea fiber, beet pulp, chicken flavor, powdered cellulose, fish oil, dried egg products, brewers yeast, sodium bisulfate, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, choline chloride, DL-methionine, taurine, natural antioxidant, iron proteinate, vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, zinc oxide, zinc proteinate, ferrous sulfate, manganese oxide, calcium pantothenate, manganese proteinate, niacin supplement, copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, thiamine mononitrate, copper proteinate, calcium iodate, folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite, vitamin B12 supplement.

 

[alicat613]

Originally posted by hissy
Here are some cat treats you can safely give you kitties:

Raw egg yolks only- no egg whites
Steamed squash, spinach or kale with butter (not margarine)
Baked potato with butter
Coconut milk (my cats love this stuff)
Plain yogurt
Cooked turkety, chicken, lamb, roast beef, buffalo or rabbit
Roasted chicken necks
Raw ground beef
baby food with meat (no onion powder on the label)
buttered popcorn
smoked oysters packed in olive oil
avocado
cheese, cottage chees
oatmeal with cream
pancakes with butter

NO SWEETS at all! Sugar especially chocolate compromises the immune sytem as well as chocolate is toxic to cats.


These were taken out of an excellent book called Cat Be Good by Annie Bruce. I highly recommend this book!

WHOA Hissy! Roasted chicken necks???? Cooked bones are always a NO in my book. They are dry and splinter easily. RAW poultry necks, backs, and wings are great if your cats will eat them (mine won't) but I would never ever give cooked bones at all.

Also about all the butter and creams in this list...without mention of the fact that most cats are lactose intolerant? Few cats can digest cows milk well, which makes sense as how often in nature can you imagine a cow allowing a cat to suckle? Veggies can be prepared steamed plain, or with homemade stocks for flavor if your cat does not seem to digest milk well.

 

[angelzoo]

I don't see where she mentioned feeding bones.

But yes, to be on the safe side I don't give any animal COOKED bones of any kind.
I'm also purplexed at the dairy list... most cats are lactose intolerant... I know some owners don't care and still like to give their cats a little now and then.

 

[alicat613]

Roasted chicken necks are filled with the neck bones, it's not just meat. That's what I was referring to.

 

[hissy]

Annie explains in her chapter that these are treats, and not full-on meals, small portions of these given over a a certain period in a month not every day. My cats love butter, olive oil and coconut milk. They don't get it all the time at all. I have one orange boy that will claw the refrigerator open to get to the milk, and when we pull the jug out, Bailey is right there. My other 13 cats turn their nose up at milk, but bailey gets it every day and is in excellent health. It isn't the lactose intolerance that binds the cats up, it is that milk is the only liquid that you drink and it comes out solid. That is the problem.

I still recommend the book too.

 

[meezer_mama]

Cream and butter do not actually have any 'milk' in them, so they are ok. (They are mostly fat...thus 'ok' on my Atkins Diet! haha)

I will confess that I give one of my cats a little splash of milk every now and then. He really likes it. But I only drink whole milk and seems like I heard the skim was really bad for them. But I'm not sure about that. I've never had any problems with diahrhea.

Hissy, you posted a warning on sodium nitrate? What exactly does that do to the cat? One of my friends feeds her cat and dog lunch meat every day as a treat. She knows it's bad...but still does it and I was curious so I could tell her.

 

[hissy]

I first learned about sodium nitrate the hard way, when one of my cats came down with a disease known as feline hyperesthesia. Part of the reason Bacardi got this disease and suffered the seizures (I learned later) was because I was feeding her canned food that had sodium nitrate in it. It is an additive that has been proven to cause brain damage, seizures and cancer in lab rats. The vets surmised that Bacardi had an overload of this in her system which caused her to become ill (she was always pushing the other cats away from their food) When the convulsions and seizures became to much the medication wouldn't even stop them, we asked the angels to come and take her. The food industry uses this additive in hot dogs, luncheon meats and sausages as well as the some cat food companies add it to their foods.

Here is my sweet kitty in the grass.

 

[sherral46]

A couple of questions ok? In giving cats milk ,do you start when they are little,so they can learn digest it ok? Also raw groud beef,is raw meat ok for cats? I always heard blood isn't good for them. I am not being smart ,I am always trying to learn what food is good for my cats. Also when my mommy is pregarent and nursing can she have milk and raw meat? She is a very picky eater,and I want to keep her healthy and her baby;s also. Thank you sherral46

 

[hissy]

Sherral, I am not the expert who wrote the book, but I don't encourage my cats to drink milk. I do have one cat that will literally scream if he does not get milk. He comes in three times a day through the cat door, sits at the fridge and screams for milk. Doesn't want cat food, treats, or anything, just milk. I don't know why, most of my cats won't drink milk.

It is not necessary to give a pregnant or nursing mom milk. It is necessary to feed her nutritious food in small amounts many times during the day. I would not overload any kitty with raw hamburger (simply because of all the hormones and additives they use now)

My cats love steamed squash, cottage cheese, small pieces of cheese and they get wet food, dry food, and some cooked meats. I know a gal who only feeds her cats ground up raw chicken- she grinds up the bones and everything and makes their food that way, that is what they get, and they are fat and healthy and happy. For me, that is a lot of work, because you have to smash the bones first to get them through the grinder.

If you give your pregnant mom milk, give her KMR after the kits are born. That would be my suggestion, others may have other ideas. That is what makes this board so great. Everybody is different and we still get along.

 

[sherral46]

Thank you for answering so quickely! I never thought about veg.s I wonder if she would like it? I guess I will have to try! The reason I ask about milk. When my son's cat drink milk he would get the run's. I am kinda afarid to give it to my other cats.None of them have any had it.
Thanks again.

 

[miispiggie]

Hissy... that's a beautiful kitty. Thanks for posting the pic

I purchased a can of Iams for kittens and Pixie loved it. Think I'll be feeding her some wet foods as treats from now on. She loves chicken broth too... I gave her some yesterday and she lapped everything up.

With regards to adopting a cat from the SPCA, I think I'll likely do it. I have helped out at the centre several times. The dogs are particularly active and we had to take turns walking them. The cats there are all neutered/spayed and are vaccinated but I'm still a little cautious. I'll definitely get the vet to check the future adoptee out before bringing it home. I do have a quarantine space. When I had guinea pigs, I had to quarantine them too and constantly washed my hands and changed shirts in between handling. Guess I just have to exercise the same thing if I bring in a new cat