Store bought hypoallergenic food?

[danie]

Hi 

I'm new here.  We have an inherited cat-Gilbert- from my daughter and her roommate(unsettled college students shouldn't be allowed to adopt!) Anyways he is costing us money we don't have.  He had been scooting quite a bit and constant licking of anal area, so when I took him in for his shots vet said he had severely impacted anal glands, so that was taken care of; switched him to canned cat food-not the highest quality but what we could afford and added fiber to it.  Things were good for a week or so, bowel movements improved; then he started furiously scooting.  When I took him in this morning for a booster shot-the vet check and his glands were good, didn't feel much in his colon.

Since Gilbert also pulls out hair, the vet said the next thing to try would be a hypoallergenic food for 40 days.  Out came a case of Royal Canin Hypoallergenic Rabbit-which he gave me a little bit of a discount on but not much.  My husband will flip when he find outs the price-I may not even tell him.

Is there a much less expensive brand I can find at the store that would be equivalent?  What about dry?  I have read so many things about wet vs dry; but honestly the canned cat food is so expensive.

Thank you

Danie

 

[ritz]

The canned food he sold you is expensive because it is prescription and has a high mark up. Not necessarily any better than the kind you can get in the pet stores. (Can you return it to the vets?) Did you buy the wet or dry?
I would look for a limited ingredient wet food. Dry food almost by definition has a lot of extras, including carbohydrates, that cats don't need and may be allergic to. Like peas.
Attached is a basic article about nutrition.
Of course, you could always consider feeding raw!

 

[danie]

I bought the canned.   I'm actually surprised my vet didn't  mention a store bought brand, he or his tech usually do because they know I can't afford much.  I can take it back-which I might.  I've never had a cat with any kind of health issues-my other two cats(RIP)had always been fed  dry middle of the road food; never any issues except maybe an occasional hairball--so this is all new to me.

Thank you.

Danie

 

[Willowy]

I don't think scooting is an allergic behavior. And pulling his fur can be related to allergies but can also be caused by stress. Personally, I don't think it's necessary to try a novel protein-based food yet (but there are cheaper limited ingredient foods if you need to). What kind of fiber are you adding to his food? How much? Is he overweight? What brand/flavors of canned food have you been feeding him?

Personally, I would first try a regular canned food without fish (fish is high in histamines and is a common allergen). Friskies flavors without fish are Mixed Grill and Country Style Dinner. I'm not sure of all the fish-free Fancy Feast flavors but I know there are at least a few. If that didn't help I would try one without chicken.

If he really truly has allergies or intolerances, you can go with a homemade food (cooked or raw). This would certainly be cheaper than the prescription food, and you would know exactly what's in it. There's lots of info in the raw/homecooked subforum on how to make a balanced home-prepared diet.

 

[danie]

Gilbert weighs 13.5 pounds, the vet said he would like to see him at 10 pounds. He is about 11 years old.  I had tried the pumpkin for fiber but he hated it, so I add 1/8 tsp of metamucil to his morning feeding.  I have been feeding him some Friskies and some Special Kitty varieties(I think that is walmart brand.) and Fancy feast; he has been getting the pate style of those, fish, chicken, tuna, really just whatever I grab.  I had no idea about fish being a common allergen.

I know raw/homemade would be good but I honestly don't like to prepare meals for my family-so I don't think I would be very consistent with it.

I think I will take the prescription food back.  Any ideas what could be causing the scooting? The hair pulling could definitely be stress; he had a rough time before my daughter got him last year.  He had been abandoned by his family-don't know how long he was left in the house; then he was at a rescue shelter for 4 months or so before my daughter's roommate got him last October.  I have had him since June-when they moved in to a place that didn't allow cats.

Thanks for all your help.

 

[Willowy]

Scooting is usually caused by some kind of discomfort---pain or itching---or him trying to wipe his butt :tongue2:. Which is why I asked if he's fat; he may not be able to reach to clean himself. Was he checked for worms?

 

[danie]

He was checked for worms; he is a master at licking his butt! 

  

 

[chloe16]

I wouldnt be doing anymore vaccines for an 11 year old cat personally. Those could cause a whole lot of issues. I would try a canned food from the petstore personally.

 

[ritz]

I agree with the above posters, including: scooting usually isn't a sign of allergies.
Fish is a common allergen. Some cats are allergic to chicken, too.
Read the labels carefully--some "beef" (for example) flavored foods contain some fish, albeit not a lot.
Exercise is a great stress-reducer!

 

[danie]

Gilbert doesn't play much, we try to get him moving with a laser or other toys-he plays for a few minutes, then just lays there like we are annoying him.   I tried the hypoallergenic food this morning, he doesn't seem to like it much; he ate some because he is hungry but left quite a bit in the dish-not like when he eats the cheap stuff, he licks the bowl clean.

I didn't tell my husband the price of the food but just that the vet wanted me to try it.  He was  mad-"the cat is 11 yro, I think he will be ok eating whatever" (he is not really a cat person)  

If the scooting isn't anal gland related, worm related, allergy related-any ideas what else could be causing it-could it just be a habit from his glands be impacted for so long?

Thanks for all your advice.  I will be researching cat foods today.

Danie

 

[tnyc]

 
Gilbert weighs 13.5 pounds, the vet said he would like to see him at 10 pounds. He is about 11 years old.  I had tried the pumpkin for fiber but he hated it, so I add 1/8 tsp of metamucil to his morning feeding.  I have been feeding him some Friskies and some Special Kitty varieties(I think that is walmart brand.) and Fancy feast; he has been getting the pate style of those, fish, chicken, tuna, really just whatever I grab.  I had no idea about fish being a common allergen.

I know raw/homemade would be good but I honestly don't like to prepare meals for my family-so I don't think I would be very consistent with it.

I think I will take the prescription food back.  Any ideas what could be causing the scooting? The hair pulling could definitely be stress; he had a rough time before my daughter got him last year.  He had been abandoned by his family-don't know how long he was left in the house; then he was at a rescue shelter for 4 months or so before my daughter's roommate got him last October.  I have had him since June-when they moved in to a place that didn't allow cats.

Thanks for all your help.

I would stick with FF chicken classics pate for a while, instead of trying all the different kinds, fish isn't really the best. Can you afford to just feed him that for a while?

 

[danie]

I can afford the Fancy Feast;.   Walmart has it for about 60 cents a 3 oz can.

 

[ritz]

FF classic's are pretty good for a supermarket brand. But only the classics. And of course avoid seafood.
What is the consistency of his stools? If very hard, may be painful, itchy. If soft, he may feel as though he hasn't gotten all of it out (yeah, TMI especially if you're eating).

 

[danie]

  Not eating.  His stools are pretty hard-but they look a lot better since he has been on canned cat food, before they were almost little dry pellets.  I add a little fiber to his canned food.

 

[snugglecat]

 My cat has anal gland issues and I have to take her in every month to have them expressed. She also has problems with constipation so I have to feed her canned food, I add water and Miralax to her morning and evening meal. She only gets an 1/8 cup dry a day just because she will drive me crazy crying for it. She is allergic to almost everything so she gets Wellness canned food. You could try giving canned food only and maybe add some miralax  and water to the food.. My cat would lick her bottom a lot when she was having issues with constipation. Fancy Feast classics isn't that bad, I would stick with that one for now.

 

[danie]

Sounds exactly like my cat!!  I thought it was metamucil I was using but it is Miralax.  How much do you put in the food?  I've been adding an 1/8th of a tsp to his morning food with a little bit of water.

 

[snugglecat]

I put 1/8 of a tsp in her morning meal and then again in her evening meal. Sometimes I have to add a little more Miralax  for a few days if she starts having trouble going. She does not drink water so I add enough water to her food to make it kind of soupy, she likes it that way. I think once your cat starts having normal stools he will feel so much better.

 

[sweetpea24]

I bought the canned.   I'm actually surprised my vet didn't  mention a store bought brand, he or his tech usually do because they know I can't afford much.  I can take it back-which I might.  I've never had a cat with any kind of health issues-my other two cats(RIP)had always been fed  dry middle of the road food; never any issues except maybe an occasional hairball--so this is all new to me.

Thank you.

Danie

Royal Canin, which in North America will replace Medi-cal, only makes their hypoallergenic foods on Mondays. They thoroughly clean their factory on the weekends. This helps avoid cdoss-contamination with other foods and thus, other possible allergenic ingredients. One approach to dealing with a food allergy or sensitivity is to feed a novel, single source protein food, which i hour case is the rabbit diet. Another approach is using hydrolyzed protein, where the size of the protein molecules are made smaller so the body doesn't recognize them as protein while still maintaining the same amino acid profile.

I am simply explaining RC's procedures but if you choose to go with a pet store food, be sure to find out which company makes the food, packages the food and what procedures, if any, the manufacturer takes to ensure the ingredients of the food doesn't come in contact with other proteins or potential allergens. Don't go by brand because one manufacturing company could make foods for several brands of cat food.

Also, to be sure that your cat is truly responding, or not to the rabbit diet, you must feed that food only for at least 100 days...no treats either.

 

[danie]

Thanks for the information.  He won't touch the Royal Canin at all, after 3 days of trying; ended up going back to the Fancy Feast for right now.