What Is Better Dry Or Wet

[Daisy6]

Ugh, why do vets keep telling people dry food is good for dental health? The teeth are no better on kibbles than wet food - proven fact.

 

[MissMolly08]

I feed Friskies as well...wet only though. My cat gets 1 5.5oz can of wet food a day, split into 2 meals.

I do keep Purina Beyond chicken & egg dry food on hand just for convenience purposes...if I am going to be out or whatever at her usual meal time, I will put dry down before I leave and skip the wet meal at that time.

 

[Daisy6]

I have no problem with letting a cat eat dry food when you are traveling and your cat sitter can only come once a day. But if a cat sitter can come over twice a day, dry food is not necessary during vacations.

 

[KarenKat]

Tammy 1and a half

Lol, is Tammy 1 and a half named after Parks and Rec?

 

[Roxane0470]

Lol, is Tammy 1 and a half named after Parks and Rec?[/QUOTE
Yes Tammy is 1 and a half year old. The shelter named her and it just stuck.

 

[JamesCalifornia]

~ After reading this for about an hour I did not feed my cats dry food for almost a week ! ` ´

TANYA'S GUIDE TO FELINE KIDNEY DISEASE​

 

[Gauntylgrym]

Roxane0470 What was the basis for the vet wanting to see a 2 lb weight gain? If the cat was obviously underweight and malnourished from the shelter then that's one thing. But not every breed of cat weighs the same, or exhibits the same physiological characteristics of being over/under weight. Couple that with the recommendation to feed dry for teeth cleaning and I'd be looking for a different vet.

 

[Roxane0470]

Roxane0470 What was the basis for the vet wanting to see a 2 lb weight gain? If the cat was obviously underweight and malnourished from the shelter then that's one thing. But not every breed of cat weighs the same, or exhibits the same physiological characteristics of being over/under weight. Couple that with the recommendation to feed dry for teeth cleaning and I'd be looking for a different vet.

She is small for her age, but thought she should at least be 5 lbs..Now she is 7. I am actually switching vets, she has her first appointment next Friday.

 

[josiegirl]

The vet was wrong. If kibbles helped clean teeth, why do so many cats with a dry diet need dental appointments? Cats do not chew as much as we think. Kibbles do not have any effect on plaque and tarter.

I completely agree. The chewed up pieces of dry food actually stick to their teeth and cause plaque build-up.

 

[josiegirl]

Our two shih tzus were on dry kibble their entire lives. One just passed a few months back and he had only a few teeth left. The remaining pup only has a few of her teeth left...all because we'd always been told that kibble keeps their teeth clean so no worries! Such a lie, and the fact that vets still perpetuate this lie baffles me to no end.

The worst wet is better than the best dry, no matter what a vet tries to sell you on. Special diets, special this, special that...well hydrated cats will have significantly fewer problems throughout their lives.

Because vets don't get any training in nutrition. What little training they do get is from the representatives from pet food companies. Yeah, okay...

I don't take nutritional advice from vets, sorry. They are trained to treat ailments/injuries, etc...Not to give nutritional advice. I'm lucky I don't have a vet who is against raw feeding or who has tried to push their prescription food crap on me.

Edit: I'm just ranting in general. This was not directed toward you, as I agree with your post.

 

[sdkfjlasdf]

i feed dry and wet... some days no dry but i always make sure she gets wet.

royal canin and hills pay vets i suspect to promote their brands. i trust a vet's medical advice but not their nutritional recommendations lol

 

[sdkfjlasdf]

She is small for her age, but thought she should at least be 5 lbs..Now she is 7. I am actually switching vets, she has her first appointment next Friday.

dang my cat is only 6 months or so and is already almost 3kg... definitely needs some weight gain. if your cat looks fine (no ribcage showing, not too skinny) then its ok tho

 

[Azazel]

She is small for her age, but thought she should at least be 5 lbs..Now she is 7. I am actually switching vets, she has her first appointment next Friday.

Each cat is different and has a different ideal body weight. There isn’t a set number at each age. As long as the cat’s body condition looks good they should be fine.

 

[Roxane0470]

dang my cat is only 6 months or so and is already almost 3kg... definitely needs some weight gain. if your cat looks fine (no ribcage showing, not too skinny) then its ok tho

She's actually very healthy, and is definitely not that skinny anymore. She is now almost 7 pounds. I give my cats wet food in mourning and night and let them self feed dry the rest of the time. They also get temptations tartar control to help with their teeth.

 

[candie]

my cat will only want to eat fancy feast pate, if it has liver in it she likes chicken tender liver and she is starting to like turkey giblets and tender beef liver. but she will not eat any brand cept this.

 

[sdkfjlasdf]

my cat will only want to eat fancy feast pate, if it has liver in it she likes chicken tender liver and she is starting to like turkey giblets and tender beef liver. but she will not eat any brand cept this.

same... my cat gets bored of the more expensive stuff but is always up to chomp fancy feast

 

[td whittle]

What do you all feed your fur babies? I feed mine Friskies dry and wet food only because I can't get my cats to eat blue or other grain free foods. Even tried Rachael Ray etc. Also could use advice on getting them to eat more dry food.

I will share what I have learnt based on my experience with our 4 1/2 year old ginger cat. We adopted him from a shelter when he was about a year old. Like most shelter cats, he'd had feline calcivirus and feline herpes virus, as well as teeth and gums that were already showing signs of ill health even at that young age. Like everyone else, I got confused and overwhelmed trying to decide what to feed him. He will not eat raw chicken wings, which is a popular thing to feed cats for their dental hygiene, here in Australia.

I have now consulted with three veterinarians over this question: one here in my town who is a small animal specialist and surgeon who has cats herself; another here who is a general vet who's been practising for decades; and one in Sydney with whom I paid to consult because she treats cats exclusively, has cats herself, and is a cat dental specialist.

The upshot is this: according to the dental specialist brushing cats teeth is useless at best and harmful at worst. This is because cats have much thinner enamel on their teeth than we do and also because many of them are simply genetically prone to poor teeth and gums. She recommended a similar feeding routine to the other two vets (and it's how she feeds her cats and cats left in her care): 1. Feed a specialty dental kibble. She recommended a couple of different veterinary kibbles, but made no money for doing so, in case anyone is wondering. We use Hill's t/d. 2. Feed some high quality, human grade raw meat. This requires finding one your cat likes. My cat will eat beef, but doesn't like lamb or roo (popular here in Australia), and I don't like giving him raw chicken.

This cat specialist also told me that the cats who already have good teeth and gums, and who start as kittens, will happily eat chicken necks or wings; but cats whose oral condition is already suboptimal will usually not. So, that's what we do at my house. But the thing is, you simply cannot feed the amount of kibble suggested on the bag! For my cat's size, it's recommended to feed 90 grams a day of the kibble. I feed him 60 grams of dry, which I leave out for him, plus he gets a small amount of chopped beef for his dinner.

 

[td whittle]

I will share what I have learnt based on my experience with our 4 1/2 year old ginger cat. We adopted him from a shelter when he was about a year old. Like most shelter cats, he'd had feline calcivirus and feline herpes virus, as well as teeth and gums that were already showing signs of ill health even at that young age. Like everyone else, I got confused and overwhelmed trying to decide what to feed him. He will not eat raw chicken wings, which is a popular thing to feed cats for their dental hygiene, here in Australia.

I have now consulted with three veterinarians over this question: one here in my town who is a small animal specialist and surgeon who has cats herself; another here who is a general vet who's been practising for decades; and one in Sydney with whom I paid to consult because she treats cats exclusively, has cats herself, and is a cat dental specialist.

The upshot is this: according to the dental specialist brushing cats teeth is useless at best and harmful at worst. This is because cats have much thinner enamel on their teeth than we do and also because many of them are simply genetically prone to poor teeth and gums. She recommended a similar feeding routine to the other two vets (and it's how she feeds her cats and cats left in her care): 1. Feed a specialty dental kibble. She recommended a couple of different veterinary kibbles, but made no money for doing so, in case anyone is wondering. We use Hill's t/d. 2. Feed some high quality, human grade raw meat. This requires finding one your cat likes. My cat will eat beef, but doesn't like lamb or roo (popular here in Australia), and I don't like giving him raw chicken.

This cat specialist also told me that the cats who already have good teeth and gums, and who start as kittens, will happily eat chicken necks or wings; but cats whose oral condition is already suboptimal will usually not. So, that's what we do at my house. But the thing is, you simply cannot feed the amount of kibble suggested on the bag! For my cat's size, it's recommended to feed 90 grams a day of the kibble. I feed him 60 grams of dry, which I leave out for him, plus he gets a small amount of chopped beef for his dinner.

I forgot to say that his teeth and gums have improved remarkably over the past couple of years we've been feeding this way. Gum disease, as I'm sure you know, is a serious problem for cats, as are obesity and kidney disease. The cat specialist said that dry food will not cause blocking, that if cats are going to block, they will block, and that they even do so in the wild. Besides which, my cat likes water. We have several bowls all round the house and he drinks from all of them. He did not think much of the fountains which cats are supposed to love because it's running water.

 

[JamesCalifornia]

td whittle
TCS Member
~ Good information - thanks !

 

[Minxxy]

I feed Friskies Classic Pate. I rotate the flavors. In the morning they each get a 1/2 can with 1/8 cup of kibble on top. At night they each get a full can. I always add 1/4 can of water. They like it slurpy. It's mostly gone by morning. I keep three brands of high protein kibble on hand for variety.