What's better Wet vs Dry?

[mizmelzy]

I have 6 cats and when I got my first cat more than 10 years ago I was told by my vet that dry food is better than wet food as it reduces the amount of tartar buildup on cats teeth. So I've been feeding them the dry stuff which is grain free. But I've also read where people are saying that wet is better for them health wise so I'm wondering what is better.

I was thinking of changing them to mostly wet but maybe twice a week giving them dry to help with tartar. I know that I've tried giving them treats and not all of them like it. So I was thinking mostly wet with a little dry twice a week might help.

Any thoughts?

 

[jenwales]

Canned food with as few grains as possible is the best thing for your cat (aside from raw which I know nothing about).

Just do your best...some cats won't eat canned, some won't eat dry, and some won't eat grain free. I have three. One eats canned exclusively, one vastly prefers dry but will nibble at canned, and one who will not touch canned and is dry exclusively. In a perfect world they'd all be thrilled with Wellness or Evo canned foods, but you have to cater to their desires.

 

[marycatherine]

So is dry really not necessary? I've always heard the same schtick about helping out with their teeth?

 

[addiebee]

Dry doesn't help teeth anymore than hard crackers helps ours. Many cats swallow kibble whole. Or the break it once on their pre-molars in the back and swallow.

What does help a cat is brushing with a pet formulated enzymatic toothpaste. You don't have to use a brush. A piece of gauze wrapped around your finger with a dab of pet t-paste works. Even if you just give them dabs of t.p. in their mouths, that helps.

I also use a dentrifice powder daily... and enzymatic dental chews made by Virbac. Hesitant to use water additives, etc as many of them have alcohol in them... sometimes xylitol... don't know if that is safe for cats. It is toxic for dogs.

 

[marycatherine]

That makes sense, thank you! We just got kittens and I've been trying to get them used to all of the normal things (pretending to clip their nails, handling their ears and paws, etc) so I'll add brushing teeth to my list!

 

[mizmelzy]

I don't know if I can brush all 6 cats teeth every day. I have one that will not let me do anything other than pet her. If I try to stick my finger in her mouth she'd bite it. She's part feral so she trusts you only so far before she lets you know she's not having it.

The other 5 I could probably but it would take up a lot of time in the evenings.

Also what type of wet food is better? I was looking at the more expensive cans of cat food. Being I have 6, a 24 pack of like wellness would feed my cats for two days. At $24.95 I can't afford it. I'm at my limit for Dry in being able to spend about $40 a month on cat food total for all 6 cats.

Have any suggestions on good canned food that would meet that budget? I did read that like friskies and the like are basically junk food for cats.

 

[addiebee]

Yeah - I have seven - some are fosters. I can't brush teeth either. Your best bet then with the skittish ones is passive delivery - in other words, put it in their food. See if the semi feral will eat the Virbac dental chews. Many cats like the chicken or beef flavored paste made by Virbac as well. both are called CET and you can get them online. Even if they lick it off your finger a few times a week it is better than nothing.

The dentrifice powder that I use is $$$ but considerably less than getting all the cats dentals at nearly $200 per! It is not recommended for cats with hyperthyroidism since it is made from seaweed ... yup... with trace amounts of iodine in it. It's called PlaqueOff.

Another reco'd to me is Ark Naturals Fizzy Plaque Zapper that can be either added to water or wet food.

As for decent and decently priced wet food, I don't know what is near you. Do you have a Petsmart? Their Authority brand wet is not bad at all. No artificial stuff, no preservatives. Has some rice in it which is ok by me. At this point, though, it is hard to get temporarily b/c they are messing with the labels and unforuntately the formula. Or so they say. Hope they don't screw it up. It WAS priced at 6 oz instead of 5.5 oz like the other "tuna" sized cans of wet. Hopefully they won't move to smaller cans. They WERE 68 cents per can 6 oz here in SE michigan.

I am not a fan of Purina's commercial pet foods, though I do give my boys select versions of Fancy Feast- but mixed with Authority and Nutro pate food. I am having to go largely grain free b/c one of my guys has a cranky gut!

I feed Taste of the Wild Feline formula dry.

 

[goldenkitty45]

Vets and owners still believe the "better for teeth" therory which is not true at all. Wet is better but its more expensive. IMO the ideal diet is a little of both and some raw too if you can.

Eating dry is like eating crackers or pretzels - does this keep your teeth clean? No. I'm not sure why people think the a cat eating dry will keep the teeth clean. Think about it ...........in the wild do cats eat hard crunchy foods? They eat fresh raw meat and may chew on the bones some.

We feed our cats some dry in the morning and canned at night and raw beef 2-3 times a week.

 

[Willowy]

For proof that kibble doesn't do anything for teeth, take a look at an older kibble-fed cat's teeth and see how much it "helped"....

 

[sweetpea24]

Think about a cat's teeth....are they designed to crush kibble or rip meat from bones? All kibble is going to do is get stuck between their tiny teeth and because their teeth are not designed to crush kibble, it will be pushed up into the gumline and then tartar will form. I work at an animal hospital and I remember talking with one of the vets and a vet tech about teeth. The vet was surprised that I brush my dog's teeth every day. The vet tech then went on to say, 'Thank God for t/d!" (Hills' food for 'oral health'). The very next week, her dog was in for a dental and the vet recommended that she brush his teeth every day. Even with brushing every day, there's still a bit of tartar on my dog's gumline. Imagine if they ate sugar like humans do?

Anyway, Wysong makes a dental powder which you sprinkle over your cat or dog's food. It's tasty and contains enzymes which help prevent tartar from forming.

Canned food is optimal for cats as they were originally desert animals and derive their moisture from food. They are not natural drinkers (although maybe they drank from fountains in the oasis in the desert!) so it's important to provide moisture from canned food. Of course, it's more expensive but in the long run, cheaper than vet bills.

You can do half dry and half wet - I give my one cat a 1/4 can of wet and a little less than 1/4 cup of dry (due to cost concerns) twice a day. I had to hand feed this cat to get him to lick the canned stuff off my fingers. But it worked.

 

[subconsciousme]

While I am no authority on what good vs. bad on wet or dry... I did want to touch on the financial aspect of the situation.

If you really want to get wet food for your kitties, try looking into a animal shelter thrift store. We have multiple here, but I do live in a large city. We got a large can of Science Diet wet for 45 cents. Plus, I'm supporting a good cause, which helps me a bit since I cannot afford to have more than one kitty at this point.

Often, Humane Societies and Animal Welfare Leagues have thrift stores.

 

[farleyv]

I ;have 11 cats that all eat wet Friskies. The reason is my diabetic cat cannot have dry and only these certain flavors of wet.

I don't consider Friskies a junk food. My diabetic will not eat the wet food the vet sells, so this is necessary. It is keeping him regulated and is easier than seperating him out everytime they eat.

This food is recommended from the vet who runs the diabetic cat site. It may not be the best in the world, but it is what I can afford. I was told once that the lowest end wet is better than the higest dry.

 

[sweetpea24]

You can only do the best you can with what you can afford. And if that means feeding a supposedly lower quality food like Friskies to keep your cat healthy then so be it. There many cats that come into the clinic for boarding and many eat Fancy Feast and Friskies. One of the cats is diabetic and gets half Purina DM (Diabetic Management) and half Fancy Feast. It's a matter of whether your cat will eat or starve. I'd rather my cat eat anything rather than starve.

 

[ladyhitchhiker]

My vet told me - when we were battling with tooth resorption with my cat Linus - that it doesn't matter what you're feeding them - as far as wet or dry - as much as they used to believe. It's really much more to do with genetics than anything if your cat is going to have teeth and gum problems. You just need to stick with something high in protein and low in carbs, because cats don't process carbs as well as they do protein.

Also, some cats are really bad about not drinking water the way they should, so maybe wet food is better for them, for then at least they're getting more moisture content.