Pet Nutrition Thread: I see no problem with my cat's vegan diet.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Pet Nutrition Thread: I see no problem with my cat's vegan diet.

TrixR4kids: Jul 29, 2006; LOGIC AND COMMON SENSE? YOU AIN'T GET THAT FROM ME!

Hey all, just adopted two kittens (8 weeks or so we�re guessing? They were found by someone and given to pet rescue) and I�m glad I read this thread. The foster person was feeding them Iams kitten variety and friskies/fancy feast (supposedly those are their favorite foods haha). I can see based on the OP that isn�t ideal. They go absolutely nuts when they know it�s feeding time and start jumping for the food and screeching like wild banshees and whine more than any cat I�ve ever seen (I realize kittens are far more crazy so maybe this isn�t that abnormal). They�ve even jumped up and knocked the food bowl out of my hand as I try to set it down lol.

Anyhow I can start transitioning to something else as far as kitten food but could use some recommendations on brands (are any in the OP kitten variety?), how to transition, timing, amount of whatever brand to feed them and any advice on how or whether I should try and curb their outrageous behavior around food time. I�ve been doing about 1/3 can friskies per meal 2 times a day and some Iams Kibble.

# ¿ Dec 5, 2018 00:17

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# ¿ May 15, 2024 15:17

TrixR4kids: Jul 29, 2006; LOGIC AND COMMON SENSE? YOU AIN'T GET THAT FROM ME!

GoodBee posted:

Even the "worst" canned cat foods really aren't that bad. Don't feel bad about that.

Do you want to order cat food online or do you want to buy something locally? That can narrow down some options. A fair number of grocery stores around me have started carrying some of decent cat foods. The super premium ones are still mostly at pet stores or online. It can also depend on your budget.

My cats are old and have been eating the same thing forever. My vet sees no reason to switch them so I'm not up on current recommendations.

Im fine with ordering online, otherwise I live in Minneapolis and wouldn�t mind buying locally.

In the mean time though how much Friskies should they be fed per day do you think? They�re probably around 3 pounds now, I�ve been feeding them about 2/3 of a 5.5 oz cAN per day and sometimes give them extra kibble like yesterday because they were especially whiny. I assume Friskies prime filets (wet obviously) isn�t too terrible to feed kittens based on what you said but I just want to be sure I�m feeding them enough (guessing these two will whine for food no matter what lol).

# ¿ Dec 13, 2018 18:51

TrixR4kids: Jul 29, 2006; LOGIC AND COMMON SENSE? YOU AIN'T GET THAT FROM ME!

This is probably a dumb question but most people seem to agree that wet food is generally better for cats. That said dry kibble always seems like it has a much higher % of protein according to the ingredients (which I would think is a good thing and would make it better for them, even the most premium canned foods have like 11% protein where as some poo poo dry kibble is like 30%. What�s the reason for that difference?

# ¿ Sep 7, 2019 01:06

TrixR4kids: Jul 29, 2006; LOGIC AND COMMON SENSE? YOU AIN'T GET THAT FROM ME!

LoreOfSerpents posted:

Not a dumb question at all. This is actually so strange in the pet food industry that the FDA tells pet owners to be extra careful when comparing wet and dry foods. Basically, you can't compare wet and dry food "guaranteed analysis" labels at all.

From the FDA site:

Note that it talks about "dry matter basis." This is the key when comparing kibble to wet food - but it's not how "guaranteed analysis" labels work, as this section points out:

So if you want to compare wet food to dry food, you have to calculate the "dry matter basis" instead. The FDA page talks through how to do that calculation, too. When you calculate the dry matter basis, usually a wet food will have higher protein than a dry food. The guaranteed analysis just makes it look different because so much of what's in a wet food can is moisture content, not nutrient ingredient content.

All that said, I don't know of any studies that have shown healthy cats do objectively better on wet food diets than dry food diets over time. (Granted, I haven't kept up with pet food studies in the last few years.) Wet food can obviously make a big difference when you start seeing hydration problems like constipation or urinary issues, which is why I feed my elderly cats mostly wet food, but as far as I'm aware, no one has proven that an otherwise healthy cat will have a worse life if fed dry food. Consequently, wet food tends to get recommended as a precaution, not a proven best practice.

That makes a lot more sense thanks.

# ¿ Sep 8, 2019 06:35

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