Cats And Cheap Dry Food.

[Neo815]

Hello friends,

A feral cat visits my house. I feed her dry food twice a day. The food is not very high quality and the high quality cat food is expensive. The dry food is Meowmix and Purina. I want to know that how long can a cat live on cheap dry food? Does it affect a cat's health in a bad way?

 

[duckpond]

I have some neighborhood cats i feed too. I do feed Purina dry to them, and the raccoons and possum and foxes
i also give them each a can of friskes, shreds only...lol Ferals can be picky too, in the morning. They need the moisture and im not sure how much water they drink. I only have 2 im feeding right now, so its not too bad. If you can give her occasional wet that's great. At the least make sure she has fresh water daily?

 

[Willowy]

My childhood cats didn't eat canned food until they were in their teens, and they both lived to be 21. So it's OK as long as the cat doesn't have urinary problems or kidney trouble. Not ideal, but OK. Especially for ferals who can go catch a mouse if they want fresh meat.

I give my farmcats/ferals a can of Friskies if they show up at feeding time. If they don't, I just leave dry food. I'm not giving canned food to the possums and raccoons, lol.

 

[nansiludie]

I used to feed Purina for years and my cats did well on it. When my male cats got older they ended up with urinary issues. They are house cats though and males tend to have urinary troubles anyway. I do think any cat food, especially purina, is not bad for them. Its kind of you to feed them. Also I'm sure they are eating mice and things along with the cat food.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

I think cheap, dry food is fine for your feral, however, wet is better because your feral may be at risk for dehydration. Wet food is something like 85% water. My feral won't even drink water if I put it out. She is content with the wet (unless she is getting water somewhere that I don't know about).
Can you supplement the dry with some wet? It does not have to be anything fancy. I give my feral Friskies.

 

[sabrinah]

Thousands of cats live on lower quality dry food. My cat ate Friskies and Meow Mix dry food for 10 years before I was able to decide her diet and change it. Cheap dry food is better than nothing, and the feral is probably hunting as well anyway. A bowl of water would be a good addition.

 

[Willowy]

I will say that, for best value for your money, don't get Meow Mix or Alley Cat. They're very low-quality. Friskies, 9 Lives, or Purina Cat Chow would be better.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

I would try to do a combination of Friskies wet and dry. My feral can't eat the whole can, so I split and reheat the remainder. Kind of gross reheating cat food, but I don't like to waste money or food.

 

[nansiludie]

I would try to do a combination of Friskies wet and dry. My feral can't eat the whole can, so I split and reheat the remainder. Kind of gross reheating cat food, but I don't like to waste money or food.

Not gross at all. I figure leftovers are good enough for me, my cats can eat their leftover food too.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Not gross at all. I figure leftovers are good enough for me, my cats can eat their leftover food too.

Lol! Good point! I will either add a few spoonfuls of hot water to the cold food, or zap it in the microwave for 15 seconds. I had thought about reheating it in a pan, but have not gone that far yet!

 

[Kieka]

If you have a Tractor Supply near you their store brand cat food is fairly good for the cost. 4health All Life Stages Cat Food, 18 lb. Bag at Tractor Supply Co. They have a grain free formula too that is just a little more.

I wouldn’t feed meow mix but the Purina is okay. While we want to feed all cats the best, needs must and sometimes we have to pick our battles to meet our budget. Cats have and will continue to survive on the foods with fillers. It’s not the best for them, but it won’t kill them. Think the comparison between eating a grass fed beef burger or a McDonalds dollar cheeseburger. My girl was fed Meow Mix in her situation until I got her at four months old. She was weaker and smaller then she should have been, but she was alive. She does do better with her better diet but if she had still been in the hoarders yard she wouldn’t have starved to death.

 

[KarenKat]

I think a lot depends on the cat. My boyfriend fed his two cats Purina Cat Chow Indoor for years. Trin ballooned to 17.5 lbs and Gohan stayed pretty much the same at around 10 lbs. When we switched them to Natural Balance Trin became more active, stopped stress eating and throwing up, and a few years later he's down to about 14.5 lbs with pretty much no other diet or environmental changes. Gohan is still at 10 lbs lol.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - You've gotten a lot of good feedback already, here are a couple of articles that might also help;
The Science Behind Cat Nutrition
Grain-free Cat Food – What Does It Mean?
Choosing The Right Food For Your Cat - Part 2 To quote from this article;
Which specific type is better for my cat – standard grocery brand, premium, super-premium: natural, holistic or “human grade”? In the U.S. to date, there are no formal regulations that define objective criteria for different market segments of cat food other than “organic.” All terms other than organic are commercial slogans. The terms such as premium, ultra premium, natural, holistic or human grade have no official definition. The exception is organic cat food. Organic products must meet the same USDA regulations as for organic human food.

 

[Furballsmom]

One other thought - manufacturers have added a lot of things these past few years to cat food in order to "make a buck" off the backs of us cat people. Some of those additives are considered bad over the long term such as menadione. The problem comes in as to how long is long term? How much needs to be ingested for harm to occur?

I had a big scare a year or so when the Big Guy's liver numbers came back elevated. The vets gave me absolutely zero help as to why, or how to proceed. I went hunting for information and decided that one of the likely culprits was the fact that all of his kibble and all of his wet food had menadione in it which has a Material Safety Data Sheet stating that in the long term it will cause liver damage and also is harmful to the kidneys etc. To me, I was literally loading up his liver to the max day after day.
The best I could do, however, because he's tough to feed just anything to, was to provide him with variety along with a supplement. His kibble has no menadione, and his treats and about 1/3 to half depending on the day of his wet food doesn't have menadione.

So, with all that said, here's my thinking for your situation;
If you were to use some other brands, such as something available at Walmart that is still inexpensive but has different ingredients than meowmix and the purina, that variety could help your feral furbuddy, since on the one hand you don't know for certain how much she is eating otherwise, and also you are a caring individual who wants to do right by her.
Good luck, she's lucky to have you!
Here's a couple databases that might help in your decision making;
Pet Food Guide
CatFoodDB - Cat Food Reviews to help you find the best cat food for your cat

 

[Hellenww]

My mother senior complex has a feral colony. Most of them will eat anything but Big Mama will only eat dry food and prefers Meow Mix. She's at least 13 and too smart for TNR so had at 1 or 2 successful litters a year. Luckily her kits aren't as smart. Most caught young enough to go to homes and a few returned. So the cheap food has served her well.

 

[Candybee]

I've had 3 cats that lived on Meow mix before I started reading up on cat foods and changed to grain free. One lived to 17 yrs and the other two to 19 yrs. So yes they can still live long lives on Meow Mix but its not the best quality food. But they all loved the taste!

 

[Neo815]

Thanks for the replies friends. I will change to Purina dry food. I Give my cat wet food 2 to 3 times a week. I also give her fresh water every day.

I have another question. Can I feed her once or do I need to feed her twice a day? How many times people feed their feral cats?

 

[duckpond]

Thanks for the replies friends. I will change to Purina dry food. I Give my cat wet food 2 to 3 times a week. I also give her fresh water every day.

I have another question. Can I feed her once or do I need to feed her twice a day? How many times people feed their feral cats?

I know many that have to travel to feed them only do so once a day. Mine come right up to my back deck, so i feed them twice a day.
If only feeding once a day i would try to do so early in the day, the other outside critters come out and eat it fairly early in the evening, at least at my house.

 

[Minxxy]

Hello friends,

A feral cat visits my house. I feed her dry food twice a day. The food is not very high quality and the high quality cat food is expensive. The dry food is Meowmix and Purina. I want to know that how long can a cat live on cheap dry food? Does it affect a cat's health in a bad way?

I'm in the same position. I feed a stray in my neighborhood. I wish I could feed him the same food as my cats but it would be too much. I give him mostly Purina Cat Chow. I also put out a bowl of water. A few days a week I give him a can of Friskies. It's not the best but I figure it's better than nothing.

 

[Minxxy]

Hello friends,

A feral cat visits my house. I feed her dry food twice a day. The food is not very high quality and the high quality cat food is expensive. The dry food is Meowmix and Purina. I want to know that how long can a cat live on cheap dry food? Does it affect a cat's health in a bad way?

I'm in the same position. I feed a stray in my neighborhood. I wish I could feed him the same food as my cats but it would be too much. I give him mostly Purina Cat Chow. I also put out a bowl of water. A few days a week I give him a can of Friskies. It's not the best but I figure it's better than nothing.