I did a little experiment tonight

klunick

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I have been on here for about a week and have seen numerous posts about how cats/kittens need wet food and you need to feed kittens a lot because they are growing. Normally I have dry food 24/7 and feed half a can each at night. Cans are 3 oz.

Tonight I gave Boone and Gracie a can each. Although Boone pretty much ate all of it, Gracie really only ate half. I am not surprised at either considering Boone is a freaking moose and Gracie is a skinny mini.

I think I will just go back to half a can each. Both are gaining weight (1-2 lbs every two weeks) and the smaller amount seemed to be just right as both would eat all of it. The bigger amount has put both in a food coma right now. :lol:
 
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klunick

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FYI . . . Male cats especially should be fed mostly wet due to their propensity for urinary blockages.
Once of age both will be on wet and dry food designed especially to prevent that.
 

She's a witch

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I have adult cats but I never feed them more than half a small can at one sitting. But I feed them more often, they get 4 or 5 meals a day depending on their caloric density. So if yours only get half a can a day, I would certainly increase the amount of wet food, but not in one meal but simply several meals a day, with a variety of flavours and texture to avoid pickiness in the future.

Personally I don't believe any dry food can prevent urinary problems... it sounds like a marketing scam to me. Proper hydration, ideally through wet food, is the best we can do to mitigate any urinary problems. Every dry food is the opposite of proper hydration, so not sure what they add to it that makes them say this food prevents such problem, surely not water.
 
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klunick

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I have adult cats but I never feed them more than half a small can at one sitting. But I feed them more often, they get 4 or 5 meals a day depending on their caloric density. So if yours only get half a can a day, I would certainly increase the amount of wet food, but not in one meal but simply several meals a day, with a variety of flavours and texture to avoid pickiness in the future.

Personally I don't believe any dry food can prevent urinary problems... it sounds like a marketing scam to me. Proper hydration, ideally through wet food, is the best we can do to mitigate any urinary problems. Every dry food is the opposite of proper hydration, so not sure what they add to it that makes them say this food prevents such problem, surely not water.
Thanks for the advice but I am not home during the day to feed multiple times and in 40 years of owning cats I have never feed the cats more than dry all day and wet once a day.

I have also never had hydration issues with my cats having a bowl of water out and topping it off twice a day or as needed.

As far as the food that helps prevent urinary issues, you are entitled to your opinion. I have used several brands that "claim" that and unless I went off of them for a period of time, my males never had issues except with Royal Canin which I will never use again.
 

Willowy

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I won't pressure you to feed all canned, I just want to say that I feed canned food in a very lazy way; I just plop the can on their plate and leave it until the next mealtime (and the dogs get any leftovers mixed with their doggie kibble). Unless your house is really hot it won't go bad. So it doesn't have to take a lot more effort to feed all canned food.

Males aren't MORE likely to get urinary infections; in fact females, with wider urethras, are more likely to get an infection. The problem with males is that they can easily get blocked, which is a major emergency, but it would take a really large stone to block a female.
 

She's a witch

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Pre-pandemic times we also weren’t home all the time, so we fed them twice in the morning (around 7am and then around 9am) and then twice in the afternoon. Now since working from home they get lunch since we’re with them.
I’m not being mean, I’m really interested in their claim, do you know what is added to dry food to prevent urinary problems?
 
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klunick

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I won't pressure you to feed all canned, I just want to say that I feed canned food in a very lazy way; I just plop the can on their plate and leave it until the next mealtime (and the dogs get any leftovers mixed with their doggie kibble). Unless your house is really hot it won't go bad. So it doesn't have to take a lot more effort to feed all canned food.

Males aren't MORE likely to get urinary infections; in fact females, with wider urethras, are more likely to get an infection. The problem with males is that they can easily get blocked, which is a major emergency, but it would take a really large stone to block a female.
I guess I used the wrong term. I never had a male get a urinary infection always a blockage.
 
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klunick

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Pre-pandemic times we also weren’t home all the time, so we fed them twice in the morning (around 7am and then around 9am) and then twice in the afternoon. Now since working from home they get lunch since we’re with them.
I’m not being mean, I’m really interested in their claim, do you know what is added to dry food to prevent urinary problems?
No clue. Don't read the labels. Just told by vet to buy one that says Urinary Health so I did.
 

She's a witch

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I think it's usually a urine acidifier. With the thought that if you keep the pH low enough, stones/crystals can't form.
So it’s like urinary prescription food for cats that already have urinary problems? Ok, I though healthy cats shouldn’t get this. I was afraid that the preventative food adds more salt to “encourage” cats to “drink more”. In any way, it seems like they want to manage the problem that they in fact create.
 
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klunick

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So it’s like urinary prescription food for cats that already have urinary problems? Ok, I though healthy cats shouldn’t get this. I was afraid that the preventative food adds more salt to “encourage” cats to “drink more”. In any way, it seems like they want to manage the problem that they in fact create.
My females in the past never had any urinary issues and they did fine so I expect the same from the kittens.
 

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I’m glad your previous cats all did well, but unfortunately domestic cats are desert animals. They are built to obtain water from their food and do not have strong thirst drives. Some cats will survive on dry diets but many will develop serious issues including kidney disease and diabetes (in addition to possible urinary issues). Contrary to popular belief, cats that drink water regularly are not well hydrated, they are dehydrated. Cats will rarely drink water unless (a) they find it fascinating and want to play with it or (b) they are dehydrated enough to drink regularly. A properly hydrated cat is one that gets over 70% moisture in their food and rarely, if ever, drinks water. This is why many kibbles add salt to the food, to make cats drink. “Prevention” diets are a scam. Feeding your cat all wet food high in moisture is the best way to maintain urinary health. Unfortunately vets aren’t trained to be nutritionists or to be experts in feline physiology.
 
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klunick

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I’m glad your previous cats all did well, but unfortunately domestic cats are desert animals. They are built to obtain water from their food and do not have strong thirst drives. Some cats will survive on dry diets but many will develop serious issues including kidney disease and diabetes (in addition to possible urinary issues). Contrary to popular belief, cats that drink water regularly are not well hydrated, they are dehydrated. Cats will rarely drink water unless (a) they find it fascinating and want to play with it or (b) they are dehydrated enough to drink regularly. A properly hydrated cat is one that gets over 70% moisture in their food and rarely, if ever, drinks water. This is why many kibbles add salt to the food, to make cats drink. “Prevention” diets are a scam. Feeding your cat all wet food high in moisture is the best way to maintain urinary health. Unfortunately vets aren’t trained to be nutritionists or to be experts in feline physiology.
And y'all are?? :lol:
 

lavishsqualor

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I got it. I just don't care. :banana1:
Well that's a real shame because you won't be the one to suffer should your male cat block. There's a wealth of knowledge on this site. It would behoove you and your cats to at least research what you've been told. You're their custodian; they're depending on you to keep them healthy.
 
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klunick

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Well that's a real shame because you won't be the one to suffer should your male cat block. There's a wealth of knowledge on this site. It would behoove you and your cats to at least research what you've been told. You're their custodian; they're depending on you to keep them healthy.
Keep drinking the Kool-Aid. That's what most on here want. What is on here is not knowledge. It is what is usually flushed down the toilet after a serious bout of food poisoning. Most are nothing but virtue signalers who try to out do each other to be seen as the best cat owner on the site. They want you to not think for yourself but to just do what they say. They seem to dislike those who don't blindly agree with everything they say. Nothing proves that more than me being the villain for not feeding my cats the way they think I should yet the lady who is letting her cat suffer with a bad eye infection to the point where it will probably end up blind because she's too scared to take it to the vet for fear that if she dares steps outside, Covid19 will come for her. Is anyone jumping on her?? No. Everyone is telling her to take the cat to the vet but in a kind and gentle way. I am feeding my cat dry food and suddenly I'm poisoning them and going to give cancer. Give me a f***ing break! I'll check back in 16 years and see where all the "followers" cats are and we'll see who has had to take their cats to the vets for health issues and who hasn't. Considering out of the 40 years of cat ownership with cats living between 16-21 years with little to no vet visits, I'm confident on which side I'll land on. See y'all then! :wave2:
 
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klunick

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WOW I'm sorry you had such a difficult day yesterday. I hope you have a better day today!
What do you mean? I had a great day. Even better one today so far!!
 
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