About canned foods.......

nern

TCS Member
Thread starter
Alpha Cat
Joined
Sep 29, 2001
Messages
408
Purraise
1
Location
New York
it almost doesnt make sense to say the canned foods can rot teeth. this theory is like saying that if we chew pretzels are teeth get cleaned. there is actually nothing in canned foods that promote teeth rotting. dry foods may provide a small amount of abrasive action on the teeth but cats who eat canned food are not more likely to get rotten teeth than cats that eat dry are. especially if the cat eats both dry and canned, if the dry cleans the teeth wouldnt the tarter caused from the canned be scrapped away? if you are really worried about your cats teeth i wouldnt avoid canned food, i would brush the cats teeth and/or keep up with dental cleanings at the vet. beside urinary tract infections occur most often when cats dont drink enough water and my cats dont seem to drink much of it so i feed them 50% canned and 50% dry. there was even an article in one of my cat fancy magazines on canned foods stating something in the effect of this. these are just my thoughts and my opinions. i would like to hear others opinions on this. also, here are some links.

http://cats.about.com/gi/dynamic/off...andkibble.html

http://www.api4animals.org/doc.asp?ID=689
 

boo

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Aug 28, 2001
Messages
68
Purraise
1
Location
Sydney, Australia
My cats get one serve of canned food every evening and a small serve each of kibble every morning. So I guess it's pretty much a 50-50 arrangement in my house too.

My personal reasons are because of incidences that have happened with two separate friends cats. Their cats preferred dry food and so ate mostly that. One cat got a bowel blockage that the vet said was due to the food and the other cat ended up with a urinary blockage which his vet said was from the food.

We all do the best we can do for our cats, based on information, experiences and finances.
 

Anne

Site Owner
Staff Member
Admin
Joined
Oct 23, 2000
Messages
40,207
Purraise
6,095
Location
On TCS
I think that the most important thing is to feed the best quality cat food you can get. Whether canned or dry is less important. There are tartar control treats you can give cats that are fed only canned food. And yes, you can establish a proper dental care routine and brush the cat's teeth.

I know some cats feed only on canned and other only on dry and then some on both (mine also have mixed, but mostly dry). As long as it's excellent quality food, most cats should be okay with either.
 

lorie d.

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Sep 2, 2001
Messages
7,253
Purraise
339
Location
Upper Midwest (SE MN)
I think that many years ago people never even thought about brushing an animal's teeth.
At that time dry food was better because it did help remove some of the tarter. I agree that as long as regular dental care is given, at home and by the vet, it shouldn't make any difference whether a cat eats dry food or canned food.
 
Top