Allergy / Food Suggestions

[OTIS10]

I adopted a kitten In Jan. Since then we have had so many tests ran as he has had loose stools from day 1. He is about 8 months so they say. The vet is thinking food allergies, we have tried sensative diet foods etc. He is on Hills ID prescription now, hope to have him up and running and then we can introduce new foods to see what he could be allergic too. He naturally hates this food, both wet and dry, so ones he is normal, i would like to try to introduce foods.
I have been on the web, but i can't seem to find what the most common cat food that perhaps can cause allergies in the digestive side. Any recommendations on what i should try first and what perhaps i may want to stay away from to start? I would love to get him eating something he likes. I have had cats my entire life, never one that has food allergies.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I'm not sure what they put him on (which Hills Prescription Food?), but there are a few Limited Ingredient foods available in different proteins. Natures Variety makes a limited ingredient line, as does Merrick. You could possibly check those out and see if he likes one of those proteins better. Just give each one time if he does. Food trials take weeks.

Typical allergens are corn, wheat, soy, dairy, eggs, fish, artificial flavorings, beef and lamb.

 

[OTIS10]

thank you. He is one HILLS Z/D prescription i will give him a couple weeks and then try one of the ones you mentioned. of course, i would work with my vet, but really need all suggestions.

 

[LTS3]

Allergies / sensitivities to proteins is common. Chicken, turkey, beef, etc are common. Some cats are allergic / sensitive to grains, gums, and other ingredients found in many cat foods.

You may find this article written by a vet helpful: Update on Feline Adverse Food Reactions | MSPCA-Angell

This thread may also be helpful: starting cat on an elimination diet due to suspected food allergy It can be a long process to eliminate ingrediens one by one to figure out what your cat is allergic / sensitive to.

Prescription food can be hlepful at first but long term not needed by most cats. There are commercial limited ingredient diets you can feed to a cat that have much better quailty ingredients and are not as expensive. Here are some:

Nature's Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient
Blue Buffalo Basics
Merrick Limited Ingredient
Natural Balance Limited Ingredient

If it turns out that your cat is allergic to a particular protein, feeding a novel protein is often heplful. Things like rabbit and vension and even alligator are novel and not likely to trigger a reaction. Here is a thread with novel protein canned food suggestions: Your favorite brands of "novel protein" canned cat food

Many people find that a home cooked or raw diet works best for food allergies / sensitivities because you control what goes into the food. Neither type of diets has to be complicated or expensive but must be done correctly with all the necessary vitamins and minerals so that it is a complete balanced diet. There is a separate home cooked and raw forum here on TCS if you want to explore that option. Many vets discourage home cooked and raw diets for various reasons but you do no need the vet's permission to feed what you feel is the best way to manage the food allergies / sensitivities.

 

[OTIS10]

Thank you so much. Yes, i asked my vet about home cooked and was told absolutely not. but i will give it thought. i just want him to eat, and he is hating this hills diet. i will give it a few days, hope his stools firm and start with the list. appreciate this.

 

[LTS3]

Eating is a must even if it's the Hills junk at the moment.

Here's some info on home cooked diets: Home-Cooked Cat Food Resources The easiest way to do a home cooked diet is to cook ground meat of your choice and add in a pre-mix such as EZComplete and some water. Stir to combine and portion out into meal sizes to freeze. Many vets just don't know anythng about home cooked diets so they discourage clients from feeding it. If done properly, a home cooked diet is great for cats.

 

[di and bob]

Turkey or poultry usually gives the least problems, but it could be a filler or additive in the food too, which is more likely and harder to pin down. You might want to boil a chicken and shred the meat from the bones, and give him that for a while and see if that helps. It's cheap, use hindquarters, and gives a lot. Cats often have diarrhea from a change in diet, so try to stay with the same thing for a while to see if it improves. I hope others reply that have more experience in this, you might research it on the internet to get a wide selection of answers. Keep us posted!

 

[Columbine]

Common allergens in cat food are (in no particular order): wheat, gluten, grains, corn/maize, potatoes, peas, fish, shellfish, carrageenan, cassia/xanthan/guar gums, beef, chicken, and eggs. All cats are different and, of course, it's HIGHLY unlikely that one cat would be allergic to all these things things!

If your boy hates the Hills i/d so much, it might be worth talking to you vet about trying him on Royal Canin Hypoallergenic to see if he likes that any better.

Your best bet long term is to look for single protein limited ingredient diets. Then it's just a matter of working out which proteins he's ok with. I hope you're able to work out what's causing his problems soon

 

[danteshuman]

My cat is allergic to chicken & all poultry, & dairy I think ...... They put chicken in every thing so you have to read the ingredients on everything you buy. I would start with one food (wet or dry which ever your cat eats most) and get him balanced on a new protein and if possible/needed new starch. Then after your cat is balanced out for a couple of months you can figure out what he is allergic to. They have antihistamines you can give your cat. Be sure to ask your vet. Is your vet sure it is an allergy and IBS ? (my cat Taste of the Wild Canyon River Grain-Free Dry Cat Food for dry food.)

 

[sailon]

I adopted a kitten In Jan. Since then we have had so many tests ran as he has had loose stools from day 1. He is about 8 months so they say. The vet is thinking food allergies, we have tried sensative diet foods etc. He is on Hills ID prescription now, hope to have him up and running and then we can introduce new foods to see what he could be allergic too. He naturally hates this food, both wet and dry, so ones he is normal, i would like to try to introduce foods.
I have been on the web, but i can't seem to find what the most common cat food that perhaps can cause allergies in the digestive side. Any recommendations on what i should try first and what perhaps i may want to stay away from to start? I would love to get him eating something he likes. I have had cats my entire life, never one that has food allergies.

After a process of elimination I discovered my cat was allergic to seafood. Allergy symptoms disappeared within a few days after removal. To verify, I reintroduced seafood into the diet about a month later and the symptoms reappeared immediately.

 

[OTIS10]

thank you. the vet is saying 6 weeks, i would think that when i start to introduce food, if symptoms appear immediately, i would stop and know. i just don't know what i want to try to introduce first. i will figure it out in time.

 

[Columbine]

If the Hills works, my first choice would be to find out what the primary protein source is and start with a LID food with the same protein base. If that information isn't immediately obvious on the Hills packs, email them and ask

 

[xcourtney3]

My IBD kitty is on Nature's Variety LID Rabbit

 

[cocobutterfly]

One of our cats has food allergies. Chicken, turkey, duck, eggs were the worst. Fish products are made with the lowest grade fish from god knows where and full of disgusting heavy metals. Probably farm raised fish festering in sewage water. Absolutely no fish for my cats unless I fish it out from the cleanest body of water. The list goes on and on. Our cat can only tolerate venison and rabbit. She gets fresh raw rabbit meat from our weekly farmer's market that I prepare at home and I've now added Radcat venison which has been wonderful so far. She's also had Stella & Chewy's frozen raw rabbit morsels and Primal frozen rabbit nuggets but both were inferior to her current rotation.

I'm always shocked by how little vets know about nutrition. It's because the people who teach them the little bit about the topic are usually the companies who push their products. Sorry to say but Hill's is pure crap as are many store bought food. Why would your vet object to homemade food?! For the lack of proper nutrients? BS! You can get premixed like EZ complete and mix it into quality, human grade, organic meat. You know exactly how the food was handled and prepared. You'll rarely get that kind of quality from commercial pet products.