Broth & soups for renal diet cats options

[khursh]

I've been going off the suggestion of broths that I can mix with my cat's dry renal catfood ( she won't eat it otherwise ) using the options here ( Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Persuading Your Cat to Eat ), and am looking at other options. Aside from making my own chicken stock to mix with her food, I did find these broths on Amazon:

Caru Daily Dish Chicken Broth Meal Topper for Dogs and Cats
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086STNMD3/?tag=thecatsite

Café Nara Chicken Broth Meal Topper for Dogs and Cats
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08R8DMB7V/?tag=thecatsite

Along with several other options for premade broths you can buy and add to food. I have no idea what the phosphorus content is in any of these as they're not listed ( at least from what I saw ). I saw them as a cheaper alternative to buying soups or broths from Friskies and Fancy Feast, but am unsure if they're safe for my cat with early stages of kidney disease. I can't seem to find the sheba broths anymore, so I'm guessing they've been discontinued?

If anyone has suggestions on other "broth/soups" I can add to my cat's dry food ( she will NOT eat it with water added ), I'd love to hear them. Thanks.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi - me again! Maybe I am too lackadaisical about my cat's CKD, but I add liquid in any form I can - regardless of the phosphorus level - to her food when she needs some help getting her to eat it. I think I said before to try Lil Gravies, Lil Shakes, and Delectable Bisques. I have no idea what the phosphorus level is in any of them, but I am not using tons of it, so in the big scheme of things I don't consider it to be an issue. There are other similar ones like Beyond Mixers bone broth, Nacho Meal Topper with bone broth, and Simply Nourish broth. Most of these do not have stuff in them like the added ingredients of the ones you noted above. I find the less extra stuff the more my cat is inclined to like them.

Dry renal cat food - and, even the canned versions - aren't really all that great, and generally speaking most cats tend not to like them anyway. Did you look over lower phosphorus foods on Tanya's web site to see if there are some you can try with your cat? Or is she not willing to eat canned (vs. dry) food?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

For any of this type of "treat", you will probably need to call the manufacturer to find out what the phos level is. Same with the FF broths and all the others. Most foods don't even list the phos level, so if they aren't listed on Tanya's website, you've got to do some sleuthing.

Just as an aside, when we still had our kidney cats, our Vet said the most important thing was for them to eat, no matter how much phosphorus was in the food. So if you can't find a broth that is low phos, I wouldn't worry too much since it won't be the mainstay of his diet.

 

[misterginja]

Hi, my cat also has chronic kidney disease, I’ve been making his chicken broth from scratch for years, one full soup pot lasts about 3-4 months, after cooked on low heat (between 6-10 hours, some people do it longer) and cooled in fridge overnight, the fat gets skimmed off the top and the clear liquid is frozen into cubes. I know it’s work but I buy organic chicken, and am able to know exactly what he’s eating, no spices or fat added.

His vet didn’t know how much phosphorus this would contain while I make this with the bones, but I’m also reading posts on Tanya’s CKD forum, some members commented that independent testing was done and found that there isn’t a large amount of phosphorus in the homemade broth. I would think that’s true since my boy has been eating it daily for years, and he is still in stage 2 CKD. If it were high in phosphorus, I think he would be in much worse shape by now. This is an assumption of course. He eats around 1/4 cup of it daily.

I read in the forum comments that if the bone bits/residue are strained out of the liquid before feeding it, then that would also lower the phosphorus content. It’s very hard to find actual stats concerning this, so I am going on leap of faith and based on how my cat’s health has been. He loves the broth and it helps keep him hydrated. Also has collagen which is good for his joints.

Hope this helps a little

 

[khursh]

I know I'm a bit late, but I wanted to say thank you to all who replied to my post. There's a lot more for me to read but I wanted to say I appreciate those that responded.

 

[lisahe]

I used to make a noodle dish that required poached boneless chicken thighs... the resulting "chicken water" was perfect for adding to cat food since there were no bones, thus no worries about phosphorus. The cats loved it enough that I sometimes think about making the dish again even though we eat a lot less meat now!

Thank you for your comments on phosphorus, misterginja !

 

[misterginja]

I used to make a noodle dish that required poached boneless chicken thighs... the resulting "chicken water" was perfect for adding to cat food since there were no bones, thus no worries about phosphorus. The cats loved it enough that I sometimes think about making the dish again even though we eat a lot less meat now!

Thank you for your comments on phosphorus, misterginja !

That’s a great idea too! In the mornings I boil boneless chicken breast for him and also use that chicken water to add to a meal. He is addicted to chicken...

 

[lisahe]

That’s a great idea too! In the mornings I boil boneless chicken breast for him and also use that chicken water to add to a meal. He is addicted to chicken...

Our cats are chicken fiends, too!

 

[khursh]

For those of you who boil chicken for the broth, how long do you cook it for and do you boil an entire chicken or just parts?

 

[lisahe]

For those of you who boil chicken for the broth, how long do you cook it for and do you boil an entire chicken or just parts?

Just skinless parts (thighs with fat) that are poached, so fairly lightly cooked, probably only about 20 minutes. It's really more of a chicken water than a broth. But the cats love it.

 

[misterginja]

For those of you who boil chicken for the broth, how long do you cook it for and do you boil an entire chicken or just parts?

Similar to what lisahe said, if making chicken water (not broth), I also poach or boil the meat only for 15-20 minutes, without the bones, skin or spices. I use chicken breast meat that gets cut up into daily portions and frozen, so every day cooking the small chicken piece, we get the flavored water and also the meat is used as his daily treats. He goes nuts over the chicken, and I've been giving him a combination of chicken water and homemade broth with meals, so he can still get the benefit of collagen from the broth (for the broth, all the parts are thrown in there before straining it after cooking).

 

[khursh]

I tried making chicken broth for my cat and she stuck her nose up at. I used a cornish game hin because they were cheaper than a full small chicken. I'll try using chicken breasts next.

 

[GranolaLouise]

I highly recommend Royal Canin renal foods. My cat refused to eat Waruva, Tiki,Hill's,and a myriad of other renal foods until a vet gave me samples of Royal Canin . She loves them and will eat them even w/o toppers. But for an extra treat I add some sprinkles of treats on top.
They come in E,D,and T wet and are made to attract the senses of smell and taste.

Another thing is to take the food she does eat, boil up a chicken breast, save the broth and use a little of the meat and the broth and mix it up into a pate' with the food in a Bullet or blender. She may eat it blended together.

 

[khursh]

She's currently on Royal Canin dry and wet food.

I've tried using treats and she eats those and ignores the dry food. I will try the pate method. I was thinking about doing it before but thought it would've been too much.

 

[GranolaLouise]

She's currently on Royal Canin dry and wet food.

I've tried using treats and she eats those and ignores the dry food. I will try the pate method. I was thinking about doing it before but thought it would've been too much.

I also have blended up a bag of treats like Kittles or Blue Wilderness cat treats to a powder and sprinkled a pinch or 2 on top and even stirred it in!.
My cat is on an appetite stimulant called Mirataz and when she found out there weren't going to be treats, treats, treats and the only food was what she saw in the bowl, she ate it ALL! I used to give in a lot.
Oh I do still give her treats because I read somewhere that just because your cat has a condition, that doesn't mean you have to make their life more miserable than it already is! .....so true.
But the powdered treats mixed in with the wet food makes it impossible to separate... unless they are a licker and just lick it off the morsels. Then one needs to blend the whole shebang i guess. Anything that works! But it is work.
EDA: the wet food is a great way to get water into the ckd cats I find. My cat pukes up the dry because it swells in her stomach and she feels too full when she drinks water as well...

 

[misterginja]

For those of you who boil chicken for the broth, how long do you cook it for and do you boil an entire chicken or just parts?

Hi, you might already know about this, but one thing I forgot to mention... am not sure if this is true of the area you live in, but where I live, fluoride is added to the tap water. Some medical studies say fluoride can cause further kidney damage. I don't know how much it takes to cause issues but I'm not taking chances... so I only use filtered water in the broths & "chicken water" made at home. Not all systems filter out fluoride, but the Clearly Filtered water pitcher does, that's what I use. Since your kitty also has CKD, just something else to consider if you're going to add liquids to the food!

A couple of articles :
Exploring the role of excess fluoride in chronic kidney disease: A review - PubMed
Fluoride in Pet Food---A Serious Health Risk for Both Dogs and Cats? | Dr. Michael W. Fox

 

[lisahe]

Hi, you might already know about this, but one thing I forgot to mention... am not sure if this is true of the area you live in, but where I live, fluoride is added to the tap water. Some medical studies say fluoride can cause further kidney damage. I don't know how much it takes to cause issues but I'm not taking chances... so I only use filtered water in the broths & "chicken water" made at home. Not all systems filter out fluoride, but the Clearly Filtered water pitcher does, that's what I use. Since your kitty also has CKD, just something else to consider if you're going to add liquids to the food!

A couple of articles :
Exploring the role of excess fluoride in chronic kidney disease: A review - PubMed
Fluoride in Pet Food---A Serious Health Risk for Both Dogs and Cats? | Dr. Michael W. Fox

This is such a good point to mention! We also use filtered water for anything the cats (or humans) will eat or drink.

 

[Wonderbeecats]

Hi everyone, new here… my kitty was newly diagnosed end of Oct/23, early stage 3. My kitty is allergic to Chicken. Does anyone know of other broths that can be made that would be beneficial (not Chicken)? Thanking you kindly in advance.

 

[misterginja]

Hi everyone, new here… my kitty was newly diagnosed end of Oct/23, early stage 3. My kitty is allergic to Chicken. Does anyone know of other broths that can be made that would be beneficial (not Chicken)? Thanking you kindly in advance.

Hi, I'm so sorry to hear your kitty also has CKD... this site might be helpful, it gives a nutritional breakdown of foods: FoodData Central
If I read it correctly, turkey meat has similar amount of phosphorus as chicken. I would definitely check with your vet to make sure it's safe for your kitty!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi Wonderbeecats ! Beef broth is the first that comes to mind. I have heard of pre-made mixes containing fish and duck. Some of what type you use depends on what you are using it for - hydration or to entice your cat to eat? The items I mentioned above do add some level of hydration, but they are more for enticing my cat to eat and many of them do come in flavors other than chicken.

What else are you doing for your cat in terms of managing his/her CKD?