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- Feb 27, 2017
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This year my 10 year old cat was referred to nutritionists and internal medicine specialists because of her increasing frequency of diarrhea and vomiting. She is suspected of having IBD and very early renal disease, and over the last few months we worked on ruling out a protein sensitivity. She has had overall health improvements on the new diet and her blood work is improving. She is obviously feeling a lot better and has much more energy. Originally she ate the chicken diet, but we used a pork loin diet to rule out sensitivity to chicken under the guidance of the internist (it was the only novel protein we could easily source that we knew she hasn't been exposed to). She had the same number of flare ups on pork as she did on chicken so now the internist has told me to feed her whichever recipe I want since it is likely IBD and not a protein sensitivity. That's the question I have, is chicken or pork loin a better protein for cats in her circumstances? Any advice between the 2 recipes I've been given and the recommendations? This is all new to me and a bit overwhelming.
I used organic boneless skinless chicken breast and lean center cut pork loin from good sources.
The nutritionist recommendations were:
Maia is overweight with a body condition score (BCS) of 6/9. Normally, an ideal BCS is a 4/9-5/9. Renal and cardiac disease can potentially lead to cachexia; therefore, we recommend Maia maintain her current weight and body condition score of 6/9. We calculate Maia’ daily energy requirements to be 300 kcals.
Water: Water is the most important nutrient and is of particular significance. Dehydration
places unnecessary stress on the kidneys. Providing multiple sources of fresh drinking water,
adding water to dry kibble, and feeding a high moisture (65-80% water) homemade diet may help encourage water consumption and maintain hydration.
Protein: Dietary protein is important for maintaining lean muscle mass along with many other processes in the body. However, excess protein should be avoided in the face of early renal disease. Feeding an adequate, but not excessive protein diet (14g/day per the National
Research Council (NRC) daily protein requirement) is recommended. Therefore, the diet should contain 65-82g crude protein/1000kcal. Normally when treating IBD, a moderate novel (protein source Maia has not been exposed to) or hydrolyzed (broken down protein) protein diet is recommended to reduce the risk of an inappropriate response by the immune system.
Fat: Maia has a good appetite. Lower fat diets are generally lower in energy density. The lower the energy density the higher volume of food Maia can consume while restricting calories, thereby, promoting satiety. We recommend feeding a low to moderate fat (30-50 g/1000 kcal ME) diet.
Phosphorous: Reduced dietary phosphorous has been proven to be helpful in delaying the
progression of renal disease. Although Maia may have signs of early kidney disease via
ultrasound, her renal values are within normal limits; therefore, Maia should consume a low
phosphorous diet that meets her phosphorous requirement (0.1-0.2g/day). We recommend
Maia’s diet contain 0.4-1.3g phosphorous/1000 kcal ME.
Omega-3 fatty Acids: The long-chain omega three fatty acids EPA and DHA may have benefits in delaying progression of renal disease in cats, similar to their benefits in other species. We recommend feeding a diet containing fish oil (275 – 550 mg DHA + EPA/day).
Her 2 current recipes:
Chicken:
Chicken Breast, no skin or bone, oven baked, chopped 3/4 cups (105g)
Sweet Potato, peeled, boiled, drained 3/4 medium sweet potato (105g)
Peanut oil 1/2 teaspoons
Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Pet Liquid 1/2 teaspoons
Balance IT® Feline K 1 yellow scoop (3.6g)
The recipe provides 307kcal ME, 86grams (g) protein/1000 kcal ME, 43g fat/1000 kcal ME, 0.9g phosphorus/1000 kcal ME (0.3g/day), 561g EPA+DHA, and an omega-6mega-3 ratio of 4.1, as formulated above.
Pork:
Pork loin, broiled 2-3/4 ounces (78 g)
Sweet Potato, peeled, boiled, drained 3/4 medium sweet potato (105 g)
Peanut oil 1/4 teaspoons
Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Pet Liquid 1/2 teaspoons
Balance IT® Feline K 1 yellow scoop (3.6 g)
The recipe provides 300 kcal ME, 75 grams (g) protein/1000 kcal ME, 48 g fat/1000 kcal ME, 0.8g phosphorus/1000 kcal ME (0.2 g/day), 552g EPA+DHA, and an omega-6mega-3 ratio of 2.3, as formulated above.
I used organic boneless skinless chicken breast and lean center cut pork loin from good sources.
The nutritionist recommendations were:
Maia is overweight with a body condition score (BCS) of 6/9. Normally, an ideal BCS is a 4/9-5/9. Renal and cardiac disease can potentially lead to cachexia; therefore, we recommend Maia maintain her current weight and body condition score of 6/9. We calculate Maia’ daily energy requirements to be 300 kcals.
Water: Water is the most important nutrient and is of particular significance. Dehydration
places unnecessary stress on the kidneys. Providing multiple sources of fresh drinking water,
adding water to dry kibble, and feeding a high moisture (65-80% water) homemade diet may help encourage water consumption and maintain hydration.
Protein: Dietary protein is important for maintaining lean muscle mass along with many other processes in the body. However, excess protein should be avoided in the face of early renal disease. Feeding an adequate, but not excessive protein diet (14g/day per the National
Research Council (NRC) daily protein requirement) is recommended. Therefore, the diet should contain 65-82g crude protein/1000kcal. Normally when treating IBD, a moderate novel (protein source Maia has not been exposed to) or hydrolyzed (broken down protein) protein diet is recommended to reduce the risk of an inappropriate response by the immune system.
Fat: Maia has a good appetite. Lower fat diets are generally lower in energy density. The lower the energy density the higher volume of food Maia can consume while restricting calories, thereby, promoting satiety. We recommend feeding a low to moderate fat (30-50 g/1000 kcal ME) diet.
Phosphorous: Reduced dietary phosphorous has been proven to be helpful in delaying the
progression of renal disease. Although Maia may have signs of early kidney disease via
ultrasound, her renal values are within normal limits; therefore, Maia should consume a low
phosphorous diet that meets her phosphorous requirement (0.1-0.2g/day). We recommend
Maia’s diet contain 0.4-1.3g phosphorous/1000 kcal ME.
Omega-3 fatty Acids: The long-chain omega three fatty acids EPA and DHA may have benefits in delaying progression of renal disease in cats, similar to their benefits in other species. We recommend feeding a diet containing fish oil (275 – 550 mg DHA + EPA/day).
Her 2 current recipes:
Chicken:
Chicken Breast, no skin or bone, oven baked, chopped 3/4 cups (105g)
Sweet Potato, peeled, boiled, drained 3/4 medium sweet potato (105g)
Peanut oil 1/2 teaspoons
Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Pet Liquid 1/2 teaspoons
Balance IT® Feline K 1 yellow scoop (3.6g)
The recipe provides 307kcal ME, 86grams (g) protein/1000 kcal ME, 43g fat/1000 kcal ME, 0.9g phosphorus/1000 kcal ME (0.3g/day), 561g EPA+DHA, and an omega-6mega-3 ratio of 4.1, as formulated above.
Pork:
Pork loin, broiled 2-3/4 ounces (78 g)
Sweet Potato, peeled, boiled, drained 3/4 medium sweet potato (105 g)
Peanut oil 1/4 teaspoons
Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Pet Liquid 1/2 teaspoons
Balance IT® Feline K 1 yellow scoop (3.6 g)
The recipe provides 300 kcal ME, 75 grams (g) protein/1000 kcal ME, 48 g fat/1000 kcal ME, 0.8g phosphorus/1000 kcal ME (0.2 g/day), 552g EPA+DHA, and an omega-6mega-3 ratio of 2.3, as formulated above.