% Of Phosphorus In Cat Food

[KittyKat184]

Hi all,

I would like to know what % of Phosphorus in dry/wet food is considered as low, moderate or high. I want to choose a brand that has low % of both Phosphorus and Ash to avoid CKD.
Does anyone know any brand that contents low % of Phosphorus and Ash, high protein, low carb, grain free, carrageenan free, and agar - agar free?

Thank you so much in advances

 

[StefanZ]

Phosphor is naturally in meat, its really another way to say meat. As opposed to calcium.
So a low phosphor content probably suggest literally no meat, ie a product where the proteins comes solely from vegetabilies...

 

[KittyKat184]

Phosphor is naturally in meat, its really another way to say meat. As opposed to calcium.
So a low phosphor content probably suggest literally no meat, ie a product where the proteins comes solely from vegetabilies...

I dont even know how to react now.... Cat needs protein from meat, and meat has phosphorus. Then phosphorus causes CKD in cat which means meat causes CKD in cat.... And Cat needs protein.......

 

[StefanZ]

Yes, its probably lower meat protein content. And the other proteins are prepared so it shall be easier digestible.

Im no expert on such, but I know there are. Often among the so called Veterinary food.

 

[StefanZ]

Ah, now I remember. A brand called for Specific, made in Austria... It was ecological [organic] and did sound good, but when I looked closer at it, it saw ridicolous.

I remember my reaction - as a veterinary food for diet cats it was surely excellent, but as a normal cat food, I wouldnt recommend it...

It was such a low animal protein, with hydrolysed proteins easier to digest...

If they still produce it, it should be possible to get from online shops.

 

[LTS3]

Kidney disease can be genetic or caused by other health issues so a diet may not prevent the disease.

Have you looked on the variosu websites for kidney disease for recommendations on what to feed a cat with kidney issues? There are low phosphorus foods.

Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Everything You Need to Know to Help Your Cat
http://www.felinecrf.com/ (this web site doesn't seem to be working at the moment)

The nutrition chart at Catinfo.org is probably your best bet to find canned food that meets your criteria of low phosphorus and carbs.

 

[Ardina]

If your cat already has CKD, then yes, I would look for low phosphorus foods, particularly Tanya's website that LTS3 linked above. If your cat does not have CKD, then I would not feed a low-phosphorus food. Lots of things can cause kidney disease, and diet likely doesn't have that big a factor. Furthermore, a low phosphorus diet in a healthy cat can cause problems.

 

[lisahe]

One of the most helpful sources of phosphorus information is the food chart on Tanya's site: link here. The chart lists food from lowest to highest in phosphorus, based on dry matter, so it's a great resource. When we had a cat with mild kidney disease and fed her reduced phosphorus I looked for dry matter phosphorus of under 1%. There were quite a few good, protein-rich foods that fit those qualifications. For our healthy cats, I mix things up a lot more, both for convenience and because, as Ardina mentioned, healthy cats do need phosphorus in their diets.

Our cats' foods, which are mostly raw or homecooked with some canned, too, have varying phosphorus levels that, I think (guessing!), average somewhere around 1.5% dry matter. When I asked our (cat specialist) vet about phosphorus for young, healthy cats, she said not to be too concerned and I got the same answer when I asked a vet (Dr. Kris) who was answering questions on The Cat Site. We feed an all-wet diet, which is what our vet seems to think is most important. I do avoid feeding a lot of foods with very high phosphorus (often from high bone content in raw foods) but there are other reasons for that, too, like preventing constipation.

Looking at grain-free foods with high protein, low carbs, and no carby veg, carrageenan, or agar-agar (I see those as bigger issues than phosphorus with our cats), there aren't a lot of canned foods that fit those criteria, KittyKat184 , and I don't keep track of ash so am not considering that factor. That said, Weruva's Cats in the Kitchen cans (not pouches, which are loaded with carby tapioca) fit. (A lot of Weruva's other foods have potato in them... and I can't/won't feed potato. Or peas, for that matter!) Tiki foods are also pretty decent, though our cats don't like them after some recipe changes. Wellness Core pates aren't bad: they've cut the carrageenan, just watch for potato in some recipes; our cats still love their kitten food! Feline Natural is another good brand, though it's expensive. All those foods have lowish/moderate phosphorus. Our cats also really like Rawz; I don't know the phosphorus for that one but it doesn't have any carby ingredients, gums, or carrageenan/agar-agar.

 

[KittyKat184]

Thank you for all the replies I have a better understanding in this topic now Yay!
lisahe I could not find Rawz on Chewy. What is the price of that brand for both wet and dry food?

 

[LTS3]

RAWZ | 100% Rendered Free Cat Food

The price for the cans is close to $2 at the local independent pet store here. It's a premium brand so the price is up there.

According to the Rawz web site, they only sell their products directly through pet stores or through approved online sellers. So big name web sites like Chewy and Amazon won't have the product and Rawz doesn't guarantee that the product sold through unapproved web sites is authentic.

 

[lisahe]

Thank you for the price check, LTS3 ! Yes, the canned foods are $2+ a can. I'm not sure about the dry food. I'd check with an independent store, KittyKat184 , to see what they could order for you, at what price. Be sure to ask about bulk discounts: some of my local stores offer 5-10% off if you buy a certain number of cans from the same brand, usually 10.

 

[mskatz]

I dont even know how to react now.... Cat needs protein from meat, and meat has phosphorus. Then phosphorus causes CKD in cat which means meat causes CKD in cat.... And Cat needs protein.......

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I recently read similar article re too much phosphorus in wet food can cause kidney disease in cats -- if this info is true & has been confirmed, I have an idea -- there exists Vegan food for both cats & dogs -- if phosphorus is found solely in animal meat, adding Vegan food logically should help -- ½ of the food dish can be regular wet cat food MIXED IN with Vegan wet cat food -- what do you think?

 

[Neo_23]

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I recently read similar article re too much phosphorus in wet food can cause kidney disease in cats -- if this info is true & has been confirmed, I have an idea -- there exists Vegan food for both cats & dogs -- if phosphorus is found solely in animal meat, adding Vegan food logically should help -- ½ of the food dish can be regular wet cat food MIXED IN with Vegan wet cat food -- what do you think?

That's a horrible idea. Cats are obligate carnivores, they need meat to survive, they don't process vegetables or grains properly.

Phosphorus doesn't cause kidney disease, but cats that already have kidney disease will benefit from a lowered phosphorus diet because their kidneys can no longer process high amounts of phosphorus. There are foods on the market that are high protein and low phosphorus. I feed these to my cat who is in the very early stages of kidney disease (e.g., Rat Cat, Weruva).

Please don't ever turn your cat into a vegan.

 

[mskatz]

That's a horrible idea. Cats are obligate carnivores, they need meat to survive, they don't process vegetables or grains properly.

Phosphorus doesn't cause kidney disease, but cats that already have kidney disease will benefit from a lowered phosphorus diet because their kidneys can no longer process high amounts of phosphorus. There are foods on the market that are high protein and low phosphorus. I feed these to my cat who is in the very early stages of kidney disease (e.g., Rat Cat, Weruva).

Please don't ever turn your cat into a vegan.

ok -- it was just an idea -- thank you for response -- I'll keep "Rat Cat" and "weruva" in mind -- i'm in the midst of doing some research on whether or not there are cats out there living a Vegan diet -- PLEASE, I know the mantra "obligate carnivores," but I can't help but wonder if Vegan cats actually exist.

 

[Neo_23]

ok -- it was just an idea -- thank you for response -- I'll keep "Rat Cat" and "weruva" in mind -- i'm in the midst of doing some research on whether or not there are cats out there living a Vegan diet -- PLEASE, I know the mantra "obligate carnivores," but I can't help but wonder if Vegan cats actually exist.

We had an entire discussion about this recently: So What Exactly Is Wrong With Vegan Cat Food?

Yes, there probably are ignorant pet owners out there who feed their cats vegan diets and those cats are likely not very healthy. Many people on this site consider feeding cats a vegan diet a form of abuse.

 

[Rabbithole]

There's recent research about too much phosphorous in a cats diet (example of one here >> https://phys.org/news/2018-03-excess-phosphorus-cat-food-kidney.html).

This one, below is a really helpful article about phosphates, CKD, how to manage phosphate levels when they come from the very protein cats NEED as their main nutrient (I ditto the people above who say do NOT feed your kitties a vegetarian diet, it's NOT good for them), etc. Hope it's helpful!!

"Phosphorous is a mineral essential to good health. The healthy body is good at regulating phosphorous levels by removing excess phosphorous via the kidneys. The kidneys of a CKD cat can no longer excrete excess phosphorous...Meat is seen as being high in phosphorous, but again, this is not high for an obligate carnivore, but challenging for an obligate carnivore in renal failure."

Phosphorus Can Be Key for Kidneys

 

[kittyluv387]

Lower end of phosphorus for canned food is around 1% or lower on a dry matter basis. For normal cats staying below 2% (300mg per 100 kcal) is good. There are some high protein and lower phosphorus canned foods out there. If you feed low protein the problem is that your cat may be surviving longer but not necessarily thriving.

Some lower phosphorus canned foods:

Lotus Rabbit - .96%
Evangers Premium Quail Dinner - .83%
Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein Chicken - 1.25%
Koha Canned Turkey - 1%
Nature's Logic Turkey -.92%
Primal Turkey (Raw) -.97%

Also this:
Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease- Canned Food Data USA