Since dry food isn't good for cats, can I just add water?

Smarl

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I'd maybe try to find out if there's any grain and sugar free dry food options available, and try to keep cats moisturised as well as possible. Many cheap wet foods might not contain grains, but there's added sugar, and there's no point of feeding sugar instead of grain. So in my opinion wet food is not always better than dry, cats don't need grain or vegetables, but they don't need sugar either.

I checked ingredients of purina pro plan and friskies, they both contain sugar (at least those which are sold in Europe). I also checked American web site but they didn't mention sugar so it's possible that regulations or recipe are different in here. Of course raw food would be cheaper too. Minced pork heart is my kitties favourite, it's cheap and good quality since those parts are not valid for human food. So if you have a butcher near by, maybe you could ask if there's some budget meat they can sell?
 

iPappy

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I'd maybe try to find out if there's any grain and sugar free dry food options available, and try to keep cats moisturised as well as possible. Many cheap wet foods might not contain grains, but there's added sugar, and there's no point of feeding sugar instead of grain. So in my opinion wet food is not always better than dry, cats don't need grain or vegetables, but they don't need sugar either.

I checked ingredients of purina pro plan and friskies, they both contain sugar (at least those which are sold in Europe). I also checked American web site but they didn't mention sugar so it's possible that regulations or recipe are different in here. Of course raw food would be cheaper too. Minced pork heart is my kitties favourite, it's cheap and good quality since those parts are not valid for human food. So if you have a butcher near by, maybe you could ask if there's some budget meat they can sell?
Our butcher shop sells a cheap "dog grind" of raw meat that I don't feel is balanced at all, but is a good topper or addition for a dog or a cat. It's pretty much just a ground up mix of perfectly good meat/some organs (ratio is questionable) that can't be sold for human consumption. If a butcher can sell you some raw meat, I say try it but if they're not used to raw ask that they grind it down first and only buy a little to see if they'll eat it. If it's boneless and will be used as an addition vs. a diet, you can cook it as well (don't cook any food with bone in it!) And don't overdo heart or liver, as these are very rich and can cause loose stools, so know what the butcher is selling.
 

LTS3

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Raw or cooked meat and organs should only make up 10% of the diet (aka as treats) if commercial canned and / or dry food is the main source of nutrition. This prevents nutritional imbalance. There's a forum here on TCS where the OP can ask more about including raw and cooked meats into the diet, if that is something the OP is interested in doing.
 

Uncled

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I always say feed what you can afford and your cat will eat without causing you to tear your hair out with frustration. Mine eat Friskies and Fancy Feast pate mixed with kibble,they are doing very well ,but as others have said what works for my cats might not work for you.
 

iPappy

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I always say feed what you can afford and your cat will eat without causing you to tear your hair out with frustration. Mine eat Friskies and Fancy Feast pate mixed with kibble,they are doing very well ,but as others have said what works for my cats might not work for you.
Fancy Feast pate is my go-to meal for my cats when other supplies are low or limited. Goof had a dietary indiscretion (he got into the treats...ALL of them.... :rolleyes: ) that lead to a bowel malfunction today. After a clean up effort in the room he spent the day confined in, he happily gobbled his fancy feast and is laying with his sister in Tag's recliner, purring up a storm.
 

Mighty Orange

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I'm thinking about giving fancy feast a try. Because they at least list the prime ingredient first, where friskies is later in the ingredients list.
 

Bri5

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Do the best you can with the resources you have and don't fret. 5 cats and an XL ill dog is a lot. Prices aren't going to go down for the foreseeable future. If wet in the a.m. and dry in the p.m. is the best you can do without going into debt or dropping animals off at the shelter, then do that without guilt.
 

msserena

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my problem with FF & Friskies is, the majority of their food lines have fish in them. It's not good to feed fish every day.
 

tiggerwillow

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Question: if dry food does nothing for their teeth, what's a good alternative to trying to brush their teeths?

Reason for asking is I thought the dental dry food was the equivalent of brushing their teeth, and my Willow *will* anger-bite a brush when I even attempt to do her teeths (she anger bites the harness if I try putting the harness on her as well, but thats a different thing altogether)
 

LTS3

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Question: if dry food does nothing for their teeth, what's a good alternative to trying to brush their teeths?

Reason for asking is I thought the dental dry food was the equivalent of brushing their teeth, and my Willow *will* anger-bite a brush when I even attempt to do her teeths (she anger bites the harness if I try putting the harness on her as well, but thats a different thing altogether)
You should start a new thread in the Grooming and General Cat Care forum to ask about dental care. Some people brush their cat's teeth with pet toothpaste. Using a yummy flavored toothpaste helps. Others use dental gels or use additives that go in the water bowl. Raw feeders give uncooked bone and poultry gizzards.
 

tiggerwillow

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You should start a new thread in the Grooming and General Cat Care forum to ask about dental care. Some people brush their cat's teeth with pet toothpaste. Using a yummy flavored toothpaste helps. Others use dental gels or use additives that go in the water bowl. Raw feeders give uncooked bone and poultry gizzards.
oops sorry for the thread hijack :running:
 

botolo

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Feline nutrition is so confusing and, as someone said here, the only studies are the ones from Purina. Everything else is anecdotal.

When George the cat started having kidney issues, I thought this was because of his addiction to dry food.

Then when Holly got squamous cell carcinoma, I read that one of the factors is wet food (she did not like dry food).

At the end of the day I think it’s all genetics and luck. Like in humans. Yes, we know smoke causes lung cancer but I know so many people who lived until their 90s and they were smoking every single day and I know people super careful about their lifestyle and food and they died very young.
 

iPappy

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Feline nutrition is so confusing and, as someone said here, the only studies are the ones from Purina. Everything else is anecdotal.

When George the cat started having kidney issues, I thought this was because of his addiction to dry food.

Then when Holly got squamous cell carcinoma, I read that one of the factors is wet food (she did not like dry food).

At the end of the day I think it’s all genetics and luck. Like in humans. Yes, we know smoke causes lung cancer but I know so many people who lived until their 90s and they were smoking every single day and I know people super careful about their lifestyle and food and they died very young.
When I got my Levi I decided to go all holistic. Minimal vaccines, raw/organic food, green cleaners and at 6 years old my poor cat was a mess. He did live a long time, but he was never vibrant and never enjoyed good health. The cat I had as a kid was obese his entire life, and ate nothing but dry cat chow (fed free choice) and lived to be 18.
I have three sets of litter mate cats. Set One is 14, male and female. Set Two is 14, female and female. Set Three is male and male. All have great appetites.
Set One and Set Two are loosely related. Set Three is not related in any way.
So far, Set One, the 14 year old male is healthy as a horse with minor arthritis creeping in. The female is skinny, and has a mild heart murmur. Both are active and happy.
Set Two, female #1 is healthy, great weight, and great energy. Female #2 is a bit thinner with great energy.
Set Three, Male #1 is fat, something we've struggled with almost his entire life, yet he's active. Male #2 is chubby, but not to the extent of his brother, and he's less active. They are very bonded, and while Male #1 is somewhat friendly, both will happily give you a hole in your hand with their claws if you reach out to pet them.
They all eat the same diet. I agree with you on genetics and luck. I feel outside factors can play a role, but sometimes our best intentions don't do squat. As far as my dogs, my Tag was a perfect example. I micromanaged his diet and healthcare, and he still developed cancer around 12 (diagnosed 1 day after he turned 13.) He passed away 4 1/2 months after diagnosis. My childhood terrier routinely ate out of the litter boxes (yuck!), would get into the trash on occasion, and we'd feed her leftovers (she loved Chinese food) and she lived to be over 16, and she was never sick! And my obese childhood cat was never sick, though I wonder now if he developed diabetes at the end of his life. It's like vitality is decreasing in so many pets (and people). I wish there was a way to find out why.
 
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clary7

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Minimal vaccines, raw/organic food, green cleaners and at 6 years old my poor cat was a mess. He did live a long time, but he was never vibrant and never enjoyed good health. The cat I had as a kid was obese his entire life, and ate nothing but dry cat chow (fed free choice) and lived to be 18.
I've been listening to some more videos where regular pet owners as well as vets share their opinions and experience with 'healthy' vs 'unhealthy' diets, and one guy said it so well. He said that you can feed your pet the best diet ever, and the pet still dies young at age 6. So at first thought, it seems as if the diet didn't help. However, we don't know if that pet would have died at age 3 instead if it had been fed a crappy diet instead. So in the end it really does come down to genetics I think. Some animals (as well as people) are just lucky and can get by on a horrible diet/lifestyle, while others can do the best for their health and still have health issues or die young. But the thing is that we don't know what will happen, so offering a healthier diet/lifestyle is still a better way to stay safe in case that pet (or even ourselves) actually turn out to be prone to lots of issues later on. The same guy who said this though also said that if a pet is perfectly healthy on a lower quality diet, sometimes its best just to stick with it. One of his dogs was adopted as a senior (something like 12+ years old) and was on a cheap kibble diet his entire life. He had no health issues, so instead of changing his food, the guy decided to keep feeding the same cheap food and the dog is still alive and healthy, I think now 14 or 16 years old. However, if your pet is young, the risk with feeding a low quality food is that we don't know how the animal will be doing years down the road. I really liked hearing this guys perspective on this topic, as well as hearing everyone share their own advice and experiences here.
 

botolo

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I agree that there are so many variables. And of course, I think that nobody here is advocating feeding junk food to our pets. The issue is what is truly bad and what is truly good. When you hear raw food supporters, it looks like anything else is like poison. Then there are the folks who say dry food is evil (any kind), and canned food is heaven. Then you have the people who say "no gran" and research that seems to suggest (at least for dogs) that a grain free diet is not healthy. And then the big issue of meat by-product.
 

Robyn5678

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The best wet food is going to be the one your cats will eat. I spent over $300 a month on high quality cat food, yet mine prefer to eat friskies, so that is what they are going to get.

You’ll get a lot of opinions on food. But in the end, it’s going to be up to your budget and the cat.

my parents fed their 2 cats nothing but fancy feast, friskies and dry food for 18 years and they were fine.
 
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