What makes a grain free cat food grain free? And are grains all that bad? =S

[aristotle]

Firstly, 4Health cat food says on their bag that they contain "no wheat, no corn, no soy" but they don't say grain free. Is there more to grain free than these three things? Can they not say that because their food contains crushed rice? I tried gooogling the answer and the first link that came up (the secondly part of this question) was this: http://www.petfood-connection.com/profiles/blogs/grain-free-diets-what-does  . Yeah, I'm confused. =/

 

[Willowy]

Rice is a grain, so are oats, barley, sorghum, etc. So, no, 4Health isn't grain-free. I don't necessarily think that grain-free makes a better carnivore food---I think potatoes (which is what most grain-free foods use as a binder) are pretty comparable to the better-quality grains. But most grain-free foods do have more meat content than grain-inclusive foods.

Cats aren't made to eat grains. But most of us are unable to feed our cats a proper raw meat diet (for various reasons), so we need to pick out a decent commercial food. And dry foods require a starch or they won't stick together in a kibble shape. So, grains or potatoes. . .take your pick. As long as the food has a pretty good meat content, I don't think the starch source is a big deal.

 

[aristotle]

Thank you for your reply Willowly. Big relief!

 I didn't know one of the reasons of using grains and/or potatoes was to hold everything together. =P

 

[just mike]

I agree with everything Willowy posted. Cats are carnivores.  The protein content in the brand you are going to buy is probably going to be the major concern for cat owners.  I feed my cats about a 60-70% wet to 30-40% dry diet.  But they all drink plenty of water.  If they didn't, I would have them on an all wet diet.

 

[auntie crazy]

Kibble is potentially the single largest underlying cause of many of the diseases and other illnesses sweeping in epidemic proportions across our domestic cat populations. Obesity, diabetes, urinary tract issues, irritable bowel disease (often a precursor for intestinal cancer, or lymphoma), kidney disease, allergies, vomiting and diarrhea are just a few of the ailments that have been traced back to kibble-laden diets. Our beloved cats – like birds of prey, sharks and snakes – have exceptionally specialized gastrointestinal systems built to process a very specific diet of animal parts, not highly-processed, synthetically supplemented dry cereal bits.

Some of the issues are due to the dehydrating nature of feeding kibble to a desert-animal descendant that lacks the ability to know when it needs more water - and thus spends its life chronically dehydrated; others are related to the ingredients, both the low-quality nature in most (i.e. "meat meals" and "meat and bone meals") and the too-high carb content. 

Cats are obligate carnivores that were never meant to consume carbs. They are unable to process them either efficiently or completely (the reason kibble-fed cats often have such large, odorous stools) and it stresses their digestive system to do so. (Manufacturers have picked up on the "grain-free" refrain, if not the "carb-free" necessity, which is why you see it marketed so heavily.)

There are several no and low-carb (i.e. no or low fruits, veggies or grains) canned food products available, as well as quite a few frozen foods. Why not take a look at those instead? A "grain-free canned cat" search on petfooddirect.com will yield a veritable cornucopia of options, and you can conduct a side-by-side analysis of the ingredients and nutritional profiles to further refine your search.

I'd also recommend feeding your kitties a rotation of foods (which is difficult with kibble); this will keep your cat from becoming fixated on any one product (a problem if they change or stop producing it) and protect him from potential quality control issues by diluting their impact. Since cats can develop hypersensitivity when continually exposed to the same proteins or ingredients for extended periods, it will also help prevent food intolerance issues (and the associated diarrhea and vomiting).

Dr. Hofve has a great article with even more reasons for rotating foods: Switching Foods.

Hope you find this helpful, Aristotle!

AC

 

[aristotle]

Thanks for your informative answers, Auntie Crazy and Nutromike!

 You answered my questions very well.