Cat food

I've wanted to do a post on cat food for a while.  When Raz got sick, I read and studied all I could about kidney disease.  I could accept Jinx dying at 16 because he was getting old (although not old enough of course), but it seemed way to soon for Raz.  I discovered a lot. Kidney disease and urinary tract issues are a major issue for cats, all cats.  They are very sensitive to just about everything in their environment.  We probably are keeping them alive longer than they would be in the wild because they aren't exposed to parasites, predators, and other things that kill them early. On the other hand, we could be helping them a live much longer than we are.

The problems are many.  I thought I was always giving my cats quality food.  I checked to make sure some type of meat was the first ingredient before I bought it. I made sure that the protein and fat was high (above 32% for protein, and 18 or more for fat) I knew cats were apex predators--I mean look at a cat! Everything about it screams killer.  I knew that they had to have meat, but I didn't know that some of the additives and fillers in cat food that seem like they would be healthy (because they are healthy for us) are poison to them.

I'm not a monster.  I immediately switched Raz's food and maybe that is why he lived 7 more months.  The first thing I found out was that cats run in a state of dehydration.  They never drink enough.  That is a fault of their metabolism, which is one of the things that make them prone to urinary tract issues.  Although not all experts agree, wet food is better because it adds needed moisture to their diet. Think about it--in the wild would they eat dried out food? 

Now, I always thought dry food was better for their teeth, but I found out it makes little to no difference.  If they are prone to tartar, they are prone to it. So I immediately switched to wet food.  But it can't be any wet food.  Experts and cat people seemed to agree that a raw food diet is ideal (however not that practical or cheap). I bought a new super premium raw diet, but it didn't come before Raz died. 

Dr. Marty's diet was awesome on paper.  It comes as hard dehydrated raw food pebbles that you rehydrate with water and mix into a mash similar to a canned food.  I loved the ingredient list and wanted it to work, but Gus hates it.  At first I could mix it with other stuff and he'd eat it, but eventually I couldn't disguise it enough and he turned his nose up at it.  That made me sad. The stuff is 60 bucks a tiny bag.  I now have a half empty bag and three full ones that I don't know what to do with. 

I also discovered that the type of protein makes a difference.  Human grade protein is better than by-product meals and low protein.  So I started Raz on Cats in the Kitchen by Weruva.  The pouches are full of meat with a fish base. Raz loved them as does Gus.

I could get those on Amazon, but not very consistently or at the same price.

I was new to the world of premium food.  Plus living in the arctic I have to buy food that can be shipped to me.  The next foods I had to decide on were Orijen, Instinct or Wellness. They were all listed as a top premium food with good protein and raw ingredients, bonus you can buy them at Petco and places like that.  I found the ingredients and the reviews to be excellent for Orijen, plus high protein and fat content (which is fantastic for cats although it wouldn't necessarily be great for us!)

However, at the time, Petco only sold the dog food not the cat food (although that has changed).  And I couldn't get it delivered here (lots of companies refuse to ship to Alaska).  So I went with Wellness (Instinct had some dangerous ingredients).

It's not cheap, because I buy the wet food, but I hope it means that Gus will live a very long time with us!  I also continue to research and I'll let you know when I find better foods!