Diet opinions.

[saitenyo]

Originally Posted by CatsPride

Why can they take money away from people just based on disability? They call it spend down. They do anything and everything they can to make life hard- sadly. Right now there thinking of getting rid of rent rebays for the handicapped The best/only thing to do is vote.

Who is "they?" The FDA? The government? I am pretty sure the government is not going to trouble itself with banning raw feeding just to "make life hard" for people.

Not sure why all the conspiracy theories. Plenty of vets advocate raw these days and generally the more people learn about it, the more positive they become about it.

[doodlebug]

Let's get back on topic folks...

[doodlebug]

Originally Posted by watts300

His intake wasn't exactly cut in half. He was getting right at 2/3 for a while, then like I mentioned it was reduced to a little under that for about 2 months. And then.. now.

I cut it back because he appeared to be over eating. If he was overeating, I don't see the harm.

Cutting the food from "a smidgen less than 2/3 of a cup" to 1/3 of a cup is still huge decrease. What's the harm? Like I mentioned...the risk of hepadic lipidosis. When a cat isn't getting enough calories to meet it's needs, it burns fat for energy which results in weight loss. The problem is that a cat's system doesn't do well with burning fat. If it uses too much fat for energy the fat can "flood" the liver causing liver failure. So, if you cut the food by too much and the cat needs a lot of fat to meet it's energy needs, then you're risking liver failure. Better to take it down slowly than risk this...we've had several members who's cats have had this condition and nursing them back is no fun...it usually means force feeding with a syringe many times a day (Liver failure causes jaundice, which causes nausea and makes them lose their appetite, the longer they go without eating the more nauseous they become and less likely to eat on their own...it's a vicious cycle).

[MissBoots]

My kitty was over 17lbs, and was fat like your little cutie. She's now just over 13lbs. When she first started her diet it was 1/4c kibble (1/8c in the morning, 1/8c in the afternoon) and then 3oz of wet food a day. She lost weight nicely.

Since then I switched her to all wet, and got more dramatic results. The last month I've been transitioning her to an all raw diet seeing even better results (as far as energy and weight loss). She's not a crazy hyper spaz at 10 years old acting like a kitten. I haven't seen her so playful before!

On another note: Listen to their advice. They know what they're talking about.

[watts300]

I made a trip to the store and bought a couple cans of a few different varieties with the expectation that he might not like some of it.
I got Best Feline Friend tuna and pumpkin, Natural Balance duck and green pea, Natural Balance Venison and green pea, Wellness turkey and salmon, and finally Wellness turkey.
They all are marked "grain free" on the cans. The 10 cans averaged to about $1 each (some 5.5oz, some 6).

Tonight he had turkey and salmon, and I mixed it with some of his kibble. He seemed to enjoy it, but his excitement was not as ballistic as the dog's. Her disappointment was very obvious when she saw in her bowl she just had her regular food.

I'll do more checking on the calorie content on their respective websites before their next meal.

[MissBoots]

Petfood brands tend to suggest feeding much more than what's needed. Wellness told me when I emailed them that she needs to eat two 5.5oz cans a day. She eats only one.

[def kitty]

Originally Posted by MissBoots

Petfood brands tend to suggest feeding much more than what's needed.

And that bothers me quite a bit, because I always imagine that the cat won't be getting enough vitamins/minerals unless they eat the suggested quantity. I hope I'm wrong. :/