[DylansMummy]

Just wondering what everyone thought on this topic - should you feed cats dry or wet food - or maybe even both??

I ask because my vet and breeder have given me conflicting information.

Breeder has been giving Dylan both - regular feeds of wet and free feeding on dry

Vet says I should only feed him dry...

opinions please!

Hayley

P.s. I have already really made a decision but as I say - just wanting some feedback on these two diets...

 

[Aonir]

This is a very popular topic. Maybe you can find some advice here:
http://www.catforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=5976

 

[Annissa]

My opinion: Feed your cat an all-wet diet. No dry food.
My opinion: The only benefits of dry food are cost and convenience.
Fact: I'm heavily biased against dry food because of the disease it caused in my cat. Your mileage may vary. I think it's important for you to know of my bias against dry food before you consider taking my advice.

It seems to me that many people on this forum have struck a happy balance by feeding 50% wet and 50% dry. You might find this to be the best solution for you.

If you don't mind me asking, why did your vet recommend dry only?

 

[queen of the nile]

I only feed wet as well. The dry food I used to have my kitties on resulted in all three being obese. Since they have been on wet food only, 2 of them have lost 4 lbs each and the last has lost over 5 lbs. They are much healthier and happier now.

I think the reason the vet recommended only dry is because of the limited information on nutrition that vets get during their training. During vet school, they only get 4 hrs of training on nutrition and this includes all species! The course is taught by a representitive from Hills pet foods, go figure :roll:. Also, some of the information available after vets graduate is, to me, produced from old-fashioned beliefs. For instance, I was checking out this neat nutrition website made for vets and it stresses that dry food is the proper nutrition for any cat that doesn't have a significant medical condition. It made me *so* angry! Anyway, here is an article written by Jean Hofve, DVM. She has done tons of research on feline nutrition and so I trust her opinion completely. She is feels that canned food is necessary in a cat's diet.
http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library&act=show&item=whycatsneedcannedfood

 

[DylansMummy]

If you don't mind me asking, why did your vet recommend dry only?

No idea - she wasn't happy that I was free feeding him either because "if he has to take medicine it'll be more difficult to give" but as far as that is concerned I am sure I'd be able to conceal it in a treat...

I think my breeder is completely one end of the scale (feed him lots of different things for variety) and the vet is the other (one food only put down regular with no extra etc)

I can understand why no free feed cos of obesity but he is a perfect weight and doesn't seem to worry for food so I can't see this being a danger whilse he is still a kitten... Obviously as he grows he will be cut down to two meals morning and evening and I shall gradually stop free feeding.

I dunno - the vet stocks the particular type of dry food he is on and rattle on about how good it was (least bad effects etc) so maybe it was the money thing

 

[Annissa]

I think my breeder is completely one end of the scale (feed him lots of different things for variety) and the vet is the other (one food only put down regular with no extra etc)

I think Dr. Jean's article on switching foods makes a lot of sense. Here's the link to that article: http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library&act=show&item=switchingfoods. Honestly, littlebigcat.com's free article library has tons of excellent material on all kinds of feline issues. I recommend just sitting down in your spare moments and reading the articles one by one.

I would hate to think that your vet was recommending a certain type of food just to bring in revenue. Maybe he honestly believes that the brand he sells at his clinic is the best available. But then, queen of the nile's explanation above may come into play here. Do you know which brand of food your vet was recommending?

 

[DylansMummy]

Hills Science kitten

He does like this food but he also likes it when I put down his wet food at regular times... he only eats a tiny amount what with still being small...

 

[AngelZoo]

IME: Feed your average cat a diet of both wet & dry appropriatly.
However, it really does depend on the cat. You can ask all the people you want, and what they think about feeding their cats. But you can only do what works for you and your furry friends.

PS: Brushing teeth is always good to do, no matter what you feed them.

 

[kitkat]

I used to think Science Diet was so great but realized how much yuck it had and all that grease when I opened up the bag. Anyways, I'm sure your vet is in it to make a profit so you can buy the foods from them. Thats my opinion anyway but I think its best to feed more of a wet diet