Cat owners- ? about wet food

[HollyP]

Hi all. Yesterday I was at the vet with my two 5 year old cats. They are litter mates and have both gained almost a pound a year in the past couple of years. I talked to the vet about their weight gain and she suggested transitioning them from dry only to wet food. I asked what kind she recommended and she told me that they were all about the same. Then when I was checking out I noticed a handout the other vet in the office had listing recommended food. She definitely does not believe that wet food is wet food. SHe has a long list of what to avoid etc. Then I made the mistake of going online to research and I am more confused than ever. I never knew there was so much information about feeding cats.
Sorry to be so long winded getting to my question. What wet food do you all feed your cats?

[davespurl]

We have a very old and fussy cat. The ONLY food she will eat is Fancy Feast and just one flavor at that. We used to give her dry food because its so much easier for cats who want to nibble during the day, but her teeth are failing and I think its difficult for her to chew dry food now. Fancy feast is expensive though. 55 to 75 cents per can. I have always given dry food to my cats because its cheaper and as I mentioned the nibble factor. My other cat who is only 2 eats only dry.

[jamiejeans]

Wet food will hold their hunger longer, but it's bad for their teeth- there is nothing to scrape at their gum line like some dry food. I use Hills prescription diet food brand because one of my cats has a medical condition requiring specific types of food. I give wet food as a treat one every couple of weeks, and they get dry food 3x's a day.

[cftwo]

I use wet food as a treat for my cats - but they're picky. Super picky. The younger one will turn up his nose at most stuff, and the older one will turn up her nose and just about anything that doesn't have a gravy/sauce with it. They both like Wellness Healthy Indulgences food (this is just one variety)


and they both like Fancy Fease Elegant Medley foods - but only the ones with egg or cheese (there are two or three acceptable ones):


Usually, they get dry food 2x/day.

[Jan in CA]

Wet food is a pain, but I suspect because you have to feed them a couple times of day they aren't nibbling all day long is what the vet is thinking.

Normally I would say to just measure out a serving of the dry to control their intake, but with two cats you don't know who is hogging the food or if the other cat would be getting enough in that case.

I HAVE to use a wet/dry combo for my elderly cat because I didn't take care of her teeth and how she doesn't have many and can't chew it well anymore. I use Purina Pro Plan wet food and Purina Indoor Cat dry food. She has allergies (Fancy Feast for one) so this is what works for her now. I think most cat foods that are a brand name would be perfectly fine.
This is the one she likes best.
http://www.proplan.com/products/Chic...er_WetCat.html

[Luvmyrottnboy]

My cat will not eat wet food at all. I always heard from my vet a combo of the two is ideal.

That being said, I don't feed my cat or dog grocery store pet food ever. And when that scare happened last year I was very happy I don't!

I feed both of them Wellness and for variety I will switch off with Canidae(dog)/Felidae(cat).

Corn is not good, avoid corn as it is highly allergenic.

My cat used to belong to my mom who fed him grocery store food. He is a long hair (so is my dog) and since I changed his diet he hacks up far fewer hair balls and his coat no longet gets mats.

[traceleighj]

I have almost all issues with my cats. First, they gained too much weight on dry food (Iams and Science Diet) so we adjusted their intake and measure fed them twice a day rather than free fed them. They lost a lot of weight this way too.
But, then one got really sick and it turns out she has urinary tract disease and the ash in the dry food causes issues- she used my brand new furniture as a lter box . So, the switch to wet food was on.

I tried expensive stuff from the vet, and then Natural Balance and my cats would NOT eat ! After a week of not eating I threw a treat at them of Fancy Feast and they ate it. Feeling better, I tried the good stuff and the would still NOT eat . The only wet food they will eat is the Fancy Feast Grilled in gravy- chicken, turkey or beef only. Basically only the stuff that looks like tuna.
How frustrating, the vet isn't happy about thier food choice, but it's either that or nothing because they just won't eat it.

Good Luck! PS, now they eat well and are skinny too!

[suzeeq]

Our 10 year old cats get a communal bowl filled with dry food (about a cup or so) in the morning, and one teaspoon of canned food as a treat at night. A couple times a week they may get about 5 or 6 pieces of chewie food in the morning. They're indoor cats so the only exercise they get is chasing unseen objects from one end of the house to the other, or just moving from nap spot to nap spot. Neither are overweight and are in good shape. They'll eat almost anything except a brand or two of dry food.

[Jan in CA]

In addition to what I said about my cat...she is 17.5 yrs old so she gets babied now.

[iza]

I know perfectly well what you mean. We adopted our cat just 3 weeks ago and the food issue is more complicated than I thought! I did exactly the same thing as you: I read books and I went on the web, but there is so much information and different opinions, it was just confusing more than anything.

In the end, what we decided to do is to get good quality dry food (no corn), give her a measured amount twice a day, and give her wet food every 2-3 days mixed with a bit of dry food. It seems to work for all of us. She has a LOT of energy, so I guess it's a good sign!

From everything I read, if you go with wet food, get something with mostly meat (vegetables are not all that necessary for cats), and avoid gravy. But cats being so picky with food, sometimes you have to go with what they want to eat!

Good luck! I'm sure they'll be fine.