Cat-O-Rama

What is the Best Food

Dry food isn’t the best choice for a diabetic cat. Wet food with no grains is better because it’s lower in carbohydrates.

However, I know that some cats simply refuse to eat wet food. I had a diabetic cat like that. After trying 40 million different kinds of wet food, all of which she refused, I gave in and started feeding her dry food again. At the time, I didn’t know a lot about cat nutrition so I went with what my vet recommended which was Purina DM (diabetic management). It was expensive and I could only buy it at the vet’s office. Later I found out that there is an even better commercial food that I could get at Petco. It’s called Wellness CORE. It’s grainfree and has the highest protein content you can get in a dry food. It’s also free of by-products and is made with human grade ingredients. This food is appropriate for all cats (even kittens), not just those with diabetes. It’s no more expensive than the Purina DM, and if you use coupons, membership discounts, etc., it’s even a little less expensive.

So, If you can’t get your cat to eat grain free wet food, or need to feed a combination of wet and dry, check out the Wellness CORE. http://wellnesspetfood.com/cat_wellness_dry_core.html

Another similar brand is EVO which you might want to check out too (but my cats don’t like it).

Hope this helps!

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I have been feeding Wellness my cats don’t like most of the flavors anymore. Two cats like the chicken flavor. I have six.

The main purpose for the wet food is to mix medication with. 4 of the six take medicine and I can’t leave out the the other two. They beat up on the other cats if I exclude them.

I have a diabetic cat who hates the veterinary food. I have reluctantly had to feed him Fancy Feast flavors the are gluten free. I’ll keep feeding him that but I need alternatives for my other cats. It’s too costly to feed six cats those tiny cans of Fancy Feast. I want bigger cans for the rest. They eat Wellness Core dry for the main part of their diet.

Why feed dry? Wet is healthier. The reason is, in the wild, cats normally get most of their water content directly from their prey items and drink very little. Domestic cats are no different, and because of the fact that they are designed to take in water with their meal, they have a very low thirst drive. Cats often just don’t drink enough. This leads to urinary tract infections and crystals. The bit about dry food being better for teeth is a myth and has not been proven in the least (cats barely even chew their dry food and, really, does a pretzel clean /your/ teeth? Cats should have their teeth brushed with cat toothbrushes and cat toothpaste at least a few times a week as well as see the vet for dental cleanings when necessary /regardless/ of what they are being fed). Canned/wet food is better because it more closely mimics the cat’s natural diet. More on why canned food is best:
http://www.catinfo.org/ (Excellent cat nutrition information by a vet)
http://cats.about.com/cs/catfood/a/canned_food.htm
http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library&act=show&item=whycatsneedcannedfood
http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bpo_ch4.php
http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutrition.htm

Another option to get cats to drink more would be a cat fountain. Cats tend to like to drink from running water and cat fountains see to that need, encouraging cats to take in more water.

The veterinary food is crap anyway (as is Fancy Feast), I wouldn’t feed either to your diabetic cat. Dry food is one of the biggest culprits when it comes to diabetes in cats due to the amount of carbohydrates in it: http://www.catinfo.org/felinediabetes.htm

As for other high quality foods that weren’t part of the recalls, Innova is a good one. Wellness CORE is a great grain-free food, and Innova puts one out as well (Innova’s is actually even better) called Innova EVO. Other high quality, grain-free foods that I believe were not involved in the recalls would be Orijen, Nature’s Variety Instinct, Merrick Before Grain, Fromm Surf & Turf, Horizon Legacy, and Solid Gold Indigo Moon.

Darksong~

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My cat is diabetic and I have to give him insulin shots twice a day and the vet told me to feed him a diabetic management cat food. The Purina stuff is way too expensive($50 for a 12lb bag). Plus, I think the reason why he’s so particular about that is because it’s what he sells so he just wants to make a buck. So, what is a good low glycemic cat food?
I appreciate all the advice given. We’ve already been giving out pets good quality pet food(dogs eat Canidae…they can’t do Merrick because it runs right through them) and the cats we give NutroMax wet and dry. I keep hearing Innova and might try that. What I give Sammy(diabetic) I want to give to them all.

Be VERY careful with those foods the vets talk you into. Keep in mind that MANY vets are not properly informed on feline nutrition, even though they are indeed informed on medical care… Please read the information on this site, which will open up your eyes about feline food: http://www.catinfo.org/

Your cat should probably be on a high quality wet cat food, such as wellness or Innova Evo. That link above will help teach you about the nutrition labels and show you what to look for in quality foods. You basically want the ingredients to be meat, no bi-products, in the first few ingredients.

You basically want low sugar, high fiber (protien)…so make sure you do not feed those "semi-soft" foods..one that look like hamburger? They can be high in sugar.

I just found out my cat was diabetic. So I started him on a high quality canned food diet, and hes doing very well. Purina DM is not very good a food to be honest. I have had patients with diabetic cats that were fed the high quality wet foods, and some of them were resolved of the diabetes within a year or two. Others remained better regulated.

Also,be sure to consult another vet. A second opinion is always good in a case like this. Especially with diabetes because every cat is different in how they respond to treatment.

ADD: I agree, I have 3 cats and one is diabetic. They all eat the Innova…its too hard to separate and feed different foods! I did try doing a mix of wet and dry, but things really improved when I stuck to just the canned Innova. I monitor his blood sugar at home with a meter, and keep a little "journal" so to speak And as I look back I see a marked improvement!!

I hope my cat (and your too!) will be one of the many cats that seem to re-regulate and do well over time and no longer need insulin!

P.S.-Heard the Yahoo Group for Diabetic Cats was great also, will be joining soon! You should give it a try as well!

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I used to feed this to my cat that had kidney problems and it was the only thing he would eat. The brand that is. He liked the beef and chicken best.

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My can has been diagnosed with Diabetes and will start having insulin injections tomorrow. He was diagnosed a few days ago, but the diabetes was strongly suspected about 12 days ago.

The first change that we made was to put him on an all wet food diet. No dry food at all! This advice was initially received from a couple of people here in the Cat section of Yahoo Answers and I also checked it with a couple of other sources online.

My cat has improved greatly with this dietary change alone. He seems a lot better. More energy, more stable, and a real decrease in the symptoms that initially made us think he had a problem.

Don’t get me wrong. We are still going ahead with treatment for him and will continue to watch things very closely.

I am just curious to hear what folks here feed their diabetic cats. Have you tried using all wet food with less than 10% carbs? And did this help? Apparently it has worked very well for us, but I would love to hear what others think.
Just a note: our cats dietary changes were made at least 10 days ago.

You obviously knoiw my answer so I am posting this for other peoples benefit.
Dry food is probably the number 1 reason why cats get diabetes in the first place
The only low carb dry food out there under 10% is innova evo. The thing is, it still spikes many cats bg numbers compared to canned foods.
If you insist on feeding dry food, evo is the best choice out there even over the prescription stuff (don’t want to use the word food here)
Hills anti science diet sponsers many vet schools as well as teaching other vets about alleged nutrtion. (sigh) Dry foods are loaded with carbs fillers vegetablkes verses animal protein as well as not having enough moisture in the food.
You have a fat cat? bet you are feeding dry. Cats will eat less if they get more of what they need

Not all canned foods are alike. Most gravy flavored foods are also loaded with carbs
Diabetes is NOT a death sentence. No life span lost and a cat can live a long happy life with proper treatment
You need as an owner of a diabetic cat to BE IN CONTROL.
That means gettiing the information needed. That means protecting your cat from a hypo by not shooting when insulin is not needed.
You need to learn to HOMETEST your cat to protect it and learn.
Would you give insulin to a child without testing? If not, why would you do it to your cat?
Vets (not all) sometimes start off with dangerous treeatment options. Start on a low dose and slowly work your way up.
If anyone needs help with their cat that has diabetes, do not hesitate to contact me if you want to

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i pulled her dry food and started her on Authority can food, but i discovered it was on the recall list from 2007. I don’t know if its safe to give now or not.

Hi
First off, all cats need and get high protein As far as the diabetes goes, it is the carbs and you want to keep them under 10%

Wellness merrick are best all those qualify for your needs. No grain no gluten no gravy fancy feast- most of those qualify Even some of the low end ones like friskies and 9 lives qualify

I work with diabetic cat owners from all over the world and teach them how to treat their cat correctly as many vets don’t know the right way to do this. If interested you can email me at justken@rocketmail.com. Let me know when diagnosed, which insulin what dose and how many times a day you give it. Also if you home test (as you should be) what numbers you are getting and also if there are any other health problems including problems with the back legs

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My cat is 7 years old and is diabetic. He is typical in that he drinks a lot of water. My friend had visited www.felinediabetes.com and found out that it helps to feed the cat Fancy Feast cat food without gravy. I was wondering if we can only feed him fancy feast. Any suggestions?

As a sole diet, no. But it does help to have it be half the diet.

The Fancy Feasts without gravy are good, they’re moist (more water) and the small cans can be divided easily. The gravy is all carbs, and you don’t want that. A diabetic needs high protein and LOW carbs.

There’s cat food breakdowns for diabetic cats over on this site:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/cat_food_nutrition_canned.htm
You can compare the protein and carbs on a lot of foods, just check the dry food chart and canned food charts. You’ll find a wide variance in the Fancy Feasts, so watch which type you buy.

I use a combo of the Royal Canin Siamese 38 and the Prescription Royal Canin Diabetic (he’s allergic to something in the diabetic so we do half and half) and use the Fancy Feast for when I give the shots. We also feed baked chicken and raw ground turkey several times a week.

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Royal Canin Veterinary Diet feline DIABETIC DS 44 is a complete and balanced diet that has been formulated with high protein, moderate energy, and reduced carbohydrate concentrations to assist with the nutritional management of feline diabetes mellitus. * Veterinarian Approved: Care about the health of your pet. This product should only be fed with your veterinarian’s approval. Important Information: This item requires a prescription from your vet. Please fax us your prescription or you may also have your vet fax your pet’s prescription to our toll free number (866) 444-8995. INDICATIONS: Diabetes mellitus CONTRAINDICATIONS: Renal disease. Hepatic encephalopathy. Caution - Feeding DIABETIC DS 44 diet may increase the cat’s sensitivity to insulin. It is strongly recommended to monitor blood glucose concentrations and insulin response when starting DIABETIC DS 44 diet as frequent adjustments in insulin therapy may be necessary to avoid a hypoglycemic crisis. Extra Information: DIABETIC DS 44 is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles for adult maintenance. Ingredients: Chicken meal, corn gluten meal, soy protein isolate, ground corn, barley, chicken fat, natural flavors, brown rice, powdered cellulose, dried beet pulp (sugar removed), psyllium seed husk, potassium chloride, anchovy oil (source of EPA/ DHA), soya oil, fructo-oligosaccharides, calcium carbonate, potassium citrate, choline chloride, taurine, Vitamins [DL-alpha tocopherol acetate (source of vitamin E), L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), niacin supplement, biotin, riboflavin supplement (vitamin B2), D-calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin A acetate, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement], tea (green tea extract), Trace Minerals [zinc proteinate, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, copper sulfate

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