I can't figure out which is worse - a low quality wet food as the primary
food, or a high quality dry...


The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?

In article ,
enlightened us with...
I can't figure out which is worse - a low quality wet food as the primary
food, or a high quality dry...


The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?


Because I'm worried about them not drinking enough and getting kidney and
bladder problems.
I have lost 3 cats over the course of my life to such problems. I'm afraid of
losing another.
I had one (as a child) who kept getting stones and needing VERY expensive
surgery, so my parents put her down.
Then I lost my Julian and he was only 4. He got a blockage from a bladder
stone and went toxic and by the time I got him to the vet, it was too late.
He was too much of a trouper and I never knew he was sick until I woke up one
morning and he was on his side, mewling in pain, and couldn't walk. He
couldn't pee at all. Total blockage. Poisoned his blood, from what I
understand from what the vet said, and the bladder was nearly ruptured with
some urine leaking into the body cavity.

My parents lost their Tom (I grew up with him, sort of, but he was their cat
and I was out of the house when he passed) at only 13 to renal failure. I
loved him a lot, though, even if he wasn't technically mine. I lived with him
for like 11 years.

So, I'm looking at the pros and cons of quality, wet vs dry, and so on. I
don't think I can bear losing another one young to something I could have
prevented.

If I thought it had nothing to do with their diets, I'd just feed them the
good quality dry and be done with it. It's less expensive (I've spent WAY
more money than usual this month on wet food vs dry and I'm not even getting
the high quality stuff much, since they won't eat it) and they enjoy it more.
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month. That's a LOT more
than the $25 a month I spent on two bags of very good (not best; they won't
eat that) quality dry.
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

--
--
~kaeli~
I love God.
It's His fanclub that I can't stand.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

In article ,
enlightened us with...
I can't figure out which is worse - a low quality wet food as the primary
food, or a high quality dry...


The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?


Because I'm worried about them not drinking enough and getting kidney and
bladder problems.
I have lost 3 cats over the course of my life to such problems. I'm afraid of
losing another.
I had one (as a child) who kept getting stones and needing VERY expensive
surgery, so my parents put her down.
Then I lost my Julian and he was only 4. He got a blockage from a bladder
stone and went toxic and by the time I got him to the vet, it was too late.
He was too much of a trouper and I never knew he was sick until I woke up one
morning and he was on his side, mewling in pain, and couldn't walk. He
couldn't pee at all. Total blockage. Poisoned his blood, from what I
understand from what the vet said, and the bladder was nearly ruptured with
some urine leaking into the body cavity.

My parents lost their Tom (I grew up with him, sort of, but he was their cat
and I was out of the house when he passed) at only 13 to renal failure. I
loved him a lot, though, even if he wasn't technically mine. I lived with him
for like 11 years.

So, I'm looking at the pros and cons of quality, wet vs dry, and so on. I
don't think I can bear losing another one young to something I could have
prevented.

If I thought it had nothing to do with their diets, I'd just feed them the
good quality dry and be done with it. It's less expensive (I've spent WAY
more money than usual this month on wet food vs dry and I'm not even getting
the high quality stuff much, since they won't eat it) and they enjoy it more.
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month. That's a LOT more
than the $25 a month I spent on two bags of very good (not best; they won't
eat that) quality dry.
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

--
--
~kaeli~
I love God.
It's His fanclub that I can't stand.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

kaeli wrote in message . ..
(...)
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month.

Wow, unless you are buying small cans, your cats eat a lot! Mine are
on one-quarter of a large can each per day, and .125-.33 of a cup of
dry each per day. That's around 75c/day (37c/cat), $22/month. I might
even need to reduce their intake slightly to stop one of 'em from
becoming a furry lardarse.

(...)
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

I guess the problem is that if don't know whether your cats are
especially susceptible to urinary nastyness, then you don't know
whether it's best to err on the side of water intake (****ty wet food)
versus generally better nutritional profile (quality dry).

It might be possible to increase a cat's water intake by altering the
temperature or presentation method of their water - don't know if
anyone has actually researched this though. (I keep meaning to do an
n=2 experiment myself, comparing the water intake when a fountain is
available versus when a bowl is the weapon of choice. Dunno if I'll
ever do this though).

Uselessly and parathetically,
Steve.

kaeli wrote in message . ..
(...)
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month.

Wow, unless you are buying small cans, your cats eat a lot! Mine are
on one-quarter of a large can each per day, and .125-.33 of a cup of
dry each per day. That's around 75c/day (37c/cat), $22/month. I might
even need to reduce their intake slightly to stop one of 'em from
becoming a furry lardarse.

(...)
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

I guess the problem is that if don't know whether your cats are
especially susceptible to urinary nastyness, then you don't know
whether it's best to err on the side of water intake (****ty wet food)
versus generally better nutritional profile (quality dry).

It might be possible to increase a cat's water intake by altering the
temperature or presentation method of their water - don't know if
anyone has actually researched this though. (I keep meaning to do an
n=2 experiment myself, comparing the water intake when a fountain is
available versus when a bowl is the weapon of choice. Dunno if I'll
ever do this though).

Uselessly and parathetically,
Steve.

From: kaeli

The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels
of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?

Because I'm worried about them not drinking enough and getting kidney and
bladder problems.

Yet, high levels of salt will contribute to kidney disease, heart disease, and
FLUTD. Hopefully that would be counteracted by the increased water intake, but
do you want to take that chance?

I have lost 3 cats over the course of my life to such problems. I'm afraid of

losing another.

I'm sorry about your losses. :(

From: kaeli

The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels
of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?

Because I'm worried about them not drinking enough and getting kidney and
bladder problems.

Yet, high levels of salt will contribute to kidney disease, heart disease, and
FLUTD. Hopefully that would be counteracted by the increased water intake, but
do you want to take that chance?

I have lost 3 cats over the course of my life to such problems. I'm afraid of

losing another.

I'm sorry about your losses. :(

In article ,
enlightened us with...
kaeli wrote in message . ..
(...)
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month.

Wow, unless you are buying small cans, your cats eat a lot!

Oh, they don't eat it all. I just don't like to store wet food in the fridge
and then have to heat it. So they share one in the morning and one in the
evening, but they rarely finish it all. So, they each get about a half a can
a day plus a little dry.
The "recommended serving" on the cans says a can per day per 8 pound cat.
The cans are, IIRC, somewhere around 5 oz.
The cans range from 40 cents to $1 each, depending on what kind I buy.

I'm so used to free-feeding dry, I have no clue how much wet to give them.

(...)
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

I guess the problem is that if don't know whether your cats are
especially susceptible to urinary nastyness, then you don't know
whether it's best to err on the side of water intake (****ty wet food)
versus generally better nutritional profile (quality dry).


I know.
I worry most about Rowan and Jeffrey. Rowan, because she's always been a
little sickly and she gets dehydrated very quickly and Jeffrey b/c he's a
boy. Isis always seems well-hydrated.
They all drink ample water.

I think what I'm going to do is give them whatever wet they like the most in
the morning and late afternoon and leave them a half-cup of their higher-
quality dry to share overnight.


--
--
~kaeli~
Quantum Express: When you absolutely, positively, don't
know where it's going or when it needs to be there.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

In article ,
enlightened us with...
kaeli wrote in message . ..
(...)
I'm just very worried about their health.
2 cans a day shared by 3 cats averages $1 a day right now. When they really
start eating it, it'll be a can each and hopefully better quality stuff in
there, so probably more like $2 a day. That's $60 a month.

Wow, unless you are buying small cans, your cats eat a lot!

Oh, they don't eat it all. I just don't like to store wet food in the fridge
and then have to heat it. So they share one in the morning and one in the
evening, but they rarely finish it all. So, they each get about a half a can
a day plus a little dry.
The "recommended serving" on the cans says a can per day per 8 pound cat.
The cans are, IIRC, somewhere around 5 oz.
The cans range from 40 cents to $1 each, depending on what kind I buy.

I'm so used to free-feeding dry, I have no clue how much wet to give them.

(...)
So if the good quality dry is just as good or better than the lower quality
wet, I'd be more than happy to let them have it. :)

I guess the problem is that if don't know whether your cats are
especially susceptible to urinary nastyness, then you don't know
whether it's best to err on the side of water intake (****ty wet food)
versus generally better nutritional profile (quality dry).


I know.
I worry most about Rowan and Jeffrey. Rowan, because she's always been a
little sickly and she gets dehydrated very quickly and Jeffrey b/c he's a
boy. Isis always seems well-hydrated.
They all drink ample water.

I think what I'm going to do is give them whatever wet they like the most in
the morning and late afternoon and leave them a half-cup of their higher-
quality dry to share overnight.


--
--
~kaeli~
Quantum Express: When you absolutely, positively, don't
know where it's going or when it needs to be there.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace

In article ,
enlightened us with...
From: kaeli

The low quality wet food is worse. Why would one want to feed high levels
of
salt (as one example) in a poor quality wet food?

Because I'm worried about them not drinking enough and getting kidney and
bladder problems.

Yet, high levels of salt will contribute to kidney disease, heart disease, and
FLUTD. Hopefully that would be counteracted by the increased water intake, but
do you want to take that chance?


No, of course not.
How do I know how much salt is in the food?

I have lost 3 cats over the course of my life to such problems. I'm afraid of

losing another.

I'm sorry about your losses. :(


Thanks.
I still miss them.

--
--
~kaeli~
It was recently discovered that research causes cancer in
rats.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace