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Newbie questions, cat food



 
 
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  #1  
Old May 26th 05, 09:28 PM
Ajanta
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Default Newbie questions, cat food

I am complete newbie and just discovered this group. Therefore, I'd
like to ask a few questions. I realize that even among the experienced
there may be no consensus. When that is the case, I'd opt for
diversity, so no error is compounded too much.

1. Canned v. dry food. I think people seem to prefer canned, but some
make a dental case for dry. It is also more economical. So maybe feed
mostly canned (75%) and but a little dry too?

2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
some specialized channels, please include that as well.

3. Mix dry and wet? That is, should dry food be physically mixed with
the canned food or served separately?

4. Add another spoonful of water to cans? So much praise for canned
food appears to be for its moisture content. If that's so good, should
I just add a spoonful of water to a can?

5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
canned and dry)?

6. Finally, is it ever desirable to give any human food to cats?
Yogurt, tuna, chicken pieces, veggies, cheese, anything?

Thanks.
  #2  
Old May 26th 05, 09:46 PM
bigbadbarry
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Default



Ajanta wrote:
I am complete newbie and just discovered this group. Therefore, I'd
like to ask a few questions. I realize that even among the experienced
there may be no consensus. When that is the case, I'd opt for
diversity, so no error is compounded too much.

1. Canned v. dry food. I think people seem to prefer canned, but some
make a dental case for dry. It is also more economical. So maybe feed
mostly canned (75%) and but a little dry too?

2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
some specialized channels, please include that as well.

3. Mix dry and wet? That is, should dry food be physically mixed with
the canned food or served separately?

4. Add another spoonful of water to cans? So much praise for canned
food appears to be for its moisture content. If that's so good, should
I just add a spoonful of water to a can?

5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
canned and dry)?

6. Finally, is it ever desirable to give any human food to cats?
Yogurt, tuna, chicken pieces, veggies, cheese, anything?

Thanks.


Hello we're glad you stopped in, one of our Feeding Experts will be
with you momentarily; (there seems to be a disturbance over in the
pharmacy)...

Here at rec.pets.cats.health+behav you will find the contributors to be
eager, insightful, and available 24-7

Thanks for stopping in again good luck with your new feeding regimen.

  #3  
Old May 26th 05, 10:53 PM
Elle
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Default

"Ajanta" wrote
I am complete newbie and just discovered this group. Therefore, I'd
like to ask a few questions. I realize that even among the experienced
there may be no consensus. When that is the case, I'd opt for
diversity, so no error is compounded too much.

1. Canned v. dry food. I think people seem to prefer canned, but some
make a dental case for dry. It is also more economical. So maybe feed
mostly canned (75%) and but a little dry too?


I'm no expert but am going on word of mouth for most of the following:

I've started using more canned than dry, mostly because of discussion at the
Feline Diabetes Message Board
http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/list.php?8 . I hear the argument that
dried food is better for the teeth is bunk.

I also now count my cats' calories and so ration out their food. For calorie
information, see:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/cat_fo...rition_dry.htm

http://www.felinediabetes.com/cat_fo...ion_canned.htm

Also, one can call companies that make cat food and they will share the
caloric data.

I lost a cat to diabetes recently. Looking back over the years, I've known
other people's cats who similarly were a bit plumpish, then dropped a lot of
weight, and ultimately were diagnosed with diabetes and had their lives
shortened. I increasingly believe the keys to cat longevity and happiness,
in no particular order, are (1) spaying/neutering; (2) indoors only; (3)
proper, carefully monitored diet.

2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
some specialized channels, please include that as well.


A month ago I discovered PetsMart has an amazing variety of canned foods,
including brands that are cheaper per oz. than at Wal-Mart.

3. Mix dry and wet? That is, should dry food be physically mixed with
the canned food or served separately?


I put it on the side. Then the cats can mix or whatever.

4. Add another spoonful of water to cans? So much praise for canned
food appears to be for its moisture content. If that's so good, should
I just add a spoonful of water to a can?


Aside: Sometimes I end up with a can that seems a little low on moisture, so
I add a few tablespoons of water.

5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
canned and dry)?

6. Finally, is it ever desirable to give any human food to cats?
Yogurt, tuna, chicken pieces, veggies, cheese, anything?


I never resist letting them lick a plate or bowl. But that's all they get.

Some folks are completely down on tuna. Stick around and you'll see. I err
on the side of perceived safety and do not give my cats tuna.

Elle
Who visited her former, poor cat's grave today and was so pleased that it
looked so beautiful, deep in the woods, far from civilization, in a glade of
trees with some nice plants now growing almost on top.


  #4  
Old May 26th 05, 11:01 PM
---MIKE---
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Default

Yes, canned is preferred because of the water. Most canned food is 78%
water so there is no need to add any. I wouldn't mix them. I serve the
canned food when I have breakfast and when I have supper (6:30 and 5:00)
At lunch I give them a few pieces of dry and again at bedtime. Tiger
also likes the Friskies Dental Diet so he gets a few pieces of that at
bedtime. I like the Wellness (from Old Mother Hubbard) product but they
have been having a production problem it has been unavailable for a
couple of weeks. This should be corrected soon. Other good products
are Innova and Iams. The lower priced foods contain by-products and I
don't use them. People food? A LITTLE bit of chicken or turkey would
be OK. Tuna is not a good idea. Some people use baby food (NO ONION)
when a cat is off his feed.


---MIKE---
In the White Mountains of New Hampshire
(44=B0 15' N - Elevation 1580')


  #5  
Old May 27th 05, 02:53 AM
Steve Crane
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Posts: n/a
Default



Ajanta wrote:
I am complete newbie and just discovered this group. Therefore, I'd
like to ask a few questions. I realize that even among the experienced
there may be no consensus. When that is the case, I'd opt for
diversity, so no error is compounded too much.


You will certainly get the diversity you are looking for. Since you new
to the group I think it's about time for another legalese message to
whit:

Although I have been an employee of Hill's Pet Nutrition, makers of
Science Diet and Prescription Diet brand foods, for over 20 years,
anything I say here is my opinion and my opinion alone and should not
ever be construed as the position of the company I work for.

Whew, with that out of the way....

1. Canned v. dry food. I think people seem to prefer canned, but some
make a dental case for dry. It is also more economical. So maybe feed
mostly canned (75%) and but a little dry too?


The sole advantage of a canned food is that it forces more water to be
excreted in the urine. This causes the urine to be more dilute and
lowers the risk of forming cyrstals or bladder stones. Less than 3% of
all cats will get into trouble with bladder stones and urinary crystals
so while canned is appropriate for those cats it doesn't mean that your
cat won't do perfectly fine on dry foods like the other 97% of cats do.
Canned foods are about 3-5 times more expensive to feed than dry foods.
Personally I feed some canned and some dry.


2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
some specialized channels, please include that as well.


Obviously I am quite biased here, so I won't even comment.


3. Mix dry and wet? That is, should dry food be physically mixed with
the canned food or served separately?


It really doesn't matter. I think most who feed a canned food do so for
the major meal(s) and then leave out a bit of dry for snacking during
the day. If you do top dress (add canned to the dry) be careful not to
leave any left over food out as it will spoil and go rancid.

4. Add another spoonful of water to cans? So much praise for canned
food appears to be for its moisture content. If that's so good, should
I just add a spoonful of water to a can?


I would not do that. A pet food manufacturer takes into account the
nutrients a cat will ingest. They work to make sure that when a cat
ingests X amount of food, all of the major and minor nutrients are in
sufficient quantity to meet the needs. By adding water you may reduce
the actual amount of food the cat eats and thus the nutrients would be
reduced as well. Most of the time there is far more of all the various
nutrients than a cat needs and adding a bit of water won't change much,
but I don't see any value to the idea.


5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
canned and dry)?


I'll skip this for the same reason I skipped Number 2. I will say that
like anything else you buy, you do get what you pay for. Some foods
contain substantially more calories per ounce than others. You could
very easily end up paying more to feed the cat by buying a less
expensive food than if you purchased a more expensive food. Suppose you
had a food with 3,800 kcals/kg and another at 3,000 kcals/kg. If they
were both priced the same then the higher calorie food would feed the
cat for a longer period of time. A good premium food may require a half
cup per day and a cheap grocery brand require a full cup per day. If
you paid twice as much for the premium food - but end up feeding half
as much you really break even. The better premium foods will greatly
reduce the stool volume and often the odor problems as well.

6. Finally, is it ever desirable to give any human food to cats?
Yogurt, tuna, chicken pieces, veggies, cheese, anything?
Thanks.


Best not to add anything, at least do not add more than 10% of the
total calories in snacks treats etc. Foods are built to contain precise
levels of various nutrients, all of which interact with one another.
It's kind of like dominos (sp) adding a bit of this interacts with
that, which interacts with something else and so on.

  #6  
Old May 27th 05, 06:10 AM
RPS
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Steve Crane wrote:

: I think it's about time for another legalese message to whit:
:
: Although I have been an employee of Hill's Pet Nutrition, makers of
: Science Diet and Prescription Diet brand foods, for over 20 years,
: anything I say here is my opinion and my opinion alone and should not
: ever be construed as the position of the company I work for.
:
: Whew, with that out of the way....
: ...
: 2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
: best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
: some specialized channels, please include that as well.
:
: Obviously I am quite biased here, so I won't even comment.
: ...
: 5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
: canned and dry)?
:
: I'll skip this for the same reason I skipped Number 2...

Wouldn't it be better if you posted anonymously, so you could speak
freely as a human being and not as an employee who does not even
represent his company but must censor his own words anyway? What a bad
bargain!
  #7  
Old May 27th 05, 11:48 AM
billie
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Posts: n/a
Default

I give my kitten half a pouch of Nutro wet chunks kitten food in the
morning and the other half at dinner time. She gets a handful of
Nutrience Kitten dry kept in her dish at all times so she can "nibble
on the kibble" whenever she wants. Her vet says thats just fine.

RPS wrote:
Steve Crane wrote:

: I think it's about time for another legalese message to whit:
:
: Although I have been an employee of Hill's Pet Nutrition, makers of
: Science Diet and Prescription Diet brand foods, for over 20 years,
: anything I say here is my opinion and my opinion alone and should not
: ever be construed as the position of the company I work for.
:
: Whew, with that out of the way....
: ...
: 2. Of all brands (both cans and dry), which ones you feel offer the
: best dollar value for nutrition? I fthey are only available through
: some specialized channels, please include that as well.
:
: Obviously I am quite biased here, so I won't even comment.
: ...
: 5. Of the inexpensive brands, which ones are best nutritionally (both
: canned and dry)?
:
: I'll skip this for the same reason I skipped Number 2...

Wouldn't it be better if you posted anonymously, so you could speak
freely as a human being and not as an employee who does not even
represent his company but must censor his own words anyway? What a bad
bargain!


  #8  
Old May 27th 05, 03:20 PM
Kiran
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Posts: n/a
Default

billie wrote:

: I give my kitten half a pouch of Nutro wet chunks kitten food in the
: morning and the other half at dinner time.

I do the same with a 5.5 - 6 oz can for an adult cat. Too bad that 3 oz
cans are relatively uneconomical, otherwise a fresh can each meal would
have been perfect.

: She gets a handful of Nutrience Kitten dry kept in her dish at all times
: so she can "nibble on the kibble" whenever she wants. Her vet says
: thats just fine.
  #9  
Old May 27th 05, 06:45 PM
PawsForThought
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Posts: n/a
Default

Steve Crane wrote:
You will certainly get the diversity you are looking for. Since you new
to the group I think it's about time for another legalese message to
whit:

Although I have been an employee of Hill's Pet Nutrition, makers of
Science Diet and Prescription Diet brand foods, for over 20 years,
anything I say here is my opinion and my opinion alone and should not
ever be construed as the position of the company I work for.


Um, well I'm a bit confused as to your saying even though you're a
Hill's employee, your opinions are yours and yours alone. I came
across this which I found rather interesting. It seems that you are
indeed here representing the company you work for.

http://tinyurl.com/9jdhu

"North Star Class,
I monitor news groups for the company I work for. We frequently
see consumers who have been given bad advice about the use of our
products. We produce some specialized pet foods for animals with
cardiac
failure, renal failure and several other disease entities. By
monitoring
several of the newsgroup which pertain to pets we often have an
opportunity
to correct errors in its use. It also gives us an opportunity to see
what
a portion of our consumers think about our products. Market research is

an expensive and time consuming process and the newsgroups give us a
small
tiny window into the research we need.
Best of Luck with your Class Project
Steve Crane"

  #10  
Old May 27th 05, 06:54 PM
Steve Crane
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Posts: n/a
Default



RPS wrote:
Steve Crane wrote:


Wouldn't it be better if you posted anonymously, so you could speak
freely as a human being and not as an employee who does not even
represent his company but must censor his own words anyway? What a bad
bargain!


Hello RPS, as most know I will indeed speak freely. I'm too damn old to
change that habit. I have always been very upfront about who I work
for, I think to do otherwise isn't particularly fair play. Just you
will note my real name is on the headings - it's just my preference.

 




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