AboutKC Expertise I can answer questions related to feline and canine diet including questions regarding ingredients, by-products, nutrients, raw diets, brand named products, etc. I can also answer questions related to pet health, behavior, grooming, and general animal management.
***Before asking a question, please read my past answers as they will more than likely answer your question:
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Cat-Food-3490/indexExp_83830.htm
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Experience I have done research on the relationship between feline diet and feline diabetes due to my personal experience in dealing with one of my own cats. I am a pet lover and always have numerous cats and dogs. I believe in feeding a high quality and by-product free diet. Diet alone cured my diabetic cat as well as either cured or significantly helped many others.
Education/Credentials Bachelor's Degree in Biological Sciences and years of
experience working as a Veterinary Technician
Question QUESTION: Hi. First of all, thank you so much for your website. I have learned more about feline nutrition in the last couple of days than I have known my whole life.
I have a wonderful three-year old Ragdoll named Sinatra. Sinatra has been with our family since he was four months old. To some degree he has always had problems with vomiting and loose bowels, oftentimes diarrhea. I didn't know it at the time, but the breeder raised all of her kittens on Wal Mart's brand Special Kitty. We quickly switched him to Science Diet, which we know now was not much of an improvement, if at all.
Last year we adopted our second Ragdoll. The breeder fed a blend of Purina ProPlan and Royal Canin to the kittens and a blend of Purina ProPlan and Nutro to the adults. At that time we switched Sinatra from Science Diet to Purina and Nutro products. His vomiting quickly subsided, but stool problems continued.
During Sinatra's most recent bouts with stool problems, the vet said we would have to try and isolate the potential problem. She asked me to stop feeding him canned food, thinking that his diet might be too rich. I did that for 10 days. He was growing agitated with me to say the least. At that time I researched "canned cat food for sensitive stomachs." That's when I found you and your recommendations for foods.
I purchased Wellness canned food and dry food this past Sunday. Sinatra absolutely loves both of them. He has had two 3 oz. cans of the salmon variety with no bowel problems. I was thrilled to say the least. Tonight I fed him about a 1/4 of a 3 oz. can of chicken and he immediately went to the litterbox and had a rather soft stool.
I know that I shouldn't be alarmed because, first of all, it wasn't a runny stool and definitely not diarrhea. It was just a soft stool and he required a slight clean up.
Now . . . my real question. I know that you advocate a canned food diet vs. a dry food diet. It just seems that whenever Sinatra eats canned food as his main source of nutrition he gets an upset stomach. Please share with me your thoughts. And I should tell you that these problems are periodic in nature. I never know what brings them on and once he is having a problem they generally subside in a few days, as long as a week in the more severe cases.
Thanks so much. I look forward to your response.
Cindy Thomas
All of this food is non-holistic and contains so many fillers, as I have discovered reading your website. Sad thing is once Sinatra was brought home we inquired as to
ANSWER: Hi Cindy,
I'm very happy that you ran across my site on AllExperts!It's wonderful to run across a cat owner who has already read up on diet and who is already trying a premium food. As you've read in my AllExperts profile and seen from my past answers, I've definitely seen the difference that diet can make in cats with all types of problems.
It's definitely not uncommon for cats to have sensitive stomachs, yet often times owners go unaware of how critical diet can be in maintaining proper health. The Wellness is definitely a good choice, as is trying different flavors to see which your cats prefer. First off though, I want to be sure that you are only feeding twice per day...never leaving food out for him to graze on all day. Two feedings a day is perfect for cats and will definitely decrease gastrointestinal problems. Secondly, cats with super sensitive stomachs, and also those with severe skin allergies, tend to do the best on a rabbit based food. The protein in rabbit meat is somewhat different from the protein structure in other meats...it tends to be more easily digested and easier on the digestive tract...it also decreases skin and allergic symptoms that can be caused by some other meats and food ingredients. With that said, if you don't see a significant difference on the Wellness, check out the Nature's Variety canned and raw in the rabbit formula.
Regarding dry...dry kibble is the most highly processed of any pet food. The ingredients, even the highest in quality, lose a lot of their nutritional value during the cooking process. Even the best of foods tend to have a higher quality canned food than dry. I say this because when comparing ingredients on foods the canned forumulas are always going to be less processed and have fewer ingredients, as nothing is needed as a filler, to help it hold structure, etc. Also, for a carniore...little to no processing is the best for them. They have a very short digestive tract which is perfectly designed to process a bulk of food at once and rather quickly. They have the perfect system for processing raw foods...including bones, muscle, a variety of tissues, etc. It takes them longer to digest dry kibble, thus slowing what in them should be a relatively fast process. A lot of people notice cats and dogs having problems with gas, constipation, etc. This is largely due to a diet that consists of mainly dry...in particular those dry foods that contain grain. Grain takes a long time to digest and is very hard and unnatural for their digestive systems. Therefore, the premium dry foods that are grain-free are truly much better. However, dry foods were created for ease of feeding...it's more convenient and easier for people...not necessarily the best for the animals. So...in a nutshell, that is why I prefer canned and raw to a diet of solely dry. I think there is nothing wrong with feeding a combination, as I do with all my animals. However, I think that when feeding solely dry, it is harder on their digestive tract and does in fact add more calories to the diet merely from the ingredients that it contains to be a dry kibble. Just compare any bag of Wellness dry to the canned...you'll see where the additional calories come from and what is added to constitute the bulk of it, etc.
Please keep in mind that although that is my general stand point on foods...all cats are different. I have personally seen cats with sensitive stomachs who always had loose stools on dry, even the Wellness and Nature's Variety, among other top brands. In those cats, the problem was eliminated by feeding only canned and raw, and only twice per day. In some cats I've seen only the rabbit-based foods working. In others, people have had success feeding a combination of canned and dry. If you'd prefer to try the dry...I'd totally see how he does on it. If the problem doesn't clear up, just switch back.
Also, once you find a food, and a particular flavor that seems to work perfectly...be sure to stick to it. He may be somewhat intolerant to the chicken to where he's fine on the other varieties. Don't offer treats or anything that even might cause a problem...as he definitely seems to have a super sensitive stomach. Even after changing foods it can initially take up to two weeks to see a significant, and constant, improvement.
In addition, have you ruled out intestinal parasites, including protozoan parasites (giardia and coccidia)? If so, then if even after trying new foods the problem continues, talk to your vet about doing a course of antibiotics just to rule out a possible recurrent bacterial infection. If you do treat him for any of the above, it can take up to a month before his digestive system will return to normal and the symptoms to completely clear up. You do see a lot of bouts of diarrhea and upset stomach if there is an underlying bacterial infection going on...which can persist for years...just something to keep in mind.
I hope that I've been able to answer your questions. If you have further questions please reply and I'll do my best to get back to you quickly.
Best of luck with Sinatra!
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you so much for your quick and insightful reply. I hope that I will answer all of the questions posed in your reply.
No, Sinatra is not fed twice per day. Neither is food left out as the kitten would eat adult food if given the chance. Sinatra eats in small portions. If he doesn't, he will vomit. Doesn't matter if it is canned or dry. He is fed in the morning, once or twice throughout the day, and again at bedtime. I wish that it could be twice a day, for his sake and mine. But even with the above routine, he does not eat the recommended daily amount of food. Sinatra, at three years of age, weighs in at 11.5 pounds. Small by Ragdoll standards. Our Ragdoll kitten is 6 months old and weighs 9 lbs.
One item I left out of my original email was that when Sinatra was taken off of the canned food for 10 days, his vomiting and loose stools and/or diarrhea subsided within several days. Now that he has been given canned food, the stool issues have reared their ugly head.
Sinatra's stools with dry foods have always been much better than with canned foods. I believe I will try him solely on dry food until his stomach clears up and then try the rabbit food you mentioned.
Yes, our vet has ruled out intestinal parasites and she saw absolutely nothing wrong with the stool specimen that I took in. I am constantly checking his stools and, oftentimes when his stomach is upset, there is a small amount of a reddish gel-like substance that is mixed in with the stool. I have always been fearful that it was blood, but luckily it was on the sample that I took in, and the vet said that it was not blood and nothing to be alarmed about. I would have to check with the vet regarding whether or not protozoan parasites were part of the testing.
That is a very interesting thought about the recurrent bacterial infection. I would have to check the vet's records, but I don't believe he has ever been diagnosed with a bacterial infection. Is there any harm in giving an animal an antibiotic if it is not needed?
Again, thanks so much for your time and expertise. You are a blessing to those of us who consider their companions to be nothing short of a furry child.
Answer >>Hi Cindy - In re-reading your question after I submitted my last reply I saw where you mentioned feeding him 1/4 can (3 oz. sized can)at a time. This is a perfectly decent sized portion if he were to eat it only twice per day. If the Wellness salmon flavor isn't causing him any problems, what about feeding him 1/4 can of this twice per day, waiting around 10 minutes, then offering him a small portion (trying 1/8 cup or even less) of dry. The 1/4 can twice a day should be enough to maintain his weight...but if you can add in either more canned or dry a few minutes afterwards (even up to an hour) he will gain weight and fill out his Ragdoll body more if he appears thin. If you try to get more food into him really close to only twice per day, he will be making trips to the litter box less frequently...and it should theoretically help with the loose stools.
