Proper diet for a one year old
For instance, if you do not see high carbohydrate ingredients such as grains, potatoes, peas, etc. With regard to overall kidney and bladder health, I cannot stress strongly enough how important water is in both the prevention and treatment of diseases involving this organ system. A diet of canned food will keep a proper amount of water flowing through the urinary tract system and help maintain its health. However, understand that pet food companies can change their formulations at any point in time so if you desire the most up-to-date information, you will need to call the individual companies. Non-clumping litters do not allow you to remove all of the urine and are not sanitary litters. , canned options. Pour the water into covered ice cube trays. In cats over 10 years of age, infections are more common but that still does not mean that older cats with cystitis should automatically be put on antibiotics. To get around this problem, your veterinarian can give the your cat a dose of subcutaneous (just under the skin) fluids. Before you get too confused and frustrated when reading this section, I will say at the outset. Also, these acidifying diets often end up promoting calcium oxylate stone formation and can also lead to hypokalemia (low potassium in the blood) which can cause or exacerbate kidney disease. On the contrary, we have plenty of evidence to show that feeding water-depleted, high carbohydrate, plant-based diets to carnivores does not honor their carnivorous make-up but, instead, promotes disease in this species. This web page lays out some often-ignored principles of feline nutrition and explains why cats have a better chance at optimal health if they are fed canned food (or a balanced homemade diet) instead of dry kibble. But water lovers got a jolt recently when we heard that a new report had found that the benefits of drinking water may have been oversold. Please also be aware that many veterinarians underestimate the favorable impact that a low carbohydrate diet has on the insulin needs of the patient and they do not lower the insulin dose enough. The less expensive foods like Friskies, 9-Lives, and Fancy Feast are also fine to feed. In other words, they are not the result of an infection and the patient should not be placed on antibiotics. While we may not need eight glasses, there are plenty of reasons to drink water. Keep in mind that a large marketing budget does not equate with the manufacturing of high quality or healthy products. These diets represent an area of the commercial cat food industry that is very misleading and, quite frankly, a source of embarrassment for this profession. For the past 11 years, I have spent a few hours in the kitchen 4-6 times a year making food for my cats which is a very small price to pay for the control that I have over what goes into their food bowls. Instead of lowering their profit margin and going back to nature by adding more meat to the diets, the pet food companies simple started supplementing their diets with synthetic taurine. The patient is then put into a cage without a litter box. For years, dieters have been drinking lots of water as a weight loss strategy. When reading this section, two words need to be firmly in your mind. The extensive cooking required to remove most of the water from the food (70% moisture reduced to 5-10% moisture) significantly alters the biological value of the protein sources and damages other vital nutrients. In addition, dry food is very heavily processed which includes being subjected to high temperatures for a long time resulting in alteration and destruction of nutrients. Colon Cancer on the Rise Among Young Adults. Please click on the links below to read more about optimal nutrition for cats. No matter the breed, the cat is still an obligate carnivore. I would much rather see a cat eating an all-by-product canned food than any dry food. When a cat is on a diet of water-depleted dry food, they produce a more highly. In fact, it has become the second most popular drink (behind soft drinks). Plant-based proteins do not contain the full complement (puzzle pieces) of the critical amino acids required by an obligate carnivore. Many of the often-prescribed feline lower urinary tract diets are formulated to make the urine acidic but it is thought that these low magnesium, acidifying diets may actually exacerbate painful cystitis. Humans and dogs can take the pieces of the puzzle in the plant protein and, from those, make the missing pieces. And unless you are taking medications that make you thirsty, Guest says, you should listen to those cues and get yourself a drink of water, juice, milk, coffee -- anything but alcohol. Diet is not the only issue involved with cystitis but it is an important one and one that we can control. The fox is definitely guarding the henhouse and the FDA shows no interest in remedying the situation. You would never see a wild cat chasing down a herd of biscuits running across the plains of Africa or dehydrating her mouse and topping it off with corn meal. Not all that long ago (1980s) cats were going blind and dying from heart problems due to this arrogance. This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive. If the veterinarian does not examine the urine right away and either sends it to an outside laboratory or uses a free-catch sample that the owner brought from home, an erroneous diagnosis of crystals may be made. Try not to drive yourself nuts when picking out a canned cat food. Please note that not all canned foods are suitably low in carbohydrates. I feel very strongly that this common therapeutic regimen dismisses the very significant role that a proper diet plays in our IBD patients. By-products are not necessarily low quality protein sources. Taurine is one of the most important nutrients present in meat but it is missing from plants. Unfortunately, pet food labels are not held to the same standard as human food labels. Royal Canin was one of the first companies to come out with these breed specific diets as a marketing gimmick. So why are we continuing to feed our carnivores like herbivores. With regard to dry food and urinary tract health, aside from the lack of water in this type of diet, there is also a correlation between the consumption of a high carbohydrate diet and the formation of struvite crystals as shown by this study. My questions about the quality and composition of their prescription diets are always met with dead silence. It has been cooked at very high temperatures for a long period of time. By-products are discussed in more detail on the Commercial Foods page in this. By-products are always a controversial subject but it makes much more sense to feed animal-based by-products to a cat than it does to feed grains or potatoes. This type of unhealthy diet is consumed under the assumption that humans know exactly what was destroyed or altered during processing and what needs to be added back and in what form and amount. Preservatives are important ingredients that we need to pay attention to. Crystals in cat urine are as normal as the leaves that fall on your driveway. The base ingredients and composition mirror those of many dry foods found in pet stores and supermarkets. Many canned foods, on the other hand, contain approximately less than 10 percent carbohydrates. If the insulin is not lowered accordingly, an overdose of insulin will occur which can be life-threatening. It is very important to understand the impact that a low carbohydrate diet has on the insulin needs of a diabetic cat. ) as its source of protein. Drinking Water Helps Maintain the Balance of Body Fluids. Water intake of cats on dry vs canned food. People often overestimate what it takes to make a nutritious meal for their cat and assume that it means slaving away in the kitchen every day. On a good note, most cats will have their clinical signs spontaneously resolve even without any treatment. These diets are often very high in carbohydrates and, of course, all of the dry versions are water-depleted. If someone wants to discuss the information contained on this site in more detail, an appointment for a phone consultation needs to be set up. Antibiotics are NOT harmless drugs and they need to be used with more critical thought than is currently happening in both human and veterinary medicine. There are several situations that can lead to a diet being deficient in taurine but one of them is using a diet that relies heavily on plants (grains, etc. A good example of the above issue is a food like canned Wellness. Regarding hydration, I must say that I find it truly amazing when I hear about the very large numbers of cats receiving subcutaneous fluids while being maintained on a diet of dry food. Urine pH varies throughout the day and using one pH measurement from a single urine sample is very misleading and is not terribly helpful information. In fact, it has often been said, jokingly, that a cat with cystitis will often stop exhibiting clinical signs within seven days with antibiotics and in one week without antibiotics. Buprenex is superior to Torbugesic which has been used for pain management in the cat in the past. 035) and bacteria do not grow well in concentrated urine. Use covered trays to keep the water tasting and smelling fresh. Please see Feline Urinary Tract Health for a more detailed discussion. This is an extremely illogical and unhealthy practice and every attempt should be made to get these cats on a diet that contains a higher moisture content. Diabetes and hyperthyroidism are also more common in cats over 10 years of age and both disease render the patient more prone to urinary tract infections. Americans seem to carry bottled water everywhere they go these days. Putting a little thought into what you feed your cat(s) can pay big dividends over their lifetime and very possibly help them avoid serious, painful, and costly illnesses. Chicken By-Product Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Whole Grain Corn, Pork Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Powdered Cellulose, Dried Chicken, Chicken Liver Flavor. Please see this paper discussing the elevated blood glucose in cats after eating a high carbohydrate meal. WebMD archives content after 2 years to ensure our readers can easily find the most timely content. BHA, BHT, and ethoxyquin are extremely questionable in terms of safety. Your body is composed of about 60% water. Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition. At first glance, this food may be dismissed as inappropriate for a carnivore because it contains several high carbohydrate ingredients in the form of fruits and vegetables, including potatoes which are very high in starch (carbohydrate). When this happens, the abuse of antibiotics continues. He is 18 years old and still runs around like a kitten. Clumping litter allows you to see just how much, if any, urine is being voided. The importance of animal proteins, versus plant proteins. There is a very strong and extremely logical connection between the way that we are currently feeding our obligate carnivores and many of the life-threatening diseases that afflict them. If you are tempted to write to me to ask what food you should feed to your cat, understand that specific advice cannot be provided via email. This increases the chance of these crystals forming life-threatening stones. Cats have a physiological decrease in the ability to utilize carbohydrates due to the lack of specific enzymatic pathways that are present in other mammals, and they lack a salivary enzyme called amylase. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Also keep in mind that dry foods are not refrigerated and they sit in warm warehouses, on pet store shelves, and in your cupboards for weeks or months before your pets consume them. Urine pH is also often considered when discussing urinary tract problems but we really need to stop focusing so heavily on pH. This makes it impossible to accurately evaluate the food in terms of composition. Too often these cats are treated with a high level of steroids and a prescription grain-laden dry food diet. Many readers of this website have kindly donated their valuable time to translate this important information into various languages. At first glance, it might appear that the dry food has a higher amount of protein than the canned food—but this is not true on a dry matter basis which considers the food minus the water. Make your own tuna water by taking one can of tuna and mixing the contents into 3 cups of water. This is why it is important to not just consider the list of ingredients but to also look at the Cat Food Composition chart, or call the company for the information. Please do not allow that drug to be injected into your cat without reading my Convenia webpage first. Careful monitoring is especially important when implementing a diet change. The protein in dry food, which is often heavily plant-based, is not equal in. It is also thought that the highly concentrated urine may be very irritating to the bladder wall in some cats, predisposing them to painful cystitis. It means that cats lack specific metabolic (enzymatic) pathways and cannot utilize plant proteins as efficiently as animal proteins. Couple this with the fact that cats do not have a very strong thirst drive when compared to other species, and you will understand why it is critical for them to ingest a water-rich diet. Cystitis can lead to inappropriate urination (urinating outside of the litter box) and stones can cause a fatal rupture of the bladder by blocking the outflow of urine.
These companies make it very easy for us. Without knowing the actual amount of each ingredient, we have no indication of the impact of the ingredient on the nutritional profile of the food. I strongly suggest that all caretakers of diabetic cats home-test to monitor blood glucose levels using a standard glucometer as a matter of routine. This is not a painful procedure for the cat and this method is the only way to obtain a sample for accurate information in order to properly treat with antibiotics. However, contrary to what is often believed by both the veterinarian and the client. If you do not want to read this entire webpage, please review this shortened version. An increasing number of nutrition-savvy veterinarians, including board-certified veterinary internists, are now strongly recommending the feeding of canned food instead of dry kibble. Chronic kidney disease is probably the leading cause of mortality in the cat. This dry food is 29% carbohydrates on a dry matter basis and is, of course, water-depleted. Brewers rice, corn gluten meal, chicken by-product meal, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), chicken, chicken liver flavor, fish oil. There are far better options available that are healthier and not as expensive. The first paragraph of that page is as follows. Stay away from food with gravy and sauces because they usually use high carbohydrate thickeners. Asprin: The Wonder Drug in Your Medicine Cabinet. Water-rich foods include fruits, vegetables, broth-based soups, oatmeal, and beans. Unfortunately, many veterinarians overlook pain medications as a very important part of the treatment of this common feline problem. Stress is also thought to play a very significant role in cystitis and even cats that are fed a 100 percent canned food diet may experience bouts of cystitis. It is important to note that most of these diets do not have robust clinical feeding studies supporting their safety for long-term feeding or even for use in treating the various diseases they target. With regard to the overall protein amounts contained in dry versus canned food, do not be confused by the listing of the protein percentages on the packaging. This is why humans and dogs can live on a vegetarian diet but cats cannot. It is very important to understand that crystals will often form once outside of the body within a very short (30-60 minutes) period of time. For more details regarding pet food ingredient labels, see Commercial Foods. Learn How To Read a Pet Food Ingredient Label. Of course, in order to be on board with the preventative nutrition argument, a person has to understand the following facts. This is a crucial point when one considers how common kidney and bladder problems are in the cat. ). Cats did not stop being obligate carnivores just because we put a roof over their heads. Sleep Loss Tied to Changes in Gut Bacteria. Video: Cancer Takes a Toll on a Small Town. I sincerely hope that these pictures of Opie make a huge impact on anyone who is still not convinced that dry food causes significant suffering in many cats. The functions of these bodily fluids include digestion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transportation of nutrients, and maintenance of body temperature. There is no doubt that dry food is responsible for far more intestinal problems, and other diseases, than most veterinarians and cat owners realize. However, the low carbohydrate level (3-5%) tells us that the amount of fruits and vegetables is very low. Stones are also very common and can lead to a life-threatening urinary tract blockage. Please keep in mind that when your cat starts eating a more appropriately hydrated diet of canned food, his urine output will increase which is a very good thing for bladder health. Soy contains phytoestrogens and soy also negatively influences the thyroid gland. This is a very frustrating disease to deal with and one that the veterinary community does not have all the answers for. To find the most current information, please enter your topic of interest into our search box. These are also usually the same people who are advising general practitioners on all matters of nutrition. Cystitis is an extremely common and very painful problem in the cat. There are two basic ways to meet our nutrient needs. Cats are obligate (strict) carnivores and are very different from dogs in their nutritional needs. They will then claim that these missing elements are added to their diets to make it complete and balanced to sustain life in an obligate carnivore. One problem, however, is that a sample may be difficult to obtain without waiting a couple of hours since cats with cystitis urinate frequently and often do not have enough urine in their bladder to get a good sample. I can assure you, it is much easier than that. However, please understand that there are no studies showing that restricting protein to this level will prevent further deterioration of kidney function. This includes Friskies, 9-Lives, Fancy Feast, etc. Brewers rice, corn gluten meal, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), chicken by-product meal. When your water intake does not equal your output, you can become dehydrated. Fluid losses are accentuated in warmer climates, during strenuous exercise, in high altitudes, and in older adults, whose sense of thirst may not be as sharp. The three key negative issues associated with dry food are. The first four columns show the caloric distribution which is the best way to analyze food. You should aim for a diet that derives less than 10% of its calories from carbohydrates. The average dry food contains 35-50 percent carbohydrate calories. Taurine deficiency will cause blindness and heart problems in cats. Some of the cheaper dry foods contain even higher levels. Therefore, do not shy away from the more economical foods like Friskies or 9-Lives if you cannot afford the more expensive canned foods without by-products. It must be kept in mind that even with a low USG, most cases of cystitis are not due to an infection. Food with high water content tends to look larger, its higher volume requires more chewing, and it is absorbed more slowly by the body, which helps you feel full. Given this fact, and given what we know about how the cat processes carbohydrates, it is not a stretch to say that high carbohydrate diets could very well be a significant factor in causing diabetes in some cats. Also note that synthetic taurine is manufactured from a chemical reaction and all taurine (at least that I know of) comes out of China. Important: I often see too much clinical significance placed on the identification of crystals in the urine without regard to how the urine sample was handled. Because of this increase in urine production, litter boxes need to be scooped more frequently or more boxes need to be added to the home. The protein in dry food, therefore, earns a lower biological value score. Fats can easily become rancid, and bacteria will proliferate, in this type of environment. Also, this is a very good example of the ingredient splitting. Put another way, a cat on a canned food diet consumes approximately double the amount of water consumed by a cat eating dry food when all sources (food and water bowl) are considered. This is the kind of arrogance that has led to fatal errors in the past. Water is an extremely important nutrient that contributes to overall health in every living creature. However, if these high carbohydrate ingredients are listed, you have no idea of the amount in the food and, therefore, no knowledge of the carbohydrate level. Most cats under 10 years of age produce a very concentrated urine (USG greater than 1. A very important note on antibiotic usage in these cases. In other words, these diets contain no ingredient that actually requires a prescription. Of course, the same deterioration can occur in any cat that is not consuming enough protein, but the level of protein in these diets is not only at an extremely low level, it is in an incomplete form for a carnivore. , listed on the label, it is a safe bet that the food is low in carbohydrates. However, this perception of quality is undeserved and this incestuous relationship jeopardizes the integrity of our profession. After recognizing this situation, you will see an obvious and very significant conflict of interest. Again, we would like to stay under 10% of calories coming from carbohydrates. Most canned foods, when figured on a dry matter basis, have more protein than dry food. There is nothing fresh about this source of food and it certainly does not come close to resembling a bird or a mouse. Brewers rice, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid),chicken liver flavor, taurine, preserved with BHT and BHA. IBD can also present with weight loss as the only clinical sign. Because plant proteins are cheaper than meat proteins, pet food companies will have a higher profit margin when using corn, wheat, soy, rice, etc. Cats have no dietary need for carbohydrates and, more worrisome is the fact that a diet that is high in carbohydrates can be detrimental to their health as is explained below. Dry food only contains 5-10 percent water whereas canned foods contain. In addition to the issue of carbohydrates and how they affect the blood sugar level of some cats, dry food is very calorie dense, is very palatable, and is usually free-fed. It allows the grain fractions to be broken up into smaller components which places them lower on the list since ingredients are listed by weight. The higher priced canned foods that I referenced above, have a muscle meat listed as the first ingredient. And remember, even if this was not the case, the percentage numbers do not tell the whole story. While by-products can be very nutritious (and this really is the least of my concerns regarding these diets), they are cheaper than muscle meat so one would think that as much as these diets cost, the companies could use a more consistent source of high quality protein. This is one reason why it is so important to use a clumping (scoopable) litter. It was discovered in the late 1980s that cats are exquisitely sensitive to taurine deficiency and our cats were paying dearly for Man straying so far from nature in order to increase the profit margin of the pet food manufacturers. Please keep in mind that a cat has a very low thirst drive and is designed to get water with their food. However, when all of the grain fractions are added up, their contribution to the diet (including the protein content) often greatly outweighs the first ingredient. Cystitis will often recur in these patients and this painful health problem can be very frustrating to deal with. Proteins derived from animal tissues have a complete amino acid profile. The reason that an older cat is more prone to urinary tract infections is because kidney disease is more common in this age group and so these cats will have a more dilute urine which is not as hostile to bacterial growth. Fat cells produce a substance that makes the other cells in the body resistant to insulin. However, they can become a problem if Man continues to insist on feeding the cat a water-depleted diet. Common Feline Health Problems and Their Ties to Diet. In addition, they are simply not necessary and do not optimally address the problems they claim to treat. Given how common hyperthyroidism is in the cat, soy has no business being in cat food. This means that pet food labels are seriously lacking in usable information when compared to a package of food for a human. However, there is more variability when quality is being considered when compared to muscle meat. Apparently, the old suggestion to drink eight glasses a day was nothing more than a guideline, not based on scientific evidence. In fact, drinking water (either plain or in the form of other fluids or foods) is essential to your health. This label originally started out in the dry food market but it has now made its way to canned food labels. Within a couple of hours (or less), the bladder is usually full enough to obtain a urine sample via cystocentesis. Plus, the labels never list the carbohydrate amount which is very frustrating because we are trying to stay under 10% carbohydrate calories. I would have to be stranded on a desert island with no other food source before I would ever consider feeding these diets to any cat in my care. This field of study is not emphasized in veterinary schools and the minimal course work that is required, is often taught by people who have strong ties to the pet food industry. It is very important to remember that not all proteins are created equal. To repeat, crystals are not necessarily an abnormal finding in cat urine. It is troubling to think about the role that chronic dehydration may play in causing or exacerbating feline kidney disease. This is NOT the diet that Mother Nature intended for your cat to eat. Cystitis can be extremely painful and it is very important to address pain management in these cats.
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