lol... i just found the cat formula of TOTW, like a couple of weeks ago, so i switched to that, i was feeding the kirklands brand... and i feed that with canned food... i buy cheaper canned food tho... i did a little reading on it and got some suggestions... seems that this is a good combo... i used to do the opposite, feed cheaper dry food and more expensive canned... (trying to keep it healthy on a budget...) fawkes is WAY happier with this combo... we'll see if he gains/loses/maintains his weight on it...

 

You're supposed to feed them before the dogs eat 'em? I thought, much like mice for snakes or crickets for lizards, a "last meal" isn't really necessary?

onder:

 

lol... tonka, some people actually keep the cats as pets! i know, shocking! but it's true, in fact, there are people who keep the mice and even crickets as pets!

 

LOL. I won't bring any cats around your dogs!

 

Cats as pets????

Why, they taste like chicken.

 

:eyeroll: i know, it is hard to believe that there are any pets besides dogs... did you know that some crazies even keep parrots as pets! *shakes head* wonders never cease...

 

OMG, What good is a parrot as a pet. All they would do is pick up bad habbits and sling food...

Speaking of that, I taught Bubba a new word today. Betty hit my hand and I dropped my phone. "Well shit" came out of my mouth and Bubba repeated it perfectly.

 

Haha...thank god dogs aren't capable of repeating...

 

all right... let's not derail this thread anymore guys i'm not sure, but something tells me that seebrown actually has a cat and is interested in feeding it...

 

When I had my Siamese I fed her Blue buffalo dried, and added a can of albacore tuna, or canned salmon once in a while. She loved it.

Sorry See. The almight fawkes just jerked on my pronged collar and said I was bad.

 

Sorry See...my mom fed her cat friskies, but I wouldn't recommend it, knowing what I know now...

 

LOL. Thanks. Not that the parrot story wasn't funny...

 

My new cat was on Proplan Kitten dry and friskies wet before and I am switching her to Wellness Core Dry and all the wet grain free Wellness flavors. I might add other grain free wet varieties for a bit of difference every once in a while. I dunno why I spoil my animals this much, I don't even take care of myself half as good as they are cared for sheesh!

 

I've tried to feed my cats quality kibble, but unfortunately the only thing the my younger cat can keep down is either standard supermarket stuff or Purina Pro Plan sensitive stomach, so both my cats get that.

I recently found out that Petsmart's generic canned food (Sophisticat, I think) is actually OK quality and is pretty cheap (about 38 cents a can), so I've started feeding that too instead of the Fancy Feast/Friskies canned that my older cat was getting. My older cat also dislikes food when it's served in pate form, so that limits what other better foods I can give her.

Sadly, I never thought to look much into cat food until I got a dog (except when my younger cat developed allergies), so they've had junk food for most of their lives.

 

I've tried to feed my cats quality kibble, but unfortunately the only thing the my younger cat can keep down is either standard supermarket stuff or Purina Pro Plan sensitive stomach, so both my cats get that.

Sadly, I never thought to look much into cat food until I got a dog (except when my younger cat developed allergies), so they've had junk food for most of their lives.

This for me too. My cat has been eating the junk stuff all of her life. I want to try TOTW, but I dont want to upset her stomach or possible give her crystals. I'm still debating. If it is healthier for it, it might be worth a try!

 

I tried feeding my cats raw, as we feed our dogs, but I could not get them to switch. So they are back on "Evo" cat kibble. Its grain free and high in protein.

 

I'm wondering if maybe I should switch to Taste of the Wild. I go to Petsmart for food (which is why I buy Blue Buffalo), but I just looked online and saw a feed store just as close to me that has Taste of the Wild, and the price looks about the same.

My pets definitely eat better than I do. Does anyone buy pet food online? I'm wondering if the shipping would be astronomical for a 15 lb bag (and I worry about a big box of pet food sitting on my front porch).

 

right now my three get a mix of Acana, TOTW, and nutro (was given to me, and didn't want to waste it) DRY...and they get cheap-o canned stuff.

My understanding is the canned, the main benefit is geared toward moisture content....I do feed better canned when I can afford it, but the cats tend to snub it.

 

I decided to lower her dry kibble and give her a little bit of wet every day for moisture. Does the quantity of wet = the quantity of dry? We were feeding her 1/3 cup kibble a day, and now we're feeding her still 1/3 cup of food, but it's split into wet and dry, and I don't want to underfeed her. Do you have any resources/articles about wet food and moisture? I'm a little concerned about the amount of water she (doesn't) drinks. We had this fountain filter for her that we got for fun, and she loved it. Well, it broke a few weeks ago. Now I never see her drink water (although she must at some point).

 

Not much help on portions, since my cats are all free fed their dry food since they have never gotten fat or anything. Portions on canned will depend on brand...when I buy good canned food, its like half a can per meal...when I buy the cheap-o stuff, its like a can and a half per meal (recommended) but they never eat the whole thing

you can actually add quite a bit of water to it. I find the cats actually like it better when its got more water added...they can lick it up, vs having to bite it to get to it.

I just got one of the water fountains . A thrift store had a new one for $9. I was shocked. Never had even been opened.



Little Big Cat

Long-term feeding of an all-dry-food diet is also suspected as a factor in CRF(Chronic Renal Failure). Cats' kidneys are highly efficient and adapted to life in the desert, where they would get most or all of their water from eating their prey. Cats eating dry cat food take in only half the water that cats on a canned or homemade diet get; this chronic dehydration can cause stress on the kidneys over time. Dry diets also predispose cats to lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD, LUTD, FUS, crystals, stones, cystitis) because they force such a high degree of urine concentration. Chronic or recurrent bladder disease may also be a factor in the development of CRF.

heres one, but there are many. Also, just to be antedotal, my friend growing up had 20+ cats, all fed the cheapest canned food with almost no dry, and they never developed any health problems.

 

If anything more wet food is good. A cat can never have too much moisture IMO. I was feeding Wellness Wet grain free flavors, but it cost between a dollar to two dollars a can/pouch. I Started feeding Soulistic wet cans and pouches instead of wellness wet. It costs under a dollar each and with a petco card you tend to save some $$.

 

Oh, that's a great idea. I think I'll start adding water to it. I got her the BB canned food. I figured why switch brands since that's the kind of kibble she eats, and it has really high protein.

It's so funny, since the fountain has been broken, she paws at the hole that the water comes out of, like "Why isn't the water coming out??? I can't drink it if it's just sitting here!"

 

is the pump just acting up? Can you open the pump and clean the impeller?

Also, if you feel brave, just smack the pump on the floor, the impeller is just likely stuck.

 

I'll try that before we go buy another one. I think we burned it out. The water will usually dry up after a week (in which case we'll clean and fill it), but I was too busy and just left it. I thought my SO had turned it off, she thought I had turned it off, and it was on w/no water in the unit for a solid week. When I finally unplugged it yesterday, cleaned it and set it up back up, it's not working at all. No sound like it's even trying to work or anything.

 

!!!!!!!!! oh man...may be fried then.

But yeah, when I sold fish stuff (the pump is the same) I would always tell people to smack it on som'thing at least once before tossing it, and buying som'thing new. I'd say about 60% of the time it worked and they didn't need a new pump. Minerals or goo can make the moving pieces stick

mine makes a ton of noise if it even gets a tiny bit low...so it hasn't run dry yet. I also unplug it at night

 

i dunno, i just switched to TOTW for my cat, normally, even when i am very careful with the ratios when switching foods, we have about a week or so of upset tummy. i was very pleasantly surprised that he had little to no upset (that i could tell) with this switch, AND seems so much more satiated on it.

 

I think I will definitely try it now, thanks Fawkese!