I can't win

[miasmum]

From feeling guilty that Mowgli's pancreatitis was caused by feeding cheap and cheerful Go-Cat it now transpires that Mia's really high urea result could be linked to the really good quality wet food she is eating. Where is the banging head on the wall smilie please

[meriad]

that is very interesting re the Go-Cat; I must have missed that bit.

As for the wet foods; it's a mine field out there MM - it truly is. A friend - Sarah - has a cat that is just a bit underweight and she's really trying hard to 'fatten' her up a bit. To do that she is feeding good quality high meat content foods. Flip side is that - same as your Mia - her Pip now has raised urea levels.

I cannot remember - how old are your two again?

I had a chat with my vet a few months back about the different wet foods because Sarah only feeds the best /most expensive / organic etc and I always felt bad because I feed Felix or Gourmet. Her (the vet that is) comment was that generally any food that is labelled complete will have all the required vitamins and minerals added so from that point of view as good as the expensive stuff - the difference will be the quantity of meat vs cereal fillers etc. Also Whiskers and Felix and Gourmet tend to have added sugars. She did agree that the dried foods definitely vary and that it pays to go more expensive with them but wet foods not much difference.

But back to Mia; I will check with my friend tonight but I think it's the phosphates that you need to try and cut down on. You can get things like binders but a lot of cats won't touch food with that in them. Senior foods generally tend to be lower on the phosphates (which is what makes them senior) so they would be a choice as well?

As said; I'll check with Sarah and report back in the morning. Not even going to kid that I'll do it tonight - we have a few bottles of Prosecco chilling

[Gal]

I always fed my cats either Whiskas or IAMS over the years coupled with the occasional pouch or tin....I don't honestly think you can blame yourself MM, every cat is different and will respond differently to what you give them xxx

[Kaz]

(((((Shell)))))

What Gal said - don't blame yourself xxxxxxxxxx

[miasmum]

Thanks all and Ria that is exactly what Simon said, we need to get her urea down and definitely not increase her phosphates.

She is currently on Sheba or Gourmet Perle and she loves them both, but the Gourmet Perle makes her sick, so I was thinking of stopping that anyway and going back to Felix. Simon said that is fine, but senior Felix. She could have a kidney diet but it is not very appetising so he doesn't think she will eat it.

Go Cat is apparently like feeding your cat McDonalds. It is full of rubbish, flavourings, and cheap fillers like cereals. So they are now on James Wellbeloved senior dried mixed with Pets at Home senior, as that has no cereal either and is made with chicken breast.

Mowgli likes the dried food, but she doesn't which is why she is on wet food.

Enjoy your prosecco

[Gal]

That's really strange because when Tinker had his kidney issue nearly two years ago, he was given medication and was on a kidney food for a while but as he got better and we reduced the meds, my vet said I could reintroduce his normal Whiskas dry food as he didn't like the wet much. We did and he was completely and utterly back to his healthy normal self

I am feeding Smudge a mixture of Whiskas kitten biscuits which he quite likes (some dry food is beneficial for their teeth) but he loves Felix As Good as It Looks, but I only buy it when it's on special as it isn't cheap! And it makes his poo smell VERY BAD!!

[miasmum]

They haven't got any teeth

[Gal]

Ah....

[meriad]

Shell, my Molly has had raised kidney levels for the past 4 years or so (I really need to check when I'm next at the vet). I tried to get her to eat the kidney food as well without any luck whatsoever; in fact most people on CatChat who have tried the kidney diet for their cats have reported a resounding failure

There are binders you can use - again most cats I know of won't touch food with them in it. She gets normal cat food; no senior stuff. With the other cats in the house there just isn't much point as I have very little control over who eats what. They are all grazers and happily move from bowl to bowl.

I have Molly on a daily dose of Fortekor and that is is... and with time the levels have all come down to within normal; albeit the higher side of normal. We probably should be doing repeat blood tests on her, but as the vet says - given her age (she's 20 and a bit now) there really isn't much point as neither the vet nor I am willing to subject Molly to countless procedures, pilling, prodding, poking, etc....

Maybe speak to your vet about Fortekor as well and if he's agreeable ask him for a quote how much it would be from him vs getting a prescription and then buying them online; it works out quite a bit cheaper than from a vet


x

[Gal]

Tinker was also on Fortekor, I was told to gradually wean him off it and tests would be done to check his levels - they were all fine so as he was on half a tablet a day (very palatable, you should have no trouble getting them down your cat!) every other day, then every third day and so on until I dropped them altogether.

I bought them online from Viovet. You need a vets' prescription, mine charged me about £7 then scan it and send to Viovet, who send the tablets very quickly.

x