Anyone else NOT feed their cat wet cat food?

In My Humble Opinion
21

I fed my (first and only) cat both wet and dry at first, and I was getting him mostly the expensive “healthier” stuff. Then one day I gave him regular Iams kibble and now he will NOT eat anything else, dry or wet. He doesn’t even like the other varieties of Iams that come in little pellets, he only likes the big triangular shaped kibble.

I’ve never fed him any human food, and he doesn’t beg for it at all. Occasionally, he’ll want to inspect what I’m eating, but doesn’t even try to taste it.

As for water, he’s got a big honking stainless dog-sized water bowl and he gulps that down plenty. I have no fear that he isn’t sufficiently hydrating based on the quantity and size of pee-clumps I scoop out of his litterbox on a daily basis.

22

The Monster has had only dry food for the past 8 years. I fed her pouches when she was a kitten, then the canned stuff, but around the age of three she got really overweight so she’s on ‘obesity control’ dry food and will be until her teeth fail. She loves it. That said, she loves all food no matter whether it’s suitable - in the past she’s stolen lettuce from my plate, and once ate a a grape. She has an eating disorder.

23

Our last personal domestic cats died at age 17 and 18 after an exclusively dry diet all their lives. Neither had tooth or kidney problems. We haven’t replaced them yet, we’re taking a cat break while we work with our dogs.

Some cats do seem to have behavioral issues that can result in chronic low hydration, but keeping a supply of cool, clean water always available in a low stress non competitive location (if there are other pets) usually overcomes the problem.

Our wild cats are another story. These are fed pre-killed prey animals of appropriate species and size, for both physiological and psychological reasons.

24

This is a little bit worrying. Cats really don’t have much of a thirst drive, and “normal” urine output should only be a couple pee-clumps a day for one cat. Is your kitty chubby? One of the first signs of diabetes in a cat is excessive drinking and urinating. If he’s not chubby, sure he could just be an unusual guy, but getting him checked out might be a good idea if he hasn’t been recently.

(vet tech who trains clients on diabetes management)

As to the wet/dry food debate, the feline specialists I work with all recommend canned food for cats. Now, I don’t get all hard-lined on people about it, but cats really do better healthwise with canned food. There are always exceptions, and some cats do fine on kibble, but especially for cats with weight problems, nearly all those issues can be resolved by switching to canned. Even “piggy” cats who love to eat a lot, can lose weight more easily by giving them all the canned food they want rather than restricting kibble or using wight-control kibble. Again, there are always exceptions to the rule, so I pare it down to owners doing some research and making educated decisions on what’s best for their cat’s health and the household budget and schedule.

As to the “better for teeth” argument, it’s just not true. There are two brands of prescription-only kibble out there that are “dental diets.” These are much larger kibble than what is normally fed to cats, and are manufactured in a different way. The small, readily available kibble that people can buy at stores does not clean the teeth at all. One or two crunches, and it’s swallowed. This kind of kibble crumbles. Some cats don’t even do that, and swallow it whole. Regular kibble is put together in a way like a meatball. The ingredients are sort of pressed together, and crumble apart without much effort. The prescription kibble is larger, and requires some chewing for the cat to get it small enough to swallow. Also, the prescription kibble is sort of extruded, think more like taffy, and cut apart. This results in the ingredients being lined up and not crumbling so easily, so the cat really has to slice the pieces apart with his/her teeth, resulting in the kibble actually scraping up and down the molars to the gumline. That’s what actually keeps the teeth cleaner. This size and formula of kibble is not appropriate for all cats, and that’s why it’s prescription only.

The bottom line as far as keeping cat’s teeth clean, is to use enzymatic toothpaste and to brush their teeth, or get dental cleanings done regularly with their veterinarian. There are some (enzymatic) additives that can be purchased, either added to food or water, that are not harmful but are debatable as to how effective they really are.

25

Same as my experience when my cat was a kitten. I started feeding her dry food and the nasty litter box problem went away. One time someone gave me a few cans of Fancy Feast when her cat died and I tried to give it to my cat. She wouldn’t touch it. She just kept trying to knock the big bucket with the dry food off the dryer (I think she thinks that one day, it’ll burst open when it hits the floor.

My aunt had a Maine Coon that lived to around 23 years old and was fed nothing but dry food her entire life. The last time I saw her before she died, she was a furry skeleton who thought she was still a kitten, getting under foot and jumping up onto tables and other furniture. I was amazed she could still eat the dry food, but she seemed to have most of her teeth.

26

My previous two cats, who made it to 15 and 18, ate dry food almost exclusively. The older cat at the end did experience kidney issues, but she made it to 18 which is pretty good.

My current two cats eat exclusively dry food, because it’s cheaper to buy in bulk. If they had health problems I’d re-evaluate. Also, while Mr Cat will hoover down infinite amounts of gooshyfood, Ms Cat just sniffs it and stares at it like she’s not sure what it’s for.

27

Our two cats eat dry food and seem like happy cats. The dry food is much cheaper.

28

Mine won’t eat it except as a last resort. If we run out of dry, and put out the emergency wet food, they eat a tiny bit, then let it sit. By the next day, they’ll eat it. If given the type that is chunks in gravy, they will lick the gravy up and leave the chunks. They also don’t like treats or people food, cooked or raw meat.

Joe

29

When I was little my parents fed our cats dry food only, but then the boy nearly died of that urinary tract problem (crystallized urine caused a blockage) vets tell you about. Since then all of the cats under their care have been given wet food for meals and a small amount of dry food for nibbling on.

30

He’s got a bit of belly flab, but is by no means chubby. His thirst drive seems to have increased significantly about 9 months ago when I got him the big honking stainless water bowl. Before that he had a tiny plastic deal and would just nip at for a short bit. As soon as I got this bowl, he seems to enjoy drinking from it much more and will often sit there for between 1-2 minutes quickly lapping up water quite noisily.

His pee clumps are usually two a day, but they definitely increased in size when he got the new bowl. His litterbox is in the bathroom, and he’s not shy at all, so he often goes at the same time I do. Sometimes he takes longer to pee than me! And it’s not a weak trickling stream by any means, it’s rather loud.

So yeah, I’m pretty sure that his increased drinking is due to the enjoyment of his big stainless bowl and not any health issues. But I appreciate the input, thanks!

31

This is exactly why our cat is now on canned food (prescription canned food, for that matter). Even dry cat treats seem to be problematic for him, so the “treats” he gets are urinary-tract-friendly kibble.

32

:slight_smile:

What is it with the kitties and the “Hey, you’re peeing! I can pee too!” It’s weird, but I’ve certainly seen that myself. They also just seem to want to congregate in the bathroom whenever I’m in there. Cats is weird.

33

My cat, as well as all of my family’s cats, have always gotten exclusively dry food. With the exception of one cat with a hiatal hernia, all of them have been very healthy. My cat now won’t eat wet food. At the most, she’ll lick at some of the juice and the rest will go untouched. I tried to switch her once because I was concerned that she was losing weight. She reacted by going on a hunger strike for the few days that I managed to hold out. I finally gave in and went back to dry and she went back to eating happily.

34

It is part of the loaded language used in bashing lower cost foods. McDonalds is cheap and nutritionally questionable. Purina is cheap, therefore must also be nutritionally deficient.

I know very little about cats, and just checked in looking for balloons to prick. There are endless arguments on dog forums about dog foods. Mostly totally lacking any facts except what ingredients are in a food. Few other facts are available. They are totally devoid of relating the nutrients in a food or the health of the dogs to the ‘‘better ingredients’’.

I assume the same nonsense prevails in the cat food world.

Pointing out fallacies held by the majority on a forum including the moderators doesn’t lead to popularity. In some cases, you may be kicking people’s rice bowls.

35

Riley only gets dry food. I got a sample of some canned stuff in a bag of food once and I gave it to him to see if he’d eat it. He sniffed it, then looked at me with this “WTF?” expression on his face, then stalked away. That was the end of the wet food.

36

Miso gets dry but Wonton pukes it every time, no matter what brand. I think he just eats too fast. He has a lot of funny health issues though, so maybe that’s why. Not sure but he’s always been this way. Blackie will eat anything you give him and the new little Mouse Squirrel (I did not name ANY of these cats!) is so young she gets a little wet and some dry that’s soaked in water a few minutes.

37

I give my cat, Fezzik, dry food nearly exclusively. I keep a few cans on hand for the very occasional treat or as “emergency rations” in the wintertime. He will devour a half can of Fancy Feast in a couple of minutes if I give it to him. He’d eat a whole can if given it, but promptly vomit.
He’s a bit chubby, but not overly so.
I’ve done this with all my cats and they were happy and healthy.
I use Purina indoor formula, which seems to help with hairballs.

38

All my cats over the years have been fed Purina dry cat food (currently Indoor Formula) exclusively, with no dental or urinary problems (except for one stray male who adopted us at an advanced age). They get wet food maybe once a month as a treat for the elderly one (she’s 19).

39

My cat pukes any wet food we give him. Seems pretty content on the dry stuff.

40

Keyser Soze couldn’t catch anything to save himself so he gets a lot of Science Diet Oral care stuff, kangaroo mince and (believe it or not) he has taken a relish to small tins of wet kitten food. I bought him one by mistake. He is I think about ten years old.

He gets a good mixture.

Now however he has a different problem. He has taken to attacking the sheepskin octopus he sleeps on so I think he is getting furballs. I have to give him Catlax- but you are supposed to apply it to both front paws. He only has one! :slight_smile: