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Feeding for Optimal Health:
The SKINNY on FATTENING Food
By Dr. Rachel Addleman, DVM, DiplABVP, CVA
Obesity is the most common health problem in cats. One of
the reasons is the TYPE of food being fed, not
necessarily the number of calories. Cats are desert creatures and are true
carnivores. In nature, cats eat mice, birds, reptiles, and bugs to build a
healthy diet. Dogs
and people are omnivores, meat and plant eaters.
Cats are unable to properly digest carbohydrates.
Most dry foods have high carbohydrate levels due to the grain that is
required to form the product.
A young healthy cat should be eating a diet similar to his wild cousins –
one that is high in protein, high in fats, and low in carbohydrates. A
mouse is composed of about 40-45% protein, 40-45% fat, and only 3-5%
carbohydrates.
High carbohydrate diets may cause obesity and health problems .
Carbohydrates cause overproduction of insulin, increased hunger, and
weight gain. There are health concerns related to this weight gain, not
the least of which is diabetes. A cat with a high carbohydrate diet often
has a flakey coat (some owners think this is dandruff) or some may be
greasy. Overweight cats often are not able to groom as well, sometimes
culminating in poor bathroom grooming behaviors. Weight can affect
your cat’s joints causing them to forgo jumping, or they may be less
willing to play. It is not uncommon to have an obese cat newly
diagnosed with diabetes who can be converted to a nondiabetic state just
by altering the diet. The key is to significantly decrease the
carbohydrate content in their diet and begin a slow weight loss program.
Cats are desert creatures and in nature derive a large portion of their
water from the food they eat.
Canned food has a much higher water content than dry food. Cats should be
encouraged to drink fresh water daily, with the use of kitty fountains or
running water taps, to properly dilute their urine.
There is little evidence to suggest that dry food plays a significant role
in maintaining oral health.
The research suggesting that dry food is better for oral health was done
on dogs, not cats. A cat’s jaw does not go side-to-side as a person’s
would, so there can be no true chewing. Cats use their teeth in the wild
to catch and tear their food, and in the process mechanically clean their
teeth. The food pieces are then swallowed whole. Commercial dry kibble is
throat sized, so our domestic cats have little opportunity to rip and tear
into their food! Canned foods have much lower levels of
carbohydrates because they lack the grain needed to process the dry
kibble. There are many good commercial brands of canned foods available.
If your cat does not like canned food, there are brands of dry kibble that
are lower in carbohydrates. During your cat’s physical exam pre-existing
medical conditions, sex, breed, and age are evaluated to allow for
specific diet recommendations for your cat.
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