Should I alternate between wet and dry food when feeding my cat?

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

This can be useful, but there are nuances - the veterinarian told about them.

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Should I alternate between wet and dry food when feeding my cat? And if so, how often?

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Cats don't always drink enough water, so adding wet food to their diet can be beneficial for them. But for the digestive system to function well, stability from day to day is essential. Therefore, such a diet should be constant. For example, feed dry food during the day and wet food in the evening. And here's what else you need to remember about nutrition.

• Many wet foods are not complete feed. This means that they do not cover all the needs of the cat's body, and therefore should not be the basis of its diet.
• It is normal for cats to eat little and often. Therefore, it is best to have feed available at all times. And if the animal is prone to overeating or is overweight, the daily allowance should be divided into several servings.
• Fasting is contraindicated in cats. It can provoke Geline hepatic lipidosis / Veterinary Specialty & Emergency Center severe liver disease - lipidosis (especially if you are overweight). If the animal does not eat for more than a day for any reason, it is necessary to contact the veterinarian to make a decision on force or tube feeding.
• The diet should include all the necessary nutrients and be balanced. This is especially important during the period of growth, pregnancy and lactation, as well as with some diseases. Almost all dry food of popular brands meet this requirement.
• You will not be able to formulate a complete diet for your cat from homemade products without the involvement of a veterinarian-nutritionist., which will make calculations according to a special program. In most cases, the body of an adult animal is able to compensate for some deficiency. But the pet may have some predisposition or health features that can rarely be identified while the body is healthy. And together with poor nutrition, they can lead, for example, to obesity, taurine-dependent cardiomyopathy, nutritional hyperparathyroidism, chronic constipation, enteritis and pancreatitis.
• Mixed diets (commercial feed and food) can also be inadequate. Therefore, in this matter, it is again better to consult a nutritionist.
• When feeding meat, keep in mind that raw pork is dangerous for cats and dogs. - due to the likelihood of contracting Aujeszky's disease in Cats / Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery with Aujeszky's disease (pseudo-rabies). Experts from foreign countries say that this is an extremely rare disease. Nevertheless, in Russia one has to deal with it. And raw meat and fish carry hygienic risks (parasites, infections), so animals on such a diet should be treated monthly for worms. And it is better to give up this type of food if children or people with weakened immune systems live in the house.

In general, there are many misconceptions about cat nutrition that have nothing to do with scientific evidence and research. Therefore, it is always best to consult with a veterinarian who has received additional training in dietetics on such matters.