Wet vs. Dry: The Great Cat Food Debate

| Print | By Jo Singer | April 27, 2009 11:35 AM

There is nothing quite like a group of avid cat fanciers getting together socially. Of course the conversation always turns to our kitties and a lively discussion ensues as quickly as you can say "meow."

We are always on the fast track talking about the newest developments in the field of feline veterinary medicine, the hottest new toys on the market, and popular new products to entertain our cats designed to enrich their environment, and of course, comparing litter boxes, litter and that controversial subject; dry cat food vs. canned.

27-troubpup.jpg So in an attempt to find out which foods were more nutritious and healthier for my kitties, I decided it was time to get the latest "scoop" by doing my research.

The first thing I did was to ask my veterinarian for her opinion, going to the "horse's mouth", so to speak. When she told me that while she was in veterinary school, as far as education in the field of feline nutrition was concerned, what she told me surprised and somewhat alarmed me. You may find this hard to believe, but in her school's curriculum, only one day was devoted to the subject. And most of that was provided by a pet food manufacturer's representative to ensure that their products adorned the shelves of veterinarians entering into the field.

Since she is really smart and skilled in the art of feeding kitties, I asked her what she had to do to educate herself about this fascinating and highly important aspect of feline care. She replied that she reads a lot of articles written by experts in the field, and does considerable research on the Internet. And I have to tell you that she has given me some excellent suggestions over the years about the most appropriate cat foods and most importantly, what makes these cat foods so crucial to keep my cats well fed and healthy.

Since cats are obligate carnivores and require meat as the primary mainstay in their diet, we decided that it would be best to switch them over to an all meat feed. Cats do not digest vegetable protein easily and carbohydrates are difficult as well. Most dry food contains 30-50% carbohydrates so it makes sense to feed moist food which has meat as the primary ingredient, contains no grain or by-products to be the most effective diet. For cats addicted to dry food, however, there are now a few products on the market that contain no grain.

My cats are thriving on an all meat diet, with far fewer episodes of digestive upset. They also maintain their "boyish" figures and are a perfect weight. And no more finicky behavior lets me know that meal times are a delight at our house.

To read more about the moist food vs. dry food debate, visit "article Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition" by Lisa Pierson, DVM, an expert in the field of feline nutrition. http://catinfo.org/index.htm

Do you feed dry, canned, semi-moist, a combination? Leave a comment and share your results.

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Comments (11)

Vicki April 27, 2009 2:35 PM

We feed our cat the all meat diet. We have found that there are less digestion problems and he loves the taste. He was a bit overweight and this seems to have slimmed him down a bit as well. So I think we will stick with this wet food.

jmuhj April 27, 2009 2:36 PM

Our clowder thrives on both premium wet and premium dry foods of various brands and formulas. They have small individual servings of wet twice daily and dry free-choice. It seems to work well for us.

Iniki April 27, 2009 3:43 PM

We went through a problem with digestion here and loose stool also but finally have a happy medium. The cats love dry food but that wwas causing the problem. We decided to mix their dry food into the canned or fresh cooked food. This idea worked well. Now the cats who only ate dry food exclusively get a protion of wet food also and everyone is happy including me.

Donna April 27, 2009 5:27 PM

I can't get my cats to touch wet food no matter what it is. They'll lick the 'gravy' and just leave the rest sit. So they're on dry...if anyone has any ideas on how to transition them feel free to write to me at donna9668@aol.com!

Amy April 28, 2009 6:23 AM

I used to give my cats wet food every day. One of of my cats Missy developed bladder stones and began urinating blood. It was touch and go for a while but with a series of antibiotics she was much better. I also was told she would have to be on a special diet. I checked several sites checking to see how such a diet would effect all the cats if I used it for all of them. I found that changing it would not have a adverse on the rest of them. I now use urinary tract dry food with all my cats. It has been about 5 years and I am glad to say Missy has not had another bout since then.
I still do open a single can of wet food every day and the other cats are free to eat it if they feel like it. Believe it or not in most cases there is usually a little left that is untouched and I do throw it out.
I also give them limited treats and do keep an eye out for any problems that might pop up by checking the litter boxes daily when I clean them. I check out their coats, watch their weight carefully and look for any small change in their routines.

Ruth April 28, 2009 11:19 AM

Our 2 boyz have good quality wet food for their main meals but we always have a bowl of James Wellbeloved biscuits to nibble on if they want it, next to a dish of water of course.They are beautiful and healthy and thankfully have no problems.

Joanne April 28, 2009 12:41 PM

I am new to the cat "field" so to speak but we feed a combination of wet and dry. The kitties have two small meals of canned venison and pea food - no grain- and then dry venison and pea free choice( also grain free). Our first kitty Magnus has digestive issues and the vet thought that venison and pea was the best option and they both eat it up!

Janis April 28, 2009 4:16 PM

I have fed a little of every kind of food to my two girls but right now they are on dry food only which is called "Taste of the Wild" which has venison and salmon in it. They love it and the smell of the litter box isn't near as bad as it used to be when I fed wet food. When they were eating the wet food one bathroom visit by them and it seemed the whole house smelled.

Caren May 1, 2009 5:00 AM

I give my 2 Snowshoes' Merrick canned(they only like the one's with chicken or turkey) about 1-2x daily and Innova Evo to eat throughout the day.Reisling and Pumpkin are worth the money spent and have been very healthy for over 3 years.

sue May 13, 2009 5:10 PM

we just took our cats to the vet - they are really big boys (16 lbs) and just discovered through the vet that it would be best to feed them wet food! we heard it's also better for our dog! the funny thing is they love wet food - all of them...so i guess we'll switch it up and see what happens! this article was helpful also - thanks!

TrishnHouston November 18, 2009 11:49 AM

I have been feeding my two babies dry mixed with a little wet, since I adopted them. They seemed to be doing fine, but when I was out of town, a friend fed them a different kind of moist food, and now they both have loose stool, I wonder if I should just feed them dry for a while..

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