What is the best cat food? It makes sense to think the best cat food would be what they naturally eat in “the wild”. The problem is feeding your pets mice, birds and insects is inconvenient, expensive and potentially dangerous. Raw food cat diets are increasing in popularity despite having no scientific evidence to support their use. In fact, there is strong evidence to show these cat foods can be lacking in nutrients and harbour bacteria that can be dangerous to both people and cats. I have no problem with home cooking food for your cat, but cook the meat. If you are home cooking for your cat you need to remember cats are true carnivores. They need meat in order to obtain their amino acid requirements. Without meat, cats lack taurine and without taurine, cats will develop fatal heart disease. Trying to feed your cat a vegetarian diet will not work for this reason. The best cat food for cats is commercially prepared because of the consistency in quality and safety these foods have been shown to have.

Cats are renowned for showing preferences for certain brands, shapes or sizes of kibble in cat food. Studies have shown cats are more sensitive to these qualities when they are fed one type (dry or canned), shape, flavour or brand of cat food during their formative kitten years. I advise people to vary the type of brand, shape and flavour of cat food during this time to help reduce the pickiness of these finicky felines later on. Doing this when they are young makes it easier for them to accept therapeutic cat foods when needed – which are the best cat foods for specific conditions. Therapeutic diets can improve the quality and extend the life of cats with diseases such as hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, obesity, dental disease and lower urinary tract disease to name a few.

I also think some of the best cat foods to feed your cat are canned. Cats evolved in desert environments and their body is designed to efficiently extract water from what they eat. The water in canned cat food is similar to the water they would consume when eating wild animals. Cats eating an all canned cat food diet drink much less water than those on dry cat food. The increased amount of water helps keep their kidneys and bladders happy. I often hear people say they are afraid of feeding their cat canned cat food because it will make their cats fat. It is not the type of food, but rather the amount of food that is the culprit here.  Overfeeding and lack of exercise are the main reasons for obesity in cats. Canned cat food makes them feel fuller and dilutes the calories giving them a more consistent release of sugar into the blood. Dry cat food (aka kitty crack) usually gives them a spike in sugar and then a quick drop. The result of this is a great amount of fat made by the body.

Talk to you yourlocal veterinarianaboutnutrition and dietto decide which cat food is the best for your cat. Your veterinarian has a wealth of knowledge about the most current nutritional research and diets. Together you can find the best cat food for your finicky feline.

Yours in health,

Dr. Kent Morley