I was just wondering how many times a day / week / month you give your cats wet food?
Is it actually good for their health? Or does it just depend on the quantity they eat?
And what kind of fresh food can I give them? (As an occasional treat)
Thanks in advance.
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"Racine, the wet food you’re giving is 81% water, so you need to give some dry food as well to actually feed the cat.
Don't your cats have any dental problems?"
No, dry food isn't a necessity! That’s just marketing hype that gets to us poor consumers.
You have to look at the composition on a dry matter basis. For about 60g of good quality kibble, you’d need around 200g of complete wet food to have the equivalent.
And NO! My cats don't have any dental issues at all. They’re 4 years old. Besides, a US study showed that dry food doesn't actually have any real effect on tartar. I’d rather give them food where I know the pH levels to help with dental health.
""Besides, when you want quality, you shouldn't look at the price tag.""
Price has nothing to do with quality, generally speaking. Take dogs for example: a bag of Taste of the Wild works out cheaper than a bag of Royal Canin, and it’s grain-free as well.
Just a heads up, Dante – Felix wet food is really salty and very high in fat.
Racine, that wet food you're giving is 81% water, so you’ll need some dry food on the side to make sure your cat is properly fed.
Do your cats have any dental issues?
Since the comparison is based on the price per pound, it stands to reason that Equilibre & Instinct works out cheaper than Applaws. Mind you, Almo Nature is really good, but as @Racine mentioned, it’s only a complementary food ;-)
When you’re comparing food, you compare the price per lb! --' It’s completely stupid to compare the price of a 0.3lb bag of dry food with a 22lb bag.
I’ll be nice and explain:
You have 16 x 100g trays, which is about 3.5lbs for £9.60.
You have 6 x 60g trays, which is about 0.8lbs for £5.10.
You get over four times the amount of E&I wet food for the same price, because 4 x 0.8lbs = 3.2lbs, which would cost you £20.40 for that same amount.
E&I is excellent value for money.
If you buy 2.2lbs of E&I wet food, it costs you £6.00, but if you buy 2.2lbs of Applaws wet food, you’re going to pay £14.20, so it is MORE EXPENSIVE.
It stands to reason that if you buy a much smaller amount of an expensive food, it’ll still be more expensive than a large quantity of a cheaper food.
"Besides, when you want quality, you don't look at the price." Easy to say when you’re only giving it to one cat once a week...
Just a heads up, if you’re only feeding your cat wet food, you need to make sure it’s a "complete" food and not a complementary one. Alm* N*ture tins are a complementary food and should only be given as an occasional treat.
Hi there,
Personally, my female Exotic Longhair only eats her Hill's Science Plan dry food and nothing else. She has it available whenever she wants, and she drinks water regularly throughout the day too.
For my male Harlequin Van Persian, however, I’ve had to switch to an exclusively wet food diet. He doesn't have any health issues, BUT he just doesn't digest dry food well—he brings it back up because he eats far too quickly and is a bit of a greedy eater! I've switched to tins from a shop he particularly likes (only one variety, though, because he's a fussy eater 🙂).
I also tried Almo Nature tins; they’re 100% natural, you could almost eat them yourself! They contain rice, rice water, and then the main ingredient (tuna, chicken, salmon, turkey, etc.). I thought they were great for that reason, but for me, the monthly cost was just far too expensive since I had to feed him exclusively on those (it was costing around £105 a month), so I switched to another brand that suits him well and is cheaper.
A cat doesn't "have" to eat wet food, but it’s true that it's often recommended to give them some every now and then. Just be careful, because sometimes as soon as they get a taste for wet food, they won't want anything else 😒.
