I have three grown cats who are about 10-11 years old in human years. We feed them dry food and wet food, and they have not had any serious health issues. However, our two female full white cats have missing teeth. The oldest white cat is the mum. We found her pregnant as a stray and she had four kittens. We’re not sure of her age as she was young when she moved in and had the kittens. She eats dry food as well as wet and has two teeth missing. The younger white one who is 11 years now has one tooth missing and is healthy. (Shes had ear mites once in the past.) Our male cat has all his teeth. So are white female cats more likely to loose their teeth?

On the subject of Iams, I cant really say anything good or bad about it. I’ve read the comments on here about the effects of Iams and haven’t fed my cats this diet. My cats eat Whiskas meat from the tins and sometimes the pouches as well as normal cat complete biscuits. They also have the odd bits of chicken and tuna. I’m always cleaning out each bowl every 2-3 days because I wouldn’t like it if my fresh food was piled up on my food from that morning or day before!

After doing research for my course I’ve found drops which can measure certain amount of water to help cats clean their teeth, but as I have three cats I’m not sure how it would work. Does anyone know any other types or brands of food which should be avoided for cats and dogs?

I am not saying that it was just the food that caused there deaths, but I highly believe that it caused alot of the issues they had in life. Bubsy was the worst, he got UTIS and had to have surgery after a major blockage. I was a child when we got our kitties, I was 5 when we got Princess and about 7 when we got Bubsy, and if we had known anything about the nutritional needs of our cats, I do not think we would have ever fed them Whiskas, Purina, Iam or anything similar.

I am 25 now, and have an 11 year old kitty as well as one that is one and another who is two. I know more about there nutritional needs and I feel that the food I feed them now – Orijen – is one of the best dry cat foods out there. I highly suggest anyone who has a cat or is thinking of getting one to look into pet foods for your pet. Try to pick one that your pet likes but also meets it’s nutritional needs. Also, I suggest looking into who owns the food and make sure that the information you are getting is sound. Most good pet foods out there will cost more than the lower grade foods, but you and your pet will live longer, healthier and happier lives if you feed them better food.

I give my cat various kinds of dry cat food (among them Iams), and sometimes wet food which I make sure contains more protein than the super market variety. I also feed them raw food as well as cooked meats (always lightly cooked). I give her both dry and wet every day. She likes both although she naturally prefers some brands and some “real” stuff, just like us humans do! I have done this since she was little and she will never be allowed to only eat only one kind of food. But even with a good diet she could still get diseases, one never knows, people! Of course one is more likely to avoid that if feeding them higher quality foods. Iams is fine, more than fine. My cat usually eat some kibble every day (like Iams or Orijen or Eukanuba or Perfectly Fit), some wet food, like such Iams, and a Swedish brand called “Mjau.” Sometimes I mix different kibble together. Sometimes I mix kibble with wet cat food. I always mix all wet foods with water to make sure she gets enough water since she isn’t that great of a water drinker.

She pees quite a lot, and her poo is always dark and firm which shows that she gets enough and good protein. Her fur is so shiny I can basically use it as a mirror. She gets cheese pieces as snacks and sometimes a piece of breakfast sandwich ham. She does love her fish so I give her real tuna as well as mackerel. She doesn’t need the cat variety that has added taurine since the rest of her food is protein rich enough, which means natural taurine.

So guys, don’t argue over wet or dry cat food. Mix them, and avoid the low quality brands and your cats will thrive.

That is horrible advice to give to people.

Cats and dogs have long since been domesticated, so adhering them to a ‘What would they eat in the wild’ diet is a bad health choice. While feeding them whole, nutritious ingredients is a great way to keep your cat healthy, taking dry food out of the picture is extremely dangerous for their dental hygiene.

The dry food cats eat serves a dual purpose, as a cleaner for their teeth. It scrapes off the plaque and the effort it takes to chew the kibble encourages a healthy, powerful jaw.

Relatively, if a human was put on a diet of only mashed potatoes and gravy, they would start having severe tooth decay.

Most cats HATE having their mouth touched and while it is a good idea to brush your cats teeth, the reality is that many will not sit still for the procedure. It is less stressful on the cat to give them kibble regularly.

Also, wet cat food is extremely fattening. There is literally no wet cat food without the preservative ‘gravy/sauce’ and that stuff is packed with byproducts and bad cholesterol.

If you really want to feed your cat wet cat food, then it’s better to make it yourself with lightly cooked and sterilized fish and chicken.

In retrospect, many dry foods contain more nutrition and health benefits than most wet food brands can offer.

Keep in mind that many animals in the wild die very early deaths because of dental disease. Protect your cat with at least a small serving of dry kibble with their wet food (if you choose to give them wet food).

Also, wet food can sometimes be bulky and fatty. It will clog up your cat’s digestive tract and make it hard for them to digest the hair they lick off themselves which guess what? Equals hairballs. You don’t have this danger with GOOD QUALITY dry food.

That’s my two cents.

In relation to Iams, I fed my cats Iams for years when I was living with my mother, and they never really showed any negative health problems except for getting to be fairly large cats (They are both 12-13lbs each). I don’t recommend it but it’s not horrible if you need it as a temporary solution.

My first cat was overweight somewhat because I didn’t switch her off from the regular to the less active formula years prior. Anyway, about 5 years ago she had a big belly and I noticed a cyst on her side which turned out to be cancer. At first I thought it was the water (I live on Long Island) and while I still think it played a role, I now and pretty sure that it was the food. The vet said she might be diabetic because she was overweight, thanks to the Iams corn etc, but it was a huge mass in her abdomen. First sign, when your cat jumps to prevent from being picked up. It obviously hurt her belly. They found “strange” abdominal fluid that was cancerous, and she passed away 2 months later.

My second cat was 2 years younger than my first, and she was always smaller and the perfect weight. After switching to filtered water and Iams Healthy Naturals she cat seemed fine. Over about 2 years, I noticed she would throw up hairballs every so often. Sometimes nothing came out, but eventually it came up. At times it was just clear or cloudy fluids, and sometimes complete meals. I thought it was because she hadn’t chewed her food, since I noticed that the food pellets were intact. I called the vet and they said it seems normal if it only happened on occasion and that it was due to hairballs. I should have brought her to the vet right then. I remember going to pick her up and she would jump over my hands to avoid being picked up. She was always a tease, but I was worried if the same thing was happening as it did with my first cat. She was always small and her belly was the same. So I relaxed. I am very upset at myself and heartbroken because 2 months ago she stopped eating, and passed away less than a week later. She was hospitalized for severe kidney failure which is the renal failure (CRF) people are talking about in these posts. So I suspected, but now I am certain it was her food. The vet also found fluid in her abdomen, and gave me the tube to have tested because she was dying very soon either way. I still have the tube and wonder if I should have it tested for cancer to see if its the same form that my first cat had. My first cat had problems in other areas so they don’t know for sure if was the cancer was the primary cause of her problems for if something else was the culprit. The first cat would occasionally poop outside the litter box and/or in other areas, which was her way of telling me something is wrong. There was blood in some, but the vet said that it could be a blood vessel that had broken, but if it continued then to bring her in.

Well, now I’m on my way to find better healthier cat food before store closes.