Why do people think dry cat food is better for cats?

Carolyn

I told my coworker today that Im switching my cat to canned cat food and she responded by telling me that shes always heard dry was better. When I asked her from who, she couldnt tell me. Like Ive read tons of literature on why canned is better, but I havent come across any literature stating dry is better. Is there any out there? Why do so many people believe it is better?



Elza

Its the power of advertising. The myth that dry food is a healthy diet or that it cleans cats teeth, is so heavily promoted, that many people automatically believe it without question. If people stopped to think logically, could they name one dry food source that a cat would eat in nature? Being carnivores, if left to hunt for their survival, their diets would consist of prey animals such as birds, mice and other small rodents. Many health problems have been associated with dry food such as obesity, urinary tract disease, diabetes, struvite plugs, crystals, kidney stones and kidney failure. The only alleged draw back to wet food is that it doesnt clean the teeth, but then neither does crunching on dry food. The truth is that chewing and tearing flesh keeps teeth clean, so feeding cats chunks of tough meat takes care of this. I have to admit that Ive always been wary of dry food, as the early brands in the UK were notorious for causing urinary problems. According to a British vet "An early dry cat food was nicknamed "Gone Cat" by members of his profession." The consumer backlash against dry food in UK, meant that its only in recent years that sales of dry food have begun to increase. At the end of the day, I know that my cats prefer canned foods, so why deprive them of the pleasure of eating what they enjoy. Their health and happiness matter more to me than feeding them the same flavoured convenience food day in and day out.



Claretta

Well it makes there coat silky and soft and it makes there poo not stink as bad and 3rd they get healthier teeth and gums.



Adrian

Less fat content and vitamin rich



Janett

Dry food helps break up the tarter on the cats teeth, the hard particles rubbing against the teeth is like us brushing ours. the bulid up of tarter can lead to more problems such as decay and loss of teeth. if you want to use wet i would suggest regular check ups and teeth cleanings. you can also talk to your vet and see what they recommend



Janeen

They say dry is better because its more hygienic, no flies hanging around it. I had our cats on it but then they developed a problem with there kidneys and so now they can only have wet food which is better for them. Cats dont drink a lot so thats why they need wet food.



Gretchen

I agree - wet food is MUCH better than dry... Why? Dry food was developed in the 1950s out of convenience to owners, not pets. For hundreds of years, before we had commerically available pet food, the family pet ate scraps from the table. History has proven that moist foods are a better for their overall health. And now, more health conditions have developed in the last few decades... all due to poor, cheap filler, dry cat food. Cheap dry food also contains a lot of ash, which causes urinary tract infections, especially in males. Also, the #1 ingredient in dry food is corn meal... Uhhhh cats need protein!! They arent herbivores. Cats also tend to not drink enough water to really replace what wet food gives them. I give my cats both, and they have a running water source. They get wet food daily. The feral colony I feed gets wet food only. Wet food has better nutrition, hands done! You wont find any info about dry being better. Any vet will agree.



Sunday

There are opposing schools of thought on this. Some people say dry is better because of the teeth cleaning capabilities. It has been proven to prevent tartar and plaque buildup, which is a good thing. Other people will tell you canned can be better because it has more moisture and that in the wild cats get most of their water from the food they eat. This is also true, but if you are feeding exclusively canned food, you need to make sure that you take care of their teeth because over time they can get tooth decay from eating only canned food. It really just depends on personal preference. Not only yours, but the cats. I have fed my cat dry food since I first got her, and she doesnt seem to have any problems with dehydration or UTIs.



Jacque

Dry food helps keep the gums in good shape but canned keeps them better hydrated and helps prevent kidney diseases and raw feeding trumps them both.



Bobbi

My vet said that feeding canned food all the time is like giving them only candy. HOWEVER, if you give them food that has no by products, no artificial ingredients, no junk of any kind, its much better for them than the dry. Whole, raw food is even better than canned. (Think about it, what do animals eat in the wild?)



Brendon

Also be sure to keep in mind that cats, just like us, can be picky eaters, and they can also have food allergies. My cat that I used to have got really sick every time she ate canned food, so she had to eat dry food all of the time. My cat that I have now just doesnt like canned food and will only eat it if thats all she has.



Devora

It cleans their teeth, helps their potty not stink so much and keeps their coats and body healthy. Canned is just easier to digest, this comes from my Vet in case you where wondering



Chloe

Its funny (in a not funny way) how much misinformation is out there. Before I had a clue, I too would have thought dry was better. I probably believed it cleaned their teeth. I never questioned whether it was good or not, or what was in it. If I gave it a thought I would have assumed that if it was for sale, it was good. How could so many people be wrong? I also disliked canned food. I found it smelly and yucky to deal with and I hated it when I had to switch my last cat to it. But it was the best way to get her to take her daily steroid, so I sucked it up. Of course, I was getting her food at the grocery store, so naturally it was stinky and yucky. My sources of information were advertising and word of mouth. There were even a few newsgroups out there for cats where they discussed the "better" foods such as Iams and Science Diet.*********Interesting - notice that no one has cited any sources for their info, not even for the myth about the so-called dental benefits of dry food. Interesting but not surprising!



Amiee

The bottom line is that your cat is the decider. The food that you think is the greatest is no good if your cat wont eat it. Just asking this question will elicit strong passions from people who are certain they have the answer. There is high quality dry food out there, and low quality dry food, and the same is for wet foods. I have posted a link to an article from the Cornell vet school on cat foods. I am a believer that you get what you pay for, and look for the ingredient label to start out with meat. My cats live a long and healthy life, and are almost exclusively on dry food. But if you are going to change, do it gradually over a period of probably two weeks, to allow your cat to get used to the change. Too sudden of a change will give stomach upsets.



Donella

I like dry cat food because it makes their poo more solid and stink less. I thought that it helped with their teeth but thats only if they chew it which mine dont they swallow it whole. Supposedly most cats swallow most of their dry food. So I recent switched to canned but I leave out dry for them to much when I am at work.



Kraig

Judging by the amount of misinformation in the answers to you, it seems like there is a ton of misinformation out there in general, perpetuated in part by the veterinary community as well as high priced advertising. Canned food IS much healthier than dry, dry does not help dental health, etc. etc. But people refuse to follow the logic.



Lucas

My vet has always told me that dry cat food is better for their teeth and keeps them cleaner. I also, believe it helps minimize the odor of their feces. I feed my cats California Natural or Wellness, which are high quality brands and they have done excellent on them for years.



Sherril

Dry is definately better for thier teeth. ive also heard about cats on wet food getting kidney stones (i think thats what they were).my vet told me dry was better, however one of my cats is too fat and he suggested i switch him to wet to lose weight... he said its like the atkins diet for cats (theyre indoor)...



Dianne

I think its just down to fashion really. And the fact that its cheap to produce so theres probably a bigger profit margin in dry food. Dry food has become popular in recent years and originally it was thought to be good for their teeth. But more recently studies have shown that dry food has no beneficial effect on teeth and gums, and that it can actually bad for a cats health. Its bad for their health because its low in water so cats can easily become dehydrated (not having a strong thirst mechanism) and that can contribute to the formation of urinary crystals as well as being a problem should the cat develop kidney problems later in life. It also tends to be higher in carbohydrates than wet food and cats cant digest carbs very well. Its also very calorie dense so very easy to overfeed. Many vets now believe dry food is responsible for most cases of diabetes as it is a major factor in cats becoming overweight. In short, dry food is just not a natural food for a cat to eat. Have you ever seen a herd of biscuits in the wild?! I used to think that dry food was best and fed it to my cats for many years (though thankfully I also fed some wet food so it was easy to switch my older cat over to an all wet diet). Now I know better and would never feed an all dry diet to a cat again. I do give my younger cat a small amount of good quality dry food (I mainly use Orijen - a grain free dry food) as its useful if they will accept the texture of dry food in case it needs to be left out for them in hot weather or left in an automatic feeder. The sources below explain why wet food is better than dry food for cats.



Estelle

Does Dry Food Clean the Teeth? By Jean Hofve, DVMLets get this one straight once and for all: dry food does not clean your cats teeth! In fact, dry food really has no benefits for the cat. It is merely a convenience for the guardian. If you havent already read "Why Cats Need Canned Food", thats a good place to start in your quest for accurate, up-to-date information on feeding cats. Most cats dont consistently chew dry food; they swallow it whole. Obviously, without contacting the teeth, there is zero effect on tartar accumulation. For cats who do chew dry food, whether consistently or occasionally, there is still little or no benefit. The kibbles shatter, so contact between the kibble and the teeth occurs only at the tips of the teeth. This is certainly not enough to make a difference in the formation of tartar and plaque, which most commonly builds up along (and underneath) the gumline at the base of the teeth. http://www. littlebigcat. com/index. php? ac…Now you can have the paper to prove it and from a vet. In changing the food please check out these 2 links and pick a high protein and low (under 10% carb that is not fish) carb canned diet. www. catinfo. orgread this article for all the healthy choices in food for your cat. www. geocities. com/jmpeerson/ca... Janet and Binkys Cat food chartGood for you!! You are being a good Mommy Bean and your kitty will be much healthier for it.



Kaylee

My vet told me that dry foods are designed to help clean the animals teeth, therefore promoting healthier teeth and gumsbe aware though, that dry food is not recommended for kittens or elderly cats as it can sometimes be to hard and actually break or damage the teeth.



Marcelina

Cats should have dry food ALL the time, and canned once or twice a day..not all dry foods are bad, some are better than others, and same with canned foods - the ones with gravy being bad.. because they are mostly carbs.. carbs will make your cat fat..I worked for a shelter once we had a guy bring in a siamese cat he couldnt keep - he told us the cat was 2 years old.. later when the health tech went to check the cat, her teeth were so bad she figured the cat was no younger than 8yrs.. and phoned the guy back to give him heck for lying... well turns out the guy had the original purchase papers from when he bought the cat as a kitten and she was only 2 years BUT he had fed her ONLY canned food. dry does help clean their teeth but as a rule NONE of the dry foods from grocery or Wal Mart are any goodhere is a linkhttp://www. gomestic. com/Pets/What-is-in-…