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High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stomach?

iheartscience

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
12,111
I feed my cats Wellness Core wet and dry food, but my oldest male cat's been having stomach problems lately. We took him to the vet and everything is fine health-wise, but I'd like to switch to something that will be easier on his stomach. The vet gave us a few cans of Science Diet for GI problems and all three cats LOVED it, but I know Science Diet isn't the best quality cat food out there.

I'd love any recommendations from the cat lovers here for high quality food that would be good for older cats and/or sensitive stomachs. Thank you in advance!
 

Scorpioanne

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 14, 2008
Messages
394
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

My cat eats food made by Royal Canin and she has health issues. She tolerates it well though the vet had suggested I put her on wet food (she has only ever eaten dry) and you would have thought I was trying to kill her! I do have to say that it smells awful though, makes me gag when I put it in her bowl and it is dry!
 

TristanC

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 6, 2011
Messages
995
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

I use the wet canned wellness range, that goes down a treat. Avoderm is pretty popular as well with the cat, and it is well regarded food. Both are grain free and well supplemented with named meats.

I only feed wet food, never dry. Apparently there are a few camps that have studies to show that a pure wet food diet free of cereals allows cats to avoid some diseases altogether as they age - one of which being feline diabetes. I supplement the wet food with raw meats like chicken or pork occasionally as a treat, and as a texture change.

Science diet isn't very high quality sadly.
 

amc80

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jun 18, 2010
Messages
5,765
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

I just switched my cats to EVO dry food. They have sensitive stomachs and, although they were healthy, threw up a lot. 've done my research and I think it has the highest percentage of protein (and lowest percentage of carbs) of dry food on the market. They make wet food that has even better percentages. I listen to cat chat on sirius and they always say how you should be feeding your cat wet food only. Well, that's not going to happen, but I will give my kitties the best dry food I can find.

By the way, I switched them a week ago and have only had one throw up incident since then :)
 

pixies

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 10, 2010
Messages
355
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

amc80|1311963967|2979937 said:
I just switched my cats to EVO dry food. They have sensitive stomachs and, although they were healthy, threw up a lot. I've done my research and I think it has the highest percentage of protein (and lowest percentage of carbs) of dry food on the market. They make wet food that has even better percentages. I listen to cat chat on sirius and they always say how you should be feeding your cat wet food only. Well, that's not going to happen, but I will give my kitties the best dry food I can find.

By the way, I switched them a week ago and have only had one throw up incident since then :)
Evo is top notch. It's one of the highest rated foods for dogs and cats (I have dogs not cats but I checked the ratings for both and they are the same). Evo gets five stars compared to Science Diet's abysmal one star. I make a point to only purchase four to five star food for my pets. They bring me joy so I want to keep them healthy and with me as long as possible ;-). Your food scored well. I'd maybe just try another five star brand.

I went to a local pet boutique that gave me samples of various high end pet foods (is there anywhere nearby that has samples so you don't invest in a food that causes the same problem?). My pets preferred Evo to the other options. After making the switch to higher end pet foods, I can definitely notice a difference in my dogs. One of my dogs used to vomit/have tummy issues. Switching to better food seems to have alleviated this plus he has more energy. I'd give it a go!

Another top rated food for cats and dogs is Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's soul. I haven't tried it yet but this is my next one I'm going to purchase. The ingredients seem to be top-notch so I'm going to give it a whirl.

Edited to add one of the ratings site's link for reference:

http://www.petfoodratings.net/cats.html
 

sonnyjane

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jul 13, 2008
Messages
2,476
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

It's really hard to give this type of advice because each cat is very different. My cat has had a sensitive stomach for many years and we have tried Royal Canin, Blue Buffalo, and Science Diet on several different occasions over the years with no success. The vets don't really have many other suggestions. The only food that stays down for my cat is IAMS weight control so, although I know it's not the healthiest, it's the only one that I don't have to clean up again after every meal, so that's what I've chosen for him! I have other friends that have used those companies for their pets and are happy with the results. Finding the right food can be a long process of trials and elimination.
 

amc80

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jun 18, 2010
Messages
5,765
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

pixies|1311971636|2980060 said:
amc80|1311963967|2979937 said:
I just switched my cats to EVO dry food. They have sensitive stomachs and, although they were healthy, threw up a lot. I've done my research and I think it has the highest percentage of protein (and lowest percentage of carbs) of dry food on the market. They make wet food that has even better percentages. I listen to cat chat on sirius and they always say how you should be feeding your cat wet food only. Well, that's not going to happen, but I will give my kitties the best dry food I can find.

By the way, I switched them a week ago and have only had one throw up incident since then :)
Evo is top notch. It's one of the highest rated foods for dogs and cats (I have dogs not cats but I checked the ratings for both and they are the same). Evo gets five stars compared to Science Diet's abysmal one star. I make a point to only purchase four to five star food for my pets. They bring me joy so I want to keep them healthy and with me as long as possible ;-). Your food scored well. I'd maybe just try another five star brand.

I went to a local pet boutique that gave me samples of various high end pet foods (is there anywhere nearby that has samples so you don't invest in a food that causes the same problem?). My pets preferred Evo to the other options. After making the switch to higher end pet foods, I can definitely notice a difference in my dogs. One of my dogs used to vomit/have tummy issues. Switching to better food seems to have alleviated this plus he has more energy. I'd give it a go!

Another top rated food for cats and dogs is Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's soul. I haven't tried it yet but this is my next one I'm going to purchase. The ingredients seem to be top-notch so I'm going to give it a whirl.

Edited to add one of the ratings site's link for reference:

http://www.petfoodratings.net/cats.html

I got a bunch of samples at a pet fair, which is how I found it. They LOVED the one made with herring but it smelled so bad, yuck....I ended up going with the chicken. I swear, with two cats eating Evo and two bulldogs eating California Naturals, we spend more on pet food than on people food. :-o
 

davi_el_mejor

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Mar 8, 2010
Messages
1,947
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

If you can find it- Orijen

After my dogs almost finished off their bag of core I bought a bag of Orijen. Put the last bit of core on top and kept feeding.

Well, the dogs eat the Orijen and snub the Core. It's kind of cute :D

But yeah Orijen is the shiz
 

JewelFreak

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Sep 3, 2009
Messages
7,768
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

One of my cats has thrown up all his life if he ate more than 1/2 tsp of food every 15 minutes. Nightmare!! Tried everything I could find over the 7 yrs I've had him. About a month ago I stumbled on Natural Balance wet food -- and he KEEPS IT DOWN, what a miracle. Loves it too & it isn't stinky. It's much denser than many foods -- less water, maybe -- so he's actually gaining weight, yay!
 

Blackpaw

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jun 26, 2008
Messages
2,469
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

davi_el_mejor|1311974841|2980087 said:
If you can find it- Orijen

After my dogs almost finished off their bag of core I bought a bag of Orijen. Put the last bit of core on top and kept feeding.

Well, the dogs eat the Orijen and snub the Core. It's kind of cute :D

But yeah Orijen is the shiz

Yes - orijen! my dog and my cat eat this, its very, very, good (my cat eats the 6 fish). One thing to check with any pet food is the first half dozen or so ingredients listed - these are the ones that make up the majority of the food. They HAVE to be meat or fish!! i never heard of an animal harvesting wheat - grains are nothing but filler!
 

mrs jam

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 24, 2004
Messages
686
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

Our oldest cat is 15 years old and was diagnosed with lymphoma about six months ago. He has a swollen lymph node in his abdomen which was causing him to throw up anything that he ate. Our vet switched him to Royal Canin for Gastrointestinal Health (dry), and that has made all the difference in the world. He LOVES it, and there has been no more throwing up or diarrhea. The new food, along with prednisone shots every six weeks, has given him a new lease on life. He's one happy cat, thanks to his new food.
 

iheartscience

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
12,111
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

Thanks for all the recommendations! They've tried Evo, Merrick and Weruva in the past and preferred the Wellness Core over all of them, so that's what I've stuck with. I give them Wellness Core wet food twice a day and then they can free feed on the Wellness Core dry food.

I'm going to get a sampler of new food for them to try. There's a boutique pet store down the street from me that caters more to dogs, but they have a fair amount of cat food, so maybe I'll start there.

Thanks again!
 

Mayk

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Feb 12, 2011
Messages
4,772
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

Eukanuba. Sensitive stomach.
 

TristanC

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 6, 2011
Messages
995
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

pixies|1311971636|2980060 said:
amc80|1311963967|2979937 said:
I just switched my cats to EVO dry food. They have sensitive stomachs and, although they were healthy, threw up a lot. I've done my research and I think it has the highest percentage of protein (and lowest percentage of carbs) of dry food on the market. They make wet food that has even better percentages. I listen to cat chat on sirius and they always say how you should be feeding your cat wet food only. Well, that's not going to happen, but I will give my kitties the best dry food I can find.

By the way, I switched them a week ago and have only had one throw up incident since then :)
Evo is top notch. It's one of the highest rated foods for dogs and cats (I have dogs not cats but I checked the ratings for both and they are the same). Evo gets five stars compared to Science Diet's abysmal one star. I make a point to only purchase four to five star food for my pets. They bring me joy so I want to keep them healthy and with me as long as possible ;-). Your food scored well. I'd maybe just try another five star brand.

I went to a local pet boutique that gave me samples of various high end pet foods (is there anywhere nearby that has samples so you don't invest in a food that causes the same problem?). My pets preferred Evo to the other options. After making the switch to higher end pet foods, I can definitely notice a difference in my dogs. One of my dogs used to vomit/have tummy issues. Switching to better food seems to have alleviated this plus he has more energy. I'd give it a go!

Another top rated food for cats and dogs is Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's soul. I haven't tried it yet but this is my next one I'm going to purchase. The ingredients seem to be top-notch so I'm going to give it a whirl.

Edited to add one of the ratings site's link for reference:

http://www.petfoodratings.net/cats.html

Thanks for the link, but this site predominantly covers dry foods. Do you know of any wet food ones?

Avoderm and Wellness wetfoods both are grain free. My cat is 100% wet food fed, plus fresh raw meats/seafoods on occasion. I avoid dry simply because of the recommendations of a lot of online animal sites to avoid if at all possible.
 

TristanC

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 6, 2011
Messages
995
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

thing2of2|1311985483|2980199 said:
Thanks for all the recommendations! They've tried Evo, Merrick and Weruva in the past and preferred the Wellness Core over all of them, so that's what I've stuck with. I give them Wellness Core wet food twice a day and then they can free feed on the Wellness Core dry food.

I'm going to get a sampler of new food for them to try. There's a boutique pet store down the street from me that caters more to dogs, but they have a fair amount of cat food, so maybe I'll start there.

Thanks again!

is that him in your avatar? Dust for you little older kitten. ::) I'm really hoping he'll get better soon.
 

iheartscience

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
12,111
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

TristanC|1311989069|2980227 said:
thing2of2|1311985483|2980199 said:
Thanks for all the recommendations! They've tried Evo, Merrick and Weruva in the past and preferred the Wellness Core over all of them, so that's what I've stuck with. I give them Wellness Core wet food twice a day and then they can free feed on the Wellness Core dry food.

I'm going to get a sampler of new food for them to try. There's a boutique pet store down the street from me that caters more to dogs, but they have a fair amount of cat food, so maybe I'll start there.

Thanks again!

is that him in your avatar? Dust for you little older kitten. ::) I'm really hoping he'll get better soon.

Thank you! That's my middle kitty Olivia, but she's tiny so she looks like a kitten! ::) Charles is my oldest and biggest kitty who's been having the tummy troubles. Here he is:

charlesaklsdfjlsa.jpg
 

iheartscience

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
12,111
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

TristanC|1311988988|2980226 said:
pixies|1311971636|2980060 said:
Thanks for the link, but this site predominantly covers dry foods. Do you know of any wet food ones?

Avoderm and Wellness wetfoods both are grain free. My cat is 100% wet food fed, plus fresh raw meats/seafoods on occasion. I avoid dry simply because of the recommendations of a lot of online animal sites to avoid if at all possible.

So let me ask you a wet food question since you're exclusively wet food. How much wet food per day do you give to your cats? Per cat, I mean. I used to give my three cats one can split three ways between them, but they always left a lot of it and it got dried up and nasty. Now I give them one can per day total, half split 3 ways in the morning and half split 3 ways at night.

I wouldn't mind switching to all wet but I don't like them eating the old dried up wet food and I think it tends to upset their stomachs.
 

TristanC

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 6, 2011
Messages
995
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

thing2of2|1311991335|2980248 said:
So let me ask you a wet food question since you're exclusively wet food. How much wet food per day do you give to your cats? Per cat, I mean. I used to give my three cats one can split three ways between them, but they always left a lot of it and it got dried up and nasty. Now I give them one can per day total, half split 3 ways in the morning and half split 3 ways at night.

I wouldn't mind switching to all wet but I don't like them eating the old dried up wet food and I think it tends to upset their stomachs.

My cat (adult male) gets about 75-80% of one can per day. I feed him in 2 splits - once in the morning and once at night. If he's hungry that day, its a whole can, but never more than 1 can was needed thus far.

I try to give him some fresh raw meat every week, around 2-3 mealtimes, and reduce portioning of the wet food accordingly.

It all smells the same to me (bad) but he has the nicest coat for a stray... and really good muscle tone and is not at all overweight.

He isn't underfed either, because he doesn't gobble down his food when it comes to feeding times. Some days he's hungrier, others he's not.

Anything not eaten within the hour gets dumped which is why I tend to give around 1/3 of a can each time, and top up a little if it clears really fast. I keep 4-7 varieties of Wellness and Avoderm (he decided he doesn't want Evo anymore) and rotate daily for variety but sticking within these two brands. More variety is in the fish/meats he eats as treats/supplements.

The only troublesome thing is letting the serving portion come up to room temperature from the fridge when I take it out again for the second feed.

But he's also the only cat I know that likes to literally eat rags. :confused:
 

TristanC

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 6, 2011
Messages
995
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

thing2of2|1311991079|2980244 said:
TristanC|1311989069|2980227 said:
thing2of2|1311985483|2980199 said:
Thanks for all the recommendations! They've tried Evo, Merrick and Weruva in the past and preferred the Wellness Core over all of them, so that's what I've stuck with. I give them Wellness Core wet food twice a day and then they can free feed on the Wellness Core dry food.

I'm going to get a sampler of new food for them to try. There's a boutique pet store down the street from me that caters more to dogs, but they have a fair amount of cat food, so maybe I'll start there.

Thanks again!

is that him in your avatar? Dust for you little older kitten. ::) I'm really hoping he'll get better soon.

Thank you! That's my middle kitty Olivia, but she's tiny so she looks like a kitten! ::) Charles is my oldest and biggest kitty who's been having the tummy troubles. Here he is:

I think if i saw him in person I would have risked getting scratches and just went for it on his tummy. Soooo Cute! poor dear. Hope he gets better right quick.
 

pixies

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 10, 2010
Messages
355
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

TristanC|1311988988|2980226 said:
pixies|1311971636|2980060 said:
amc80|1311963967|2979937 said:
I just switched my cats to EVO dry food. They have sensitive stomachs and, although they were healthy, threw up a lot. I've done my research and I think it has the highest percentage of protein (and lowest percentage of carbs) of dry food on the market. They make wet food that has even better percentages. I listen to cat chat on sirius and they always say how you should be feeding your cat wet food only. Well, that's not going to happen, but I will give my kitties the best dry food I can find.

By the way, I switched them a week ago and have only had one throw up incident since then :)
Evo is top notch. It's one of the highest rated foods for dogs and cats (I have dogs not cats but I checked the ratings for both and they are the same). Evo gets five stars compared to Science Diet's abysmal one star. I make a point to only purchase four to five star food for my pets. They bring me joy so I want to keep them healthy and with me as long as possible ;-). Your food scored well. I'd maybe just try another five star brand.

I went to a local pet boutique that gave me samples of various high end pet foods (is there anywhere nearby that has samples so you don't invest in a food that causes the same problem?). My pets preferred Evo to the other options. After making the switch to higher end pet foods, I can definitely notice a difference in my dogs. One of my dogs used to vomit/have tummy issues. Switching to better food seems to have alleviated this plus he has more energy. I'd give it a go!

Another top rated food for cats and dogs is Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's soul. I haven't tried it yet but this is my next one I'm going to purchase. The ingredients seem to be top-notch so I'm going to give it a whirl.

Edited to add one of the ratings site's link for reference:

http://www.petfoodratings.net/cats.html

Thanks for the link, but this site predominantly covers dry foods. Do you know of any wet food ones?

Avoderm and Wellness wetfoods both are grain free. My cat is 100% wet food fed, plus fresh raw meats/seafoods on occasion. I avoid dry simply because of the recommendations of a lot of online animal sites to avoid if at all possible.
Some on the list have wet/dry versions such as Evo. I had a harder time finding complete info for wet cat food but this is what I found as it seems many sites are playing catch-up with the wet food content. Many have extensive listing of dry food and say coming soon.. in the wet column.

http://www.consumersearch.com/cat-food
http://cats.about.com/od/catfoo1/tp/tpcannedadult.htm

I prefer more analysis-based lists but that seems to be lacking in this department. I think it is important for consumers to learn what to look for in ingredients when checking labels in regards to what you want to see get top billing in the ingredients list. The lack of quality food in chain stores is shameful. The average consumer doesn't stand a chance!

I'd try to speak to an owner/knowledgeable associate of a boutique/niche pet store that carries quality pet foods to see what they recommend if one brand doesn't work out for you. The store owner of the pet boutique I frequent was really helpful!
 

iheartscience

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
12,111
Re: High Quality Cat Food For Older Cat With Sensitive Stoma

TristanC|1311993489|2980268 said:
thing2of2|1311991079|2980244 said:
TristanC|1311989069|2980227 said:
thing2of2|1311985483|2980199 said:
Thanks for all the recommendations! They've tried Evo, Merrick and Weruva in the past and preferred the Wellness Core over all of them, so that's what I've stuck with. I give them Wellness Core wet food twice a day and then they can free feed on the Wellness Core dry food.

I'm going to get a sampler of new food for them to try. There's a boutique pet store down the street from me that caters more to dogs, but they have a fair amount of cat food, so maybe I'll start there.

Thanks again!

is that him in your avatar? Dust for you little older kitten. ::) I'm really hoping he'll get better soon.

Thank you! That's my middle kitty Olivia, but she's tiny so she looks like a kitten! ::) Charles is my oldest and biggest kitty who's been having the tummy troubles. Here he is:

I think if i saw him in person I would have risked getting scratches and just went for it on his tummy. Soooo Cute! poor dear. Hope he gets better right quick.

Ha, see that's how he sucks you in, and then after you pet his belly for a little bit he grabs your arm and rabbit kicks it while he bites your hand or wrist! I still get fooled on a regular basis. :cheeky:
 
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