A Few Quick Food Questions

Status
Not open for further replies.
Z

Zombie99X

Member Since 2014
Hi everyone!
Just got a couple food questions, I'm still getting the dry and wet Purina Dm foods from the vet for the time being as I'm looking into home testing. Since I haven't started home testing yet, I guess I should stay away from the low carbs stuff because I might put her in shock? So I was wondering if there was another type of store canned food that I could get in the mean time, the vet stuff costs like 2.50 a can and I go through a couple a week. I was thinking of something like Friskies Savory Shreds or another kind, If I'm reading the chart right, Savory Shreds is 13-15% correct? And if I can get another kind, what % should I stay around until I can home test? I don't want to seem like a cat owner that is cheap or anything, just need to save some cash to pay the vet bills and get into testing. I'm from Canada, so I don't know yet if I can get cheap test strips, my dad is diabetic and his test strips are like a $1 each. He's looking into if he can get a new meter and give me his right now.

I was also wondering what kind of treats are ok to give now. I used to give her temptations and Party Mix, she loves them and still meows for them. Kills me not to be able to give her something for when she is good,like needle time, even to break things up a bit to, she knows when its time for needle and sometimes hides under the bed, lol. I was reading that freeze dried might be good, is that the PureBites Freeze Dried Turkey kind? or can I still give her some of the Temptations?

For the Purina Dm wet food they don't list the Carb% for wet.
Link for Purina DM: https://www.purinaveterinarydiets.com/P ... Food&tab=0
 
As for treats, stay away from the Temptations. Do the Purebites freeze dried, single ingredient treats. There are also other brands and flavors, but it should be meat only.
 
I used the calculator at the top of the forum, I know it says that its isn't perfect, the purina dm food came out to be 5-6%.
 
The wet Purina DM is not awful for carbs. Our objections to it is that the ingredients are no better than the over the counter foods (there's nothing "prescription about it except that you can only buy it from a vet), it is too expensive and many cats tire of the taste as it is mainly liver.

I feed Friskies pates which tend to be in the 5-7% range. They are probably the least expensive. Many people feed Fancy Feast pates too.

Often Purina offers the nutrition classes in vet schools. They may be why lots of vets suggest feeding their "diabetic" products.
 
Yeah, I noticed that its mainly the same, thats why I asked about another food, better for me to get a couple cans of food then just one.
Should I faze out dry food altogether and just feed her once in the morning and then once at night, or is it better to give her a couple meals a day? And if only two meals a day, how much of a serving? Half a can? Right now I got abit of dry food just in case shes hungry throughout the day.
 
You are correct to be cautious though, about switching completely off the dry (it is much higher carb than the wet) and your cat's insulin needs can/will change (downwards) when the dry is completely eliminated.

You mentioned issues with monitor/test strip prices, ADW sells the Arkray Glucocard 01 for 12 bux, and the strips run about $35 for 100 (less if you buy a lot). This is the same model as the walmart 'confirm' (arkray makes the ones for walmart), and takes a very small amount (.3) of blood. (if you have a walmart near you can just buy theirs, if not ADW runs roughly the same price - the meter is a few dollars more at walmart, strips are same)

Regarding feeding, it is usually better to feed multiple times a day, how much is subjective tho, depending on your cat's needs, whether they're regulated, what kind of food, etc. If your cat is begging for food, it's likely they need more than they are getting. Unregulated diabetics need up to 50% more food than 'normal' because they cannot process it correctly, so they are only actually 'getting' a small portion of what they eat.
 
You didn't ask about meters and strips, but here in the U.S., the WalMart Relion meters and strips are the cheapest by quite a bit.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top