Gluten Free Cat food

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Kathleen and Fred

Kathleen and Fred

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Hello!

Has anyone found a wet food that gluten (or wheat) free? My 11-year old, Lucy (sister to Fred, the Sugar Cat) has terrible allergies, that I think may be coming from canned food with wheat or gluten in it. Once, before diabetes was discovered, I tried dry Nutro cat food. Lucy immediately cleared up from skin break-outs and sneezing, etc. Now I can't use the dry food, but wondered if the Nutro wet products has been tested or tried by anyone.

It's always something around here to keep things interesting!!

Thanks,

Kathleen & Fred (and Lucy)
 
I know that a company called blue buffalo makes grain free dry and I am pretty sure they also make a grain free canned food.If it is grain free then logically it should also be gluten free
 
Maybe but not necessarily. I have to eat gluten free, and food can be wheat free but not gluten free. Not sure if cat food is the same, but I would stick to the guaranteed gluten free varieties.
 
Thanks for the Fancy Feast list/site. This may not be Lucy's problem, but it's a place to start. The vet won't give her anything because he says he doesn't see a nasal discharge. Well, she sure sneezes a lot and sometimes mucus comes out. So, once again, I'll have to figure it out!! I don't think it's the litter I use because I've changed brands without any changes in Lucy.

I'll start with the FF and see if that helps. Does anyone know where to find Blue Buffalo??

Thanks again!

We're snowed in here in Richmond. Really pretty!!

Kathleen & Fred & Lucy
 
Here's the Blue Buffalo web site: http://bluebuffalo.com/ There's a store locator there. I've seen Blue Buffalo at PetSmart and non-chain pet stores.

A raw diet may help with allergies. That may be something to look into if canned food doesn't help.
 
You're right, the Blue Buffalo is sold at the Pet Smart less than 2 miles from my home. If my roads are clear tomorrow, I may check the labels and give it a try.

Thanks for your help.

Kathleen & Fred & Lucy
 
There is actuallly a site called glutenfreecatfood.org. It list blue buffalo as having it but not the specific variety. When we think of gluten we usually think of wheat Gluten. In researching this I was reminded corn and a host of other vegetables can also have gluten. That is why something can be labeled wheat or grain free and still have gluten in it.

I get Blue Buffalo at Pet Supermarket and I think Petco carries it. I. happen to like it but the fancy feast is probably cheaper and easier to find.

I won't even try to say anything about raw diet. For some reason everytime I suggest something tonight someone wants to argue with me. LOL I have a patient with celiac's disease and it took her several years just to get properly diagnosed. The dietary limitations for celiac's is even more difficult to manage than diabetes.
 
I won't even try to say anything about raw diet. For some reason everytime I suggest something tonight someone wants to argue with me. LOL I have a patient with celiac's disease and it took her several years just to get properly diagnosed. The dietary limitations for celiac's is even more difficult to manage than diabetes.

I wouldn't mind the raw diet. I'm retired and have time to mix everything up. But, I'm not sure about the "supplements". Someone once wrote that the raw diet doesn't supply all the nutrients needed -- yet, that's what they eat in the wild. Also, I've tired raw chicken and deer meat and my cats just didn't like it -- although they'll eat an occasional bird or chipmunk. Go figure.

What are the symptoms/consequences for Celiac's disease?

Thanks. I'll check out the site you mentioned.

Kathleen & Fred & Lucy
 
I wouldn't mind the raw diet. I'm retired and have time to mix everything up. But, I'm not sure about the "supplements". Someone once wrote that the raw diet doesn't supply all the nutrients needed -- yet, that's what they eat in the wild. Also, I've tired raw chicken and deer meat and my cats just didn't like it -- although they'll eat an occasional bird or chipmunk. Go figure
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A *pure meat* diet doesn't supply all the nutrients needed. In the wild, the cat will eat the whole animal - stomach contents and all. This is how they get some of the other nutrients they need.

One of my other cats will not eat a purely raw diet. I have to mix it in with half a can of fancy feast for her to eat it. You can maybe try chopping up some raw chicken fairly finely (so it is almost the ground consistency) and mixing it in with your wet food to see if your kitties will eat it. Many kitties require a transition period to raw food and don't take to it immediately.
 
Kathleen and Fred said:
I wouldn't mind the raw diet. I'm retired and have time to mix everything up. But, I'm not sure about the "supplements". Someone once wrote that the raw diet doesn't supply all the nutrients needed -- yet, that's what they eat in the wild. Also, I've tired raw chicken and deer meat and my cats just didn't like it -- although they'll eat an occasional bird or chipmunk. Go figure.
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If you want to read more about raw diets, you can start with these sites:

http://catinfo.org/?link=makingcatfood
http://www.catnutrition.org/index.php
http://feline-nutrition.org/index.php

From what I know, there are generally three types of raw diets: homemade raw using a recipie, commerically available raw pet food, and a sort of semi-homemade raw that you add a pre-mix (vitamin/mineral supplement for pets) to the raw meat of your choice. I have heard of a "frankenprey model" which I guess is just feeding raw meat and bones with no supplements. I'm not familiar with it so I can't give you any info about it.

Commercial raw pet food is the easiest for many people but can be expensive in the long run. Many brands contain veggies and fruits and other things which some people feel are unnecessary. There are brands that are grain-free. I think all commerical raw is low carb. I feed my civie Nature's Variety frozen raw. I've gotten quite a few BOGO coupons which helps with the cost.

Dr. Lisa's web site and Catnutrition.org have recipes to make your own raw pet food. I believe both sites tell you where to buy the supplements. I suggest using the recipies on either web site than some random recipie that may not be nutritionally complete or suitable for cats. Dr. Lisa cautions against using ground supermarket meat because of harmful bacteria mixed throughout the meat. You can buy a chunk of meat like chicken breast and grind it up yourself. Or you can purchase raw meat specifically for pet food from a place like Hare-Today.com

For a semi-homemade raw, you use a premix such as TC Instincts http://rawmeatcatfood.com/ or Better In The Raw http://www.knowbetterpetfood.com/home As with homemade raw, it's better to grind your own meat or purchase from a raw pet food supplier.

You can try freeze dried raw as treats to get your cats used to raw. Nature's Variety and Stella and Chewy's are good low carb grain-free brands. Nature's Variety comes in nuggets which are a bit hard to break up. Stella and Chewy's comes in soft easy to break patties http://www.stellaandchewys.com/ Or sprinkle a little freeze dried raw onto a piece of raw meat to entice eating.

Also try lightly cooking raw meat in plain water. Some cats accept that more readily than straight raw meat.
 
In people, celiac presents in different ways -one of the reasons it is so hard to diagnose. Generally problems with the digestive tract after eating food with gluten. A blood test will often give a person the diagnosis.

I would think cats are more likely to have an allergy to gluten and either vomit or have diarrhea. Some kitties here also have trouble eating beef in canned cat food.
 
I told myself I would not get into the raw food debate, but here I am Here is another idea I haven't seen mentioned. I am too squeamish to do this, but you can order frozen mice from Foster and Smith They even come in different sizes.People who are into snakes often feed their boas live or whole unthawed mice. I guess this would also work for cats too.I would certainly check out the source of the raw rodents if you buy from a local pet store.One lady told me that she feed her snake mice that had come from a medical lab and it almost poisoned her boa.

Before someone jumps on the snake thing, no I am not a snake person. I am into Iguanas that are strictly vegetarians. This interest sometimes brings me into contact with snake people.

Wether we like to think of them this way or not, our cats are predators.Sometimes cats and small pets like hamsters or birds can coexist, but I am cautious with my household.I will only take in adult Iguanas.A couple of my cats will even go after the adult Igaunas so I can never leave an uncaged Ig alone with a cat.My oldest cat who is twenty watches one of the Igs all the time and is probably thinking "dinner for a week".
 
Thanks for all the suggestions and referenced sites. I'm going to try the FF gluten free first to see if that has an impact on Lucy's allergies. If I can see a marked improvement in, say, 2-4 weeks, I'll probably move on to making my own food. Baby steps....that's the way I do things these days!!

So nice to have you all there for me and Fred .....and Miss Lucy!!

Kathleen & Fred
 
Jan,

What an interesting household you must have!! You should post some pictures for all of us to enjoy!

I just don't think I can do the live or frozen mouse thing. When friends of mine have told me about feeding their large snakes, it just makes me sick. I know that cats are predators, but I just don't want to think about it. (Scarlett O'Hara syndrome.) Most of the time, Fred or Lucy will bring me a live "present", which has to be captured and put outside again. If I see evidence in the yard that they have eaten a bird or a chipmunk, it makes me sad...even though I know it's good food for them.

Thanks for the alternative information, but I'll probably stick with good ol' canned food and hope for the best!

Kathleen & Fred

P.S. Didn't know the Iguana's were vegetarian. Interesting.
 
I feed Welness canned only. When I first got Merlin he had liquipoo for about 2 months. I switched to grain-free Wellness and overnight his poop issues stopped. It's also low carb. Just another option. He wouldn't eat Blue Buffalo much to my surprise. I tried a couple flavors - no luck.
 
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