recipe for cat food

[dillond]

Please help. My cat was diagnosed just 3 days ago. I am a nervous wreck. I cannot seem to find a food that he will it, and he loves his food. Does anyone have a recipe for making your own cat food?

 

[BJM]

Welcome to the board! Sorry you have to be here.

Let him eat anything he is willing to eat first. If he doesn't eat, he could go into diabetic ketoacidosis or hepatic lipidosis, both of which are very expensive to treat. Work on food changes gradually, to avoid GI upsets.

If 2 days without eating, go to vet. Fat breakdown for calories may overwhelm liver, causing major metabolic problems (hepatic lipidosis).

Are you giving insulin yet? If yes, you must be hometesting before changing diet. It can drop 100 points when you change to low carb canned or raw food. Note: most prescription foods are either too boring and the cat won't continue to eat them, or too high carb to be useful in managing diabetes.

If not on insulin and in the US/Canada, the Friskies Pates and the Fancy Feast Classic Pates are low carb and relatively inexpensive. Mix in about 1/4 different per day, until switched over. This will minimize digestive upsets.

http://www.catinfo.org has a recipe for raw, homemade food, plus good nutrition info.

If you are feeding any dry food, gradually withdraw that in favor of low carb canned. If you have any difficulty with that, Cat Info has tips, too.

 

[Meowluv]

I didn't think my cat Ferdinand would ever switch to eating canned food. He was a dry food addict! However I soon realized that he wouldn't starve himself. So I started mixing in just a little canned with his dry and gradually mixed in more canned and less dry. Before long he had realized that he liked it and was eating it up! It has helped his bg levels a lot and he seems to feel better. It's also cheaper than the Science Hill Diet M/D for diabetic cats. That stuff was 58.00 a bag!!!

Go slowly with the food change and I'm sure your cat will adjust to it. Good luck!
Melody

 

[Deb & Wink]

he loves his food

What food did he used to eat?

What food are you feeding now? Or trying to feed?

My foster cat Wink was a dry food addict. did not like any canned foods. I found one Fancy Feast flavor he liked, Turkey & Giblets. You may have to try a variety of canned foods. Go slow and mix in some of the old food.

 

[Wendy&Tiggy(GA)]

Here is a list of low carb foods you can try if you live in North America - if not please let me know http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=94685 . I literally went to the pet store and bought 2 cans of everything! (2 cans because often they would enjoy the first and not eat the second!)

Are you giving insulin yet? If so, then you will need to home test as his blood glucose could drop a lot with the food change.

Wendy

 

[dillond]

Welcome to the board! Sorry you have to be here.

Let him eat anything he is willing to eat first. If he doesn't eat, he could go into diabetic ketoacidosis or hepatic lipidosis, both of which are very expensive to treat. Work on food changes gradually, to avoid GI upsets.

If 2 days without eating, go to vet. Fat breakdown for calories may overwhelm liver, causing major metabolic problems (hepatic lipidosis).

Are you giving insulin yet? If yes, you must be hometesting before changing diet. It can drop 100 points when you change to low carb canned or raw food. Note: most prescription foods are either too boring and the cat won't continue to eat them, or too high carb to be useful in managing diabetes.

If not on insulin and in the US/Canada, the Friskies Pates and the Fancy Feast Classic Pates are low carb and relatively inexpensive. Mix in about 1/4 different per day, until switched over. This will minimize digestive upsets.

http://www.catinfo.org has a recipe for raw, homemade food, plus good nutrition info.



You have been more helpful than anyone else has been. I just ran into a retired vet at Pet Smart and he told me almost the same thing you did. Yes, I am giving my boy insulin and he went a day and a half not eating because he didn't like that prescription food. As of this morning, I gave him his regular food and his insulin and he actually is playing again as I write this. Thank you so much!

 

[dillond]

he loves his food

What food did he used to eat?

What food are you feeding now? Or trying to feed?

My foster cat Wink was a dry food addict. did not like any canned foods. I found one Fancy Feast flavor he liked, Turkey & Giblets. You may have to try a variety of canned foods. Go slow and mix in some of the old food.

My boy loves Fancy Feast. After trying for way too long to get him to eat the prescription food, I gave him his Fancy Feast again and he ate the whole thing. I was trying to get him to eat what my vet gave me which was Purina DM.

 

[BJM]

If he likes the Classic Fancy Feats pates, go for it. Those are all low carb.

 

[Deb & Wink]

Then if he likes the Fancy Feast, give him the Fancy Feast. That Purina DM is liver based as first ingredient. Many cats don't like it or will eat it for a few days until the novelty wears off. So glad to hear he is eating.

Which of the Fancy Feast flavors are you feeding? We suggest the low carb Fancy Feast pate style for a diabetic cat.

Which insulin are you using? How many units?

Are you home testing the blood glucose (BG) to keep him safe? If not, would you like some tips and tricks and a shopping list to get started?

What is your cats name? What is your name? Where do you live? Country and state/province would be helpful. This helps us to know what time zone you are in to help you better.

I know, a lot of questions but we are a curious bunch! :shock: ;-) :shock:

 

[dillond]

I am such a doofus myself, I just learned how to reply to this. How in the world am I ever going to take care of my boy? His name is Coffee, named by a child for his color. He is 14. We live in Sarasota, Florida and his vet is Stephanie Lantry. I dropped the bottle of insulin and smashed it my first try at giving him a shot. I have already given myself a prick by accident. But, I think I am finally getting it. He gets 2 units morning and night of Prozinc. I am not going to be able to afford the $140 price of that for long, any suggestions in that area? He loves the Fancy Feast Pate flavors. Are the other flavors bad? I did get Royal Canin Diabetic dry food and he is liking that. My other cats are eating that as well. I hope that is OK. As for testing him myself, I am scared to death. Maybe you could explain what that entails. I am taking him to the vet on Friday for an all day testing curve??? I don't even know what that means. I hate that he is having to go through all of this.

 

[BJM]

I am such a doofus myself, I just learned how to reply to this. How in the world am I ever going to take care of my boy?

You're going to take it 1 step at a time and be patient with yourself :smile:

I dropped the bottle of insulin and smashed it my first try at giving him a shot. I have already given myself a prick by accident.

Most of us have done 1 or more of those things, too, even with lots of experience. :roll:

I am not going to be able to afford the $140 price of that for long, any suggestions in that area? He loves the Fancy Feast Pate flavors. Are the other flavors bad? I did get Royal Canin Diabetic dry food and he is liking that. My other cats are eating that as well. I hope that is OK.

Getting his diet to low carb canned or raw will get the amount of insulin down too. The dry stuff is not a good choice - not enough water for cats whose thirst drive is insufficient to thoroughly make up for the lack of water in it. Also, many dry foods have way too many carbs, even Rx ones

 

[RobinCot]

I make my own raw food and my sugarcat loves it. Use Dr. Pierson's recipe on catinfo.org. Also, catnutrition.org. has more information about using this recipe and provides video. It is so healthy for them and I have seen such great results, no more gloppy stools, no more hairballs or throwing up kibble, and the quality of their fur is changing. Only my sugarcat and one civvie will eat it but I am determined to transition my others. Last night I was cutting up the small pieces of thigh muscle meat for a new batch and they were stealing pieces out of the bowl. I also like the idea of freezing some pieces with a little broth or water in ice cube trays. When I made them go cold turkey off the dry food (they also ate canned) I realized that they needed to be fed more food and more often. The cat cicles melt overnite and keep them satisfied so they don't need to bug me as much. I highly recommend using a raw food diet. It is an investment for which I will never be sorry.

 

[Wendy&Tiggy(GA)]

Hello

Its a bit of a steep learning curve but you will get there!

1. food - the fancy feast classic pates are much better than dry. Dry is going to spike his blood glucose and make it difficult to control his diabetes. Return the bag if you can. There are other flavours of fancy feast that are also low carb ie "tender" - look at the following link, column C (% calories from carbs) and choose ones under 10%. http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf

2. Prozinc - some people wrap their vials in a sock or padding just in case they break it. Note it should last up to 6 months in the fridge (not the door). A 10ml vial is 1000 units and at 4 units a day its going to last you a long time.. so I wouldnt worry about cost!

Wendy

 

[dillond]

I am such a doofus myself, I just learned how to reply to this. How in the world am I ever going to take care of my boy?

You're going to take it 1 step at a time and be patient with yourself :smile:

I dropped the bottle of insulin and smashed it my first try at giving him a shot. I have already given myself a prick by accident.

Most of us have done 1 or more of those things, too, even with lots of experience. :roll:

I am not going to be able to afford the $140 price of that for long, any suggestions in that area? He loves the Fancy Feast Pate flavors. Are the other flavors bad? I did get Royal Canin Diabetic dry food and he is liking that. My other cats are eating that as well. I hope that is OK.

Getting his diet to low carb canned or raw will get the amount of insulin down too. The dry stuff is not a good choice - not enough water for cats whose thirst drive is insufficient to thoroughly make up for the lack of water in it. Also, many dry foods have way too many carbs, even Rx ones

Thank you for your support. This is hard. I am not patient with myself. Thank you!

 

[Deb & Wink]

[quote="dillond I hate that he is having to go through all of this.[/quote] That diagnosis of diabetes from your vet for your beloved cat Coffee is a major shock to your system, emotionally, physically, spiritually. Diabetes can be successfully treated and cats can live long and healthy lives. The first few weeks are the hardest because there is a lot to learn. Think of this as a crash course, graduate college level in managing feline diabetes.

How in the world am I ever going to take care of my boy?

You will learn to take care of Coffee one step at a time. You can do this with the advice and encouragement of everyone on this board. We have all been where you are now.

He loves the Fancy Feast Pate flavors. Are the other flavors bad? I did get Royal Canin Diabetic dry food and he is liking that.

The Fancy Feast classic pates are under 10% carbs, our recommended carb level. There are some other Fancy Feast types that are under the 10% also, including the ones with Tender, Flaked and Chunky in the name. We use this food chart to find foods that are less than 10% carbs, third column of numbers. http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf Some of the Friskies pates are also under 10% carbs for those on a tight budget.

Could you please tell us what the Royal Canin Diabetic dry food says on the bag for the complete name? There are a couple of different ones of this food and I'll check to see what the carb content is on the one you are using.

As for testing him myself, I am scared to death. Maybe you could explain what that entails.

Home testing involves making a tiny poke in the ear with a lancet, and sipping up the drop of blood onto a test strip in a glucometer. We have taught many people to do this over the internet and have many helpful hints, pictures, even how to videos if you are interested.

I am taking him to the vet on Friday for an all day testing curve??? I don't even know what that means.

A curve is taking a blood test every two hours over a span of 12 hours. That is it. Many of us do our own curves at home because the cat is more comfortable and less stressed. It's also much less expensive, only the cost of the test strips and some of your time.

 

[Wendy&Tiggy(GA)]

Hey there, hows things going? Need any more help?

Wendy

 

[theng&miko]

I give my sugarbaby eat boil chicken breast (skinless). It healthy sometime i add a bit broccoli (only flower not branch) boil together.
He eat every 3 hour for chicken breast we only give small amount.
I use finger to mash chicken breast add water than use finger to fed.
Try to use your finger like spoon to fed your cat.
My cat will not eat if i put meal infront of him.
At injection time am/pm we feed EVO Cat & Kitten Canned Cat Food.
In my hometown Malaysia is only EVO brand i can buy that suitable for my sugar baby.


Hope can help your baby can eat more healthy home food