The amount of protein in diet?

[Diana&Tom]

Does anyone have any advice about how much protein to be including in a kitty’s diet? I always thought that good quality, high-protein foods were optimum but just recently I’ve been wondering if you can feed too much protein...

My little civvie Sapphire, age ten, had a dental last month and two teeth removed. All fine. Before the procedure she had complete blood and urine tests - most things were in range but some nearing the high end of normal, and I’ve been getting paranoid about trying to keep her in the normal ranges as much as possible. One of my concerns is trying to maintain kidney values... the vet, a cat specialist, says her kidneys are working fine for now, but I’m still concerned and have been reading various articles online to see what I should be aware of. Keeping a kitty hydrated is important, I know - Sapphire doesn’t drink water but has an all-wet diet and I supplement it with the occasional sachet of cat soup or shredded chicken in broth. But the thing I’m confused about is protein - I read that the kidneys have to work hard with a high-protein diet so I’m wondering whether to include some other brands that have a lower protein content? Not rubbish foods, obviously, but some with a lower meat content?

Probably not related to the initial question about protein, but the thing the vet said we need to keep an eye on is Sapphire’s thyroid level - it’s in normal range atm but not far off creeping into high so the vet says if she starts to lose weight we should test again. I know hyperthyroidism is common in cats and have read about the treatments, should it be necessary, and will cross that bridge if it comes to it - but meanwhile, is there anything I can do to try to keep things under control?

Tagging @Critter Mom and @Elizabeth and Bertie as fellow UKers who may be able to advise on specific foods but input from anyone appreciated - thank you.

 

[Elizabeth and Bertie]

Hi Diana!

Just regarding protein in a cat's general diet, Dr Lisa Pierson writes this:
"The composition of a feline diet is important because cats are designed to eat a high protein (~50% of calories, or more), moderate fat (~40% of calories or less), and very low carbohydrate (1-2% of calories) diet." ...But she also cautions against getting 'too' hung up on the composition.
https://catinfo.org/commercial-cat-foods/

When it comes to actual kidney disease, the idea of feeding cats lower protein diets as a matter of course is somewhat 'old school' now, at least in the early/mid stages of the disease. Cats with kidney disease are very prone to losing healthy body weight. And feeding a decent amount of protein can help them maintain their weight.
The more important thing to be aware of is phosphorous content in foods. And it may be helpful to not feed cats (particularly older cats) foods that have a really high phosphorous content.
If a cat is actually diagnosed with kidney disease then it becomes much more important to try to feed foods lower in phosphorous. But, at the same time, the cat has to eat. So, it seems to be a matter of feeding foods as low in phosphorous as the cat will eat. And this is increasingly important as the disease progresses. If a cat with kidney disease has high blood phos levels, it is also possible to add a 'phosphorous binder' to the food to reduce absorption of the phosphorous.
The 'Tanya' CRF site has fab info on kidney disease. They even produce the content of the site in book form, and my copy has my own scribbles and notes all over it (one of the advantages of a book...)
http://felinecrf.org/

Many older cats will have some degree of kidney disease. Bertie did, Sophie did, and now of course Bonbon only has one functioning kidney (and that isn't working 100%). They've all had other concurrent health issues, and that has also affected the choices about their diets. And sometimes one condition trumps another... It can be a matter of finding a balance.

Regarding hyperthyroid disease, well, this is also very common (and I think becoming more so). Sophie had it. And as you know, Bonbon is also 'borderline'. The exact causes seem to be unknown, but there are some 'suspects', and these include certain chemicals in our houses and in our food chain, notably PBDEs (fire retardants). Some fish contains high levels of these too. And soya is also thought to possibly be implicated in some thyroid disease in cats. ....All I feel able to do with my own cats is limit their fish intake, and feed foods that don't contain soy. I'm also now much more aware of things I buy for the house, and where possible try to buy things that don't have these chemicals in them. But it can be impossible sometimes to get that information.
Regarding treatments the current 'gold standard' is radioactive iodine treatment, which destroys the tumour. However, the cat needs to stay in a special facility during the treatment. And in the UK this can still be up to about 2 weeks, although there do seem to be some places now where the stay is shorter. This is proving to be an extremely effective treatment.
The other treatments are surgery to remove the thyroid gland/s, or treatment with drugs such as methimazole. Sophie wasn't able to have the iodine treatment or the surgery, so methimazole was our only option. It's not a 'cure', it addresses the symptoms. But nonetheless she was fine with that for quite a while and lived to be 21.

I know it is hard when our kitties get past that wonderful 'golden age' where they seem like they'll be in perfect health forever. And it's a bit of a shock when we first get a sign that the body is getting older, and may be becoming more susceptible to the diseases that often accompany older age. But both kidney disease and hyperthyroid can be treated. And these can often be very slow to progress. So, while they may sound scary, there is much that can be done.

Hugs xxx

 

[Diana&Tom]

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply at this length, Eliz. I always 100% respect what you have to say, and what you’ve said here bears out my own findings so at least I’m not more confused than I could be!

Saff is fine in herself, thankfully, I think it was looking at the comprehensive results pre-dental that have made me sit up and decide to be more pro-active in her care. I guess the bottom line is finding a good balance and, as you say, sometimes one thing trumps another... so for example I had been feeding her one of the only ‘senior’ wet pouches, Natures Menu, which contains a small amount of fish - maybe three pouches a week - her phos level is fine but I’ve decided to cut out that variety now, and stick to the chicken/turkey ones (but not ‘senior’) and also Sainsbury’s Delicious chicken (also not ‘senior’). I’m still wondering though if there is too much protein in these and whether I should get a supermarket or big-name brand to try (usually less meat content) - I know a lot of cats do absolutely fine on these. So maybe lower protein and less phos - but no ‘senior’ benefit...this is where my brain starts to feel scrambled and I end up making no decision at all!

Bless you for being there and for everything you do for so very many kitties xx

 

[Critter Mom]

I'm glad you're actively monitoring for hyperT and are poised to treat it ASAP if it becomes an issue. This is key because it may reduce the risk of development of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy secondary to the thyroid disorder. The HCM can develop rather quickly (found this out the hard way with Lúnasa ).

As you no doubt already know, hyperT can potentially mask underlying kidney insufficiency so the first treatment needs to be methimazole until kidney function can be properly assessed. If renal insufficiency were to be unmasked as a result of the methimazole treatment then it would be possible to stay on the medication indefinitely, adjusting the dose to strike a better balance between renal function and level of thyroid activity. If I-131 treatment or surgery were pursued without this discovery period then there would be no way back if renal insufficiency was discovered after these treatments.


Mogs
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[Diana&Tom]

Thank you Mogs @Critter Mom . It sounds rather scary but I’m putting my faith in my vet - the same one that Elizabeth uses - to monitor this at the right time. They are very keen on early investigation to keep things under control as much as possible. We shall see.