For Cats - Nutro Natural Choice Complete Care (For Indoor Cats)

mudpuppy

the cats I know who eat mostly mice and birds routinely live into their 20's unless a car or predator gets them.

I know cats that live on "mostly mice and birds" and they are either strays or "latch key cats" whose owners don't really care all that much about them... MANY go missing or are killed by a car or predator by about age 3.  A few live a bit longer... the longest lived one I can think of was about 9.  A good quality of life is about more than just diet IMO. Sometimes diet suffers a little to make room for other things that also improve quality of life.

For a lot of people, it's a choice between

a) allowing your cat to roam, risking their life and health to the dangers out there, letting them decimate local wildlife populations and possibly losing them at a ridiculously young age BUT at least they are eating "mostly mice and birds" so the diet is pretty good and they are active, getting exercise

or b) keeping them indoors more and feeding them a commercial diet... not such a good diet and less exercise, but they are not causing a public nuisance, not cr@pping on the neighbours lawn or eating sparrows or getting themselves run over or attacked by foxes and they have their "home comforts" and plenty of affection from their human.

My cat has some dry food so that she has something to eat always available if she is hungry during the day.  She also has a pouch of wet food at suppertime.  I am concerned about the effect the kibble may be having on her and would like to switch, but leaving wet, smelly cat food down at all times isn't an option and at the moment, nor is raw.  So she has some kibble.  I think this represents a good number of cat owning households. 

Chuffy, you do raise a good point. We got Jade when she was about 4.5 months roaming the streets. Absolutely skin and bones. She may not have even been getting the mouse part of mouse and birds. And pets running loose in our town is a bad idea.

And yeah, I'll go ahead and repeat the other story. My old cat, Misty, lived 17 years on Purina. A large chunk of her life was in Dallas. You let an animal run loose there, you're asking for it. Not every one gets to live on a 15 acre ranch or 160 acre farm and can let the pets out.

So, that leaves feeding raw or feeding prepared food.

You could always buy mice at the pet store but that could get expensive. Although you can get mice-icles (frozen mice). Those are sold to reptile owners. Just tell them you have a Ball Python Constrictor.

Now, one of us laypersons might get the balance right, or we might not. Or the cat could commercial food which is normally guaranteed to be balanced. It may not actually matter in the end. We all die, get used to it. A cat might live to 20 years old, he/she will not live to 100, by the human scale. But there is an equivalency to age between a human and a cat. Mine, if expressed in  human years, was 119 years when it was time for her to go.

I do absolutely defy any here to not have a few problems when you reach 119.

 Anyway, feed the cat as you see fit and live with your choices.

I feed a commercial food that Jade likes the taste of and it is food designed for her and she seems to be doing well on.

You mileage may vary.

 You don't have to choose between unbalanced food and not balanced, by choosing raw.  I use a mix that is designed to balance raw meat for my kitty Hemi.  I just add chunks of beef heart meat (that contains extra taurine just in case).  They have a mix that is designed to be fed with fresh liver and meat, too, but I don't see anything wrong with powdered liver.

Many raw feeders scold me because it's not "prey model" but I don't remember "feed me prey model only" being anywhere in the owner's manual when we took Hemi off the streets.  I feed fresh raw meat balanced with supplements because I like the results - and it keeps Hemi coming back every night for his nums. 

Hemi's got an extremely important job do - keeping the feed areas rodent-free.  Rodent droppings can cause mama sheep to abort their pregnancies.  So you bet he goes outside.  But he needs the extra energy to hunt efficiently - he'll hunt regardless of how much food's available - but if I feed him, he'll hunt only the easy pickin's, mice, and leave the songbirds alone.

I had one cat who was severely disabled and ill who did die somewhat young, but the cat I had before her (he and Hemi overlapped for a year), was in his twenties when he died - of a dog, cat, or wild animal attack, not "age."

ron2

But there is an equivalency to age between a human and a cat. Mine, if expressed in  human years, was 119 years when it was time for her to go.

Actually, for cats the conversion is about 5, not 7 like dogs. Though I'm not entirely positive I even agree with the 5. That would make life expectancy around 15 years, and I personally think cats can and should live longer than that. I'm counting on the Kovster living to like 25, lol.

Hey Becca, I'm sure I've asked you this before, but I forget... what pre-mix do you use for Hemi?

chelsea_b

Actually, for cats the conversion is about 5, not 7 like dogs

And with your math, Misty was 85 when she passed on. And my challenge still stands. My FIL is going to 85 in December. He has had Pagett's Disease (degenerative bone disease). Sinus surgery twice. Hernia twice. Tonsils removed twice (don't ask me how he grew another set), he had back surgery last year and still suffering from it and uses a walker to get around, when he can get around. Prostate cancer and removal. Acid reflux. Susceptible to respiratory infections. He's prone to falling asleep in the chair, sitting straight up (though, I do that, too). Sleep apnea. Migraines. And he's actually doing well for his age. Others around him are either worse off or have passed on.

chelsea_b

That would make life expectancy around 15 years, and I personally think cats can and should live longer than that.

That would be great. Of course, any evidence we have is anecdotal, including mine. But even if Jade only lives for maybe 17 years, it will be a 17 years well spent. If Shadow lives another 10 years, he will have outlived the life expectancy of his breed. I knew of a female Sibe who was 16 years old eating regular dog food, never any "human" food (her owner's words). Sibes live between 12 and 14 years. The only problem this old girl had was that she couldn't focus close up or at a distance (coronal dystrophy, the one main defect in Sibes).

Anyway, a toast of long life to the pets we have.

Ron, I wasn't saying Misty didn't live long enough.. I was just posting the conversion for cats.

But since you brought it up...my Grandmom will be 82 next month, and she's doing pretty darn well. She had to get stents put in several years back, and a melanoma removed a couple years ago..but that's about it. And I very strongly believe that if she had had a healthy lifestyle her whole life (i.e. eating good food and exercising regularly), she'd be doing even better right now...sooo, I'm not so much buying into the humans-only-live-80-years thing. I think if we all took care of ourselves, a lot of us could easily live to 100...and if we took care of our animals, a lot of them could easily live to at least 20. Especially cats, who tend to live longer anyway.

Like all living creatures, a cat's life expectancy varies greatly.  My partner's childhood cat lived to be 21.  I'm sure Casey ate nothing but "junk food" his whole life.  Toward the end of his life she remembers him eating Tender Vittles. 

On the other hand, we lost Buster a year ago to an aggressive cancer.  He was 13 and ended up with tumors in his stomach.  

 Food choice is only part of the equation.  Genetics and a host of other things make up the rest. 

I can't help but wonder that if I had chosen more appropriate food for his little feline body...he would have lived a longer and healthier. 

We are working toward feeding commercially prepared raw whole foods to all the cats.  I'm not saying that is the only way to go.....but I have come to believe dry foods are not in a cats best interest.

And I certainly wouldn't argue against the notion that we can improve the quality of life, however long that may be, by what food is eaten. I have lost weight that I have not been able to get rid for a decade or more, simply by changing what I eat. I still eat until I am full and I am not counting calories. I simply don't eat fat if I can help it. That is, I make low fat and no fat choices. As such, I have lowered cholesterol and excellent blood pressure for a male my age. The one bad habit left for me to kick is cigarettes. But I am getting there, making better choices, one step at a time. All this may improve the quality of my life but is no guarantee that I will live past 84 or 85, the approximate time I will pass away (I have seen it. To explain that would create another thread.)

And I agree that we can also strive to make the best choices we can for pets that we care for, for it is indeed a great responsibility to care for the life of another, human or non-human.

My cat has some dry food so that she has something to eat always available if she is hungry during the day.  She also has a pouch of wet food at suppertime.  I am concerned about the effect the kibble may be having on her and would like to switch, but leaving wet, smelly cat food down at all times isn't an option and at the moment, nor is raw.  So she has some kibble.  I think this represents a good number of cat owning households. 

cats can be fed regular meals just like dogs. I'm really surprised to hear of the number of people who free-feed cats without a second thought. I agree indoor is safer for cats, but now you can make it much healthier by feeding a more appropriate diet.

I have lost weight that I have not been able to get rid for a decade or more, simply by changing what I eat. I still eat until I am full and I am not counting calories. I simply don't eat fat if I can help it. That is, I make low fat and no fat choices. As such, I have lowered cholesterol and excellent blood pressure for a male my age.

Congratulations Ron!  I've lost 68 pounds doing much the same thing (and still have 40 to go believe it or not).  And I went from slightly elevated cholesterol six months ago, to my usual natural low and very low blood pressure.

I do believe making healthy choices can improve quality of living no matter what improvements they are.  I'll congratulate someone on losing weight rather than focusing on the choices he hasn't tackled yet.

The "worst" thing my Maggie dog ever ate was Nutro Natural Choice, except for a very brief stint on Science Death.    She's an extremely healthy 15 years old.  There's literally not a thing wrong with her except a slowly increasing cataract in one eye.  She had x-rays done after a mystery injury last year and the vet couldn't believe how old she was - not a trace of degenerative joint disease or arthritis anywhere.

Nutro Complete Care seemed to really improve muscle tone and coat quality in my kitty that ate it.  It's got stuff for digestive health too.  I really like what raw has done for my cat but I know it's not for everyone.

I use Instincts premix for Hemi.  It's a Canadian company - they do one for dogs, too, which I've forgotten the name of.  I'm not as sure of the completeness of the dog one but cats really, really get everything they need from whole meats and a few "extras."  They also sell things like whole ground rabbit, chicken, or lamb that are also complete by nature, but using the premix allows me to simply do Hemi's meals along with the rest of the gang. 

I may have to send Jade to hunting school for her to catch up to Shadow's prowess. We were all hunting a mouse in the house last winter and Shadow won.