Wet food causing health problems (kitten, eating, feline, blood)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Our Smokey went in for a routine vet exam and a booster vac., and the vet said her teeth were very dirty with plaque and that she had a new heart murmur because of wet cat food we were feeding her. I read an article on this blog about 10 rules of owning a cat, and with much agreement from other bloggers, started switching our 2 girls over to high end, very expensive canned cat food [Innova] which they ate, but they still wanted some dry. So the vet said no more canned food, just dry. Talk about confused. I feel I have to trust our vet, she has known Smokey for 5 years now and said these were new findings. She obviously is not a fan of canned food. She was very encouraging about the fountain we bought and said Smokey was well hydrated. So who knows, it's back to all dry. Comments welcome.
I would personally do some more research on this. I have NEVER heard of this myself. I would do some more digging before cutting off the wet and putting them back to all dry. There is certainly far more documented research that links dry food to various health problems.
At the very minimum I would as your vet what research and from where (specifically) that they can point to that shows the wet food is linked to heard murmur...
To my admittedly minimal knowledge on that subject, a heart murmur is classed 1-5, can start at any age, is a common heath problem between some breeds of dogs and cats - which lends me to think it can be a hereditary condition - or something that comes with age.
So if the murmur is new and your cat is older this may be something just linked to age and the food is coincidental?
Listen to your vet. Not people on an internet bulletin board with no credentials.
I'm sorry but some vets don't have a clue, I'd rather get feedback from those who may have experienced a similarity.
OP you said yourself the vet is "not a fan" of canned food. Granted I don't know about cat nutrition BUT I would find a vet who shares your interests and concerns.
I am very skeptical about your vet's claims. Our 19 year old cat has had a heart murmur since he was a kitten. Food has never been flagged as the source of the problem, nor has any vet ever recommended he be taken off canned food to help fix the problem.
Unfortunately, the only "new findings" which your malpracticing vet has are the $$$ the pet food industry pumps into the mainstream veterinary racket.
Thanks to more and more non-mainstream veterinary professionals (not owned by the almighty pet food industry $$) speaking up, it is possible to arm yourself with information and put your Kitty on the road to good health:
Dr Elizabeth Hodgkins, M. Smart, J. Hofve, D. Zoran, Martin Goldstein... are others among many.
Before dumping that vet, I suggest you DO tell them why:
Cats, like Ferrets, are obligate (strict) carnivores - meat eaters. They have a natural low thirst drive and need to get required moisture from meat, as any dictionary would tell them if they've ever looked at one. (Don't know how they even made it to vet school, let alone high school, not knowing this.)
There are many threads right here regarding cat nutrition. Do a search for the "Talked Out of Wet food" thread, for one.
I'd insist on refunds for visits & $$$ wasted at that facility, after asking the vet to explain how this is supposed to chew kibble -- with jaws which ONLY move up and down -- not sidewards or circular (such as those of humans and cows are able to when we chew cereal & grains):
I see you're in PA. It may be hard to find a brick & mortar facility sans conflicts of interest, but if you arm yourself with even the most basic fundamentals of feline nutrition, your cat is not likely to suffer so many of these common dry/carbohydrate-laden caused health maladies (also blockages, allergies, Diabetes, etc.) which the current vet has him on the road to.
Please also be advised that the largest veterinary chain in the US is OWNED (literally) by MARS; Yes the company known for candy. Take a look at the ingredients in their pet foods and you will see that the conflict of interest present between the mainstream veterinary and commercial pet food industries has been keeping our pets sick for far too long.
Last edited by Pamina333; 12-03-2012 at 09:55 AM..
If she believes that eating canned food causes heart murmurs, she must have made it through vet school by some other method than studying and paying attention.
Is she blonde and big breasted by any chance?
Let alone studying, and examining a species which don't even have teeth & jaws (nor amylase enzyme) designed to chew/necessary to process cereal/carbs.
Don't know about the latter but can bet Hill's and/or Royal Recall -- er Canin -- and/or Purina stocks the facility quite generously.
Okay - just to let you know I've done a tad of reading on this as it really made me curious to say the least.
I'll start will I don't think you're vet was necessarily wrong but I don't think that they were complete in just telling you to stop feeding wet food.
What I found is that in a good percentage of felines a heart murmur can be just the heart murmur - which isn't necessarily a good thing but it isn't' really always terrible if it isn't a huge leak. However sometimes a hear murmur is indicative of further heart disease.
It's the percentage of the cases of further heart disease, things like cardiomyopathy, hypotrophy, or trouble with the hearts electrical currents. Your vet could also hear whats called a gallop or a 3 beat rhythm.
The reason for reduction in excess water is because the felines with any further serious diseases can be pushed into heart failure by too much fluids, stressful situations, and anesthesia protocols change drastically as well. But you don't know if your cat has a special case or a rather begin heart murmur with out further cardiac testing and it pretty dangerous to just play it safe. You can do some blood testing, ECG, or cardiac XRays - however a definitive test is the cardiac ultrasound and this should be done by a specialist not a regular vet.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
