Need a cheaper cat food !?

Question

My cat just had bladder stones removed and has been put on a diet of Hill's Prescription Diet c/d and it is VERY expensive for us. Does anyone know of a cat food that we can use that will be just as good but is cheaper?

Answer 1

I have a cat that previously had bladder stones and our vet put the kitty on Royal Canin urinary forumla. It is not presciption but has to be bought from a vet's office. It costs us about $20 per month and works great!! The SPCA that we got the cat from also reccomended it.

Answer 2

First off, you have to weigh the odds, would you rather risk more stones and more surgery which costs outrageously high or pay a little more for quality cat food and forego the surgery with the right diet?

Alot of the pet foods have the same ingredients, the corn gluten and meal, by products etc. You want to look for something with low ash content and that is good for the urinary tract. I would not recommend just 1 food as the cat gets used to it and if they stop making it you have a real problem. I would stick to the Hills, use Purina One for urinary health, IAMS is good as well, and I would vary between wet food and dry. Alot of people think the wet food is bad, and yes it's not great for their teeth but sometimes with age a cat needs to be on a wet food diet and if they are not used to it, you have problems. I would vary the wet and dry, maybe even mix together.

I had a hyperthyroidism affected cat, the cat died from not being diagnosed within reason, he ate 1 food only all his life and they stopped making it and I had major problems with him. I did alot of studying of cat foods, trying to find the best for him. Alot of the commercial ones are ok but they contain too much ash and corn glutens and cats are not meant to have that much of those things. You want to give your cat real meat, good quality cat food that is derived from meat, not the waste products.

I have 4 cats now, I only feed them Iams, Hills, Purina One, and once in a while I give them Fancy Feast or Whiska's as a little treat. They eat those in dry foods and for wet ones, they get 1 teaspoon each of Iams, Friskies, or Fancy Feast Select. They are pricey but the content is some of the best. Pet Smart has many kinds of good quality food. I have to say 9 lives is the worst, you can buy it in the dollar store and the content is just awful.

Answer 3

ANY food from grocery store or wal mart is cheap food, even if they have a brand name.. too much filler and not enough meat protein... in the long run feeding a better quality food will save you money since the cat will eat a lot less (and have less poops) these foods list Chicken MEAL or turkey MEAL or lamb MEAL as first ingredient and dont contain by-products (beaks feet feathers = fillers) put the food in the microwave for 10 seconds to bring out the oils and help get kitty interested in eating if you can afford a computer and the internet you can afford good cat food

Answer 4

I totally agree with the first answer Royal Canin is the best Food on the market today. And they make a food for almost every cat. They have Siamese Cat formula Main Coon, Indoor and Out dor Cat, And so on. I would definitely recommend them above all else. The vet is only tyring to make more money off you by getting you to buy food from them, Do you have any idea how much they mark up that stuff !!

Answer 5

A diet of raw meat will keep the cat's urine at the proper pH balance. When I switched my cat to the home-prepared diet he never had any further urinary problems.

I would suggest switching him to a quality canned food such as Natural Balance, Wellness, Lick Your Chops, Blue, Innova, Prairie, Avoderm. Don't use just one brand. It's best to rotate around. Meat is the natural diet for a cat. Don't use the cheapie brands such as Fancy Feast, Whiskas or Friskies - even Science Diet is poor quality.

You must check that the cat's urine in in the proper pH balance - 6.5 is slightly acidic and natural for the cat. I don't know that you will save a great deal of money as it would be best to keep a check on the urine pH to be sure it's right. You can do that yourself with the pH strips you can get at a pharmancy. The strip should be "lavendar" to be slightly acidic.

Answer 6

Get Purina Urinary Tract Maintainance food.. Much cheaper than Perscription food.

Answer 7

To get good info on cats in general, as well as what foods are good for your cat that are out there:

http://www.cats.about.com

Make sure to read the section about cat foods. Very informative and you will want to know.

Answer 8

Maybe Purina 1 diet. It's good for bladder problems. Try it. Maybe your cat will like it and will come in handy. Good luck!!!

Answer 9

After my cat left the vets, I continued him on his Purina and the little red pills and he was fine. I don't remember the meds name, but they were to acidify the urine. I always keep a close eye on his bladder.

Answer 10

try maxximum nutrition it is very good and equal to the analysis of hill's. regardless of the brand compare the ananlysis with your food. maxximum nutrition can be bought at wal-mart.