Is kidney disease an inevitability on dry food?

[wherehaveallthegoodfolkgone]

Just that really. A friend recently put her cat down due to incurable kidney disease, he was only 6!
My cat is only 3 and is on a dry diet, half of the plate filled with hypoallergenic food and the other a high quality high protein clean dry food.

She has water and drinks from her bowl and wees.

What's the likelihood she'll succumb to kidney failure?
Thanks for any advice.

She's a Persian chinchilla if that's relevant. I know they're prone anyway.

Does your cat not get any wet food?
My cats are 8 now and have dry food left out and get wet food a couple of times a day

My first 3 Persians only had dry food. Only one had kidney issues, but that was because she had severe heart disease, and the drugs for that knocked her kidneys off. The others all drank plenty and died of other causes.

Nobody will be able to tell you if your cat will definitely develop kidney problems or not. What we do know though, is that it is the most widespread health problem in older cats and that certain things like a diet of dry kibble but also bad quality wet food will increase the risk. We‘re raw feeding our cats for exactly this reason. It is a little more work, but they love it, are super healthy and I never have to throw away dried up cat food as there are hardly ever any leftovers. Unless you have a very good reason to feed dry food only, I really think you should switch to mainly wet food - a good quality one, of course - and just leave some kibble out as a back-up option.

KittensUnderTheDuvet which raw food brand do you use? I tried making my own but she only ever sniffed and walked away.

Toddlertea that's reassuring. I know we have the same cats , so it helps to know your experience

My lovely Boycat was only 8 when he had to be PTS with kidney disease. I feed 2 meals of wet a day (a pouch each time between 2 of them) and dry ad lib, plus I knew he drank well. He was pronounced 100% fit & healthy in April, started losing weight in late summer & was PTS the following February at only half his healthy weight. The vets all agreed that in his case it must have been genetic.

I used to feed standard Felix until they went off it then Sheba plus a high quality Indoor dry, then when Tobias started to have digestion issues we've changed to Webbox and Harringtons grain free wet - it doesn't have to be a choice between cheap or very expensive to get a half decent quality as long as their kibble is decent too.

Forgot to say - Boycat's litter sister is showing absolutely no signs of kidney issues at all 2 years on, despite me watching out for it like a hawk just in case.

My cat is 12 only ever had dry food. She is a Maine coon so quite an old lady for her breed- no trouble with her kidneys so far.
My childhood cat did have kidney issues and he only ever had tins of food.
So while there is a link I don’t think it’s inevitable and also not the only cause.

Thank you so much for sharing experiences, it really helps put things in perspective

I've always wondered about how strong the link is - particularly as renal specialist foods also come as kibble, which you would think they wouldn't offer if dry food was really that bad for the kidneys. Elton would starve if it wasn't for renal dry food as he will not tolerate the wet versions.

Is there a reason you don't give her any wet food?

I've tried countless times and she unfailingly ends up with diarrhea

I think we need a pic @wherehaveallthegoodfolkgone

@wherehaveallthegoodfolkgone in that case I really wouldn't worry - much better that she eats something she tolerates than something that makes her unwell on the off chance she may develop kidney disease one day.

We’ve always fed ours a high quality dry-only diet (many cats!) and aside from a road accident with one, all the rest have lived to a ripe old age and died of old age related causes.

I'm afraid I can’t really help with specific brand recommendations as I’m not in the UK and make my own raw food anyway. We switched our two boys to raw food when they were about six months old - at that age, they’re usually more willing to try new things compared to adults. That said, it’s absolutely possible to transition adult cats to raw as well.

What kind of meat did you offer your cat, and did you add any supplements? If you’re up for giving it another go, I’d suggest starting with a small amount of plain, lean meat, cut into hazelnut-sized chunks - no supplements for now. Avoid ground or fatty meat, as lots of cats (including mine) aren’t keen on it. For example, mine go absolutely mad for venison, rabbit, and hare, will quite happily eat chicken, turkey and pork (though a word of caution on pork because of Aujeszky’s disease—but the UK hasn’t had a case since 1989, so it’s not a huge worry), but they actively dislike duck, lamb and beef. Maybe whatever you tried just wasn’t to her taste? See if she’ll eat any plain raw meat first before you spend money on supplements or precision scales.

Our previous cat ate a mix of decent quality dry food and fairly rubbish wet food (like Sheba or Felix). By the time we realised just how unhealthy that diet was -not just for his kidneys, but potentially leading to issues like diabetes and pancreatitis - he was already 7 or 8 years old and very set in his ways. He also had a heart condition, so we decided not to stress him out with a diet change and let him stick to his ‘junk food’. He lived to 15 and died from his heart condition. So no, not all cats will develop kidney problems, but it’s worth noting that many do go undiagnosed despite suffering from kidney issues and being in pain, simply because cats are so good at hiding discomfort.

What I can say from experience is the massive difference in the litter box between our old cat (who drank plenty of water and had a wet/dry food diet) and our current raw-fed cats (who occasionally get a tin of wet food or a bit of kibble as a snack). The raw-fed cats pee a lot more. Cats evolved as desert animals, getting most of their water from prey, so they naturally don’t drink enough. Their systems aren’t really designed for dry food, so I’d recommend offering either good quality wet food or raw alongside the kibble.

You mentioned your cat gets diarrhoea from the wet food you’ve tried so far. That could be an allergy to a specific type of meat or an additive that doesn’t agree with her. For example, one of my boys can’t handle anything with potatoes in it, and a friend’s cat gets diarrhoea from chicken. Many supermarket cat foods contain unsuitable additives like sorbitol, which can also cause digestive problems. If you want to give wet food another shot, try single-protein options from a high-quality brand, and get a variety of meats she hasn’t tried before.

We feed our cat Marro wet food twice a day and she loves it! And she always has kibble out and a water fountain. My childhood cat growing up hated all wet food so only had dry food and lived to 15 and died of cancer. She did have kidney problems in the end but I think that was cancer and medication related.

My cat won't eat wet food.. told my vet and he said its actually better for cats to have a good dry cat food only..as long as plenty of water ( l have a water fountain). I do cook him chicken or fish fish twice a week and he gets Prawns often.
Last check up..he's very healthy.

I changed from a water bowl to a fountain and my cats drink so much more than they did. Cats also prefer their water to be away from there food rather than right next to it

I’m afraid your vet is one of many who, unfortunately, have rather limited knowledge about feline nutrition. Their training is so packed with other critical areas that there’s often very little time dedicated to nutrition. What many vets do know often comes from seminars or information sponsored by companies like Royal Canin. Many vets even go on to sell their products, even though they are full of crap there are certainly much higher-quality dry food brands available if that’s the route you wish to take.
That said, I don’t doubt that your cat is healthy despite being fed dry food. Whether a cat is prone to kidney issues is likely more a matter of genetics. However, if they do have a predisposition, continuing to feed them dry kibble isn’t likely to be beneficial, to put it diplomatically.

Mine is 14 and only ever had dry food, won't touch wet/any sort of fresh, raw whatever. If it's not dry biscuits, it's not going in (bar the occasional hunting victim). Also won't drink water in the house- got several bowls etc dotted about outside that I refresh but a disgusting old plant pot is the usual preference. His teeth are perfect and he looks well on it. I can't say it'll never be a problem but I'd have expected it to have had an adverse effect by now if it was directly linked to diet rather than old age?

One of mine is a rescue, he only ate dry food before we had him. He was 4 years old and very unhealthy/sickly.
Within a month of having him & being on wet food twice a day with a drinking fountain he's back to full health.

Dehydration is what kills them.

Thanks everyone. KittensUnderTheDuvet yes I did make it up with minced beef and offal I think. Thanks for the explanation!

Here you go!