When it comes to feeding your cat, it can be really difficult to know if you are feeding him the best you can. There are many schools of thought when it comes to what is best to feed your cat. Hound & Gatos Pet Foods won the 2015 Most Trusted Pet Food Award from TheTruthAboutPetFood.com. The company also won the award in 2014. So we thought who better to ask about the benefits of wet and dry cat food than the founder and CEO Will Post?
Aside from moisture, what are the big differences between wet and dry food?
WP: Most importantly, all dry kibbles are formulated using high carbohydrate ingredients like potatoes, tapioca, grains and fractioned starches. With dogs and cats needing substantially fewer carbohydrates than humans, it’s important to focus their nutrition on things that they efficiently process and metabolize like fresh meats with 100% of the protein and fat coming from animal sources.
Most importantly, most cats do not drink much water and can result in major side effects – in wet food, we have to include water in the processing thus –allowing more water consumption for the cat. [Veterinarian’s] all agree that water is crucial and it’s tough to get cats to drink water.
What are the pros and cons to an all wet diet?
WP: With canned, you can actually see the meat that you are feeding to your beloved cat. You cannot see this in Dry Kibble. We do not see a negative with wet foods. If there was an issue we would address this in the manufacturing side- first.
I have heard that feeding a cat solely wet food can ruin their teeth. Is that true?
WP: This is old school and supported by those who only offer dry kibble to their customers! The STATS are there to prove that with dry kibble [cat teeth still] decay and have major gum issues. The truth is cats and dogs were created to eat real meat- not a cereal that is highly processed. If dry kibble was so great, why do pets have major dental issues? Good dental hygiene will prevent gum disease and tooth decay. I know cats and dogs that have eaten dry kibble and never wet and they have serious dental issues.
What are the pros and cons to an all dry diet?
WP: We believe Dr Lisa Pierson at CatInfo.org that we should never feed dry kibble to cats and this is why Hound & Gatos will not offer a dry kibble line. One major concern, as mentioned above, is water consumption. Kibble is a highly processed product and the fact is cats do not drink very much water vs dogs. We always say –add a little more water to the wet just to get the cats properly hydrated and organs moving properly.
What about ingredients? Anything to look out for?
WP: I would never offer a product with a “generic liver” recipe. One day it can be filled with beef liver and the next chicken and next day labeled lamb. The fact is chicken and beef liver is the most toxic ingredient to feed our pets. In the Wild – yes. But we are dealing with thousands of cattle yards that inject every drug into beef and chicken. The liver is our sewage tank in our bodies and when we become ill we must cleanse our livers to remove all the decades of toxins, drugs, cancer drugs, hormones, etc. Just imagine with “generic liver” – our pets are eating this sewage every day of our lives and then we wonder why our pets die early or live a life with drugs and major side effects.
I just posted on our Facebook page that the FDA allows diseased animals into pet foods and how we can end this for good. The fact is with a dry kibble – rendered meats can be processed without any concern or ethics because it is allowed by the FDA! I make certain that I am there at each production so I can inspect each batch. There is a reason why thousands of pets are living a life on drugs and HG is trying to address this issue by offering only real meat into our products.
No one is speaking of the harmful effects of fluoridated water either, except for us. Fluoride is measured and allocated for human consumption and NOT for our pets. We believe it’s very harmful to humans and especially for our pets and we will never allow this added to our products. No one is speaking out on the dangers of fluoride but we can make certain it stays out of our brand.
Surprised?
For years we have heard that feeding your cat an all wet diet was not best. It’s possible that is not the case. There are always two sides to every coin, and every nutritionist you speak with is going to have their own personal preferences. The best advice is to take this information, research your pet’s food carefully and talk to your vet. It might not hurt to have a chat with the folks at Hound & Gato, either.