I'm worried about my cat...

[CoffeeCat]

I'm concerned about my cat and I'm going to take him to the vet this afternoon.

He eats only Special Kitty (Walmart brand) DRY cat food. I know the Special Kitty WET food is
part of the recall. He's been fine on it, up until the past couple of weeks. I've
seen him vomit twice. He doesn't seem like herself. His coat is uncleaned and he's
sleeping more than usual. He's not his usual perky self.

I know the pet-food recall doesn't include dry food, but that means nothing to me.
Menu Foods has been late in revealing the initial problems with the wet food. Their
lack of action doesn't indicate, to me, that dry food is safe.

Has anyone had problems with dry food; Special Kitty in particular?

I trust consumers and the Internet community--more than I trust a corporation to
give us the best information. Isn't that sad?

If anyone has the latest on any info concerning dry food, could you please share it with us?

I thank you---and "Comet the Wonder Kitty" thanks you, too (my toddlers named her). :)

[RevCheesehead]

1. check the label for wheat gluten.

And for heaven's sake, go buy some Purina or Friskee's.

:hug: for you and your fur-baby.

[CoffeeCat]

12. Thank you for the suggestion...

I lookead at the ingredients--and the food has corn gluten and ground wheat.

He won't eat his food. He just sniffs the bowl.

I'm headed out to buy some Friskies.

Thanks for your nice message.

[RevCheesehead]

16. I did some research on my own re: Purina/Friskie's

Friskie's is a subsidiary of Purina. (I did not know that!)
NONE of their products, they claim, are affected by the recall.

My cats love Friskie's Feline Favorites. (but it does contain wheat gluten)

The following dry food is wheat gluten-free:

FRISKIE'S:
Gourmet Poultry
Ocean Fish
Chef's Blend
Special Diet
Dental Diet

PURINA ONE:
Salmon & Tuna
Hairball Formula
Urinary Tract
Sensitive Systems
Both Healthy Weight and Advanced Hairball & Health Weight contain wheat gluten.

PURINA Brand:
Complete
Naturals
Indoor Formula
Vitality Formula

Any of these SHOULD be OK.

Also, you might want to try some of the sample packs. I know the Friskie's sometimes is available in a 4 pack of mini-boxes. And I signed up for a free sample of Purina Naturals (on the website).

Good luck, and I hope you find something your kitty likes. :9

[noonwitch]

17. My 11 year old cat has been eating Friskees special diet most of her life

She likes it, it's never made her sick, and she's a healthy cat.

Miranda is a puky cat, whatever she eats. She always has been.

[PhilipShore]

18. My vet told me -- that is the worst dry food on the market...

and under no conditions feed them Friskie's, or Purina dry.

[RevCheesehead]

19. Huh. My vet said it's perfectly fine.

But she also stressed the importance of adding canned food to the diet. So my three cats are on a continuous feed of dry food, and they get 1 can of wet food daily.

I avoid anything with "gravy" in it. The cats usually hate it, anyways. I get the regular Friskie's and add about 1/2 can of water to it, then chop it up real good.

[uppityperson]

2. It has been extended to some dry foods also. Best of luck to your kitty and you.

[soothsayer]

3. today they said they're looking at dry food (but did not name the

brand/supplier)

hope it's nothing serious with your kitty.

[realisticphish]

4. I would ignore absolutely anything

that anyone on the internet says, including me. Just talk to the vet (as you are already doing) and let the experts in pet health help you out, not us internet dorks. Good luck, and I hope your cat gets better soon :hi:

edit: apparently, there ARE some reported dry food problems. My advice still stands :)

[Ioo]

5. Well I hope he is okay, For her sake, get better food.

is about as good got your cat as a diet of twigs and gravel. Cats as a whole are very much what they eat, and the quality of walmart food is suspect.

I have 3 cats of my own, so I pray your cat does well. It could also be spring, not sure where you live, but he could have allergies, and when a cat does not feel good, he stops cleaning himself as much. I have one cat that is a mess right now.

Let us know how she is doing later please.

[CoffeeCat]

13. I feel the same way about Walmart food...

We adopted Comet from the shelter, and I tried many foods when we first
brought him home.

He would only eat Special Kitty. I was astounded. I don't like the idea of
feeding him SK either. I've tried to sneak in some Science Diet dry and some
Purina. He won't have any of it!

I appreciate your caring message and I'll keep everyone posted.

:)

[jojo54]

6. I heard this morning that there is no plan to extend the recall

to include the dry food. I think eventually they'll change their minds.

The vomiting is not really unusual, but him not cleaning himself is a big red flag. Good luck at the vet's today. I hope "Comet the Wonder Kitty" is o.k.

[bdamomma]

7. as a cat lover, take your cat to the vet, for an opinion.

[jobycom]

8. Here's a thread on that--don't panic, the title is misleading

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x537296

[xultar]

9. Quit typin and reading and get to the vet.

[karlrschneider]

10. Our kitty won't eat "special kitty" so he gets Friskies in a can.

He seems to be fine, he was about 50 feet up an elm tree about an hour ago and clambered down when we
called him. :-)

Have your furry friend checked.
edit: by the way he's almost 9 yo.

[PhilipShore]

11. My cat got sick starting around the Christmas time

She was drinking tons of water -- and was urinating to much. I had fed her, a different brand of dry food, IAMS or Nutro, and soon after she got sick. I recently went to the vet, and he did blood work, and she has no kidney problems, but diabetes.

He advised me to put her on new diet; of all wet food, and now she is doing fine and she does not urinate as much, or drink tons of water. She does not like Halo's holistic cat food, because of to many vegetables in it. But I gave her Merrick's, just today and she loves it, and I am going to try Azmira cat food, as well.

[zalinda]

15. There is a dry food that is really good

it's called Back to Basics http://www.beowulfs.com/ go to their website and ask for a free sample. Consult your vet and see if you can include this in your kitty's diet. It's one of the best foods. It's so good that my ferrets were stealing a piece, running with it in their mouth, and eating it under the chair. We decided to change their food to Back to Basics too and they are thriving. And because it has little filler in it, their litter pan has about 2/3 less to clean in it.

zalinda

[ceile]

20. My baby has diabetes, too.

You're lucky your's is controlled with diet. My baby is on Science Diet W/D and 2 shots of insulin a day. It's not a hassle by any means, I love him to bits and would shoot him 10x a day if need be. But the food is obscenely expensive. I think IAMS may have contributed to his getting it in the first place. I hope you find a good food for her.

[rox63]

14. Thank goodness my kitties like 9 Lives and Fancy Feast

Neither of them are from Menu Foods.