What kind of dry food is good for a 12 yr. old cat

Question

He is on Friskies seafood dry food, but sometimes he vomits. We have medicine for that, but I'm thinking it might be the food too. I can't afford the dry food the vet wants me to buy. I was looking at the Purina Dry foods the other day. They have one for adult cats, one for indoor cats ( he is also an indoor cat), and one for years 7 and up. Can someone please help me on this? I have never had a 12 yr. old cat before, so its' all new to me. Otherwise, he's great, plays, runs. demanding, meows, of course only when he wants to though. Also as he's getting older, I'm reading up on things but I don't want to take him to the vet every time I think he has something. It could very well be my paranoia. He's had his fair share of the vet this year. Thank you in advance.

Answer 1

I give my cats 19, 15, 7 yrs old acidophus - that is for their indegestion.  (its' not milk)  and /or they have hair balls (give vasaline for that)

I would at this juncture start giving your cat some can food or I give them some chicken livers cooked ... it gives them extra neutrician.

Also Friskies dry cat food has a tendancy of causing the crystals.

put a drop or two of lemon juice in thier water ... this will help this.

You also have to provide something green for them... you can take left over veggies from your meal and cut them really small and put it in the food.  give it grass to eat... something like that.

I put the acidopilus / b vitamines/ and knox gelitin (for connective tissue) in mine's food.  this all seems to help with problems that I have had in the past

each cat you learn something new that helps.

good luck  

Answer 2

If you find the vet's suggestion pricy - I'm guessing they suggested Hills, Eukanuba or Royal Canin - you probably won't like my suggestions either.  But here you go:  The best of the worst - dry foods: My personal picks are Wellness Core, Innova Evo or Nature's Variety Instincts. I agree with some of the foods listed here but not all. I am happy to review ingredient lists if requested: http://cats.about.com/cs/nutrition/tp/pr...

Natural Balance ven & green pea might be a good compromise for you - relatively inexpensive and fairly decent food.

But your kitty would do better on canned food.  I don't recommend grocery store foods but even that would probably be better than dry.  Here are my suggestions for that:  What to feed:  

http://www.catinfo.org/commercialcannedf...

Answer 3

Check with your vet and see what is recommended.  Did you know that some of foods that the vets recommend are actually cheaper in the long run?  Good food equals good health.

We feed our cats premium foods and have done so for more than 25 years and the results have been great. Our cats have few problems and gone are the annoying, small problems like dry skin, etc.

The little you save on supermarket foods can easily be lost with one vet visit.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

Try Purina One or Fancy Feast Gourmet.  My cats like that in one dish, and the Friskies Feline Favorites with a little Dental Diet mix in.  Vets make money on the food they sell in their offices, so they will always tell you that food is the best.  Yes, it probably is better quality - but not all that different.  The smaller the kibble, the easier it is for the senior cat.  Try to wean him off any wet food slowly - it really isn't necessary - and it's full of fat the slower moving cat doesn't need.

Answer 5

my vet told me to take my

14 year old cat off dry food and on wet food.

it's a lot healthier and it help with hair balls.