Is wet food better for overweight cats

Wet Cat Food vs. Dry Cat Food: Which Is Better?

A common question that veterinarians get asked is whether cats should eat canned or dry food.

The good news is that most commercial cat foods provide an excellent source of nutrition, whether its dry cat food or wet cat food. But finding the best food for your cat will depend on several factors, including:

Whether to feed dry, canned, or a mixture of both is a decision that you and your veterinarian can make together to provide the best health for your cat. Heres some insight on wet vs. dry cat food.

What Are the Main Differences Between Wet Cat Food and Dry Cat Food?

Here are a few big differences between wet cat food and dry cat food.

Moisture Levels

The main difference between dry and canned cat food is the amount of water that the food contains.

Dry cat food contains approximately 10% of water, and the other 90% consists of dry matter such as carbohydrates, fats and vitamins. Canned food contains much more waterapproximately 70%compared to dry matter.

This can be important to consider when choosing which to feed if your cat has certain health conditions that may benefit from more water intake.

Manufacturing Process

Given the higher moisture content in canned foods, these foods are typically made with fresh or frozen meats in combination with a protein source that comes from grains. The meats are blended with water, fats, and vitamins and placed in a can, where a heating process ensures that foodborne pathogens are destroyed.

Dry food is made by combining and then cooking meats, vitamins, minerals, and fats at a high temperature and pressure, which makes the starches more digestible. Fat may then be sprayed on the food to ensure that its palatable.

Nutrients

Dry cat food typically contains more carbohydrates than canned food. The protein and fat in canned vs. dry can vary based on the type of diet. Certain formulations of dry cat food may also contain probiotics.

Should I Feed My Cat Dry or Wet Cat Food? Or Both?

Whether to feed your cat dry food, canned food, or a mixture of both depends on several factors. Here are some benefits and drawbacks of both types of food.

Canned Cat Food Benefits

The largest benefit of feeding a canned diet is the higher water content. Cats with certain health conditions that require a higher-than-normal water intake, such as kidney disease, diabetes, or lower urinary tract disease, may benefit from the additional water in these diets.

Canned food is also highly palatable, and some cats will eat a canned diet over a dry diet, particularly if they are picky eaters.

Canned Cat Food Drawbacks

Canned food is often more expensive than dry food, so this may play a role in your decision.

Once opened, canned food has a shelf-life of 24 hours and must be stored in the refrigerator. If your cat does not finish their wet food, it should be properly stored in the refrigerator or discarded. Leaving canned food out for longer than a few hours can run the risk of contamination and cause gastrointestinal upset.

Dry Cat Food Benefits

Dry cat food is less expensive than canned food, so people who are on a strict budget or those that feed community cats may choose this option.

Dry food also does not have to be stored in the refrigerator and can be left out much longer than can food. This is a good option if you free-feed your cats, but any portion not eaten by the end of the day should be discarded.

You can also use dry cat food in automatic feeders or in puzzle feeder toys.

Dry Cat Food Drawbacks

Studies have shown a correlation between obesity and feeding dry cat food. This could be because a lot of cats that eat dry food are often free-fed, and owners do not realize how much their cats are actually eating in a day.

It can also cause the opposite problem because its hard to notice that your cat is not eating when they are free-fed. The amount your cat eats in a day should be monitored or measured out for both reasons.

Older cats with dental disease or those who have had some of their teeth removed may also have a harder time chewing dry food.

Feeding Both Canned and Dry Cat Food

To balance the benefits and drawbacks of both options, you may choose to feed a combination of both. This may be particularly useful with cats who require a higher water intake but enjoy eating dry better than canned.

By either mixing them together or giving canned at one feeding time and dry at the other, you may be able to get the benefits of both diets.

If you are looking to mix wet cat food and dry cat food, talk with your veterinarian to find the best balance. Your veterinarian can help you calculate how much your cat should be eating and how to portion out the two food options.

Every cat is different, and the amount you feed a day will depend on the age of your cat, your cats current body condition, and the presence of any underlying diseases.

What Wet and Dry Cat Food Do Veterinarians Recommend?

Regardless of whether you choose to feed a dry or canned cat food, it is important to feed a well-balanced, commercial diet to ensure that your cat gets the vitamins and minerals they need.

Reputable brands such as Science Diet and Royal Canin have been quality-controlled and specially formulated to meet a cats nutritional requirements. Your veterinarian can give you more specific recommendations based on your cats health history.

Avoid feeding a home-cooked or homemade diet unless it is specially formulated by a veterinarian who is specialized in making these diets. If you dont have help from a qualified vet, these diets can be deficient in vitamins and minerals such as taurine, which can cause heart disease in cats.

Involving your veterinarian in your decision of what to feed your cat can be very helpful in ensuring they get the most appropriate nutrition.

Here are some other things to consider.

AAFCO Approval

Basic minimum nutritional requirements for cats have been established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). This is important because all pet foods that carry an AAFCO statement or AAFCO-approved nutritional guarantee are considered to be nutritionally complete and well-balanced diets for your cat.

Ingredient List

Its important to read the label on the back of the package to ensure that the main ingredients, which will be listed first, consist of meat and meat by-products. This is because cats are carnivores and require a high-protein diet that supplies the appropriate amount of essential amino acids and fatty acids.

Your Cats Particular Health Needs

The best cat food for your cat will be unique to their lifestyle and nutritional needs.

For example, if your kitten or cat is of normal weight and healthy, then a kitten or adult maintenance diet should be sufficient. If your cat is overweight, it may be best to look for a low-fat diet.

If your cat has a health condition, your veterinarian may prescribe a specific diet formulated for that disease. For example, kidney diets are recommended in most cats who develop kidney disease, or a urinary diet may be more appropriate in cats who have lower urinary tract disease.

Your Cats Preferences

At the end of the day, you may not have a choice in what type of diet you feed your cat. Some cats can be very picky and only eat dry or only eat wet food.

Featured image: iStock.com/Nils Jacobi

WRITTEN BY

Cathy Meeks, MS, DVM, DACVIM

Veterinarian

Dr. Cathy Meeks started her veterinary career as a veterinary technician while getting her Master's degree in Veterinary Medicine, Forensic...

Wet vs. Dry Cat Food: Whats Better for Cats?

Cat owners often ask the question, is dry or wet food better for cats? The answer is not black and white. Both types of cat food have upsides and downsides. In this article on wet versus dry cat food, well go over all of the pros and cons to help you decide which is best for your cat.

Whether the food is dry or wet, look for foods that meet AAFCO standards. All commercial cat foodswhether dry or wetprovide all the nutrition cats need, as long as the food meets the standards established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). The AAFCO label on a bag of cat food indicates that the food is nutritionally complete and balanced for the cats life stage.

The life stages include adult, kitten, pregnant and lactating females, and all life stages (any cat of any age).

Is Wet or Dry Food Better for Cats?

In theory, it shouldnt matter if a cat eatsdry foodorwet food, but each type has its benefits and drawbacks.

Also Read:The 11 Best Dry Cat Foods

Drycat food, also known asdrykibble, is a highly processed, shelf-stable food.Drycat foodis good for a long time (sometimes a year or longer) in the original sealed bag. Look for a best by or use by date on the bag to find out if an unopened bag is still fresh.

Once opened, its best to usedrycat foodwithin about six weeks. Although you might be tempted to transfer yourdrycat foodinto a plastic container, its best to keep it in theoriginal bag, which has a special liner designed to maximize the freshness of the food. Fold the top of the bag down all the way, squeezing out as much air as you can, and clip it closed, then store the bag in a cool, dry place.

Wetcat food, also known ascannedfood, is generally less processed thandrycat food, but also very shelf-stable. Unopened cans, trays, and pouches ofwetcat foodlast a long time, usually several years.

Also Read:The 10 Best Healthy Canned, Soft & Wet Cat Foods

As with dry food, look for a best by or use by date on the can, tray, or pouch to determine if unopened wet cat food is still good. Once opened, wet cat food is highly perishable. Wet food can be left out for only a few hours before it will spoil, and leftovers must be refrigerated. Use wet cat food within five to seven daysof opening it.

Dry Cat Food Pros and Cons

Dry cat food is convenient to store, easy to serve, and nutrient-dense.

On the flip side, compared withwetcat food,drycat foodis usually higher in carbohydrates and has less protein (especiallyanimal protein). Although cats can digest and absorb beneficial nutrients from carbohydrates, cats have no minimumnutritional requirementfor carbohydrates.

Cats areobligate carnivores, meaning that they requireanimal proteinin their diet. Wild cats eat very littlecarbs, if any, as their diet consists mainly of eating small prey animals.

These small prey animals have high amounts of protein and moderate amounts of fat.Drycat foodis a less natural type of diet for cats, although domestic cats have evolved to live and thrive ondrycat foods.

Although you may have heard thatdry foodis better for yourcats teethbecause it scrapes the teeth clean, this is generally untrue for several reasons. For example, thekibbleis so small that it crumbles easily in a cats mouth. Also, cats swallow rather than chew their food, so theyre not munching ondry food.

In general,drycat foodis no better for yourcats teeththanwet food, and it no more keeps acats teethclean than eating crackers or cereal would keep your teeth clean.

Read More:Best Dental Cat Treats

However, some dry cat foods have been specially developed to help remove tartar from a cats teeth. These specialdental healthfoods, which have received the seal of acceptance from the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC), include these listed here:

A big plus ofdry foodis that you can keep it out all day. This is great for cats that like to nibble throughout the day. However, cats dont exactly have a sense ofportion control, so free-choice feeding can easily add on extra pounds. Cats that are overweight should not have theirdry foodleft out all day.

DryCat FoodPros

• Affordable
• Longshelf life
• Convenient (easy to serve and can be left out)
• More energy-dense thanwet food
• Many cats love the crunch and taste

DryCat FoodCons

• Lowerwater contentthanwet food
• Contains less protein, especially animal protein, than most wet foods
• Contains more carbohydrates thanwet foods
• May be difficult for cats with dental issues or missing teeth
• Cats may overeat if the food stays in the bowl all day

Wet Cat Food Pros and Cons

Wet cat food offers many health benefits, including high water content and more protein than dry cat food.

Because of extra water content, wet food is great for cats that need to increase their water intake, such as cats with urinary tract disease like kidney disease, urinary crystals, or cystitis (inflammation of the bladder). Low-carbohydrate diets are sometimes recommended for diabetic cats, and wet cat food generally meets that requirement.

Wetcat foodalso contains more protein thandrycat food, especiallyanimal protein. Cats, beingobligate carnivores, are made to consume and digest high amounts ofanimal protein, moderate amounts of fat, and minimal amounts of carbohydrates.Wet foodchecks all of those boxes nicely.

Many cats love the taste of wet food, especially picky eaters and older cats. Older catswith dental problems benefit from the soft texture ofwet food.

One of the biggest disadvantages of wet cat food is cost. Even though wet cat foods high moisture content is a good thing, all that extra water weight makes the food less nutrient-dense. So, you have to buy and feed more wet food to make sure your cat gets all of the nutrients they need. Also, ounce for ounce, wet food costs more than dry food.

Another downside ofwet foodis that its quickly perishable. You have to pick up yourcats foodafter a few hours or it will spoil. This can be hard for cats that prefer to nibble throughout the day, especially if youre not home and cant feed three or four small meals a day.

Leftovers must be promptly refrigerated. When stored in the fridge in an airtight container, some commercial food companies state that opened canned food might last as long as five to seven days. However, its best to use up leftover wet food within 72 hours, so stay on top of whats left in the fridge. Marking the date on the can of food can help you do that.

WetCat FoodPros

• Higher water content than dry food
• More protein, especially animal protein, than most dry food
• Fewer carbohydrates than dry food
• Long shelf life when unopened
• Very good flavor
• Good for cats with dental issues or missing teeth

WetCat FoodCons

• Expensive
• Less energy-dense than dry food
• Quickly perishable once opened (must be refrigerated)

Mixing Wet and Dry Cat Food: The Best of Both Worlds

To avoid picky eating habits later in life, offer kittens both dry food and wet food.

If youre torn about whether to feed your catdry foodorwet food, consider offering both. You might serve one meal ofdry foodin the morning before you leave for work, then offerwet foodin the evening once you return home. Or, if your cat tends to eat her food all at once, mix the two types together. Any amount ofwet foodcan boost your cats overall diet with extra water and protein.

If you have a kitten, offer dry andwet foodearly on. Cats usually develop preferences for taste and texture early in kittenhood. If your kitten eats onlydry food, she might turn her nose up atwet foodin the future (and vice versa).

Also Read:The 8 Best Kitten Foods

For all cats, always offer plenty of fresh,clean water.

Ask your veterinarian for advice if you are still wondering about thebest foodfor your cat, especially if your cat has specifichealth issueslikekidney diseaseor diabetes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do cats need wet food every day?

Whether dry or wet, healthy cats get all the nutrients they need from any form of cat food, provided that the food has the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) label on it. This label indicates that the food is nutritionally complete and balanced for the cats life stage (the life stages include maintenance for an adult cat, kitten and pregnant/lactating females, or all life stages).

However, wet cat food does provide the benefits of extra water and protein in a cats diet, so it's beneficial to feed wet food every day if you can.

Can cats live on dry food only?

Yes, as long as the pet food is high-quality and is labeled complete and balanced according to AAFCO standards.

Should cats eat both wet and dry food?

Because there are pros and cons to both wet and dry cat food, feeding both types of food may offer the best of both worlds: the extra water and protein from the wet food and the convenience of dry food.

Is wet food bad for cats teeth?

The oft-told theory that dry food is better for a cats teeth than wet food is mostly untrue. Dry cat food cleans a cats teeth no better than crackers or cereal clean a humans teeth. Feeding a cat only wet food is not bad for the teeth. However, special dental diets that contain the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC) seal have been proven to support dental health and keep the teeth cleaner. All cats should have their teeth brushed daily, or at least several times a week, with a pet-safe toothpaste and cleaned professionally by the veterinarian at least once a year.