# Now! grain free senior cat food



## lmg_319 (Oct 4, 2010)

So as some of you may know Holden has weight issues. Vet said to limit his food intake but that was the only advice I got. I went to the store to get him some new food last night as I was running out and decided to try something different. Right now he is on CSFCLS light and Performatrin Ultra Slim Care. The guy at the pet store seemed pretty knowledgeable about cats and told me for overweight cats, grain free food is the best since it contains no fillers such as rice filled with carbs. He also said CSFCLS light (Holden's favorite) contains a lot of those fillers and a lot of carbs. The thing that worried me is the 14% fat, but he said that shouldn't be a problem if he was getting less carbs. What do you all think? I bought a sample bag so I'll see if he even likes it tonight, but I wanted to know if this sounds reasonable or if I should just stick to the lower fat foods he is on. I'm willing to try anything now since he is at 725 grams and still gaining.


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## silversheep (Jan 24, 2011)

I'm certainly not an authority on foods, but make sure the protein value is appropriate. When I first got Marcel I bought wellness core, because it was grain free but it turned out to be too high in protein.


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## lmg_319 (Oct 4, 2010)

silversheep said:


> I'm certainly not an authority on foods, but make sure the protein value is appropriate. When I first got Marcel I bought wellness core, because it was grain free but it turned out to be too high in protein.


Protein is 30%, fat 14% and fiber 5% so we're ok there


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

Do you live anywhere near a PetValu or PetPlanet? Or any specialty dog/catfood place? The big thing in foods now is grain-free...there were a gazillion choices at both of these places and all would fit the Protein/Fat/Fibre ratios for hedgies...an entire bloody store of them...I was there forever...

I am feeding Snarf NOW! Sr Weight Mng't, as well as Arcana Grasslands and Nutrience Duck, Fish & Brown Rice (they're both higher in fat -20%)...maybe there's something similar in a low-fat version?

The Acana is especially good (34/20/3%):
Lamb meal, sweet potato, de-boned lamb, peas, de-boned duck, fresh whole eggs, sun-cured alfalfa, sunflower oil (naturally preserved with vitamin E), fresh walleye, pumpkin, fresh Northern Lake Whitefish, red delicious apples, carrots, turnip greens, organic kelp, organic bladder wrack, organic dulse, juniper berries, cranberries, Saskatoon berries, blackcurrants, angelica root, chicory root, red clover, red raspberry leaf, dandelion root, peppermint leaf, marigold flowers, chamomile flowers, rosemary extract, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Enterococcus faecium. 

There's no crap in it!!! I balance the extra protein/fat with other foods that have less.

My point is: these stores had many, many chocies...terrific canned food, too! And the staff at both offered to get more samples in and order in what I wanted and said I could return anything - even if it's not going anywhere near a cat. :lol:


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

I don't understand this sales person's comment on Now being lower in carbs. Its not as high as some, but it doesn't look that much lower than CS lite to me.

To get a rough estimate on carbs, add the protein, fat, moisture, fiber & ash contents. Subtract that number from 100 and you have a rough percentage of carb in the diet. 

Chicken soup lite: 32% p, 9% f, 10% m, 8% fiber, unknown ash. You should be able to get this off of the bag, but I cannot find a published amount for it. However, the senior version is 6.5%, so lets use that for now. That's approximately 34.5% carb. 

Now! Weight management: 30% p, 14% f, 10% m, 5% fiber, 6.5% ash. Approximately 34.5% carb.

Below is some data I collected from various websites as I searched for foods that fit into the cancer diet/nutritional support plan for Rose. I'm pretty confident I have corrected any typos, but if you decide to change diet because of the numbers below, please double check by visiting the manufacturer's website. I do occasionally make typos. If you find a typo let me know and I'll update the listing. Evo data below is provided to show a true low carb food. Evo Weight Management is one of Evo's higher carb % foods, the regular version is like 8 or 9%.

Innova evo weight control..50% p...15% f...3910 kcal/kg...13% carb 
Katz-n-Floken................34% p...12% f...3455 kcal/kg...35% carb
By nature weight control....32% p...12% f...3242 kcal/kg...34% carb
Innova lite....................32% p...10% f...3387 kcal/kg...39% carb
Chicken Soup Lite............32% p...9%f....3225 kcal/kg....??% carb
BLUE Longevity Mature......32% p... 8% f...3228 kcal/kg...39% carb
Felidae Platinum.............30% p...14% f...3534 kcal/kg...33% carb
Now! Weight Manage........30%p...14% f...3800 kcal/kg...34.5% carb
Fromm mature gold..........30% p...10% f...3949 kcal/kg...40% carb
Blue Buffalo weight control..28% p...9% f...3185 kcal/kg...37.5% carb


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

I don't get the carbs connection either...too many calories = weight gain whether they're from broccoli, chicken fat or applesauce...unless i'm missing something about hedgie nutrition/metabolism???


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## lmg_319 (Oct 4, 2010)

That is why I asked and only bought a small bag. Thanks for the info.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

The two foods you are currently feeding are not that high in calories, compared to the rest of the list. Performatrin is 3380 kcal/kg. The protein and fat content are in appropriate ranges too.

Why does your vet think your hedgehog is fat? Can your hedgehog ball up completely with no skin poking out? Does your hedgehog have large fat pockets around his legs or looks like he has a hump on his back over his shoulders? 

If you think he is fat, try to encourage him to move around more. Put food in multiple places in his cage, so he has to explore to eat. Make him climb up your chest when he is out of his cage. 

I distrust many vet's opinions on healthy weight for a hedgehog. For example, Maui weighed 666g her entire adult life until she developed lymphoma. I had to use a different vet once because mine was on vacation and we had an eye emergency. The vet we visited told me Maui was grossly obese at that weight and needed be to under 500. Maui won a 3rd place ribbon in a large conformation class at that weight. You don't get ribbons when you are grossly obese. The only time that Maui weighed near what that vet wanted was the day she died. She had lost a huge amount of weight due to the lymphoma and was very thin looking.


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## lmg_319 (Oct 4, 2010)

Nancy has confirmed he is overweight. He is now at 725 grams. I have tried everything. I take him out every night and he walks around, he runs on his wheel and eats low fat food but he is still gaining. I even hide his food in his cage. He doesn't like any veggies, even after trying multiple times and hiding them all around his play area. He is getting rolls under his arms now. I really don't know what to do. He has gained 100 grams in 5 months and he is 1.5 years old.


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## alisonst (Jul 22, 2014)

I don't have any advice (I had a weirdly small male, only around 400g because he didn't have proper nutrition as a baby), but I just wanted to say that it's great your little guy got such a dedicated owner! Stick with it, I'm sure you'll figure it out together!


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